Gold Together: 2022 Topps Walmart Gold Star Parallel Jack Lopez

September is Childhood Cancer Awareness month. As a nod to the Gold Together activities going on this month to help raise awareness of the leading cause of death by disease in children, I thought I'd contribute several "gold" themed posts sprinkled throughout the month. Here's the next one.

Let's talk about this card...

I've mentioned it before. The retail sets are a fun way to easily add some variety to my collection. These Gold Star versions are an great way to do it. With one in three factory sets coming with a parallel, there are enough of them to make them obtainable. But, rare enough to be something a little different. Which is great.

This is a pretty generic picture of Lopez here. The red socks really pop, and almost make it look like he's wearing shin guards or something. Otherwise, nothing to exciting to talk about. Just your basic "hitter hitting" base card.

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I'm sure you all remember Mina Smith from her interview with us. Through her social impact initiative "Love Your Neighbor" she is fundraising to brind awareness to childhood cancer through Dance Hope Cure. I highly recommend you support her efforts with a donation if you are able. You can find the link here.

Thank you for supporting her efforts to Love Your Neighbor!

2022 Topps Walmart Gold Star Parallel Kevin Plawecki

September is Childhood Cancer Awareness month. As a nod to the Gold Together activities going on this month to help raise awareness of the leading cause of death by disease in children, I thought I'd contribute several "gold" themed posts sprinkled throughout the month. Here's the next one.

Let's talk about this card...

I've mentioned it before. The retail sets are a fun way to easily add some variety to my collection. These Gold Star versions are an great way to do it. With one in three factory sets coming with a parallel, there are enough of them to make them obtainable. But, rare enough to bee something a little different. Which is great.

This is a great picture of Plawecki here. He's definitely celebrating an epic accomplishement. The red jersey really pops, and the picture is cropped perfectly. Fantastic execution.

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I'm sure you all remember Mina Smith from her interview with us. Through her social impact initiative "Love Your Neighbor" she is fundraising for the Arms Wide Open Childhood Cancer Foundation. I highly recommend you support her efforts with a donation if you are able. You can find the link here.

Thank you for supporting her efforts to Love Your Neighbor!

2022 Topps Series One Blaster!

OK. What am I earth still doing with one of these lying around. I guess when you have other options in your closet to open, this keeps getting pushed back. Must have bot a few of these for free shipping or something at Target, and never quite got around to opening them. I guess that ends today. 

Let's see how this one went! 

Here's the box. Hey, did you know Ohtani can hit AND pitch? Imagine, someone who can bat and play a defensive position well.

Right off the bat, a former Sox. Guess that's what happens when you open older packs. Still not sure why the Sox got rid of Barnes. I mean, I can see thinking he's overpaid. I wouldn't agree, but it's at least an arguable opinion. But, why did the Marlins not think so? They felt he was worth the money/players it took for him to pitch for them. And it's not like he's a star player who brings in fans even if he doesn't perform. He's only useful to them if her performs. Why isn't he useful to the Sox?

We've seen this one before. The more I see thos city connect uniforms...they're still hideous. 

Speaking of former Red Sox, here's one. I don't think you should put players on throwback designs if they originally appearde on those throwback sets. I don't need "another" 1987 Topps Boggs card. 

JD pointing towards LA?

And we'll round it out with this nice Travis Shaw action photo.

And there you have it. The best of the bunch, which isn't saying much.

How did your blaster go?

2022 Topps Series 2 Hanger

Sometimes you just feel like opening cards, even if it's not a full blaster. I can't seem to really get into these hangers. I think, mentally, the one stack of cards is so uneventful. Somehow more utilitarian. Like I'm just robotically added cards to the collection. No effort on my part. But, you know, in the end they're still new cards.

Let's see how this one went!

Here's the box itself. 

And here's the "pack" inside. With a Devers card sitting right there on top. Am I supposed to leave this unopened with him on top? I mean, I didn't...but was I supposed to? Was I supposed to ignore the wonders to be found within?

Like, you know, this Garrett Richards card. That's probably not the gold mine anyone it looking for.

But, there you go.

What do you think of the hangers? Are they fun ways to get your card fix, or anti-fun card grabs?

2022 Topps Series One Blaster!

Are these still everywhere, or have they finally been replaced with mass quantities of series two? Either way, they're fun blasters to open. I certainly hope you agree.

