There Is A Perfect Strasburg Storm A Comin'...

Topps is plowing through their late 2010 release calendar, and most of the products that populate that calendar are ones that I would love to see burned as a sacrifice to the almighty cardboard deities. The recently re-released Topps Tribute, Topps Sterling and Topps Triple Threads form the unholy trinity of Topps High end that I talk about as what to avoid, and I stand by that regardless of the gimmicks they use. This is mainly because the products focus more on packing cheap relics onto the cards than making cards that actually look good or have unique concepts. Topps Tribute may be a newer product than the old and stale Sterling and Triple Threads, but it is already falling into the familiar pattern of a design that doesn’t change, retina burning neon foil board, and stickers that are built into the design to draw your eye. Sounds like I have heard that one before, I wonder where?

Regardless of my feelings on these terrible excuses for products, there is one card that I believe could make more waves than people are expecting. Well, with all the parallels, its probably closer to 9000 cards. Of course, I am talking about the Triple Threads Stephen Strasburg Triple Relic Auto (OMGZ STRAS-JO!!11!!!!). Because Topps is actually taking the step to get some hard signed cards into the product for once in their life, this particular card should be one of those instances. Now, think about how perfect this storm is turning out to be. The people who pay 800 dollars for those Strasburg autos are probably the same people who buy four cases of Triple Threads each year. I see a distinct correlation between the two. I say this because it takes a certain type of person to buy Strasburg cards when they are selling as high as they are, and it also takes a certain type of person to love what Triple Threads brings the table each year. I think you catch my drift. When you combine the two, things could get ridiculous.

Even though the Stras cards from Triple Threads could end up being redemptions as a result of the timeframe needed to produce and sign the cards, it wont matter. Those people, you know which ones I am talking about, will go nucking futs when one is posted on eBay. Hell, they may even send it to Beckett and get it graded first, because after all, that group of people also overlaps this venn diagram from hell. Of course, this is after they post a card by card break on a message board, and combine it with a recap from their latest mail day. Yup, that’s about right.



The cards from Triple Threads will also be some of the first to have MLB Strasburg relics in them, something that will drive the prices even higher than they already would be. Yeah, see what I am saying? Its going to be like that movie with Jake Gyllenhaal, a hobby apocalypse, and I am going to be stuck shivering in the New York Public Library while the Triple Threaders are going to be making snow angels in the piles of two dollar hits they will get from their boxes outside.

Don’t get me wrong, Topps is doing everything right in this case. They have a player they can exploit like a sweatshop worker, and they have shown that they will plaster his face on any possible thing to sell more cards. Funny enough, collectors sure are responding like it’s a new concept. They don’t care if Topps puts out blowup Strasburg dolls that they can use in the privacy of their own home, they just want them and they will pay through the nose to get them. Its that crazy right now.

I still stand by the frame of reference of how popular a Nationals pitcher can become when someone like Tim Lincecum has already won 2 Cy Young Awards. Lincecum's cards arent worth half of what Strasburg's are right now, and he plays for a much more popular team. When was the last time you met a Nationals fan outside of Washington? Im pretty sure they don’t exist actually. So, if Strasburg goes on to win 2 Cy Youngs, like Lincecum already has, where does that put his value? Lincecum's has already peaked and it isnt anywhere close to the value of a Bowman Strasburg auto. What does that say for future prospects of value? Its NOT likely that Strasburg will accomplish anything close to what Timmy Longhairs already has, and its actually more likely that he wont last more than a few years if fireballer history lives up to its name.

In all reality, I am going to sit back with a cold beer and watch the fireworks when Triple Threads hits shelves. Its like watching that kid open his Nintendo 64 on Christmas. Triple Threads collectors have very similar reactions in most cases, and it is equally hilarious. Even more so when this Christmas is Stras-mas too.

Triple Threads = Ratings

Topps released pictures from my absolute favorite set of the year today, and I think you will see why its my favorite each and every year it comes out. With what we saw from the 2010 set in the preview, it brought nothing but everything we expect from a Triple Threads set. Horribly designed cards with stickers built into the layout, so that they draw the eye away from the train wreck below. Cards printed on eye obliterating bright neon foilboard with more parallels than Panini could shake a stick at. Fold out booklet cards that are more concerned with spelling out obscure accomplishments in confusing die cut windows than actually making the card something to collect. A 180 dollar price point for two hits, one of which does not have an autograph. It makes me feel dumber knowing that I associate with collectors in this hobby that think this is ALWAYS the product of the year.

