Random Steeler Monday - Happy Memorial Day

If there is any hope of pulling out a decent year, most of it rests in the hands of this guy.  Rashard Mendenhall is coming into his third season as a Steeler but his first as the full-time starter.  He has big shoes to fill with the departure of Willie Parker and the tradition the Steelers have had in the running game.

After losing out on his rookie season due to a devastating hit by Ray Lewis in his first game as a Steeler, Rashard was on a mission to prove he wasn't as soft as people were labeling him.  Last year, Mendy was able to pull of 1,100 yards and 7 touchdowns and half those yards were after contact.  Mendenhall averaged 4.6 yards per carry last year and 3 yards per carry after contact.  That was better than Ray Rice.  Kirby Wilson, the Steelers running backs coach said of Mendy,  

"He's got tremendous lower-body strength. There's a lot of times when people don't recognize his ability to run through arm tackles and first contact. Very seldom does the first tackler or first hitter ever get him down.  Those are the hidden runs that add up over the course of the year."

On the plus side for Mendenhall, he is not only fast, he is quick.  I know it seems there is no difference but there is.  You can be fast in the flat running along the sideline to the endzone, but quickness is something that gets you to those holes and springs you for those big runs.  He can run inside, outside, off-tackle, and runs some of the best misdirections I have ever seen (well maybe not the caliber of Emmitt or Barry but he is getting there). 

All of these things combined are going to have to carry a lot of the burden in this offense this year, especially in the first four games.  I think (hope) he is up for the task.

Box Break - - 2008 Topps Baseball Series 2

So in effort to stop buying stuff I don't need, I decided to pick up a box on clearance at Meijer for $24 bucks.  It was labeled as a "Hobby" box with a nice shiny sticker on the front.  I usually assume that anything in a retail store that says hobby is probably lying but for $24 how can you go wrong?  The other giveaway was the fact that I have seen the hobby version and it has an "H" stamped on it and features Big Albert in a stadium, up to bat.  This box was all green with a cropped image of Pujols batting.

The box I am speaking of, by the way, is a 2008 Topps Baseball Series II box.  There are 36 packs with 12 cards per pack (for those of you unable to do math, that's...um...carry the 2...432 cards).  That comes out to roughly 5 1/2 cents per card.  Not bad for a hobby box.  Hell, that's not bad for any box these days.  Most cards fall at half as many per pack for three to four times as much (if not more).  So as I said, how could I resist. 

With 432 cards in the box, there was a good chance at pulling the entire set which features cards from 331-660 (330 cards).  Even if there were 1 insert per pack, that would still leave room for the whole set plus a few extra.  Should we take some bets as to whether or not my box fell that way?  I ended up with 81 doubles, no triples.  That leaves me with 351 chances at finishing a base set.

Speaking of the base set, the cards look exactly like the Series I cards.  They have the white border surrounding a full color action shot of the player.  The team name is framed in a colorful balloon pattern at the top with the Topps logo directly beneath.  They also feature a facsimile signature of the player in the photo.  This is the closest thing you get to an "on-card" autograph in a Topps product, it seems.

Let's see what I pulled...

36 packs/box
12 cards/pack
432 total cards/81 doubles/0 triples
318 base cards (missing 12)
31 inserts: (7) 50th Anniversary All-Star Rookie Team, (2) Mickey Mantle cards, (7) Year In Review, (6) Topps Stars, (6) Presidential Campaigns, (2) Topps Gold
1 Certified Auto
1 Weird Card that I have no idea what it is or why it was in the box

I am going to take the lazy man's way out of this and just post the hits.  You have all seen the base cards before and they have been reviewed out there up one side and down the other.  I figured it would just be easier to scan the inserts in case there is anyone out there that might need something.

 There is also an Adam Dunn that isn't in the picture.

I do not like these, Sam I am.

These cards are kind of nice but I think Topps overdid them a bit.  They should have made the sets smaller, serial numbered them and made them actually look like real Topps cards.  But what do I know?  I'm a hockey collector getting caught up in things I don't understand.

Here are the Topps Stars cards.  These, I like.  They remind me of Topps Finest sets or the old Black Gold sets only shinier.  I also got 2 Topps Gold cards here; Alex Gonzalez and Nick Markakis.

