I search packs. Now, before the outrage begins to build, let me explain myself. I don't pull every pack out of the box and rake over each one with my fingernails. I don't bring a jewelry scale to Target. In fact, were it not for some completely blind luck with last year's Upper Deck set, I could probably say that I'd never pulled a memorabilia card out of a loose pack before. However, if companies like Topps are going to make it this easy to identify a card from my favorite team through the wrapper with minimal effort, then yes, I am going to look through a few packs before I decide which one to buy.Now, with this year's Topps Heritage set, I've found that they have a habit of putting the short printed cards (seeded at one per two jumbo rack packs) on the very back lower panel of the pack. And yes, they happened to make short printed cards very distinguishable from their regularly printed counterparts by making them with white card stock. Anyone who has ever attempt to put together a Heritage set can certainly sympathize with how annoying and expensive it is to collect all of the SPs that Topps throws in. Am I a horrible person? Perhaps. But I'll take my chances in a respectability battle versus the creep with the scale and the really long fingernails any day of the week. Meanwhile, here's the one rack pack that I purchased about a week ago.
184 - Kendry Morales (The only reason the Kendry Morales story didn't shock me is that basically the exact same thing happened 6 seasons ago to a Portland Beavers player.)266 - Carlos Beltran
335 - Carlos Gonzalez
23 - Matt Kemp
370 - Mark Reynolds (Reynolds is my least favorite type of hitter. It's all HRs and strikeouts with him, with a much weightier dose of the latter.)144 - Jon Niese
188 - Adrian Gonzalez (I guess the Adrian Gonzalez Watch is on hold while the Padres are playing good baseball.)
270 - Vin Mazzaro
TN3 - Al Kaline / Joe Mauer Then & Now333 - Travis Snider
2 - Joe Mauer (Double Mauer Action.)
110 - Willy Taveras
176 - Howie Kendrick
431 - Justin Masterson (Here's the fruit of my "labor", so to speak: a pitcher with a 17 start and 11 game personal losing streak that was just recently snapped.)My updated 2010 Topps Heritage list can be found here.
I've noticed the short-print cards showing through the rack packs. You barely have to make an effort to see them.
ReplyDeleteOf course, it's a set that I have no interest in collecting. So that figures.
2010 Bowman rack packs are also see-through enough to read the player names.
ReplyDeleteThat's not searching, that just "cherry picking" I believe. There's no risk of damage or unfair advantage to using your eyes on packs. Might as well get at least one or two cards you know you need...
ReplyDeleteI don't call that pack searching. Pack searching is like you said, the guy with the scale, or long fingernails that sifts through each and every pack in the aisle.
ReplyDeleteWhat you did is use your eyes. The only advantage you have over anyone else in that case is over a blind person.
Yea, I do that all the time too. I try to find a Met or at least a player I collect. It is kind of ridiculous that they make the packs see through like that.
ReplyDelete