See that paragraph above? I wrote that two days after the release of the preview for the 2009 set. Almost 365 days ago. This set is so utterly predictable, that I could write an intro without even knowing what the 2010 cards would look like. In fact, these cards are so much more like 2009, 2008, and 2007, that there is not a visible difference other than the players on the card. I guess thats what you get with Topps High End. Overpriced boxes with ugly cards that only appeal to the people who dont consider what the actual product looks like, as long as it is stuffed full with "OMG MOJOZ!!!!111!" cards stuffed with 280 jersey pieces and five billion 1/1s.

I dont even think I need to say anything more about it. Its all been said before. Here is the preview, have fun. Im out.

Updates on the Fake Babe Ruth Cut From 2009 Triple Threads

Fake cut signature cards have been a huge issue for everyone involved since the time card companies started using deceased players as a chase for their higher end products. In 2008, Upper Deck received a ton of criticism and negative press for releasing a quad cut signature card with fake cuts in the card. It was featured on HBO and eventually the owner received some cards as a repayment that many collectors would kill for, including a replacement for the actual cuts themselves.

More recently, Topps has had a very similar problem with a card out of my all time favorite set, Triple Threads. In the 2009 product, a dual cut of Babe Ruth and Lou Gherig made the rounds as a card that was featured as THE chase for the product. It was pulled by a collector and immediately posted on eBay, as expected. Within a few days, rumors were running rampant that not only was the Ruth cut featured in the card not real, but that Topps knew ahead of time and still released the card. The auction was pulled and the card was submitted to a number of grading services to determine authenticity of both cuts, with mostly negative results. Although the Gherig was determined to be likely genuine, the Ruth received "no comment" or "not likely genuine" across the board.

After all of this took place, the collector placed the card on eBay AGAIN with wording that commented on the authenticity of the card according to Topps, not any of the services that had returned their opinions. It was pulled again, and the collector was left with a pretty large problem. Keep the card knowing it contained a fake signature, or sell the card under false or truthful pretenses. From the explanation given by the collector, Topps eventually produced the original COAs, and forced the collector to send in the card for further investigation. After a number of days, they have made good on their promise to replace the fraudulent signature, and the collector has a new card.

Personally, the way this was handled by both the collector and the company was terrible. The collector should not have relisted the card after getting bad news from all those services, and Topps should have made good immediately instead of dragging out the process.



When it comes down to it, cut signatures will always be a venture into trust. You have to trust the company that made the card, you have to trust the service that originally authenticated it, and you have to trust that the opinions of those people are correct. I do not have that trust under most circumstances, especially those of services like PSA, JSA, and company. I get that they cant always be perfect, but people treat them as such. PSA seems to have just as many problems as JSA, and a lot of collectors have sworn off authenticated autographs simply because of their past experiences. I only own one piece authenticated by either service, and I still question it to this day. It seems to me that PSA and JSA (especially JSA due to their partnership with Beckett) are only out to make money rather than performing a needed service for collectors. In the end, it will always come down your eye versus theirs, your level of expertise versus theirs and both your and their abilities to outsmart the douchebags out there that live off of selling fakes.

Watch your ass.

What 2010 Bowman Says About Exclusive Licenses

I think we have finally found a way that an exclusive license can be good. 2010 Bowman is the most hyped set since 2009 Ultimate Collection Baseball, and prices have been above ridiculous - getting ridiculous(er). One of the main reasons is because 2010 Bowman will be one of the only baseball sets released between now and September, and because the set has always been so widely collected. Because of the exclusive license, secondary market card prices have been higher than expected, as there is no hype building around any other product release. There just arent any other products out there to look at, so people are buying into this one full steam.

Of course, it doesn’t hurt to have a great prospect class, as well as great rookies to drive the product, but that is only a slice of the pie. Really, Topps has shown that the cards they put out on the low end of things are going to be as good as they have ever been, despite not having anyone to compete with. At the same time, we are still getting a pretty good idea of why the exclusive continues to suck absolute donkey balls, as Triple Threads looks as boring and uninspired as ever. However, with Topps Chrome and Bowman Chrome on the horizon, both looking to contain on card autographs from Stephen Strasburg and Jason Heyward, low end Topps may be the reason why collectors will forget that an exclusive even exists.

