Time to open a pack of Heritage

Let's rip open a pack of Topps Heritage and see what happens, shall we?

Great start - Jeff Francoeur, Hanley Ramirez and B.J. Upton. All right.
Verlander black card. And finally.......Alaska! (You should say that in a high pitched, annoying voice.)

All in all I like this set. I think it's pretty cool, I'm always a sucker for a throwback, vintage-looking set. I could probably do without the state cards, but oh well. Not too bad overall.

Turkey Red is missed

Turns out, I'm not alone in missing the Turkey Red set. Mario over at Wax Heaven recently wrote about how he misses the set. Topps - bring it back for real!

Anyway, at the top of this post are some sweet Turkey Red cards. I think these are pretty much from 2005. What a sweet set.

As a side note, you'll no doubt notice the Alex Rodriguez card in there. What the heck do I do with all my A-Rod cards now? Is everyone still collecting him? Has he lost all appeal? Is it too early to tell?

2008 Topps Allen & Ginter Mini Cards

Just thought I'd post a picture of some sweet Allen & Ginter Mini cards. I really enjoy this set, although not quite as much as Turkey Red. Anyway, here you go!

Random Pittsburgh Pirates Card of the Day

Welcome to a new series here at Beer and Baseball Cards. Every once in a while I'll be posting a picture of a random Pittsburgh Pirates card from my collection under the heading of Random Pittsburgh Pirates Card of the Day - creative, I know. It won't be every day. Sometimes I'll just put a picture of a card on the blog, as if to say "Here you go, enjoy this random Pirates card." Other times I might include some witty commentary as a bonus to you, the reader. You're welcome.

Let's get started.

This first Random Pittsburgh Pirates Card of the Day is a 1972 Topps Luke Walker. Luke was a pitcher for the Bucs in the late '60s and into the '70s. His best season, according the back of this card, was in 1970. That year he went 15-6 with a 3.04 ERA and 124 strikeouts. Not too shabby. Those kind of numbers would definitely get him a spot in the current Pirates rotation. It's possible that he had a better season than that after 1972, but I don't feel like looking up the stats right now, so that's all you're gonna get. I like the font used on the Topps set this year - it looks like it's coming right at you! I do not generally like photos from spring training to be used on baseball cards, and this one is no exception.

So there you have it - the very first Random Pittsburgh Pirates Card of the Day. There will be more to come. Maybe I'll expand it beyond the Buccos at some point, we'll see. Stay tuned...

Topps and Upper Deck Go Down

Well, as many other people have already said, Topps and Upper Deck have been given the boot by the NBA. Panini will be producing the only licensed NBA cards now. If you're like me, when you read that you said "what? how can that be? that makes no sense!" I know I was surprised when I read that. Panini, really? Now, I've never really collected basketball cards, I think I have maybe 50 total. But come on, as one of the major sports, it's kind of ridiculous that the major sports cards companies are no longer going to be producing NBA cards. Oh well...it's too bad for the basketball card collectors. Maybe Panini will slam dunk this opportunity, but I'm not sure...
Thoughts anyone?

Collecting in 2009

With all of the previews of 2009 sets coming out recently, it's time for me to think about what I'll try to collect this year. I think I'm probably going to limit it to Topps, Finest, and maybe a little bit of a really high end product, if I'm feeling dangerous.
We shall see, but I think that will do just fine for me. Especially with the recent news that Turkey Red will be an insert in the 2009 Topps set, Topps will probably be getting most of my attention this year. I love me some Turkey Red.

Turkey Red!

Well, it appears that someone at Topps has heard my cries and decided to bring Turkey Red back into my life! Mario from Wax Heaven left a comment on my post about 2009 Topps Finest letting me know that Topps has decided to included Turkey Red as an insert in their 2009 set! I couldn't be happier. In my opinion, this is one of the best new vintage sets to come along and I was kind of bummed that Topps decided to cancel it. Looks like I know what set I'll be collecting in 2009! I wasn't sure, but Topps just made up my mind for me. Thank you Topps!

Continuing with the Inauguration theme...

...my wife and I came across a pack of these President Obama cards at Target the other day. I thought today would be a good time to bust the pack and see what's inside. Here we go:

1. Issue No. 1 - The Economy
2. Stumping in the Heartland
3. Life, Liberty, Happiness
4. Our Time - Foil Sticker Insert - 1:4 Packs
5. Kennedys for Obama
6. Mr. Obama goes to Washington
7. Not Your Typical Family Anymore

All in all, an interesting set to commemorate the historic Obama presidency.