Stadium Club Contest: 1996 Packs 9-12

This contest, that was first spoken of when I was in New Hampshire, has been still rolling even as I ready myself for school. But who cares about school. Captain Canuck's Braves are leading with 80, and the closest team is the playattheplate's Rangers with 61, and the defunct Brewers with 60. But still, anything can happen.

Pack 9:

Chris Hoiles of the Orioles. A decent swing. 3 points

Mike Stanton of the Red Sox. Sadly not the power hitting outfielder for Florida. 3 points.

Ron Gant of the Reds. Now that is a great card. Just the look on his face alone says it all. 5 points.

Johnny Damon of the Royals Team TSC. Yes folks, this is pretty close to his rookie. For that, it's a 5 pointer. If the Royals lose, I get something close to a Johnny Damon rookie.

Scott Servais of the Cubs. Hi again. 1 point

Mo Vaughn of the Red Sox. A shame what happened to this dude. 4 points for the shot.

Tony Tarasco of the Expos. A nice basepaths shot. 3 points

Estaban Loiaza of the Pirates. An average pitcher shot. 2 points

Jason Jacome of the Royals. Again. 1 point

Scott Leuis of the Twins. Simple yet effective. 4 points

Danny Tartabull of the Athletics. Whenever I think of him, 2 things come to mind. 1- how his foul ball off the finger led to his retirement, and 2- That Seinfeld Episode. 4 points

Brian Hunter of the Astros Team TSC. Never made it. 3 points

Orel Hershiser of the Indians. Fun Fact: Orel graduated my High School. Seriously, there are articles on the wall of his playing time. Also, he was a great pitcher. 5 points

Andy Pettite of the Yankees. Pretty close to his rookie card. Also, great pitcher. 5 points

Mike Lansing of the Expos. A nice play. 4 points

Keith Lockhart of the Royals. Got it. 1 point

Bobby Jones of the Mets. Memories of Counting Crows over the Shea Loudspeakers come to mind. 3 points

Ruben Sierra of the Yankees. He had such potential...4 points

Turk Wendell of the Cubs. (Not actually Turkish). 3 points

Al Lieter of the Blue Jays Team TSC. Got it. 1 point

Michael Tucker of the Royals. Waiting to steal. 4 points

BJ Surhoff of the Brewers. Got it. 1 point

Brian Barber of the Cardinals. A nice tight shot. 3 points

Jim Edmonds of the Angels. What a cool photo. 5 points

Orlando Merced of the Pirates. A nice swing. 3 points

Larry Walker of the Rockies. A nicer swing. Is he a Hall of Famer? 4 points

Kevin Ritz of the Rockies. A good pitcher shot. 3 points

Scott Brosius of the A's. Again. 1 point

Mariano Rivera of the Yankees. Greatest. Closer. Ever. 5 points

Cal Ripken of the Orioles. When I grow older, and have children, I can tell my kids I saw this guy play. 5 points.

Brian Barber of the Cardinals. Again. 1 point

Wilson Alvarez of the White Sox Team TSC. Never made it. 3 points

Not a single Braves card was pulled tonight, but they are still in the lead with 80. Somehow, of all teams, the Yankees caught up tonight, and are the closest with 63, while the Rangers and Brewers have 61, and the Royals have caught up to them with 56. So it's still anyone's game, and the contest will continue tomorrow night.

Two $10 Boxes of 2011 Topps Football

School will begin for me on Tuesday, and this fact absolutely sucks. Once Tuesday starts, my free time is shot, and I won't have as much free time to post, except for my Custom of the Day posts. But of course, there is always packs. And today, I found 2 formally cereal boxes of Football, and I had no choice but to bite. I have been liking the football set a lot this year, so I snapped at the chance to get more packs.

