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Minor league baseball cards from the past can include some weird stuff ... sometimes stuff you wouldn't imagine to be found on a baseball card. Here are some some new fun cards and oddities in this latest edition of MiLB Madness. 

FORE!
The Card: Nate Alleyne 2017 Grandstand San Jose Giants
The Buzz On This: A clubhouse manager isn't somebody you'll find in MLB sets -- and this month's card isn't even this guy's first (or his last) appearance in this series. This card? It's clearly all about enjoying the natural elements of the golf course on the baseball diamond -- err, about some Photoshop -- while his other card in a past month of this series was all about fire. (OK, it's barbecue ... we can get behind that, too.) Joining these? Drink up this run of cards that reinforce the greatness that is MiLB cardboard with no tie to what it's worth. The best part? His weirdest card is still to come ...

Keep reading for more examples of some weird or fun baseball cards (and other stuff) you can find in and around MiLB.

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What's Buzzing: Arguing about Shohei Ohtani's greatness, new pulls and plenty more in today's edition.

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1 -- Arguing about Shohei Ohtani's greatness

2 -- All your NFL chatter is here

3 -- An A+ box of Pro Debut

4 -- See all of the new baseball pulls here

5 -- Talking Heritage High Number 

6 -- Talking the full Hall of Fame ballot

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Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

Follow BlowoutBuzz on Twitter @BlowoutBuzz.

What's Buzzing: New baseball and basketball pulls, NFL Week 11, MLB chatter, Topps Chrome NBA and more.

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1 -- Some new MLB and MiLB pulls

2 -- Ripping Topps NBA

3 -- Still talking Drake Maye

4 -- Ready for NFL Week 11

5 -- All your MLB chatter is here

6 -- Still chewing on new Topps Chrome NBA details 

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Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

Follow BlowoutBuzz on Twitter @BlowoutBuzz.

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Minor league baseball cards from the past can include some weird stuff ... sometimes stuff you wouldn't imagine to be found on a baseball card. Here are some some new fun cards and oddities in this latest edition of MiLB Madness. 

98 DEGREES ON THE DIAMOND?
The Card: Nick Lachey 2009 TRISTAR Obak T212 Minis
The Buzz On This: His musical genre isn't on my radar, nor are the reality shows ... but the baseball card? Now we're talking. The pop star was among the ownership group of the Tacoma Rainiers baseball franchise (a Mariners farm team as you can see on the card) for about five years and that got him an appearance in this MiLB-celebrating oddity of a card set from TRISTAR. His 10 baseball cards in this release (this is one of the parallels) are all there are for him when it comes to sports cards ... unless the team snuck him into a set and nobody noticed. Obak is a fun one full of weird stuff and I've trotted some of them out in this series a few times ... and there will be more.

Keep reading for more examples of some weird or fun baseball cards (and other stuff) you can find in and around MiLB.

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What: 2025 Topps Pro Debut baseball cards
Arrives: Nov. 12
Box basics: Four autographs per box (eight boxes per case)
Checklist: Click here
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Minor League Baseball's only set of the year will arrive with "a front-row seat to the future of the game" soon with some premium inclusions introduced into the mix.

Keep reading for more.

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Minor league baseball cards from the past can include some weird stuff ... sometimes stuff you wouldn't imagine to be found on a baseball card. Here are some some new fun cards and oddities in this latest edition of MiLB Madness. 

THE DUO FROM DURHAM
The Cards: Tim Robbins & Susan Sarandon 2024 Leaf Vivid Strike a Pose & Colorful Combos Autographs Clear & Prismatic Pre-Production Proofs (both 1/1s)
The Buzz On This: One of the favorite baseball films of many, Bull Durham has popped up in a few spots in a few baseball and non-sports sets from Leaf Trading Cards in recent years. These blank-back proofs are test runs for the series where this baseball set included autographs from some other baseball-related areas. There are varying colors and textures in play, so all cards are a 1/1 of that type but there are multiple versions. That has softened prices on these, but I like them and have picked up a number of them for very little. Why? I'm a collector.

Keep reading for more examples of some weird or fun baseball cards (and other stuff) you can find in and around MiLB.

