2016 Topps Now World Series Set

Let's get started with the Topps Now cards and let's get started with the World Series Champs!

It never gets old for me to say that!

Topps put out this 15 card set, as opposed to the regular single Topps Now cards.  It had a print run of 6,636 sets and I appreciate Matt getting me one of those.

There is one team card and then cards for 14 players.  Topps picked the 14 that they should have.  None of the major contributors to the series were left out.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Major Package From Matt

Yesterday I received a very large box of cards from one of the most generous bloggers out there, Matt from Once A Cub.

The box was stuffed with several different packages of cards...

These ten bags contain sets of Cubs minor league teams 

The top row is 1996 Iowa, 2011 Tennessee, 1991 Iowa, and 1992 Iowa

In the middle are 1997 Iowa, 2009 Tennessee (with Ryno that manager on top), 2008 Tennessee, and 1995 Iowa.

The bottom two are 2012 Tennessee and 1989 Iowa

I'm looking forward to opening them up and seeing a boatload of busts (maybe you noticed the ever-present Brooks Kieschnick on the top of one of the sets) along with some of the stars before they were stars.

As nice as all of those are, the other stacks are what earn Matt the title of super-generous.

These three stacks contain...

the Topps Now Cubs cards from 2016.  And I'm pretty sure that there are almost all of the 2016 Topps Now Cubs cards!  Wow!!

Included are

• 90 from the regular set
• the complete 15 card Cubs post-season set
• 3 from the post-season bonus set
• the complete 15 card World Series set
• 6 cards from the Cubs World Series Throwback Thursday set
• 11 from the off season

Add those up and it makes 140 cards.

140 Topps Now cards.....again, wow... talk about a generous fellow blogger!!!

It's going to take some time to get all of these scanned.  I'm planning to start with the Topps Now cards and then move on to the minor league sets.

Stay tuned and

THANK YOU MATT!!!!!!!!!!!!

2018 Topps Tribute Billy Williams

Topps recently released the 2018 edition of the premium brand Tribute.  The 90-card checklist includes a couple of my player collection guys, Ernie Banks and Billy Williams.  I'm waiting to get the Ernie card, but Billy has arrived.

The picture isn't one I've seen on a card before.  It looks to be from either 1970 or 1971.  Billy is looking like a tough guy.  I like it!

There are also assorted parallels and I may pick some up if the price is right.

Hopefully Back Tomorrow

A semi took down a utility pole last night and the internet and cable is out across town.  Posting from my phone is not easy.  Hopefully back tomorrow.

The Living Set

The latest gimmick set from Topps is the Living Set.  Its named "Living" because there is no end to the set.  It will have cards released forever (or until Topps deems it unprofitable).

The cards feature the design of the 1952 set.  Each week three new cards are released and they are available for only one week.  The cards can be bought only through Topps.com.  You can get the three of the week for $14.99 or individual cards for $7.99.

Despite the high price, I've decided (for now) to get the Cubs cards as they become available.  I had to make that decision already because Ian Happ was among the three players in the week 2 offering.

I'm sure sometime down the line cards will be made for Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Javier Baez, Addison Russell, Kyle Schwarber, and Jon Lester.  So for now, I'm in.

Five Random Cubs Cards

I've got 15,611 Cubs cards from 132 different brands listed on a spreadsheet. A random number generator picked five cards, one each from the past several decades.

1900s - 1970s: 1949 Bowman #99 Frank Gustine  This is from the initial release of Bowman and I guess they hadn't figured out the airbrush yet. Though shown in a Pirate uniform, the back of the card lists him as a Cub. The write up mentions that he was traded to the Cubs after the 1948 season.  A two-time All Star with the Pirates, he hit just .226 with the Cubs and was waived in mid-September

1980s: 1988 Starting Lineup Talking Baseball Bob Dernier  He's shown as a Cub but Dernier was with the Phillies in 1988, signed as a free agent

1990s: 1992 Studio #15 Greg Maddux Any card of Maddux from 1992 is painful to see.  The guy wins the Cy Young and then the Cubs don't chase him in free agency.  Ouch!

2000s: 2005 Donruss Signature Series #31 Steve Stone There aren't any rules or anything like that for this autograph... I just wanted his autograph.  And what a nice looking signature he's got.

2010s: 2011 Factory Team set #CHC2 Marlon Byrd  I do not miss the days when signing Marlon Byrd improved the team.

Picked Up A Peek

I didn't think I had a shot at this one.  2018 Opening Day features some very short-print cards in an insert called Dugout Peeks.  The odds are one for every 1,791 packs.  Those are some very long odds for a set that is supposed to be an entry level set.

Search Ebay for "2018 Zobrist Peek" now and you'll find just one listed and three more that have sold.  While I bought mine on Ebay, it is not one of the four.

The seller didn't do a very good job of listing the card.   Zobrist's name wasn't in the auction title.  Thanks to that omission, there were not many eyeballs on the auction and I was able to get the card for half the price of what the others are going for.

There is one more SSSSP out there, a Kris Bryant Stadium Signatures card.  It's odds are slightly better, at 1:1572 packs, but because its Bryant, the prices are higher.  The sold ones on Ebay went for at least $50.  I don't think I'll run across a deal on that one.

So that should wrap up Opening Day for me.... 18 Cubs cards.