Buzz Break: 2021 Donruss baseball cards (blaster box)

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The box: 2021 Donruss baseball cards (blaster box)
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for hobby)

Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery for this one.

Packs per box: 11
Cards per pack: 8
Cards per box: 88
Set completion: 
58 of 264 (22 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Mike Trout, Mookie Betts, Bryce Harper, Pete Alonso, Juan Soto, Cavan Biggio, Jose Abreu, Clayton Kershaw, Josh Donaldson, Kyle Lewis, Trevor Story, Yordan Alvarez, Ronald Acuña Jr., Nolan Arenado, Aaron Judge, Gary Carter, Greg Maddux, Pedro Martinez, Barry Larkin, Paul Molitor, Randy Johnson, Sammy Sosa, Mark McGwire, Jim Thome

Rookie Cards (6) – Alec Bohm, Bobby Dalbec, Jo Adell, Brady Singer, Nick Madrigal, Sixto Sanchez

Insert cards: 29 (a sampling of everything in gallery below)
Variations (10) – Babe Ruth (first line of highlights ends with "the" and not "time"), Christian Yelich (first line ends with "a ways"), Starling Marte (no space between "ARI/MIA" and stats), Sammy Sosa, Rickey Henderson, Nolan Arenado, Jacob deGrom, Joey Gallo, Jose Altuve, Aaron Judge
Variation Holo Purple parallel (1) – Jim Thome
Liberty parallel (1) – Jake Cronenworth
Independence Day parallel (1) – Framer Valdez
Holo Purple parallels (10) – Anthony Rizzo, Leody Taveras, Shohei Ohtani, Cody Bellinger, Noah Syndergaard, Tim Anderson, Trent Grisham, Brandon Belt, Jason Giambi, Frank Thomas
Rapture The Rookies (1) – Nate Pearson
Rapture Dominators (1) – Jacob deGrom
Rapture Unleashed (2) – Alex Rodriguez, Jose Abreu
Rapture Elite Series (1) – Babe Ruth
Rapture Rated Prospects (1) – Wander Franco

Autographs/Memorabilia: 1
Retro 1987 Materials (1) – Michael Conforto

What's Buzz-worthy: This one was jam-packed with good names -- that alone gets it a top nod from me -- but this one also was the home to the three variations that are not obvious when you pull them -- see the notes above and close shots below. The Ruth appearances are pluses as are two Unleashed cards (I thought they were rarer, maybe not) and then Franco. The Conforto is perhaps a norm kind of hit here (young slugger) but I like that one, too. All in all, I liked this one for a standard blaster price. ... As noted last time, this might be the strongest overall package of Donruss baseball to date because it breaks away some from the old in favor of some new. The Diamond Kings design, for example, is a little funky but it's not locked into a 1980s framework of the past, so it gets points from me for trying something new. The main design is crisp and clean -- better in-person vs. mocks -- and it is so strong I think it helps make this one perhaps the best release in the return of the brand. (It will be strong when it gets an Optic treatment, too.) There doesn't appear to be a tell to know which cards are SPs unlike past years, but the nicknames for players or their cities are the most-common way to find nearly all of them and they are all on the backs of packs here so keep that in mind when opening. The Holo Purple parallels are unique to blasters (hangers have Orange, which I think are stronger) and the Rapture parallels do help add variety to the mix. The hobby boxes deliver a boatload of variety and a larger range of stuff -- some might say too much -- but I think that's what's needed in any flagship-style release.

Product Grade: A
Box Grade: A+
Fun Grade: A-

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