Ending A Cold Streak

Opening up a pack of baseball cards is a pure gamble.  You pay money to rip open foil packaging in the hopes that the cards inside are ones that you would like to keep.  Hopefully, the pack at least contains cards that you can flip for something that suits your collection.

I have been on a cold streak when it comes to playing the pack ripping lottery.  Over the past couple months, I have gotten some nice parallels, base cards and inserts.  But, none of those cards made me jump up with a high kick like David Lee Roth.

The game used and autos haven't been pulled has frequently.  This Mark Reynolds 2012 Allen and Ginter Game Used Jersey was one of my more recent hits pulled from a pack.  I got this one from a blaster that was being sold for a little under 20 bucks at a card show.

Luckily, the blog world is home to many Baltimore Oriole collectors.  One of them will get their hands on this card at some point.

This card also didn't get me too excited when I pulled it.  I was mostly surprised that I even was able to pull something with cloth on it from a blaster of Ginter.

I needed to start buying some packs of something non-Topps.  I felt the best way to change my luck and pull some nice cardboard was to give Panini a try.  I have seen some photos and read about the 2012 Panini Cooperstown Baseball set.  It was time to give this product a shot.

The card shop that I go to had some packs of Cooperstown.  This Tommy Lasorda was the top card of one of the first packs I opened.  This card sold me on this product.  I haven't seen this photo before and Lasorda hasn't been popping up in many Topps sets lately.  A black and white photo of Lasorda and his gut throwing batting practice is classic.

The cards in this set remind me of the Conlon Collection cards from back in the day.  The glossy photos featuring baseball legends is a welcome return to the hobby.

Cooperstown also has an insert set featuring the legendary baseball announcers in the Hall of Fame.  I pulled the Red Barber from this set.  Vin Scully is also in this set and I will get my hands on that card soon enough.

The Voices of Summer set also have Harry Kalas, Ernie Harwell and Ty Cobb on the checklist.  Wait?!?!  Ty Cobb was a voice of a summer?  That doesn't seem right but, that is another card that I will eventually get my hands on.

Panini went all out by using some great photography for this release.  Some old school ball parks are included in an insert set.  This is a card featuring the former home of the Boston Americans.  The stadium was called the Huntington Avenue Grounds.

The park seems to have a seating style mostly seen at a Nascar event.  The field also seems to have a short porch in right field.  It must have been a haven for bombs hit by left handed hitters.

Boom!  I actually pulled an autograph of a card that I will keep.  I won't have to do the extra work to trade it for something I want.  This card is the first Hall of Famer signature that I have pulled myself.  I have met Tony Gwynn Sr. and got his autograph.  I have traded for a Gaylord Perry auto before.  But, never pulled one from a pack that I bought myself.  That makes this card mean a little bit more to me.

This is the type of pull I have been talking about.  An on-card autograph of Fergie Jenkins fits in my Hall of Fame collection and ends a cold streak of the dullness I have been pulling.

The Jenkins and the Lasorda base card makes opening 2012 Cooperstown worth it.  The set offers a lot for fans that love the history of baseball and collectors that enjoyed the Conlon Collection sets.  The photography is superb and the checklist is amazing.

This set is Platter approved and I will be opening up more of this product.  I will also be chasing the Voices of Summer insert set.  Please be on the look out for the want list that I will be adding for that pursuit.