Box 1:
153- Curtis Lofton. A member of the team Sports Illustrated predicts will win the Super Bowl. My response: Yeah, right.
359- Andre Gurode.
191- Dwight Freeney.
92- Dexter McCluster. This guy had a lot of preseason hype last year.
389- Rob Gronkowski. So did this guy.
358- Robert Meachem.
180- Peyton Hillis. Great player, I can see that, but Madden cover boy? Him over Rodgers?
76- Donald Brown.
51- Rob Housler.
146- Dontay Moch
427- Von Miller Rookie card. Sure, it's no Cam Newton, but people will be chasing this card.
337- Anthony Castonzo
238- Christian Ponder. Sadly, he'll be demoted to backup now that McNabb's on the field. A shame, too.
143- Bilal Powell
275- James Carpenter. The Seahawks' 1st rounder. Which means, the Seahawks' first 2012 release.
165- Edmond Gates
103- Karlos Dansby.
117- Titans tc. Both their QB's are now gone. I feel for them...
226- Dolphins tc
53- Ravens tc. Slightly better than the last two.
428- Owen Daniels
152- Julius Peppers.
49- DeMeco Ryans
162- Mario Manningham. His team's toast now, thanks to the Eagles.
360- Tony Romo. I cannot make fun of this guy, because a certain blogger that likes his team is in first place in my contest. So uhh...he's okay.
93- Tramon Williams.
314- Mike Williams
87- Asante Samuel. Oh yeah.
104- Ndamukong Suh, ROY. Lions have been getting marginally better lately.
216- Steelers. Have won the most Super Bowls. As of now.
363- Donte Whitner
338- Kyle Orton. 79- Keith Brooking
106- Lee Evans. Not the British guy from There's Something About Mary
439- Lions
48- Vonta Leach
116- Fred Jackson
224- Brandon Jackson. 352- Pierre Garcon
57- BenJarvis Green-Ellis. What a name
211- Chris Ivory
430- Jake Locker. The newest Vegas pool: When will Jake begin the obvious endorsement for Foot Locker?
397- DaQuan Bowers
15- Brandon Harris
424- Mikel Leshoure
386- Dwayne Harris
395- Ryan Williams
251- Justin Houston
357- Martez Wilson. Now that's a lot of rookies
198- Jimmy Graham GOLD #'D TO 2011
Calvin Johnson Toppstown
Joe Namath Super Bowl Legends Insert. Will the Jets ever get back to February? Signs point to no.
Andy Dalton mini. Good luck, kid.
Ed Reed Game Day.Still liking this Insert Set better than Peak Performance
Suh/Fairley Faces of the Franchise
GIVEAWAY CARD! Let's see what I get:
A Los Angeles Rams Retro Ring. That's pretty nice. Especially since I'm a fan of the Rams old unis.
Blaine Gabbert Bowman Insert. That's nice.
253- Tony Moeaki
280- Antonio Gates
22- Austin Collie
2- Rams.
440- MICHAEL VICK!!!! YEAAAHHH!
131- Hines Ward, Ballroom Dancer
38- Mike Tolbert
392- Clay Matthews
1- Aaron Rodgers. Wow.
12- Demaryius Thomas. Last year I pulled a relic of this guy. Is he any good?
273- LeGarrette Blount
291- Greg Olsen
227- Anquan Bolden
177- Ahmad Bradshaw
63- Vernon Davis
307- Cortland Finnegan

(By the way, since I had redeemed three things on Legends Giveaway, I got a free code, which gave me a Super Bowl III Jets Jersey for the site. It's a Namath. Awesome. No, I don't actually get the Jersey, which sucks, but it's nice for the site).

