Am I excited that Series 2 is out? Absolutely.
Am I thrilled that there finally is an updated checklist? Yes!!!
Am I thrilled that Topps put back the HOF/legends SP's in series 2? You bet!!! (will get to this in a minute)
Have I gotten any cards yet? (sob) No, not yet.
Today would have been the perfect day to run to Target and grab a few packs, just so that I can at least join in the chase for that elusive #661 (the one that if I don't find, I'll wait patiently until factory sets arrive...I'm in no rush). But alas, bills had to be paid (groan), and with this weekend being my daughter's dance recital, any extra funds will be going to all that goes with her show (food, tickets, after-show parties...)
Yes, money is tight, but it doesn't mean I can't be excited about Series 2. If you didn't know by now, not including the Harper SP, there are 25 other short printed celebration/fun with mascots/pied-in-the-face cards that not only includes players whose regular cards are in series 2, but now also add onto the fun in series 1. To wit, Derek Jeter's #30 card now not only shows him in a vertical leap that we all know was chosen by that guy who caught the #3000th hit, but now shows him celebrating with his teammates (maybe it was because of said hit...who knows?) Also, the Rally Squirrel makes another appearance in Series 2, albeit as a stuffed animal instead of live rodent. Here are the rest of the cards, if you need to know received the treatment.
Series 1 SP's in Series 2 (how weird sounding is that??!)
- #30b Derek Jeter (celebrating with teammates)
- #80b David Price (celebrating with a trophy)
- #85b Jason Heyward (throwback jersey)
- #158b Josh Reddick (with the rookie cup, batting...so now you have two ASRT cards of Reddick to go with a third that doesn't)
- #207b J. P. Arencibia (with the rookie cup, fielding...so now you have two ASRT cards of Arencibia to go with a third that doesn't...repetitive isn't it...)
- #273b David Freese (celebrating with fans, holding a squirrel doll)
- #280b Ryan Howard (looking out towards the field at Citizens Bank Park)
- #330b Matt Kemp (showing off the Beast Mode t-shirt).
Had to look it up, but "Beast Mode," according to the Urban Dictionary is "A hype, energetic, outgoing, wilding out state of mind." If I had to fathom a guess, I would think that means when baseball players, and all athletes for that matter, push themselves further and harder during their workouts than normal, probably as their pre-season or regular season gets closer. Here are the pics:
On to Series 2 SP's in Series 2 (makes no sense, just typing that for consistency):
- #331c Albert Pujols (yes, "c", at press conference)
- #350b Evan Longoria (signing autographs)
- #398b Buster Posey (riding the trolleys in SF)
- #430b Felix Hernandez as Larry Bernandez (will explain this one in a minute)
- #462b Brett Lawrie Pie in the Face
- #497b Andrew McCutchen (wearing Homestead Grays...the Parrot makes another appearance)
- #537b Ichiro Suzuki (wearing his trademark shades)
- #540b Dustin Pedroia (with the US flag in the background as he's tossing the ball...Patriotic)
- #600b Clayton Kershaw (wearing Brooklyn Dodgers jersey)
- #639b Justin Verlander (holding two balls...commemorating his two no-hitters)
- #650b Prince Fielder (signing autographs)
- #660b Yu Darvish (throwing left handed, he apparently does this in practice...nothing new it seems)
- #661a Bryce Harper (yeah, we know all about this one...consider this one shortprinted in lesser quantities than the others...then again, a factory set card will come soon)
King Felix as Larry Bernandez is a tribute to the Mariners ever popular tickets commercials. The subplot is that the King wanted to pitch MORE than he would otherwise be allowed to do, so Larry Bernandez tried out for the team. The marketing stunt proved so successful, hence Bernandez' own bobblehead night.
Now, just like the series 1 variations, I'm not going to be running amok on the Bay looking for them. I'm more interested in these:
- #30c Joe DiMaggio
- #273b Stan Musial
- #330b Willie Mays
- #331d Babe Ruth (yes, now there's a fourth #331 card)
- #497b Roberto Clemente
Now that's more like it. Here are cards I'm going to put on my wantlist. With only 5 cards (the cream of the crop of HOF's no doubt), this should be an interesting set to go after (among other things).
I will wait patiently on the Bay hoping that master sets will come down in price after the hysteria. In the mean time, maybe I will run to Target and get at least a couple of packs to tide me over.
Who knows? I might actually get something good.
Sincerely,
JayBee Anama
3 comments:
HOLY CRAP those last 5 cards you posted are amazing. I must get that Dimaggio.
I like those cards, but I wish they'd make it an insert set, or find a better numbering system. When I come across some 2012 cards a few years from now, I'll have to search out a detailed checklist because, for example, the Jeter card looks pretty ordinary, but is an SP variation, and I won't remember that later on.
So glad to finally see they're doing legends variations for 2012. My question - why not the typical 50-60 instead of just FIVE? Better yet, why doesn't Topps at least issue nine cards so they can present well on a 9 card sleeve sheet? I just don't get why Topps doesn't work on the premise of issuing by multiples of 9 in order to have the collector put into 9-card sheets.
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