Singles Only And The Check Engine Light From Hell!

Sometimes I feel like someone has a little voodoo doll that looks like me and they're just poking the shit out of It!I went to my dealer to get some  work done to my vehicle.(I like how they call them dealers,they never cut ME any deals.)Luckily It was covered,but of course the mechanic got me with the old "We can take care of that check engine light for ya  ,If you'd like?" Unfortunately THAT was not covered.But that stinking check engine light has been such a fucking thorn In my side that I succumbed. So, $350 dollars later and no check engine light. Whoopie!Something told me all still was not well,and my pessimistic intuition was right!The check engine light returned  :) It might as  well have said "Fucking Liars"  because that's what I read when the little bastard light decided to  turn back on again.I called them back and they told me It's probably not  related to anything they did,but If It was that they'd take care of It for me..... In a week!Not to mention I've recently been diagnosed with having vertigo :) I thought my room spinning days were over when I decided to quit drinking,but apparently my optimistic intuition was wrong.So I told my better half that I'd better do something quick to get all of this shit off my chest and here I am,blogging about It! And you know what,as I type my misfortunes I suddenly feel a little more relieved.Not 100% ,but well enough to blog, anyways.Luckily I like 2016 Topps ,or else this post  would have been  a total downer.Well It might still be ,considering how much you guys loved this years product lol. These cards weren't pulled out of a pack or anything,I picked them up on eBay even before I picked up any 2016 Topps packs.I love that Conforto!I don't mind the coupling of the rookie cup and rc logo.The Noah card Is awesome as well.The future stars header could be a little more dazzling but It works,somewhat.And the only thing better than a rookie cup on a Syndergaard card, Is a Reese's Cup  on a Syndergaard card!

Dun,Dun,Dun,Dun!

I would have titled this  "Another 2016 Topps Post" but I  didn't want to scare away any potential readers.2016 Topps Baseball  has been treated like a zebra carcass  being ravaged by a pack of  wild hyena.Dragged through the dirt and left for dead In the hot sun for the buzzards to pick at.It seems like everybody can't wait to publish their rant posts, just to vent some of that collector's frustration.Lets go over some of the main gripes and then I'll counter with why I don't see a problem with them...


BTW- In no way am I trying to discredit anyone's views on this years product as everybody Is entitled to their own opinion ;)


Gripe # 1-  Artsy ,fartsy ,white corner  design comparable to a high school graphic art design project


My Rebuttal - That's one pretty damn good high school graphic art design.And when was the last time Topps ever tried anything like this?I haven't seen anything from Topps flagship that looks remotely close to this design and that,to me, Is a good thing.I want different every year,not an improvised version of  the year before.

 Gripe # 2  - Blurred out crowds/backgrounds

               

My Rebuttal - Unless It's a crowd doing something like this,wielding legible signs and looking animated on an otherwise inanimate baseball card ...

...then i'm fine with blurring out a crowd.No problem at all with It.1984 Topps blurred out most of their crowds and backgrounds and still had a kick ass product.Not that 2016 Is a kick ass product ,but the lack of a clear and focused background Isn't a deal breaker for me.

Gripe # 3  - No borders

My Rebuttal - Not that It's as prevalent these days ,but no borders means no off centered cards.

Gripe # 4 - Desecrated  team logos

My Rebuttal - This might be the only thing that kind of bugs me,but come on,we all know  this Is Big Sal and that It's a KC Royals logo.I like the TV style presentation with the protruding name tag.The textured appearance behind the team logo almost looks like a  game used relic/jersey.I like It.

So ,there you have It.I don't dislike 2016 Topps baseball cards.In fact I like  It!Remember,I collected cards In the late 80's ,early 90's.I know what an ugly,bad baseball card looks like.

Exhibit A -

Exhibit B - 

 2016 Topps Is not a bad baseball card.It's not even an ugly design.If there was one thing I would have liked to see switched up a bit ,It's the card backs.Other than that ,I'm happy with this years release.Remember,Topps Isn't a premium product.There are other brands that cover those bases and Topps flagship Isn't one of them.We should all know that by now.But I digress.Here are some more notable pulls from my recent rack pack.

 

Singles Only

I've been wanting to add a Matt Duffy RC to my collection for while now.It's just that recently ,his card values have been a bit overblown on eBay so I had to hold out until I could find one for a decent price.This one set me back about six bucks, $2.99/$2.99 shipping.The only way that I can rationalize paying 3 bucks to have one baseball card shipped is If the card Is well packaged with a decent looking toploader,and such was the case with this vendor.I know a couple of strips of tape and two pieces of cardboard aren't costly on their own but It adds up and sellers have to re-up on that sort of stuff all the time,so no harm no foul. You'll notice that the card Is serial numbered to 599 ( part of a hobby exclusive Panini release).A plus ,but not a deal maker for me.I'm not serial number chaser downer kind of collector,although I can appreciate them.In this instance,the serial numbered card happened to be the less expensive of  the few Duffy rookie cards I had to choose from.Including the infamous 2013 Perrenial Prizm card that has him on the front  with another Matt Duffy's statistical Info.Kind of like the Juan Lebron/Carlos Beltran mix up In  95.Here's a link to Prizm's  Duffy Dilemma In a 2015 Beckett article http://www.beckett.com/news/2015/08/the-mysterious-case-of-matt-duffy-cards/

As for Duffy?He seemed to be a solid little player last year ,coming In second to the legendary Kris Bryant in ROY voting.I can't predict what kind of player he'll turn out to be moving forward,but It'll be fun keeping tabs on him this season.  

700th Post Spectacular CONTEST ,Go There Now!

One of the nicer folks In the card blog community,Gavin from Baseball Card Breakdown Is holding a 700th post spectacular!Stop by,leave a comment,say hi and spread the word ;) The man makes some real kick ass customs ,too, so make sure to check those out on the site when you get the chance.Peace!Gavin's 700th Post Contest!

You're still here?

Six Headed Dragon Spotted In Queens , NY!

So I finally scored a Wheeler RC,completing my Mets Topps RC rotation. I'm pretty damn excited about our pitching staff.But at the same ,sick with the butterflies about them.In a perfect world,all 6 of them over achieve and we're looking at an unbeatable rotation.In the real world, I'm hoping for at least two of them to pitch to their full potential and help us reach the post season again.Harvey,Degrom and Syndi are all capable of 15 Win seasons.Matz and Wheeler should be able to win 20 between the two of  them,10 a piece.Another 40 Saves from Jeruys Da Damaja and a dab of Bartolo Cologne puts us right back In the race!

Singles Only

Sorry about the lack of activity at the Pub.I've been spending way too much time playing with action figures over on my other blog Toy Break. Transformers Mashers can be very distracting :) Anyways,funny thing happened after I won this two card Bills lot for 3 bucks shipped on eBay. I never received them! The seller was extremely cool about It and gave me a full refund.Well,17 days later and the cards arrived,lol!I felt bad and messaged the seller and told him I could ship the cards back or re-purchase  them.He opted for the latter and everything worked out In the end.Plus,I used to have this Reed as a kid so I wasn't about to ship that puppy back.Both cards came In great condition and I'm glad to be able to add them to my small but growing Buffalo Bills collection.