Box 2:
135- Brian Hartline
234- Devin McCourty
20- Eli Manning.
391- John Carlson
4- Reggie Bush, now on the Dolphins
189- Jahvid Best. I own an on-card auto of this guy.
5- Lance Briggs
35- Bucaneers
19- Titus Young rookie
349- Cameron Jordan
215- Denarius Moore
413- Colin Kaepernick
418- Aldrick Robinson
256- Marcell Dareus
112- Nathan Enderle
59- Cameron Wake
123- BRIAN DAWKINS! Former Eagle.
407- Giants
401- Juaguars
375- Cardinals
141- LaMarr Woodley
71- Alex Smith
185- Stephen Tulloch
334- Patrick Willis. Great player.
383- Mike Williams
419- Darrelle Revis
84- Packers tc
324- Lance Moore
111- Michael Crabtree
364- Jason Snelling
297- Jordan Shipley. I have a relic of him as well. Is he any good?
86- Matthew Stafford. The funniest moment of the game where he threw a game-winning pass with an injured arm, is when players went to hug him, and the "AHH!" sound they recieved. It was like something out of a Farrelly Brothers movie
195- Jahri Evans
318- Matt stinking Cassel
343- London Fletcher
236- Mohamed Massoquai
203- AJ Hawk
157- Rashad Jennings
255- Chad Henne. Wimpiness to the 10th power
158- Aaron Hernandez
347- Brandon Jacobs
426- Mark Ingram Rookie. Oh yeah
46- Dion Lewis
155- Kendall Hunter
214- Curtis Brown
51- Rob Housler again
146- Dontay Moch again
427- Von Miller again
348- Allen Bailey
265- Brandon Lloyd GOLD #'D TO 2011
Antonio Gates ToppsTown
Troy Aikman Super Bowl Legends
David Garrard Mini
McFadden/Allen Faces
Greg Jennings GameDay
Giveaway Card, lets see who I get:
A Dallas Cowboys Super Bowl 28 Coin. Just great...
Kyle Rudoplh Bowman.
303- Steve Johnson
372- Louis Murphy
125- Bills
81- Current Eagle Steve Smith
152- Peppers again
49- Ryans again
162- Manningham again
440- MIKE VICK Again
56- Mike Thomas
96- Lofa Tatupu
99- Ryan Torain
420- Matt Ryan
244- Arrellious Benn
110- Sam Bradford
312- Jacoby Ford
411- Willis McGahee

Well, that was pretty nice. A lot of nice cards, and come good code cards. I might be picking some more up soon.

Custom Card of the Day: Mayberry Edition

Has anything been constant in this year's Philadelphia Outfield? The answer- no. Since the beginning of the year, there have been so many changes in the outfield, that it's simply become a game of musical chairs, and whoever gets down first every night gets to play. Sure, Pence has become a fixture, mainly because he's the quickest to sit down. Ibanez usually covers the left fielder spot, but then there's the matter of center. The question every night is will it be Victorino or will it be Mayberry? And while Victorino has been a Philly idol for years, Mayberry has been quite popular this year. Why? He can hit.

Mayberry has been hitting well this season, mainly in place of Victorino when he was injured. Of course, when Victorino came back, things got awkward. It's sad to see Mayberry playing less often, but when he does play, he whacks the ball into the outfield. I hope he'll get a lot more playing time in the future...without the assistance of a trade, please.

Coming Tomorrow- He was an overrated superstar for the Braves, then he was an overrated superstar for the Dodgers. Now, he plays occasionally for St. Louis.

Stadium Club Contest: 1996 Packs 5-8

When we last left this contest, Captain Canuck's Braves were STILL in the lead with 67, while the closest anyone has gotten to them has been the defunct Brewers with 54, and hiflew's Rockies and Play at the Plate's Rangers with 51. But still, it is anyone's race. No one is counted out yet, although anything can happen.


Pack 5-
Jose Rijo of the Reds. Double, 1 point
Carlos Perez of the Expos. Just a casual pose with a was of bubblegum behind the cheek. 4 points
Mike Piazza of the Dodgers. If the steroid rumors are silently put down, Piazza should be a Hall of famer. Besides, I enjoyed watching him back before I became a diehard Philly fan. 5 points.
Mark Lemke of the Braves. Insert your own dayf reference here. 3 points.
Chipper Jones of the Braves Team TSC. And the Braves' luck continues to get better. 5 points.
Todd Zeile of the Braves. He's dialing up 911, looking for where his career went. Ha. 4 points, cause that's a funny shot.
Power Packed Insert of Juan Gonzalez of the Rangers. This was a one-per box hit, and while I could have done slightly better, this was a pretty nice hit back in the day. 5 points.
Jacob Brumfeld of the Pirates. A fairly basic shot. 3 points

