The Five-Box Group Break

I just watched this guy ground out to the pitcher in the ALDS.

2015 Topps Gypsy Queen #155 Troy Tulowitzki

That Tulowitzki card is one of several that I got in a long-ago group break that Nachos Grande ran. Rather than a full case of one product, I prefer a little variety, so when he decided to open five products, I was in for a $25 slot.

When this break happened in April/May, I sure as heck didn't expect to see Tulowitzki in the playoffs, let alone on the Toronto Blue Jays. But baseball is like that, reserve clause or no.

2015 Topps Gypsy Queen Mini #144 Justin Morneau

I've expressed admiration for this year's Gypsy Queen design. In fact, that was on the full-size version of this card. The onion dome means I'll actually be able to pinpoint this one once a few years have rolled by, even in miniature.

2015 Topps Gypsy Queen Basics of Base Ball Minis #BBMR-4 Head-First Slide

This insert mini doesn't have the base design, but it's an interesting card nonetheless. I think that's supposed to be Willie Mays, judging by those orange bands on the sleeves. However, I question whether a head-first slide is really a basic. The other cards in this set, sure, like how to steal, how to grip the bat, how to take a lead. We learned all that in little league. But we were explicitly instructed not to do a head-first slide, particularly not into first base. Eric Byrnes remembers that from the final out of the 2007 NLCS, I'm sure. Nor did we have any knuckleballers. But a three card set of hitting, fielding, and throwing wouldn't be much fun, would it?

2015 Diamond Kings #25 Charlie Blackmon

Panini has resurrected the Diamond Kings brand, and I have to say that I like it a lot more with a little gold foil and none of those mildly terrifying Dick Perez paintings featured on the 1980s-1990s Diamond Kings cards. It's also an unusual material; it feels like a thick, sharp-cornered playing card.

2015 Bowman Prospects #BP52 Jon Gray

Many players in the prospect-heavy Bowman sets never make the Majors, but Jon Gray has, and I've even seen him pitch in person. He faced Bartolo Colon that day, but the real star of that game was Yoenis Cespedes, who hit three home runs and had plenty of chances for a record-tying fourth. Cespedes hit a monster home run in the NLDS last night, swinging the bat as hard as I've ever seen anyone swing.

Gray has talent, but I'm still on the fence as to whether he'll live up to the hype, although the fact that the Rockies have a hyped pitching prospect in the first place is a positive development.

2015 Topps Opening Day #159A Justin Morneau

I got a couple base cards from 2015 Opening Day, which I think I already had. I have been buying a blaster or two of that product at Target each year, and ending up with most of the set. I was hoping for an insert or two, but I'll never turn down Rockies cards. It's still pretty striking how much the lack of foil in Flagship makes Opening Day look almost identical. If Topps continues with that, Opening Day might not remain in the market.

There was a fifth box opened, which was Topps Museum Collection, although I was shut out of that one. I'm OK with that, as I had awesome luck in Chris's previous break, snagging Tulo and a serial-numbered Willie Mays in a box of Topps High Tek.

2005 Topps Opening Day #102 Aaron Miles

The great thing about Chris's group breaks is that he always has a few extras lying around to sweeten the deal. The break was exclusively 2015 products, but Chris threw in some older cards for good measure. Hard to believe this Miles card is already ten years old. It was from a time when Opening Day products still had foil, and for a few years, I even liked them better than Flagship. This blue foil in the Opening Day product might look better than the gold of the base set.

1993 Bowman #339 Jim Tatum FOIL (RC)

I always liked these foil Rookie Cards from 1993 Bowman, even if the rainbow-ness of it doesn't actually show up in a scan. Jim Tatum is likely known only to the earliest die-hard Rockies fans, and he only slugged three home runs his entire career. But there are countless copies of his cards, simply because he played toward the tail end of the overproduction era.

1994 SP #164 Dante Bichette

There were a few years when Upper Deck really liked copper. Early SP sets used them quite a bit, then the base UD sets from 1994-1998 featured it in ever-increasing amounts. Even that MVP set in 2002 had it. I guess they left Pinnacle and Fleer to go nuts with the gold foil. Always trying to be different, those guys, right down to the gold hologram found on the back of SP cards.