There is also an Ibanez that isn't in the picture.

Here is the one "hit" that was in the box.  A Ryan Roberts autograph.  I will admit, I have no idea who this is.  All I know is he plays for the BJ's and has a pretty wicked tattoo on his neck.  That had to hurt.

I do want to ask everyone out there if they have ever seen this card?

 

I am assuming it is one of the Short Prints that I have seen Topps including in their sets (like the "pie in the face" cards) but I have no idea.  It is a Kosuke Fukudome card.  It isn't numbered but instead has a small symbol that looks like the World Championship logo where the number should be.  Instead of the Cubs as the team it says Japan.   I have found ones on Ebay that say "Preview" card but they all have the World Championship logo stamped on the front.  This one doesn't.  Take a look.


Any input would be appreciated.

I am 12 cards short here.  I need  331, 335, 355, 369, 385,  416, 421, 508, 524, 532, 581, 618.  If anyone has them, I would be interested in trading.  I have 81 doubles and most if not all of the inserts are for trade.

Box Break - - 2009-10 Upper Deck Ice

Each and every year (up till now) I have always tried to pick up at least one box of SP, SPx, and UD Ice.  This year was no different.  I stopped in to my LCS the other day and what do I see on the shelf but 4 shiny new boxes of 2009-10 Upper Deck Ice.  Now, I will admit, I haven't read or seen much about these yet this year but they have become a staple of my collection since returning to the hobby full time a few years ago.  Could I have paid less for this?  Yes.  But what would the fun be in that.

I can't say that I have ever been blessed by the extreme short prints or the highly sought after rookies in any of these boxes I have bought.  In fact, except for a year or two of actually pulling the base set in one box, I really hadn't had much to cheer about.  Don't get me wrong, I do like the card design.  Last years and this years both offer a raised textured feel that is like rink ice after a full period of hard nosed hockey.  I also like the Ice Premieres Rookie cards and their acetate surface as well as 4 tiered serial numbering.  The GU swatch and patch cards have always been traditionally larger than the standard releases as well.


So let's see what we should find in here:


Guarantees:
4 Rookie Cards/Box
1 Signature Card/Box
2 Memorabilia Cards/Box


As I mentioned, the rookie cards are tiered in four serial numbered categories.  Tier 1 is out of 99 and those fall about 1 per case.  Tier 2 is numbered out of 499.  Tier 3 is out of 999.  Tier 4 is out of 1999.  The Glacial Graphs and Rinkside Signings are always nice looking and are usually on-card which is great.  These fall about 1 per case.  There are also Frozen Foursomes which feature, yes, you guess it, four swatches of players.  These are numbered out of 5.

There are various other inserts and auto/swatch parallels featuring some of this years rookie class and stars of yesterday and today.  So without further adieu, I give you my box break.

2009-10 Upper Deck Ice

5 cards/pack

20 packs/box

So even I can do the basic math to figure out there should be 100 cards in here.  My box actually yielded 102 cards.  Here are some of the base card designs...

As you can probably tell, I stole this shot from the Bay because I was too lazy to scan any of the base cards.  They are very colorful and have patterns that match the uniforms of each player.  They also have that traditional Ice textured pattern as I mentioned earlier.  I ended up with no doubles and 6 cards shy of a 100 card base set.  Not bad for one box but a 6 card pack instead of 5 could have prevented that.

The see-thru Ice Premieres Acetate cards fell like this...

Matt Climie 448/1999 Tier 4

Davis Drewiske 1348/1999 Tier 4

Matt Pelech 702/999 Tier 3

Ilkka Pikkarainen 1100/1999 Tier 4

Luca Caputi 462/499 Tier 2

At 4 per box, I pulled an extra one.  That explains the 102 cards, well at least one of them anyway.  I was happy about the Caputi but then I remembered that awesome trade that sent him to Toronto for Ponikarovsky (hind-sight is always 20/20).  It is a nice card nonetheless and will fit right into my Penguin collection.

