Opening a 2026 Topps Update Series Pack

2026 Topps Update Retail Jumbo Pack

So...

Update Series. 

As of right now, here is the total card count for what I've purchased:

• 531 cards from the nine blaster boxes
• 400 cards from the Jumbo box
• 396 cards from the eleven jumbo packs
• 72 cards from the retail box
• 24 cards from the two Hobby packs

That's 1423 cards.

And I have not opened a single box or pack yet.

Why?

Work is the number one reason. Then there were family parties, a belated Sweetest Day/Night dinner, another night out with my daughter and her husband. So...yeah...

But on Monday I had the day off, and as much as I wanted to just tear everything apart, I needed to update my Certified Pharmacy Technician License (due at the end of October...thanks Covid). To do this, I needed to take 10 classes, 20 credits. No problem. PowerPak has the classes, and it's a 30 minute read (if the jargon was a bit more challenging, 45 minutes) before taking a test to earn the credits. And you can even review the questions before taking the test. So I had done that...

Then the dentist appointment...

Then it was a conference call with the coordinators for the Chromosome 18 Registry and Research Society (one of the things that we became during the blog hiatus)...

And now it's Wednesday.

So why not open one now?

Here is the deep dive.

The first card in this pack (and my first card of Update Series) is of...

Sam Antonacci of the Chicago White Sox!!!

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 2026 Topps Update #US301.
• Player Name, position, team: Sam Antonacci, outfielder, Chicago White Sox.
• Major League Debut: April 15, 2026.
• Last Line of Statistics: 2025 stats (Minor League Statistics for ACL White Sox, Winston Salem, and Birmingham): 116 G, 406 AB, 78 R, 118 H, 21 2B, 6 3B, 5 HR, 57 RBI, 48 SB, 69 BB, .409 SLG .842 OPS .291 AVG.
• Any special information about player: Drafted by the White Sox in the #5th round, July, 2024 Bats: left. Throws: right.
• Number of regular Topps Cards (includes regular and traded cards only): 1. This is his first Topps card.
• Blurb on the back: "Having grown up three hours south of Rate Field in the Illinois capital of Springfield, Sam had extra excitement when he made his White Sox debut at home on April 15, 2026. Family and friends who made the drive got rewarded in the second inning, when Antonacci singled in his maiden at bat. He'd earned his call with a .445 OBP over three MiLB seasons."
• Commentary: And what a year Antonacci had for the Pale Hose. A .277 average with 8 home runs, 48 rbi's, 20 stolen bases, and a slash line of .370/.396/.766 (that's OBP/SLG/OPS). He was the team's primary left fielder this past season, and is part of a young core of players that should put the White Sox back to relevance after 3 previous seasons of 100-losses.
• Beckett value: n/a.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 2 cards.

The breakdown of the pack included:

• 31 base cards, including two more White Sox players, 1 Cub, 1 Cub combo card, a Payton Tolle Rookie Debut card and two other rookie debut cards
• 1 Topps Gold card (Peter Lambert #0524/2026)
• 1 Topps All-Star Game card (CJ Abrams of the Nationals)
• 1 Topps 1991 card (Mike Trout)
• 2 Stars of MLB cards (Ben Rice and Travis Bazzana)

It's an average pack of cards. No earth shattering "Hobby Rookie" darlings (at least not the Konnor Griffin or Kazuma Okamoto variety) but a good start for anyone who builds sets. The four insert cards reduces my wantlist, and...

What's this??!

Someone at the TCDB is sending me a trade request??! Okay, so it's for Stars of MLB. And I'll probably wind up getting these cards anyway in the packs.

But it's a five-for-five. I'm going to go for it. It's been a hot moment since I was at the post office anyway.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama