Buzz Break: 2021 Panini Absolute Baseball (blaster box)

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2021 Panini Absolute Baseball (blaster box)
First Buzz preview: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for hobby)

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

Packs per box: 5
Cards per pack: 8
Cards per box: 40
Base set completion: 
19 of 100 (19 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Babe Ruth, Buster Posey, Yogi Berra, Yadier Molina, Rhys Hoskins, Jack Flaherty, Freddie Freeman, Byron Buxton, Trevor Story, Trea Turner

Insert/short-print cards: 20 (all in gallery below with some base)
Green parallels (5) – Aaron Judge, Mookie Betts, Rafael Devers, Edd Roush, Joey Gallo
Extreme Team (1) – Randy Arozarena
Green Extreme Team (1) – Luis Robert
Icons (2) – Yogi Berra, Tony Gwynn
Power (2) – Reggie Jackson, Jimmie Foxx
Green Power (1) – Jose Abreu
Prospects (1) – Royce Lewis
Green Prospects (1) – Spencer Torkelson
Rookie Class (2) – Triston McKenzie, Sixto Sanchez
Green Rookie Class (2) – Cristian Pache, Daulton Varsho
Statistically Speaking (1) – Max Scherzer
Unsung Heroes (1) – Whit Merrifield

Autographs/Memorabilia: 1
Tools of the Trade 3 Swatch Signatures Retail version (1) – Shun Yamaguchi (/49)

What's Buzz-worthy: I picked this one up more out of necessity -- not a lot of options -- but was pleasantly surprised once again with the depth of inclusions here and another autographed hit ... this time on the rarer side of things. Is the hit a big-money card? Probably not, but it's rarer and it's ink ... which is better than a lot of the jersey cards you might typically find in retail blasters that include a hit every time. The mix of parallels and inserts here was strong -- that might get it an A alone -- but this one gets a top grade for suggested retail price with that as well as the hit. Historically I'm a pretty big fan of this brand but I'll admit I haven't been as big on it in its recent run -- but this one makes it hard not to like. ... As I noted last time, these blasters are a pretty dramatic re-vamp vs. last year and the volume of inserts alone is double what you got in a full box a year ago. ... Depending on how often the autos fall, I wouldn't mind ripping more -- if I could find them -- as the hit and volume here is a lot stronger than a number of other blasters out there right now. The base set is decent but the stock here seems on the brittle side like a lot of releases -- not that big of a deal but could mean bummers if grading anything. The base set photos felt a bit repetitious in poses and the same types of photos carried over into the inserts but the design variety helped there some. ... If you bust with some volume (a few blasters) it might really surprise. Your best bet, of course, is hobby where you will have guaranteed hits -- two autos and two memorabilia -- with more potential but actually fewer cards than you find here.

Product Grade: A- (hits in hobby get it here)
Box Grade: A+ (good mix of names in inserts and parallels and a rarer auto hit)
Fun Grade: A-

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