Pack 6:
Manny Ramirez of the Indians. Despite the fact that I hate him now,he was okay back in Cleveland. 4 points
Pat Kelly of the Yankees. Ah, a refresher of how terrible our team was in the 90's. 3 points.
Mark Grudzielanek of the Expos. A nice capture of Grudzy running the bases. 4 points
Steve Ontiveros of the A's. This card answers the question "Is it possible for a card to be boosted by a beard alone?". 4 points. What a goatee.
Garrett Anderson of the Angels Team TSC. This was before he started popping up in every pack ever. 4 points.
Kevin Appier Silver Extreme Insert, of the Royals. Another insert that was kinda cool. 5 points.
Eddie Murray of the Indians. Sheer greatness. 5 points
Rico Brogna of the Mets. A reminder of how bad BOTH New York teams were in the 90's. 2 points.

Darren Fletcher of the Expos. Now THAT is a nice shot. From behind him. 5 points.
Jeff Blauser of the Braves. A decent play. 4 points. WHY DO THEY HAVE SO MANY CARDS???
Ivan Rodriguez. Have it. 1 point
Frank Rodriguez of the Twins. A nice dugout shot. 4 points
Jason Jacome of the Royals. A standard pitcher shot. 2 points
Ruben Rivera of the Yankees Team TSC. Even are prospects were kinda bad...except for four glaring omissions. 4 points.
Mike Lansing of the Expos. Another nice play. 4 points
Will Clark of the Rangers. He's not a hall of famer, but he was very good. 4 points

Don Wengert of the A's. Blah. 2 points

Barry Bonds of the Giants. Good shot, but steroid abuser. 4 points cause of the shot.

Jim Thome of the Indians. Another surefire hall of famer. 5 points. The Indians could catch up.

Fernando Vina of the Brewers. A team full of excellent shots. Why didn't anyone want this team. Or, as Ollie Williams would say, 'WHO WANTS THIS TEAM?" 5 points.

Al Lieter of the Blue Jays Team TSC. Was a great player in his early years. 4 points

Mike Henneman of the Astros. The fury! 5 points, cause that's a great horitzontal.

Kurt Abbott of the Marlins. A nice batter's shot. 4 points

Jeff Suppan of the Red Sox. Okay shot. 3 points

Chipper Jones Team TSC. Got it. 1 point

Tom Candiotti of the Dodgers. A decent shot. 3 points

Mickey Mantle Insert of the Yankees. This is also 1 per box, commemorating the Mick's career. This was the first and only time Topps would do this...not. 5 points.

We've got 16 packs to go, and the Braves are still leading with 80. Catching up are the Brewers with 59, the Rangers with 61, and the Marlins with 52. It's still anyone's game. The contest continues tomorrow.

Custom Card of the Day: Jackson Edition

For all of 2010 I was complaining that the Yankees were absolute idiots to give up Austin Jackson. For one thing, I'd thought he'd be the centerfielder of the future. He could hit homers, he could field well, and he seemed like the next big thing. Of course...you know what happened next. He was traded to Detroit for another guy who was cited as the next big thing by his team, Curtis Granderson. So a year later, I have yet to determine who was the victor. Until now.

The Yankees recieved a power hitting outfielder, that got an All Star nomination this year, and rightfully so. The season Granderson is having rivals only one other batter this season, and that's Adrian Gonzalez. But Granderson is fighting with Gonzalez and Bautista for the leader in home runs this season, and I sure hope he wins. He deserves an MVP award this season.

Jackson has had a unrightfully less awesome two seasons. He started out having an epic rookie season, but this season just wasn't as good. He's been striking out waay too much, and his hitting has diminished. It's safe to say that I was wrong in thinking that Jackson was the ultimate outfielder, and I'm happy to deal with Granderson.

Although if we trade Jesus Montero, then I'll have beef.

Coming Tomorrow- During the game of Musical Chairs for the third outfield spot in Philadelphia, this guy has been the quickest, and has shown the most potential.