Personally, I hate exclusives all around, and I definitely believe that 2010 Bowman would have been as good as it is regardless of whether there were competing products. However, I feel a little better knowing that Topps did not take their foot off the gas for their staple sets. They easily could have avoided putting Strasburg in this set, or giving Heyward his third chrome card, but they still went after the jugular in trying to give fans what they want.

I also hope their gusto transfers into their football sets this year, as we are going to be getting a healthy dose of everything baseball. Topps Chrome, one of my favorite sets of the year, is back, and I hope that they give it as good of a treatment as they look to be giving everything else in their low end portfolio. Yet, I cant help but feel cheated, as they have done nothing but prove that they can only build on the existing rather than create new stuff. Last year's calendar from Topps was filled with low end greatness and shitty attempts at producting higher end popularity. I sincerely hope that they take some notes from past successes and transfer them to a better idea for a new set. Hell, Platinum could be the equivalent of Topps Chrome and SPA's love child if they did it right, and I am crossing my fingers that it turns out that way. Last year it wasnt. Mayo could be the football version of Allen and Ginter, like it was designed to be, but for some reason they just cant get the same sort of awesomeness packed into the product. Maybe this year will be different.

In all seriousness, I am extremely happy that 2010 Bowman did as well as it did despite a baseball exclusive. It shows that maybe there is still some hope for the industry side of a hobby that is focused on what is coming next.

My LEAST Favorite Day of the Year - 2010 Triple Threads Baseball

I fucking hate Triple Threads. Other than maybe moments and milestones or Topps Sterling, it is the worst product ever. Its stale, its boring, and most of all its got sticker autos, slapped on ridiculously stupid cut outs, printed on rainbow neon foil, with a million parallels. I dont know how there could be a worse product out there. On top of all that, it costs a shitload per box, and you only get one auto and one jersey card.

If Triple Threads were a car, it would be a Hummer. Big expensive car with no other purpose than for idiots to show off that they have one. The Hummer hasnt changed much since its release, and neither has Triple Threads. The cards look exactly the same as they did last year, the cutout swatch windows are some how harder to follow than last year, and the only improvement they can boast is that the Rising Stars cards you get 8 per case of are signed on card. Yippee. Glad they finally determined that the crappiest part of the product is the only part that is going to be on card. Other than that, its foil sticker autos that are BUILT into the fucking design. Yup, its just as ugly as ever.

Not only that, but they are bringing back all terrible booklet cards, even expanding some to stickers as well as the jersey patches and bat barrels. Yes, because the only thing those cards needed is a foil sticker that covers half the player. Nice fucking job. Hell, even the worst cards in the entire fucking hobby are back with their 24 weirdly placed relics on a booklet card. Im so happy that I can now have a card that confusingly spells out entire sentences!

You know what the saddest part is? This product costs more than just about any other product that comes out during the year. At $150-170 a box, you are guaranteed an auto and a jersey, but the quality and design of the cards are so poor that they hardly ever live up to value. Then when you think you have a special card, you realize there are five million just like it with different ugly neon colors in the background. When just about every product at or below 100 dollars offers better cards with hard signed signatures, this price tag seems ridiculous. Ill give you an example. Ultimate Baseball had an MSRP originally below 100 bucks a box. It offered better looking cards, hard signed signatures, and similar ridiculous patches. Not only that, but there was no foil board, and there was no stupid fucking swatch window cutouts.

Even worse than that, Topps fucking loves this product. Their brass thinks this product is the best thing on the fucking planet, and I hope they wise up to their horrible fucking viewpoint. They need to figure out that instead of re-releasing the same god damned product every single year with the same ugly design, they need to revamp this whole bitch and hire a design team that actually has the power of sight.

I talk bad about a lot of products, but nothing gets me fired up like High End Topps sets. They are just that bad. When you look at how good their low end stuff is, it really makes you wonder how they could fail so badly at their expensive stuff. The gap between the two ends of the spectrum is even worse in football, and yet people still give them a pass most of the time. Triple Threads personifies that drift, with so many people either loving it or hating it. I have noticed that since SCU began its personal vendetta against this product, there are a lot more people that are wising up to the worst product of the year. Im in no way meaning to insinuate that I had anything to do with it, I just think that more and more people each year start to get that vomit taste in their mouth whenever they see this preview.

