Card of the Day: Shohei Ohtani 2018 Topps Heritage Real One Red Ink Auto

Oakland A’s ’19 Topps Tier One Auto Contest Winner Announced

Congrats to Alec Petrelak on being the lucky winner of the Franklin Barreto 2019 Topps Tier One Talent Auto #’ed/299.  Once Alec Petrelak sends me their mailing address, I will ship this card ASAP.  Thanks!

Oakland A’s ’19 Topps Tier One Auto Contest! – NOW CLOSED

This contest is for a Franklin Barreto 2019 Topps Tier One Talent Auto #’ed/299.  Good luck!!!

Contest Details:

• This contest will end Friday, May 31, 2019 @ 8:00 p.m. EST.
• To enter, please leave a comment in this post.
• You can enter once per day.
• The winner will be selected at random.
• Please provide a valid e-mail address when entering.
• The winner will receive an e-mail when the contest is over.
• The winner has one week to send me their contact information or the contest will be held again.
• Once the contest is over, I will need the winner’s mailing address so I can ship them this card for FREE!!!

2019 Topps Tier One Baseball Box Break & Review

Why mess with a winning formula?  Topps Tier One has and probably always will be a quick-thrill break.  Some people enjoy ripping pack after pack, while others want to go straight to the hits.  Trust me.  This one goes right to the good stuff.

Packaged inside every box is one pack.  Inside that pack you should find three cards – (2) autographs, and (1) relic.  I’ve noticed that some breakers have been known to get lucky and pull an additional fourth hit.  Its not something that happens all of the time, but a possibility.

The major elements that draw collectors to this brand so much are the vast majority of on-card autographs and jumbo patches.  To be fair, there are some sticker signatures in here like when it comes to the Autographed Tier One Relics.  But for the most part, on-card autographs are what you’re going to pull.

Cards that you can find include Tier One Autographs, Break Out Autographs, Mystery Break Out Autographs Redemption, Clear One Autographs, Clear One Dual Autographs, Prime Performers Autographs, Tier One Talent Autographs, Dual Autographs, Triple Autographs, Cut Signatures, Autographed Tier One Relics, Dual Autographed Tier One Relic Books, Autographed Prodigious Patches, Autographed Tier One All-Star Patches, Autographed Tier One Bat Knobs, Autographed Tier One Limited Lumber, Autographed Tier One Uniform Button Relics, Signature Tools Autographs Relics, Cut Signature Relics, Tier One Relics, Tier One Legends Relics, Prodigious Patches, Tier One All-Star Patches, Tier One Bat Knobs, Tier One Limited Lumber, and Tier One Uniform Button Relics.

As a Phillies fan, I’d like to see the Chase Utley Bat Knob Relic.  Those Bat Knob and Limited Lumber bat barrel cards have always been eye catchers.  Phillies outfielder Odubel Herrera has a nice big signature that stands out on these cards too.

Making your money back and/or striking it rich should never be your #1 goal when opening modern day boxes of cards.  Have fun!  If a box is too expensive, pickup some singles for your collection.

Complete Checklist

Here is what I pulled:

Autos

• Andruw Jones Tier One Talent Auto #’ed/299
• Franklin Barreto Tier One Talent Auto #’ed/299

Relic

• Alex Rodriguez Tier One Legends Relic #’ed/175

Three Bryce Harper Pins For The Price Of One – Nobody Pays Attention!

In March I ordered a Bryce Harper Philadelphia Phillies jersey pin for my collection.  It came from the official Phillies shop, and looked just like this on the item page.

When the pin arrived, something was missing.  No facsimile signature.  I thought to myself, no big deal.  Perhaps between the time I ordered it and the time it shipped they decided not to include the facsimile signature.  The image on the item page was a mock-up anyway, and not an actual image of a pin.

But then I saw this pin popup on eBay.  Its one with a facsimile signature.

I contacted the Fanatics Phillies shop.  Within the chat window I questioned as to what happened to the advertised pin with the facsimile signature.  Why would you advertise a pin with the facsimile signature, and then send one without it?  Clearly they have pins containing the signature.  Without any response I was quickly cut-off from chatting with the customer service representative.

A few moments later, I received an e-mail from them saying they plan to fix my order.  After a couple of days, look what showed up.  A fixed order in my book would mean receiving a pin with the facsimile signature.  Instead, they sent the same exact pin.  No signature.

My next move was to contact the pin’s manufacturer – WinCraft.  On the WinCraft website they show the pin with the facsimile signature just like the Fanatics Phillies shop.  In fact, it’s item #94232019.

In talking with their customer service representative I was told they were going to send me a new pin.  I had a good feeling about this one.  But then the package arrived and it turned out to be the same pin again.