Stadium Club Contest: 1996 Packs 1-4

It's taken me a few days to get this up, but I've had a busy life. School's starting soon for me, and I wanna get my last few days in before the boredome hits. But back to the contest. Captain Canuck's Braves had 59 points after 1 box. Nobody else was even close. We can't proclaim him the winner until we rip another box. 1996 Stadium Club has less cards per pack, but a 1 per pack Team TSC insert. Also, a lot more stars, and a lot better collation.



Pack 1:
Rusty Greer of the Rangers. A typical run to 3rd. 3 points
Tim Raines of the White Sox. He looks so badass. 4 points
Jay Buhner of the Mariners. A nice hit, apparently. 3 points
Steve Wojoschekcjdosopdj of the A's. A decent shot of a guy on the mound. 3 points
Pete Harnisch of the Mets. Nice windup. 3 points
Mike Matheny of the Brewers. THAT is how you do a studio shot. 5 points
Carlos Delgado of the Blue Jays. He was an awesome player. 4 points
Jose Rijo of the Reds. A nice shot. 3 points
Alan Benes of the Cardinals. A cool closeup. 4 points
Jeff Brantley of the Reds Team TSC. 4 points, cause it's an okay person on an insert.
Kevin Foster of the Cubs. A cool shot. 3 points

Pack 2:
Tony Phillips of the Angels. A nice slide. 5 points
Kenny Lofton of the Indians. Doing what he does 2nd best- bunting. 4 points
Keith Lockhart of the Royals. Weilding the bat like a samurai warrior. 4 points
Ray Lankford of the Cardinals. A potential steal. 3 points
Marty Cordova Team TSC for the Twins. 4 points, sterioid abuser.
Tony Gwynn Extreme Bronze Insert. This was a hard to find insert back in the day, and it's Tony Gwynn, so 5 points.
Charlie Hayes of the Phils. A nice swing. 3 points
Scott Brosius of the A's. HA! 3 points

Jeff King of the Pirates. Decent swing. 3 points
Jeff King of the Pirates. DAAAAMMNN First double. 1 point
Sammy Sosa of the Cubs. Run, Sammy Run (From the law). 4 points
Jose Valentin of the Brewers. When he was "young". 3 points.
Greg Maddux Team TSC. Automatically another 5 points for the Braves.
Erik Hansen of the Red Sox. An okay shot. 3 points
Keith Lockhart of the Royals. 1 point
Mike Matheny of the Brewers. 1 point

Steve Avery of the Braves. There is such thing as 4th Banana, kids. 3 points.

Thomas Howard of the Reds. Decent swing. 2 points.

Gary Sheffield of the Marlins. 4 points for sheff.

Jon Nunnally of the Royals. Never made it. 3 points

Scott Servais of the Cubs. Hi. 3 points.

BJ Surhoff of the Brewers. Not as good as his 1993 one. 3 points

Brady Anderson of the Orioles. A decent shot for an okay player. 4 points

Ivan Rodriguez of the Rangers. 1st Ballot Hall of Famer. 5 points

After 28 packs, the Braves still lead with 67. But The Brewers have 54, the Rockies have 51. Still the contest will continue tomorrow.

Custom Card of the Day: Konerko Edition

It's common knowledge that the White Sox aren't doing the best this season. And while the reason might just be that the other teams have gotten hot, it'll never be about lack of good players. Look at Paul Konerko here. With 10+ years with the Sox, he's developed a solid career as a hitter, and was an All-Star this year. And the team has so many other players that are this good, like Carlos Quentin, Gordon Beckham, Mark Buehrle, Jake Peavy, Alexei Ramirez and so on. It's a team filled with good performers, including Konerko. It's just a shame the team isn't doing so well.

Coming Tomorrow- For a year and a half, I've been fuming that the Yankees were nuts giving up this guy. Tomorrow, I will analyze if I was right or wrong, about the trade that sent him to Detroit, and gave us a little outfielder named Curtis Granderson.