Wander Franco
Buzz Break: 2022 Topps Heritage MLB cards (retail 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: 2022 Topps Heritage baseball cards (retail display)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for hobby)
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click hereKeep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.
Buzz Break: 2022 Topps Heritage High Number (blaster)
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: 2022 Topps Heritage High Number baseball cards (blaster)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click hereKeep reading for a full breakdown and gallery for what was found in this one.
Buzz Break: 2021 The Highland Mint Trading Coins Series 1
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: 2021 The Highland Mint Trading Coins Series 1 MLB
Where to buy: Will take some looking ... BlowoutCards.com for different Retro Rips
Keep reading for a breakdown and gallery for what was in this one.
Buzz Break: 2023 Topps Heritage baseball cards (mega 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: 2023 Topps Heritage baseball cards (mega)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (a few formats)
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click hereKeep reading for a full breakdown and gallery for what was found in this one.
Board Buzz: Must-read threads on Blowout Forums (Aug. 17)
What's Buzzing: Star Wars Chrome, MLB Chrome, Fanatics Fest, three boxes yields six 1/1s, Bobby Witt Jr. and more in today's edition.
Board Buzz: Must-read threads on Blowout Forums (July 10)
The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.
What's Buzzing: Ben Rice, a strong blaster, Wander Franco investing, C.J. Stroud, the Mickey Mantle theft and The National nears.
Buzz Break: 2023 Topps Heritage baseball cards (value pack)
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: 2023 Topps Heritage baseball cards (value)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for a few other formats)
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click hereKeep reading for a full breakdown and gallery for what was found in this one.
Buzz Break: 2022 Topps Heritage High Number MLB (hobby)
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: 2022 Topps Heritage High Number baseball cards (hobby)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click hereKeep reading for a full breakdown and gallery for what was found in this one.
Buzz Break: 2023 Topps Update baseball cards (Super 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: 2023 Topps Update baseball cards (retail Super Box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (other formats)
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click hereKeep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.
Buzz Break: 2022 Topps Archives Snapshots baseball cards
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: 2022 Topps Archives Snapshots
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com
Checklist: Click hereKeep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.
Buzz Break: 2023 Topps Allen & Ginter X baseball cards
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 Topps Allen & Ginter X baseball cards
Checklist: N/A (base parallels regular A&G but not everything is in here)
Odds: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (when available)
Keep reading for a full breakdown of what was in this one as well as a gallery of highlights.
Buzz Break: 2022 Topps Heritage High Number MLB (hobby)
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: 2022 Topps Heritage High Number baseball cards (hobby)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click hereKeep reading for a full breakdown and gallery for what was found in this one.
Making the Grade (Sept.): Junior, vintage finds, Bray Wyatt, Bo, Babe, Nick Saban, NFL icons & newbies, old mags + more
Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it's to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it's to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.
Here's this month's grading diary here on The Buzz ...
FROM THE BARGAIN BIN TO ...
The Card: Ken Griffey Jr. 1989 Topps Traded -- Rookie Card
The Reason Graded: I picked up this at the last minute -- literally at closing time -- at a past National Sports Collectors Convention after some digging through a bargain bin where cards were literally bouncing around inside cases in a plastic tub. For just $5 this card (as a raw copy) was mine after one thing jumped out at me -- its back with all that black ink was perfectly cut and its front was super-close to centered. It's not that I needed this card, really, as I picked up about three or four sets from the 1989 JCPenney Christmas catalog -- just $12.99 apiece -- back in the day, but I found the rough back edges to be an issue when revisiting all my copies with the the stars that survived past purges. This one made it into one of my bulk grading subs earlier this year as it was past time to grade one. Yes, it's got a very slight rough spot on the front left -- some extra fuzz as it's some light cardboard -- but everything else here (especially the back) was too clean to not send it in.
The Grade: CSG 10Grade 5.5 6 6.5 7 7.5 8 8.5 9 9.5 10 P10 Total Population 1 4 3 14 26 79 286 426 84 195 0 1,136 Reality Check: That's definitely the kind of grade I was going for here, though a lot of them seem to check in at that mark -- about 17 percent of the current population -- which seems high for the era, but, at the same time, these were released as boxed sets and not in packs so they perhaps didn't get handled as much during packaging. Plus, inner cards in the boxes got protected pretty well. I'll take it. This one has always been one of my favorite RCs for this icon ... because I could afford this one and not the other big one that many love. I have them all now, of course (I think), but I'm pretty sure few or even none of my copies from back then would grade like this one did. Not bad for a $5 find and then $10 more to grade it.
Keep reading for more of this month's pick-ups and new slabs for Buzz.
