2013 Topps S2 – Packs 1 and 2

It’s been a few weeks since i’ve done just a baseball post and I have a jumbo box of Topps Series 2 sitting here to my left.  Whattaya say we open it up slowly and see what we see kids!

There’s no need to go over the design of these cards since it’s been covered ad nauseam on your favorite bloggers website, so i’m just going to touch on the hits and fun cards that were pulled from the packs…two at a time.  Double your pleasure!

The first card is two cards, because i’m doubling your pleasure…remember?  I LOVE landscape base cards.  I think they are fantastic and would love to see more sets go this route…just for the fun of it, you know?  The only problem is that they don’t look as great when put in a binder which is where these two islanders are going.  HanRam, as some of you may know is one of my favorite players and along with Carl Crawford are the only two guys that I collect that haven’t played for the Yankees…yet.  Wait until they are 35, then they will be in pinstripes. Apparently that’s what the Bronx Bombers do these days.  Lose to the Orioles and sign old guys.  The Chapman card is also fantastic, plus he’s Cuban…and I love Cuba…PLUS he’s throws really really hard and fast.

13 T Hanley Ramirez Aroldis Chapman

The next two cards are one of the reasons why people hate Topps.  Although, I don’t think either one of these guys are SP cards they are still super gimmicky.  Of the two, I would rather be Justin Ruggiano becuase it’s either water or that crazy clear Ice Gatorade or something…I have no idea, the card doesn’t explain what is being expelled on his shoulder.  Anyone feel sorry for the sideline reporter on the Lombardozzi card?  Me neither…

13 T Justin Ruggiano Steve Lombardozzi

Alright, this is where is turn in to a singles hitter.  That said, here is Derek Jeter.  I love the Captain.  And there is nothing wrong with that, just like there is nothing wrong with starting a sentence with and.

13 T Derek Jeter

This is a cool card because it has Bryce Harper and the look of a child who got his hand caught in the cookie jar.  Brian is the older brother that gets in trouble for not keeping a better eye on his little brother.  Big Brother = Baltimore Orioles — Little Brother = Washington Nationals.

13 T Brian Roberts

Here is one of the 73 different inserts that Topps likes to entice people to collect.  I believe this is what they call an emerald card?  Please correct me if i’m wrong, and if you are correct, I will send you this card.  When scanned, it kind of looks like a forrest.  David didn’t do so well in the Home Run Derby this evening…on his home turf, but neither did Robbie Cano donchaknow.

13 T David Wright

Another insert, similar to the The Greats inserts.  Yes, I used The back to back.  As far as i’m concerned, this card would be better if it were Rickey Henderson.  Not to take anything away from the wizard, he was a phenomenal player, but when you have 73 inserts, it would be nice to get one of your favorite player, eh?

13 T Ozzie Smith The Elite

This rarely happens, but I pulled a box hit in one of my first two packs.  This heavy ass metal mettle coin card of Adrian Gonzalez.  I like this guy so much more now that his short stint with the Red Sox is over.  Great player, great cards…but still heavy.

13 T Adrian Gonzalez Proven Mettle Bronze 36:50

Silk, Mettle and Zumthor

It’s Friday night and i’ve been tracking the NFL draft the past couple of hours and days to see whom the Redskins would pick up.  I don’t follow a lot of college football, so most of these guys are complete strangers to me.  When it’s all wrapped up and the draft is complete, i plan on doing a quick post of the guys that were selected for the Burgundy and Gold. – HTTR!

I couldn’t really think of a good post, so i am going to dig in the crates a bit and post some cards i purchased a month or so ago.  They are of my childhood idol Rickey Henderson and they are all pretty cool.

The first one is the Copper (looking) Proven Mettle card numbered 58/99.  The card shows a very young looking Rickey in some classic A’s garb with his patented inquisitive stare/squint.  These cards are pretty cool and seem to be very popular on the ebay.  Not sure how much value they would hold if the apocalypse hit and coins or metal were the only currency accepted.  I’m not worried about that though, but we do have an emergency kit along with some water in the basement…and extra cat litter to make the mother in law happy.

13 T Rickey Henderson Copper 58:99

The next card is the wrought iron version serial numbered 16/50.  This coin is a little better looking than the copper looking one, but has a little ding on Rickey’s nose…not cool, but that happens i guess.  The profiles of these coins sticks out from the plane of the card, so i guess these things happen.  Still a nice piece to add to my Rickey Henderson PC.

13 T Rickey Henderson Wrought Iron 16:50

The last Rickey Henderson card is the silk manufactured version of his 1980 Topps Rookie Card.  The card is pretty cool and i like the casing around it, frames the card nicely, plus it’s pretty thick.  Also like the fact that they don’t have a plastic cover over the card so you can feel the material.  Nice.  I know Fuji is putting this set together, hope to see it soon…that could be a pretty cool set.

13 T Rickey Henderson Silk Rookie Patch

I’m going to go off on a non sports card or sports card note here, so please feel free to move along if you like.

One last item since i’m talking all time favorites.  Today is the birthday of my all time favorite Architect, Peter Zumthor.  He turned 70 today.  My wife and I were lucky enough to venture to one of his few built projects in Vals, Switzerland…the Therme Vals.  As an architect, we tend to plan vacations around what buildings we can visit and my wife is a willing participant most of the time…but she was super excited for this trip as it was one of the most heralded thermal baths in Europe and nestled in a tiny Swiss Alps village.  Needless to say we had a fantastic time visiting the various rooms and the views were some of the most amazing sights i had ever experience…truly humbling.  Zumthor is a bit of an enigma in the Architecture world.  He hasn’t built very many projects, around 20 i believe, but he has become world renown due to his dedication to his projects and the sites they inhabit.  Zumthor was a Pritzker Prize winner in 2009, which i guess would be the sports equivalent of the Hall of Fame.  He is a true craftsmen and his buildings are works of art.  If you are interested, here are a few links to some of his projects as well as his wiki page.

Peter Zumthor Wikipedia Page

Peter Zumthor Interview

Therme Vals

Kunsthaus Bregenz

Saint Benedict Chapel