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Minor league baseball cards from the past can include some weird stuff ... sometimes stuff you wouldn't imagine to be found on a baseball card. Here are some some new fun cards and oddities in this latest edition of MiLB Madness. 

WELL BEFORE PHILLY
The Card: Kyle Schwarber 2015 Topps Heritage Minor League
The Buzz On This: This MiLB card isn't one that came from a team set since Heritage is an in-pack brand of the past (it was killed off in recent years) and it was one that revisited old MLB designs with today's printing and today's stars. This is a re-do of the 1966 Topps set showing Schwarber after his first season as a minor-leaguer. Schwarber has got plenty of prospect cards showing him in a Cubs uniform and his college colors as well -- those arrived the year before this one and his USA Baseball stuff actually arrived two years before this. In short, he's got a lot of cardboard -- and that's a good thing for collectors who like his slugging ways (I do). He doesn't have as much cardboard in actual MiLB uniforms, so that's why I picked this off on the night of his All-Star Game heroics. This was my first target but you'll see more of him on his few minor-league cards here in the future.

Keep reading for more examples of some weird or fun baseball cards (and other stuff) you can find in MiLB.

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What's Buzzing: Topps Chrome boxing, Nick Kurtz, NBA chatter, NFL Week 2, Phillies Karen and ... Pro Debut?

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1 -- Breaking down a Topps Chrome boxing case ... see more in gallery here

2 -- Nick Kurtz

3 -- All your NBA card chatter is here

4 -- Pondering Pro Debut this year ... 

5 -- Readying for NFL Week 2

6 -- Phillies Karen: The offer still stands

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Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

Follow BlowoutBuzz on Twitter @BlowoutBuzz.

What: 2025 Leaf Baseball Nation baseball cards
Arrives: Sepetmber
Box basics: Six autos per 12-card hobby box (12 per case) or nine per 18-card jumbo box with one multi-signed card guaranteed (eight per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: A new name in the Leaf lineup includes a mix of past and present stars -- sometimes on the same cards -- with a meaty mix of flashy signed and unsigned cards in both box formats. It's also the company's first release with an MLBPA-approved lineup.

Keep reading for more.

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What: 2024 Wild Card Five Card Draw Stacked Deck baseball cards
Arrives: Sept. 5, 2025
Box basics: Five encased autographed cards (/5 max) per box (12 boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Wild Card literally stacks the deck with this one including more than one 1/1 in every box on average atop the numbered pack format that this brand has used in the recent past -- that's 60 autographed cards per case with everything capped at no more than five copies per card.

Keep reading for more info and a gallery of images.

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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 pack: 2014 Topps Heritage Minor League baseball cards (hobby)
Where to buy: Will take some looking ... BlowoutCards.com for other Heritage MiLB years

Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.

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What's Buzzing: Tom Brady Rookie Cards, Manny Machado, case hits, The National, Cal Raleigh and MiLB.

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1 -- Talking Manny Machado

2 -- Case hits are on their minds

3 -- Talking Tom Brady Rookie Cards and more

4 -- Keeping an eye on MiLB action

5 -- Big Dumper is chasing history ... and here's more on Cal Raleigh

6 -- The National is on their minds

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Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

Follow BlowoutBuzz on Twitter @BlowoutBuzz.

Minor league baseball cards from the past can include some weird stuff ... sometimes stuff you wouldn't imagine to be found on a baseball card. Here are some some new fun cards and oddities in this latest edition of MiLB Madness. 

ONE MORE DURHAM NOD ...
The Card: Steve Dalkowski 2009 TRISTAR Obak T212 Minis Green (/25)
The Buzz On This: This set isn't one limited to MiLB players per se -- it's more about the history and oddities around baseball at every level in every direction -- and it's not one issued in team sets, either. But, this card popped up in my digging for unique and different stuff with a story and, well, this one has it. Dalkowski is a legendary minor-leaguer whose powerful arm -- and unruly control -- inspired Bull Durham creator Ron Shelton to create Ebby Calvin "Nuke" LaLoosh. How unruly was he? As an 18-year-old in Class D- Kingsport in 1957 he struck out 121 batters in 62 innings. He also walked 129 while recording a 1-8 record in 15 games. That's 17.6 Ks per nine innings and 18.7 walks per nine. The next season, he went 4-10 with a 7.63 ERA, striking out 203 batters in 118 innings and walking 245. The final stats, though not complete due to it being MiLB and being way back in the day, are impressive. You can find his only MLB card in 1963 Topps among the higher-numbers (despite never actually pitching in MLB) and basically his cards in this release are the only other option. He was slated to sign certified autos for it, too, but they were never completed. This one will always be an add for me if I see them.