On the bright side I ended up with three pins for the price of one.  That wasn’t really my goal.  Why did they make two versions of this pin?  How and where do you get the pin with the facsimile signature?  Even though the pin with the facsimile signature is advertised, it certainly isn’t the one you get.  The Fanatics Phillies shop no longer has them listed for sale.  Nobody seems to be paying any attention!!!

My best guess is that the pin containing the facsimile signature was made only available in-person somewhere like Citizens Bank Park.  They just chose to use the same image for online sales.  A little misleading if you ask me.

How To Take The Topps RBI Baseball 19 Cards One Step Further

Gamers heading to Walmart planning to pickup a copy of RBI Baseball 19 have the opportunity to score an exclusive set of Topps baseball cards.  Specially marked copies of the game will contain an entire 7-card set.  The cards have been printed using the 2019 Topps Baseball flagship design, and also feature the RBI Baseball 19 logo.  Players in the set include:

• Justin Turner, Los Angeles Dodgers
• Gleyber Torres, New York Yankees
• Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Toronto Blue Jays
• Jack Flaherty, St. Louis Cardinals
• Khris Davis, Oakland Athletics
• Alex Bregman, Houston Astros
• Ronald Acuña Jr., Atlanta Braves

XBOX One and Nintendo Switch copies will have a special label on the outside indicating whether or not the set is inside.  No label means no cards.  You better get your hands on them while supplies last.  Not every copy has the set.

How about we take this idea of baseball cards and video games one step further?  Lets say you’re playing RBI Baseball 19 and you get a big hit or make an incredible play.  I’d like to see the gamer be able to capture a screenshot of that play, export the image to Topps, and have them make it into a card.  Who knows?  Maybe even autographed versions could be made.

Topps is constantly looking for ways to attract new collectors.  During their recent Industry Summit in Scottsdale, AZ they announced an interesting statistic.  According to Topps, 93.4% of MLB fans are not collecting cards.  They would really like to change that.  In order for that change to happen, you have to see how MLB fans are enjoying the sport.  If not through cards, then what?

Video games are very popular.  MLB fans spend countless hours playing them.  Its a large source of enjoyment.  In an age where everything is about the individual (nonstop Facebook updates, selfies, etc…) being able to own a physical baseball card containing an image of a play I made would be quite innovative.  Not to mention cater to that “look at me” mentality of the world today.

’18 Topps Heritage MiLB Real One Auto Contest Winner Announced

Congrats to Todd Kirk on being the lucky winner of the Drew Ellis 2018 Topps Heritage Minor League Baseball Real One Auto.  Once Todd Kirk sends me his mailing address, I will ship this card ASAP.  Thanks!

’18 Topps Heritage MiLB Real One Auto Contest! – NOW CLOSED

This contest is for a Drew Ellis 2018 Topps Heritage Minor League Baseball Real One Auto.  Good luck!!!

Contest Details:

• This contest will end Friday, November 16, 2018 @ 8:00 p.m. EST.
• To enter, please leave a comment in this post.
• You can enter once per day.
• The winner will be selected at random.
• Please provide a valid e-mail address when entering.
• The winner will receive an e-mail when the contest is over.
• The winner has one week to send me their contact information or the contest will be held again.
• Once the contest is over, I will need the winner’s mailing address so I can ship them this card for FREE!!!

Upper Deck Shows Off Gritty’s Rookie Card

The Philadelphia Flyers mascot Gritty has been making his rounds lately.  From The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon to appearing with the Phillie Phanatic at Citizens Bank Park, he has been all over the place.  He’s already a pop culture legend that will bring endless amounts of entertainment to fans for years to come.  Gritty is awesome!!!

Last night Upper Deck surprised collectors with a preview of 2018-19 Upper Deck NHL Series One.  The preview contained an image of Gritty’s Young Guns rookie card.  On the back is Gritty’s complete origin.  Apparently he has been living under the Wells Fargo Center for years, and sneaking hot dogs.  Recent construction disturbed his hideout.

If you’re hoping to pull a Gritty rookie from a pack of 2018-19 Upper Deck NHL Series One, that doesn’t look like its going to happen.  This particular card will be given away as a promo.  How it will be given away is still a mystery.  Please follow the Upper Deck Blog and Upper Deck on Twitter for those upcoming details.  2018-19 Upper Deck NHL Series One will be released in November.

’18 Topps UFC Knockout Relic Contest! – NOW CLOSED

This contest is for a Dustin Poirier 2018 Topps UFC Knockout Tier One Relic Purple Parallel #’ed/25.  Good luck!!!

Contest Details:

• This contest will end Friday, September 21, 2018 @ 8:00 p.m. EST.
• To enter, please leave a comment in this post.
• You can enter once per day.
• The winner will be selected at random.
• Please provide a valid e-mail address when entering.
• The winner will receive an e-mail when the contest is over.
• The winner has one week to send me their contact information or the contest will be held again.
• Once the contest is over, I will need the winner’s mailing address so I can ship them this card for FREE!!!