Let's see how this one went!

You know the box by now...

And, even what the packs look like...

Here's a pretty basic Connor Wong RC. I like the red uniform tops. A little more interesting than the solid white.

Looks good on Jarren Duran's RC as well. Wish he looked as good in the field. Oh well.

I do NOT like the yellow tops. I don't care if people think they're lucky. Just too much yellow.

I like the "pre-bath" aspect of this shot. You can just sense them waiting for the perfect time to act. 

See? The white on white just seems like too much. Even with the red arms.

Or, red arms and red legs? What a shot this is.

And there you have it. The best of the bunch.

How did your blaster go?

2022 Topps Series One Hanger Pack

Cards are so hit or miss at Target that you never know what you'll find. Sometimes it's ten boxes of Heritage, sometimes it's a lonely hanger pack. At least it keeps me on my toes! Let's see how this attempt to feed the cardboard addiction went. Not as many cards as usual, but you never know.

Let's see how this one went!

Here's the box. Err...pack...err...I don't know.

I guess this would be the pack. Just the one. I know it's a thick one with a bunch of cards. But, still, it seems less satisfying to just open the one pack. I think I'm mentally telling myself there's only one chance to get something good, and my mind doesn't like that as much.

I nice card of JD here. Glad to see he's heating up along with the rest of the Red Sox offense.

I like this shot of Xander. Although, I want to know more about it. The fans in the stands don't seem too excited. So, did he just draw a walk? His face suggests he just did something positive. But, I'm guessing he's not running hard to first. Or did he just score a run?

Speaking of guys I'd like to see get hot. How much better would the Sox be if Barnes was pitching like an all-star again?

I keep hoping those uniforms will grow on me. Not yet.

Not sure there's more I can say about this Hernandez card. What a photo!

So, there we go. For a pack with not as many cards as usual, there was quite a Red Sox haul. That's always a nice turn of events.

Does your mind convince you you're getting less with these packs too?

2022 Topps Series One Blaster!

Found another one of these. Cards are so hit or miss at Target. One day the shelves are empty. Next day 15 boxes of this are sitting there. Next day all gone. But, online it always stocked. So strange.

Let's see how this one went!

Here's the box. This time Topps tricked us by using two photos of the same player. I'm guess there's more than just Ohtani in this box.

But, he's the only one on the packs too.

Not a Red Sox card, but not a bad pull. If it can't be a Red Sox, it would have been nice to be a more hobby popular player. But, I'm certainly not complaining.

Old friend Jose Iglesias. Nice little action shot here. I can really sense the motion.

Based on his reaction, I'm guessing Matt Barnes did something positive in this photo. I can't be sure since he's been struggling a lot lately. Been a while since I've seen a similar reaction.

Speaking of struggling, here's a future star. I suppose that could still be true if Dalbec can turn things around.

And there we have it. A little short on the Red Sox side. But, any time you find the case hit at Target you have to consider it a good box.

How did yours go?

2022 Topps Blaster!

 I finally got my hands on one of these, so of course just had to open it and share. 

Here's what the box looks like. 

And the packs. I can't decide if I like the fact that the "patch" card isn't in its own pack anymore...or if I dislike it...or if I don't care.

But here it is. I will say that I like the look of the card. Wonder if there's a number 36 out these somewhere.

The first Red Sox card if 2022! What do I think of the design? I'm a fan. I like that we're sticking with the full borders. And even though the sweeping line design still has a "modern" feel, it seems less "computery" if that's a word. I love that I can read the player name again. I could use a touch more color...but overall I like it a lot.

Nice action shot of Duran here. Hope to see big things from him.

For all the people who complain about all the insert sets being recycled old designs...I'd take another 1952 style card over this. 

Or this. I mean, "Stars of MLB"? That's what people were longing for?

Another rookie card. I feel like the cropping is better this year. I don't feel like I'm standing too close to the player on this card.

Even this card of Mr. Shaw here. It's close, but not uncomfortably close. 

A fun, somewhat different, shot of Renfroe here. The yellow jersey is still overwhelming, especially with the added socks, but it's a nice picture. Looking in the background, looks like everyone else is already in position. Wonder why he's leaving the dugout so late.

So, there you have it. Not a bad collection of Sox cards., I think I'll enjoy collecting them this year.

How did your box go?