A little Cantaloop for you. Just in case you don't get the title reference.
I picked up a few more Obak retail packs as punishment for some reason. I say that because there are almost zero hits in retail. I think I'm done with this stuff until I can afford (and desire to purchase) a hobby box.
Almost all these cards are for trade, just ask!
Frick me! The good thing about Obak (in my mind) is the inclusion of all these random stories from early baseball history.
There is the occasional superstar mini with an airbrushed cap. But if Panini did a set somewhat along the lines that you see here, airbrushing wouldn't be too big a deal.
Start was an innovator in that he was the first first-baseman to play off the bag at ... um, first. Did first basemen not field most balls hit their way before him?
Several of the cards, including this Whitey Ford mini, pay honor to players' service.
Notice that most of the historic player cards don't mention a team on the front.
More-modern players mention a team, but logos are almost completely hidden or airbrushed away.
The cards of innovators and record holders are the most interesting to me. I'm sure there are plenty of other people who want a Brandon Belt card.
Cap Anson was the first to get 3000 hits, and 27 more have reached that plateau. He retired with 3011 hits.
O'Neill didn't just hit any old grand slam. He hit the first pinch-hit grand slam, and the first pinch hit as an NL pitcher in the 1900s. Yes, he was a pitcher who pinch-hit, and hit a grand slam! This was in 1902, so as expected of the era, this was an inside-the-park home run.
Powers is one of those rare historic players listed with a team. If you've seen the movie The Natural, you're familiar with Powers - he inspired the character "Bump" Bailey. Powers died after crashing into a wall while chasing a pop-up.
Wow. That's a horrible card to get in my last pack. Let's end on a happy note.
Nothing cheers me up as much as singing a little song!
"I'll teach your grandmother to suck eggs!"
Here's a happy note: for the price of a retail pack (plus a couple bucks shipping), I picked up a few autographs:
Three Tim Pyznarski signed cards. One of the /100 regular autographs is available for trade, with the other two cards headed to the type collection. All three are sticker cards, but the sticker is done well. The "frame" around the autograph is part of the card itself, not the sticker, and the sticker is very clear. This means any minor off-centering isn't noticeable. Not that these stickers are off-center.
Sunday was a good day for retail pack hunting as far as I was concerned. I managed to find Topps Stickers, Topps Chrome, and TriStar Obak all at the only Target I checked. Remember, there are three within 10 minutes of my house, and they're all in the same direction. Now, so far it wasn't great for pack ripping, as the Chrome rack pack revealed nothing special. Will the two five-card Obak packs provide something big?
Each pack has five cards, including one mini. There's a shot at parallels, mini parallels, autographs, mini autographs, and cut autographs. This pack was full of base cards. And the mini:
Even with a bunch of (really) old players and no parallels, I can use the mini and Barnes for the Cardboard Zoo. Plus, Pop Lloyd and Jack Chesbro are needed for my awards/leaders collection.
And now, a modern player! Griffey's going right for the PC. Commissioner Frick is needed for the HOF part of my awards/leaders collection. I could do without the 300+ pound president Humpty Dumpty. Clements is famous for being the first catcher to wear a chest protector. Which means he's a wimp. That would be like a major league shortstop wearing one of those softball face masks. I'm not going to debate girls using them, since they're closer to home plate and thus have less time to react.
And Hank Greenberg for the mini, the only baseball player in the pack not wearing a baseball uniform. I need this card for the awards/leaders collection.
Review: These are the first two packs of Obak I've opened, ever. I've been interested in busting a box in the past, but it never materialized. I like the backgrounds behind the players. They feel surreal and sometimes alien, especially with the black-and-white photo placed over the color backgrounds. Thanks to the use of retired players, especially pre-war stars, I'm finding much more value per pack than active-player sets. Seven of the ten cards are headed to my various collections, which is much better than Topps Chrome (two were kept from the rack pack; an additional four could have been kept if the product was brand new to me - 6 out of 15 cards had possible places in my stacks).
The use of unique backgrounds, older lesser-used subjects, and baseball history in the product means there is a lot to enjoy. As usual with TriStar, there are no real inserts to collect, so autographs and parallels are the only chase cards.