Dante Bichette doesn't seem to mind, he'll just tighten up those purple batting gloves on the way to a .310-ish average with a smile on his face. And boy, did the guy like a two-strike count.

I appreciate that Chris runs these breaks, and sorry it took so long to get this post up. If it's any consolation, Chris has a new group break open right now for some great 2015 products, including Stadium Club! Go grab a $25 slot before they're gone!

The Trading Post #29: Highly Subjective and Completely Arbitrary

I had plans to watch the NCAA National Championship game tonight, but a trade package in my mailbox from Brian at Highly Subjective and Completely Arbitrary (which many bloggers are simply shortening to HSCA) superseded that plan. I do have the game streaming on my iPad mini off to the side of my desk, but a blog post seemed to be in order.

Brian commented on my 2015 Topps Heritage post just a few days ago, saying he had a Rockies team set reserved for me. We also exchanged emails that day, and he offered some 2015 Donruss and Opening Day as well. I have no idea how it got here so quickly. There was even a postal holiday in there! It's almost like using Amazon Prime.

2015 Donruss #83 Charlie Blackmon

Anyway, as promised, I got my first in-person look at 2015 Donruss tonight. It's not all that different from the 2014 set, as the colored banner of tiny baseballs simply runs top-to-bottom rather than side-to-side. However, they got rid of the script for the team name, and made the player's name much more prominent, while omitting the player's position. I like it a bit better, and don't think it deserves the derision it seems to earn in the blogosphere. Personally, the complete incomprehensibility of Bowman's set structure gets under my skin way more than a "meh" design.

2015 Donruss Stat Line Season #81 Troy Tulowitzki /340

And I like it even more when it's nice and shiny! Serial numbered cards are always appreciated (numbered to 340, the same as his average), and Panini's decision to reserve the foil treatment for parallels is more appropriate than what Topps has done in their flagship sets for almost two decades.

Tulowitzki drove in the first run of the Rockies' 2015 season today, as they routed the Brewers 10-0 to spoil the fun in Milwaukee. Tulowitzki had three hits, following up Carlos Gonzalez's 1st-inning double with a two-bagger of his own, well on his way to another solid batting average in 2015. Maybe the Badgers will win tonight and take some of the sting out of it for the Wisconsin fans.

2007 Topps Moments & Milestones Milestone Autographs #MA-GA Garrett Atkins (AU)

As small as my autograph collection is, it completely amazes me when I end up with a duplicate autograph card. You might remember this one from Moments and Milestones as the card I won at a monthly card show last year. His autograph looks pretty similar from card to card, although the one Brian sent was clearly signed when Atkins' Sharpie had a lot more life in it.

2015 Topps Opening Day #41 Carlos Gonzalez

He also included a couple cards from 2015 Opening Day. Carlos Gonzalez, who scored the first Rockies' run this year on Tulo's double, marks my second Rockie from this set. I pulled Tulowitzki's card from this weekend's Target blaster, so fortunately I didn't end up with a duplicate.

If not Tulo, then who was on the second Opening Day card?

2015 Topps Opening Day Mascots #M-10 Dinger

Dinger! And he's looking very patriotic in that American flag outfit.

Last year, I had to rely on some luck and a second blaster to get the Dinger mascot card. This year, thanks to the generosity of my trading partners, one showed up in my mailbox as if by magic.

In addition to the great cards above, the main attraction of this trade package was a complete Rockies team set from 2015 Topps Heritage, including the short prints of Tulowitzki, Gonzalez (really, Topps?), and Corey Dickerson.

2015 Topps Heritage #72 Nolan Arenado

Nolan Arenado is my favorite Rockie, and I fully intend to wear my #28 jersey to work on Friday in honor of the Rockies' home opener. No one bats an eye when the Broncos are playing on Monday Night Football and everyone is decked out in orange, so a white jersey with pinstripes shouldn't be too big a deal.

2015 Topps Heritage #239 LaTroy Hawkins

Rockies closer LaTroy Hawkins looks rather more perplexed by a baseball than you'd expect from a 20-season veteran. Maybe that's why I'm not so wild about this year's heritage set. The photography is just...odd.