The Memorabilia cards were:

Ryan Getzlaf Frozen Fabrics

Drew Doughty Fresh Threads

Not a bad selection for the 2 GU cards.  It could have been much, much worse based on the checklist.  I was glad the Getzlaf was not a white swatch.  I already have one of his with a white jersey.  It would have been nice to get a purple swatch on the Doughty instead of black, though.

And last but not least, the 1 signature card per box that I pulled.  I was saving the best for last because I really have nothing to say about this card.  I checked the list of signature cards available in the set and I had some high hopes for what could have come out of here.  Instead...I end up with this abortion of a card:

I never laughed so hard about pulling a card in my entire life.  Everyone in the shop was shocked that this was even included in there since most people assumed these were only in Series II.  The shop owner was kind of upset too because obviously pulling something good in his shop leads to repeat buys.  The other hockey guy that was in there at the time backed off one of the other boxes after he saw this.   I just can't believe Upper Deck decided to throw these throughout their entire line of products.  And then, they have the audacity to count them as the projected hits.  I'm sorry to all the figure skating fans out there but this is completely uncalled for.  Good thing I have a sense of humor.

So I am about 90% sure that this will be the last box of Ice I ever purchase.  Ever.  EVER!

If anyone has any of the base cards I need, hit me up.  They are listed on my set needs page.

(Almost) Box Break - - 2009-10 In The Game Between The Pipes

Okay, so as I go into my LCS one fine day, I notice the Between the Pipes on the shelf and had to have it.  I love the ITG releases and this was the next one that I had yet to bust.  But where were the boxes?

The day before, another hockey collector bought two boxes and the last one was opened to sell packs.  I was mortified.  How could they not save one for me?  Was I not worthy?  Actually I hadn't been in to the shop in almost a month so I didn't expect there to be much.  So upon checking the box, I realized there were 11 of the 18 packs left so I snatched them up.

I am not going to do a traditional review here because it's been done a ton for this set.  You can check out some other reviews and product images over here...

or here...

or here...

Since I didn't open a full box and only had 11 packs, I wasn't sure that I would pull any of the potential 8 hits that could have been in the box.  So after sitting down at the "trading table" in the shop, I began my busting journey.  For the sake of drooling over all of what I pulled, let me just show the two that I was quite happy with.

Three packs in and out popped this:

2009-10 ITG Between The Pipes Greats of the Game Goaliegraph Ed Johnston

This is definitely a keeper.  I almost jumped out of my chair when I saw this one.  I know it's a Bruins card but Ed Johnston is part of the architectural team that helped build the Penguins franchise.  He was the GM when Mario Lemieux was drafted in the first round back in 1984.  He is also one of the reasons the Pens were able to get Ron Francis and Ulf Samuellson although he was on the other side of the fence as a GM for the Whalers (he also gets blamed for them moving to Carolina but that's another story).  Ed has been with the Pens off and on since 1983, 24 years in fact.  Although he wasn't with the teams for their cup years in 91 and 92, he finally had his name put on the cup in 2009 as he is the Senior Advisor for Hockey Operations.

Two packs later, we get this:

2009-10 ITG Between The Pipes Origins Gerry Cheevers Goalie Pad

This is the first memorabilia card that I have ever pulled that wasn't a jersey or patch.  This is a piece of the leg blocker pad (no, I don't know which leg).  I do have one stick card of Bill Guerin but I purchased that and didn't pull it from a pack.  Of course, I was excited to see this.  The card looks amazing in my opinion.  The scan doesn't do it justice (that is so cliche'd but true).  The design is so simple yet very impactful, using the grey and yellow hues on the background tie the before and after shots together nicely.  I have to say that I could have pulled a better card for my PC but this one is still sweet.  I haven't decided if it is going to have a permanent home in my collection yet or not so if anyone might be interested and willing to trade for something similar that would fit better in my Pittsburgh collection, I'm all ears.

Also, I plan on trying to put at least the base set of this together so if you may have doubles or ones that you don't need, I'm listening.

Some Cool Pickups from Sports Card Kids

I can't say that I remember exactly who turned me onto this site or not.  If it was you, then I say thank you.  For those of you that don't know, Sports Card Kids is fairly new to the online card retail world, having gone live back in December of 2009.  What I like the most about thier site is the fact that it is a completely different kind of online retailer.