Keep reading for more examples of some weird or fun baseball cards (and other stuff) you can find in MiLB.

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Here's this month's roundup of items that have recently caught my eye as a buyer ...

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RETRO RECORD-HOLDER
The Card: Roger Maris 2014 Panini Classics Home Run Heroes Jerseys (/25)
The Price: $30
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: I ponied up a little bit for this one vs. my typical range for Maris mem cards since it's a rarer card, has a material (jersey/pants) swatch vs. a bat and is from a brand that packed a lot of potential for big names back in the day. Yet, at the same time, that price was a bargain. Yes, its centering is just slightly off, but otherwise it's clean -- that errant spot on the right side is part of the printed design on all cards here. It was an easy addition for a player I collect and pick off stuff for a few times a year. Those top corners are really clean on this one, which might not always be the case with those bold colors.
Grab a box right here: Nothing for this ... but MLB cards are here.

Keep reading for more interesting items ...

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Yes, Bruce the bat dog got the call to be so close to being a big-leaguer ... but the official MLB cardboard hasn't happened yet.

Earlier this month, the Washington Nationals promoted the golden retriever from Triple-A Rochester for a day in The Show but he didn't see any in-game action. He arrived in his uniform bandana and his MLB Debut patch attached (click the MLB image at right for a closer look) for a pre-game ceremonial moment as part of Pups it the Park. But ... he didn't make the cut for Topps Now since, pawsumingly, he wasn't used in the game.

(Woof.)

No worries, though. This on-the-diamond superstar is a merch machine for the Rochester Red Wings where he made his debut just last September. He's got pawtographed parallel versions of his first MiLB baseball card -- they feature prints uniquely placed on each one -- that raise money for charity.

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Minor league baseball cards from the past can include some weird stuff ... sometimes stuff you wouldn't imagine to be found on a baseball card. Here are some some new fun cards and oddities in this latest edition of MiLB Madness. 

IT'S ANNIE SAVOY!
The Cards: Susan Sarandon 2024 Leaf Pop Century Now Showing Red, White & Blue Mojo Pre-Production Proofs (each a 1/1 card)
The Buzz On This: This long-running non-sports catch-all card franchise often shows celebs in headshots or on fashionable red-carpet moments, but when I spotted a few of these blank-backed cards sporting a photo from Bull Durham -- still likely the movie of all movies when it comes to Minor League Baseball -- I picked off each of these and another color (to be seen elsewhere later) among a bunch of these proofs with various colors and textures from this set. Why? They're affordable and fun -- something rare (each color/texture is the lone copy in proof form) -- and still can be collected without breaking the bank. I landed these for less than $10 a card shipped, though I wouldn't have bothered if these didn't have the Annie Savoy visual. (This is from the memorable batting cage scene and the set is made to lightly emulate a movie ticket.) I did a lot of cheap proofs here, so I'll show off others and my other shade of this one elsewhere at some point. These aren't my typical oddball cards here, but I figured since we're in-season I'd mix in some other stuff from the MiLB realm.

Keep reading for more examples of some weird or fun baseball cards you can find in MiLB.

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Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading ... so here's this month's grading diary.

TOUGH ONE?
The Card: Bo Bichette 2022 Topps Heritage image variation (found in Heritage High Number packs)
The Reason Graded: Some of you might wonder why this card is in the lead slot this month since it's a simple image variation -- but a great one -- from a brand that's not quite as pricey as it used to be. (At least for singles ... you can find this for about $2 or less.) But, finding one of these that will get a high (real) grade? Not so much. The centering can always be a bear here but that's not the constant problem spot. It's the backs of these that use full-bleed black ink where cards that may look flawless on the fronts are often demolished when it comes to those those back edges.
The Grade: CGC 10

Reality Check: This one? It still has a some minor spotting -- that's why it's not a perfect 10 -- but it's way better than every other one I've seen and that's why I subbed this after I found it raw. Why? That front is pretty much a perfectly crafted design and I definitely don't mind retro-styled sets like this one -- I call it the old-guy flagship set as it is for me vs. basic Topps. The stuff feels more sturdy with its stock and printing -- I'm not sure I trust foilboard to age that well, either -- but the trade-off is that Heritage is harder to grade and land those higher marks. In all ways, this one is a win for me, a Bichette collector, and that's why he's batting lead-off. (It also doesn't hurt he's starting to warm up on the field this season.)