2015 Topps Heritage #93 Wilin Rosario

See? They likely used a short focal length lens to shoot this one, which gives you all sorts of distortion when you're up close for a portrait. At least it's a pretty good image of the logo on the bat knob. Can you imagine if the 1989 Fleer Billy Ripken card were photographed like this? Maybe then it would have caught someone's eye before it went to print.

But smack in the middle of that Heritage team set was an unexpected card.

1991 Stadium Club #463 Tim Wallach

At first, I wasn't sure why this was in here. My initial thought was that Brian intended it for the blogger who is trying to collect all the Tim Wallach cards. Literally, all the Tim Wallach cards. Maybe it snuck (yes, it's a word) into the wrong pile. But suddenly, it clicked.

It's an Eight Men Out card!

With the addition of this Tim Wallach, I'm only one single card short of completing Series 2 of 1991 Stadium Club! I believe that was the first set to include gold foil, and it was super premium stuff in 1991.

Brian's really an awesome trader. I have two older envelopes from him that I haven't blogged about yet. One contains the Rockies from his recent late-'90s group break, and the other includes lots of assorted Rockies that I need to take another look at. I still owe him cards in return for my share of the group break, but I'm afraid I won't be able to get them to Brian with the same lightning speed this shipment had.

Thanks to the generosity of Brian and others in this community, checking my mailbox these past several months has been a lot more fun!

And I won't complain at all that the Rockies haven't yet given up a run this season.

Opening Day is Here!

As I begin this post, the first pitch of the 2015 season is imminent! The Cubs are hosting the Cardinals at a recently renovated Wrigley Field in an NL Central showdown. In fact, the pennant race could be beginning already, if the buzz about the Cubs holds true this year.

As spring training was getting underway a few weeks ago, I wrote a post about the 2013 Opening Day set, so the first game of the regular season is the perfect occasion to show off some cards from a $10 blaster of 2015 Opening Day that I picked up at Target just 24 hours ago.

2015 Topps Opening Day #25 Jorge Soler (RC)

One of the Cubs' most promising young stars is Jorge Soler, who also happens to be a member of my fantasy baseball team, the Lucky Numbers. I got a look at Soler last August when the Cubbies visited Denver, and he is an exciting player to watch, especially at the plate. If this finally is the year, Soler is certain to be a reason for it.

2015 Topps Opening Day #66 Andrew McCutchen

The Cubs won't be the only team in the hunt for first place in the NL Central. McCutchen, one of baseball's elite hitters, will seek to lead the Pirates to another playoff spot. As the anchor hitter of my fantasy team, I'll be hoping for another MVP year like he had in 2013.

2015 Topps has earned much praise, and the same ripple and stucco design carries over to Opening Day, along with a good deal of interesting photography. The only differences are a printed Topps logo instead of foil, plus the patriotic-looking Opening Day banner. Most of the photos are the same as in the base set, although I have seen a few cards with different images, or at least different crops.

I haven't seen much of the 2015 base set in person this year other than the value pack I bought during release week, so lots of these photographs are new to me. I did recognize Tulowitzki's card in this blaster, as well as Hunter Pence's, and a few others from the blogs.

2015 Topps Opening Day #35 Travis d'Arnaud

2015 Topps Opening Day #2 Curtis Granderson

These two Mets were back-to-back in one of the eleven packs. I don't know how often the Mets wear these desert digital camo uniforms, but they appear to be in different stadiums, so these must be from different games. d'Arnaud had a pretty good rookie year last season, and he was awarded the Topps Rookie Cup on his 2015 card, a logo which has been a mainstay of Topps sets for decades with only brief gaps.

2015 Topps Opening Day Blue Foil #23 Greg Holland

I did pull a few Blue Foil parallels, which are a bit different this year. First of all, they aren't serial numbered anymore, which is a bit of a disappointment, and the actual date of Opening Day isn't listed in silver foil. That's too bad, as it would be cool to have a few cards with my dad's birthday printed on them. Holland's base card also made an appearance in this blaster, so other than the /1 parallels, I have the rainbow of Greg Holland's 2015 Opening Day cards!

That's a relief.

Pun not intended.

As I've stated many times, my favorite aspect of the Opening Day brand is the inserts, and this year's crop did not disappoint. Many of my longtime favorites made a reappearance, and Topps gave us a few pretty solid new insert sets.