To quote their own site, the are "dedicated to bringing the fun back to the hobby that we all love."  What's not to love about that statement?  What originally drew my attention was the fact that they offer collectors lots of entertaining contests and drawings that feature loads of prizes.  Each month (sometimes more than once) there are image scramble contests, pack guessing contests, and random drawings based on purchases.  Since entering these contests, I think I have won a half dozen or so free cards and various packs that have yielded some nice additions to my collection.

While certainly not the biggest dealer online, they do maintain an inventory well over 10,000 singles in each sport, including the big four as well as NASCAR, wrestling, and MMA.  They don't have wax which is a little disappointing but I am usually only looking for singles when I shop online anyway.  I will admit, you can probably find better prices for some of what they offer but I think the idea here is to create the card shop atmosphere in a cyber-universe.  The games are entertaining and sometimes challenging and the interactivity of the site is great.  I am more than willing to spend a little extra when I feel I am getting more back.  Plus, thus far, the customer service has been unflappable.   

So the other day, I finally decided to test the waters on a purchase and pick up a few diamonds in the rough.  I thought I would share a few.

2008 Mayo Regular Mini and "Yale" Back Mini Lamarr Woodley

(for my Steeler's PC)

2005-06 Beehive Matted Matrials Ryan Miller Jersey

2008 Donruss Americana Sports Legends Pierre Pilote Jersey

2008 Donruss Americana Sports Legends Autograph Alex Delvecchio

(It's a sticker auto but who cares.  It's a HOFer)

 

UD Game Jersey Dave "Tiger" Williams

(I don't remember what year this is because most of them look the same.  This has to be either a piece of a Leaf jersey or possibly part of a Hartford jersey.  The Canucks didn't get their blue in their jersey's until way after Tiger retired.  I don't know, it's a mystery.)

2007 Allen & Ginter Jersey Relic Adam LaRoche

(for my ever expanding Pirates PC)

2009 Bowman White Parallel Lamarr Woodley

(Again, for my Steeler's PC but I almost have the rainbow of these now.  I think I am missing two.)

I also picked up a few more serial numbered Pirates, the Lemieux I posted about in my Random Penguin Card this week, and a Max Talbot Parkhurst Rookie.  All this was less than $20 with shipping included.  I priced the same (well mostly the same) cards on COMC and they were over $30 without the shipping.  I didn't look at Sportlots because, quite frankly, I find it annoying to try and navigate and the fact that you can only search by three years at a time is irritating.  So I would recommend this to anyone looking for singles.  If not for purchasing, definitely check out the contests.

Well Thought Out Yet Completely Random Penguin Card of the Week

2008-09 O-Pee-Chee Retro Mario Lemieux

So it is pretty easy to throw up a Mario Lemieux card and call it quits.  Most of his stuff speaks for itself as it should.  But this one is different.  There are a lot of posts about cards that never were.  This one is like a fantasy card that actually came true, but many years after the fact.

The Retro parallel set in 2008-09 OPC is designed exactly after the 1979-80 set.  Yes, the same set the featured the rookie card of the top player of the last 30 years that finishes ahead of Super Mario in many categories.  The Wayne Gretzky rookie is one of the most sought after cards in the hockey card world, especially in decent condition.  Graded version of it sell in the thousands of dollars and I would be happy with even a "3" just to say I own one.

But, alas, I don't.  Instead, I have my favorite player of all time in a mock up of one of the best hockey sets.  This is what it might have looked like, had he actually been a rookie in the 1978-79 season.  Although we would have to change the uniform to the white, tri-colored collar, with the Columbian and navy blue and black accent stripes.  1980 was the first year for the Black & Gold but this would be a shot from 78-79.  And the logo would have to go back to the skating penguin over the triangle instead of that "corporate created" crap they had after the cups.

As for the card design, I think Upper Deck did a great job with this Retro set by duplicating the back and front of the cards almost perfectly.  This would be an awesome set to chase if not for the fact that it is near 500 cards.  But with this addition to my collection, I now have all the Pens retro base parallels (I said base because there is a Rainbow version as well).