Keep reading for more of this month's pick-ups and new slabs for Buzz.

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Minor league baseball cards from the past can include some weird stuff ... sometimes stuff you wouldn't imagine to be found on a baseball card. Here are some some new fun cards and oddities in this latest edition of MiLB Madness. 

IT'S NOT A '52, BUT ...
The Item: Ryan Mantle 2008 Grandstand Salem-Keizer Volcanoes Update
The Buzz On This: The last line of this card's "Ballpark Banter" gives away the show here -- he's the third cousin of Mickey Mantle -- and there have been a few Mantles to appear on cards beyond The Mick over the years. This one played two seasons of minor-league ball for three teams in that stretch and then 10 final games during his third season -- that one in the Frontier League. The final MiLB stats? Three homers and 38 RBI in 81 games while batting .269. Per Baseball Reference, he's among six relatives of the Hall of Famer to play pro baseball.

Keep reading for more examples of some weird or fun baseball cards you can find in MiLB.

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What's Buzzing: Pete Crow-Armstrong, Ronald Acuña Jr., Jac Caglianone, new pulls and more in this Saturday edition.

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1 -- Pete Crow-Armstrong is on their minds

2 -- Awaiting Jac ... 

3 -- Some new football pulls

4 -- Reactions aplenty

5 -- New MLB pulls

6 -- Ronald Acuña Jr. returns with a bang

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Have you spotted a hot thread? Tell us about it in a comment or on Twitter.

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Detroit Tigers rookie relief pitcher Chase Lee after making his MLB debut last month. (@DETAuthentics photo)

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You probably don't know his name as he's a 26-year-old rookie in an MLB bullpen with more big-league innings in his five career games than he has big-league baseball cards. That count? Four-plus innings and zero big-league cards -- in other words, nothing Bowman at all before he got the call.

His name is Chase Lee and his nickname is "The Viper" -- that part's pretty big-league, actually -- and he made his MLB debut on April 22 with the Detroit Tigers. That day, he became the 23,429th player in league history, closing out a 2-0 loss to the Padres that was started by Jack Flaherty. Lee walked two and struck out one in just under two innings of work.

Three weeks to the day before that happened during a deep dive of game-used stuff from a major dealer in that realm, I added my latest item for this Collecting Game-used series and I added it for a few reasons -- but especially after I was intrigued by his story. Read this, I'll wait. Lee went from an average shortstop riding the bench on a club team with zero scholarship offers to being a failed walk-on who later figured out how to pitch -- he throws side-armed -- and came back to open tryouts the next year, 2019. That's when he made the Alabama Crimson Tide squad to start a three-year run that finished with a 9-0 college record and a 1.87 ERA and as a sixth-round pick of the Texas Rangers in 2021.

That sounds pretty strong, right? Well, all that was still years ago. Lee's path to Detroit and his first strikeout ball he's holding up top had more than a few twists and turns with a 7-11 record in those last five MiLB seasons with no MLB-approved baseball prospect cards (what we care about most here) but with 249 strikeouts in 182 innings -- that part's pretty big-league, too.

So, what is there to collect? Well, I'm sure somewhere deep in my Crimson Tide stash is a small sample of something from of his few Panini Prizm or Elite Extra Edition cards from way back in 2021 -- he's got cards in those sets and nothing since save for potential MiLB team set cards and game-used memorabilia. So, when I spotted a gamer I opted to break one of my basic rules and dip down into the minors for a game-used piece of his story to join my collection, figuring I had some time to craft this item before his possible call from a new team. Meanwhile, to my surprise, that's already happened. (Here's a newer story about his path and this one is even better.)

You can keep reading to see the details ... and the item in action.