2015 Topps Opening Day Stars #ODS-20 Joe Mauer

"Opening Day Stars" returns with the 3D effect from its lenticular printing, and this Joe Mauer card was the only one in the 77-card stack (including an undifferentiated bonus pack!). I've kept an eye on Mauer in recent years, as the Rockies seem to have an interest in Aging Twins Stars. They've brought over Michael Cuddyer and Justin Morneau, so it seems like Mauer can't be far behind.

2015 Topps Opening Day Superstar Celebrations #SC-07 Jordan Zimmermann

"Superstar Celebrations" makes a comeback in 2015 as well. Commemorating Zimmermann's no-hitter at the end of the 2014 season, this card wouldn't be out of place in the "Ballpark Fun" insert set of 2013. There were lots of post-game antics in that one.

2015 Topps Opening Day Hit the Dirt #HTD-03 Billy Hamilton

In addition to the old veteran sets, there are plenty of new ones this year, such as "Hit The Dirt", which features lots of gutsy baserunning. It's a lot like the "Sliding Stars" set from Gypsy Queen, and is a good showcase of speed, which again has become a more important aspect of baseball now that the steroid era has passed. A guy like Dee Gordon can be a lot more valuable if all the guys surrounding him in the lineup aren't hitting 40+ home runs per season.

2015 Topps Opening Day Stadium Scenes #STA-CP Cameron Payne

Topps has been embracing social media quite a bit recently. and that's reflected in the "Stadium Scenes" set. All its photos were shot by fans and then submitted online to Topps. This allows a real fan's perspective to appear on cards, which is unusual. I like the concept; it's a chance for a fan to be immortalized on cardboard, and documents how a fan actually sees the game, rather than someone with a press pass.

Angel Stadium of Anaheim, home of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, is the only Major League park I've been to outside of Denver. You can't see them on this card, but flanking this entrance are two giant metal baseball caps. I snapped a picture or two myself when I was there to see the Angels host the Yankees (in Anaheim, yes), and here's what those caps look like.

2015 Topps Opening Day Franchise Flashbacks #FF-08 Julio Teheran

"Franchise Flashbacks" might be the best new insert set for 2015, especially if you're a fan of throwback uniforms. There aren't many Rockies to be found in any of these sets, but the Rockies have done minimal changes to their logo and uniforms in their 22-year history (has it really been that long?).

Braves pitcher Julio Teheran appears on this card in an Atlanta Black Crackers uniform, a team that played in various Negro Leagues for a few decades in the first half of the 20th century. Nick at Dime Boxes is such a fan of this 20-card set that he bought the whole thing in one fell swoop, dubbing it the "Insert Set of the Year". I am not at all surprised that such an appellation would be awarded to an Opening Day release.

I've written this whole post without a single mention of my favorite insert set from Opening Day, which means that it's time for...

2015 Topps Opening Day Mascots #M-02 Atlanta Braves

Mascots!

I think the Braves could do way better than this. Their unnamed mascot is a blatant rip-off of Mr. Met, as the back of this card fully acknowledges. Short of calling him "Mr. Brave," I'm not sure what else can be done with a mascot wearing a Braves uniform and a baseball for a head. It's Georgia; at least make it a peach or something.

2015 Topps Opening Day Mascots #M-12 Billy the Marlin

Miami does a better job, as their mascot is simply a marlin. It's a type of billfish, which is where Billy the Marlin gets its name. With those wild eyes and gaping mouth, this mascot looks really excited to be cheering for the Marlins. I can't quite tell for sure, but that might be a Rockies catcher behind the plate in that photo. Colorado visited Miami for their first four games last year, so if this was actually taken on Opening Day, then that's Wilin Rosario with a cameo appearance in the Mascots set.

It seems like the Rockies begin most of their seasons on the road, and that'll hold true this year as well. At noon tomorrow (mountain time), they'll send a man to the plate in Miller Park, home of the Brewers. By then, the Brewers will know who they're chasing for the division lead. Unless the Cubs step it way up tonight (they're down 3-0 as I write this), then St. Louis will be the first team to 1-0 atop the NL Central.