Buzz Break: 2022 Topps Series 2 baseball cards (vending 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: 2022 Topps Series 2 baseball cards (vending)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com
First Buzz preview with checklist: Click hereKeep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.
Buzz Break: 2023 Topps Chrome baseball cards (blaster)
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 Topps Chrome baseball cards (blaster)
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click here
Where to buy: Click here (a few formats)
Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.
Buzz Break: 2023 Topps Heritage baseball cards (mega 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: 2023 Topps Heritage baseball cards (mega)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for hobby)
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click hereKeep reading for a full breakdown and gallery for what was found in this one.
Making the Grade (July): Shotzi, Broadway Joe, Beyoncé, Bo, vintage, Shohei Ohtani, MLB icons, Chong, Pink, WWE & more
Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it's to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it's to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.
Here's this month's grading diary here on The Buzz ... an edition heavy on MLB and WWE but with some surprises.
A FULL SIG THAT'S TWICE AS NICE ...
The Cards: Shotzi Blackheart 2020 Topps WWE NXT Roster Autographs
The Reason Graded: If you're a regular reader then you know it's no secret that I've busted tons of these boxes and picked off tons of her cards as the WWE's Tank Girl is high on my collecting radar. Why? She's unique and fun -- and the name and character is self-made, too, so if her WWE run were to ever come to an end, well then "Shotzi" won't. In this case, I pulled both of these autos myself and since it's among her first certified sigs as well as a more of a full auto (unlike how she signs now) I'm eventually slabbing all I own ... but not all at once.
The Grade: CSG 10Grade 5.5 6 6.5 7 7.5 8 8.5 9 9.5 10 P10 Total Population 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 3 0 6 Reality Check: The stock here is skinny and since there are on-card autos they are prone to having some issues at times ... so this pair of 10s was an exciting return. The pop report looks pretty good, too -- I really need to get all my stuff organized to see how many of those are mine and how many more I need to slab ... eventually they'll all get graded. Why? I'm a collector and I like this one (and it's parallels) that much.
Keep reading for more of this month's pick-ups and new slabs for Buzz.
Buzz Break: 2023 Topps Heritage baseball cards (mega 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: 2023 Topps Heritage baseball cards (mega)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for hobby)
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click hereKeep reading for a full breakdown and gallery for what was found in this one.
Buzz Break: 2022 Topps Stadium Club MLB cards (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: 2022 Topps Stadium Club baseball cards (blaster)
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for hobby)
Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of highlights from this box.
Board Buzz: Must-read threads on Blowout Forums (May 13)
The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.
What's Buzzing: Picking "beautiful" baseball cards, Jasson Dominguez, Eury Perez, crazy times, MLB debuts and a not-so Wanderful 1/1 problem.
Board Buzz: Must-read threads on Blowout Forums (May 4)
The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.
What's Buzzing: Star Wars threads on May The Fourth (be with you), the one crypto card, the NBA's best under 23, grading chatter, new pulls and Wander Franco.
Board Buzz: Must-read threads on Blowout Forums (April 22)
The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.
What's Buzzing: Collectors react to NFL gambling suspensions, 2023 Topps Heritage, a grading question, Wander Franco, the Las Vegas A's and more.
Topps UK MLB sets offer concentrated star power & surprises
Simplicity might lead to popularity -- as long as there are still some chase elements.
That might be a reason that Topps UK baseball boxes -- particularly the 2022 set but also the 2021 version -- have been among the most-popular sellers of late in the shop with some big stuff possible in some relatively affordable boxes.
There isn't a hit in every box -- instead the autographs are rarer (one in every third box or so), which helps the value of the big names when you find them -- and the overall lineup of inclusions in the product is smaller. The 2022 base set, for example, is just 220 cards with key names from Series 1, Series 2 and Update all in one spot -- also a plus given the rookies in play in that last one -- with parallels and then a modest number of inserts (three sets and that's it). Boxes are 24 packs of 10 cards, too, giving one a decent statistical shot at any one player in there if just seeking base cards.
Throw in surprises such as the mystery short-prints of the royal family ... and there can be fireworks. (There are at least nine of them by my quick searches and some can have steep asking prices.)
Buzz Break: 2022 Topps Stadium Club Chrome (blaster)
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: 2022 Topps Stadium Club Chrome baseball cards (blaster)
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com
Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of highlights from this box.
Board Buzz: Must-read threads on Blowout Forums (April 14)
The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.
What's Buzzing: Baseball card pet peeves, showing off Topps Dynasty, new pulls, unbreakable records and checking in on Fernando Tatis Jr. and Wander Franco in this all-MLB edition.