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Minor league baseball cards from the past can include some weird stuff ... stuff you wouldn't imagine to be found on a baseball card. Here are some some new oddities in this latest edition of MiLB Madness. 

WAIT, WHAT? ... PART 2
The Item: Kerry Wood & Pat Cline (aka "Future Stars") 1997 Best Orlando Rays
The Buzz On This: Last month, I showed off a card that surprised me as I'd never seen it before and this one is a sequel -- this time, it's former Cubs pitcher Kerry Wood in a Rays jersey from a team set and not a card found in packs from the former card-maker known as Best. It's once again Wood with the Orlando Rays with a uni look that absolutely moved south to Tampa Bay the following summer, not a Chicago Cubs jersey. (These Rays were a Cubs farm team.) It's one of two Wood cards in that set -- spoiler: look for Wood one last time here next month -- and this is a quick, quirky start to this month's piece. A familiar face in an unfamiliar look is a fun part of MiLB cardboard ... so stuff like this can make for a cool collection. This one just looks extra different with a MiLB logo that became an MLB logo.

Keep reading for more examples of some weird or fun baseball cards you can find in MiLB.

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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: 2023 Panini USA Baseball Stars & Stripes baseball cards (mega)
First Buzz preview: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (all years of USA)

Keep reading for a full breakdown of what was in this one as well as a gallery.

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Minor league baseball cards from the past can include some weird stuff ... stuff you wouldn't imagine to be found on a baseball card. Here are some some new oddities in this latest edition of MiLB Madness. 

WAIT, WHAT?
The Item: Kerry Wood 1998 Best Player Of The Year - Best Possibilities promo card
The Buzz On This: This card is one that I'd apparently never seen until just recently and it really threw me for a loop as Wood was a fireballer who only played for the Chicago Cubs back at this time as part of a 14-year MLB career. Why was it weird? Well, on 1998 cardboard, Wood was firmly a Chicago Cub and definitely not a Tampa Bay Devil Ray as they were known then and this logo is theirs for sure. But ... this card shows Wood as a member of the 1997 Orlando Rays and most MiLB cards of him from back then -- the ones I pulled -- used road unis, so the Rays name and the logo weren't as obviously seen like they were on MLB fields that year. The Orlando Rays were the Cubs' farm team until 1997, switched to the Mariners in 1998 when the Rays arrived in Tampa Bay that year, and then worked with Tampa Bay's prospects from 1999 until the team moved to Alabama to become the Montgomery Biscuits. Wood, of course, was a Cub from 1998-2008 (and a Cub on cards even longer than that) before he finished his career with stops in Cleveland and New York as a Yankee before a return to the Cubs. Somehow, I'd never noticed this card.

Keep reading for more examples of some weird or fun baseball cards you can find in MiLB.

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What: 2024 Wild Card Metallix baseball cards
Arrives: March 28, 2025
Basics: Six encased autograph cards per six-card box (12 boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Wild Card goes ink-only with its next baseball release that's heavy on its parallels to chase but also includes a few other notable potential finds like the dual-auto above.

Keep reading for more info and a gallery of images.

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Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading, so here's this month's grading diary.

CLOSE TO PERFECT
The Card: Shohei Ohtani 2018 Topps -- Rookie Card
The Reason Graded: Ohtani's historic 2024 season had me assessing all of my cards from my 2018 stash -- mostly lower-end stuff that's heavily graded -- but not graded by me. Why? I don't grade the heavily submitted stuff because a lesser mark wouldn't be as worthy of going through the process and, really, in most instances a card can always be found already graded if it's needed. But, with his 50-50 season being so big, I opted to slab a few basics and this is one that made the cut. The stock used in 2018 is almost as thin as it gets and all that dark ink definitely showcases flaws, but I picked a pair of cards I thought were perfect from my stash and sent them in.
The Grade: CGC 10

Reality Check: I don't know where I missed a perfect mark here but I'll still take a 10 ... less than half check in there and I think it's really harder than that -- people are examining their stuff harder before sending them in. The fact that these have checked in as low as a seven show how this one isn't easy sledding when it comes to slabbing. And as for my perfect aspirations? Well, it doesn't exist.

Keep reading for more of this month's pick-ups and new slabs for Buzz.

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