Topps posted a ton of pictures, you can see the rest here.

My Thoughts On The Ultimate Patches

There have been a lot of swirling rumors about the recent jumbo patches in Ultimate Collection, mainly stemming from the patches actual use in games. Many of the questions have come from people with a background in game used jerseys of older baseball players, and those people are bringing up some very valid points as to where the patches are coming from.

After the solidifcation of the rumors surrounding the counterfeit yu-gi-oh cards, people are quick to jump to conclusions on the recent release, especially when conspiracy is brought up. The general feeling is in relation to the fact that creating counterfeit gaming cards is not far off from creating counterfeit patches in baseball cards. Despite the fact that Upper Deck did admit to creating fakes, I doubt they would risk fake patches with all the ways it could come back to bite them. There are just too many experts out there, and way too many avenues of creating a problem if they were discovered. Does that mean it isnt possible? No, but it definitely makes it a little more than improbable that this is the truth behind the curtain.

Obviously, the top draws in the set are players like Ted Williams and Roberto Clemente, and the problem stems from the makeup of the patches. According to these people, its mostly the way the swatches in Ultimate compare to game used jerseys that people know to be game used. What the "experts" are saying is that these jerseys were not from the timeframe specified because of the way they are stitched, as well as the material of the jersey. Their prediction is that the jerseys are from old timer games and from situations like that, to which many people are echoing their sentiments. Personally, after reading a lot about this subject, I have to agree with the people who know their stuff. However, I don’t think that it completely damns UD into a new realm of deception. That’s where I differ on this.

The reason I have this belief comes from two specific products that are NEVER blasted despite obvious correlations. The first is Topps Triple Threads, and the second is Topps Sterling. Both are heralded products among the legally blind portion of our hobby, despite the fact that its obvious that the same type of swatches are used, with language on the card that is even more vague than UD's. Im sure you all have seen the stark white swatches on many of the cards from those sets over the years, but no one seemed to care about it. I guess when you arent screwing the pooch every other week, people overlook things.

In fact, the language on the back of a Triple Threads cards reads that the swatches are not from any specific game or season, while the Upper Deck says that they are used "in a game." From these statements, its easy to see that the companies are leaving the door open for jerseys used outside a regular season MLB game. Although I don’t support or buy cards like that, others have never had a problem buying both Triple Threads or Sterling despite this terribly worded statement on the back.

To that, I say, if you have a problem with player worn versus game worn, don’t buy the Williams or Clemente cards. If you don’t, go right ahead. For the other players, im sure the cards are real, yet if you don’t feel comfortable buying them, that’s up to you. This is the joy of competition, and I am sad that exclusivity has gotten to this point in the hobby.

The Creeping Death Of Foldout Cards

I cant stand booklet cards. I just hate everything about them. Its pretty obvious that my hatred for Topps Triple Turds has something to do with it, but it extends far into this year's preview for 2009 Exquisite Football. It is a completely needless innovation, it looks awful, and most of the time, its just Topps looking for extra places to spell out weird shit with swatch windows.

The onslaught of the foldout cards started in 2007 Triple Threads, when Topps decided that one card wasn’t enough room to stuff their relics into. They created hinged cards where the outside alerted the collector that they had pulled some "OMG SIZCKZ MOJOZ!!" and the inside was where the neon foilboard magic happened. In the product, there were one player hinged cards, and multi player hinged cards, all with the goal of trying to have a little more room to spell out that incosequential phrase.

In 2008, Topps went a step further, introducing their famed visual laxative "Triple Threads XXIV." For this card version of 2 girls 1 cup, they threw design and layout to the wind in order to shoehorn 24 different windows onto the two cards. This meant little room for player pictures or common reading practices, as many of the cards required some major deduction skills to read.

These cards extended into other sets as well, including the horrid Topps Sterling baseball and other high end fare. Collectors who cared little about the way a card looks and more about getting "relics" of their favorite players went nucking futs for these cards, while a vocal minority group of people scoffed at them. Due to Topps' notorious reputation of cutting up jerseys from old timer games and exhibitions, cards like the booklets held little value for people with eyes.

Fast forward to 2009, where booklet cards have continued their Sherman March into the hobby. In 2008-2009 Exquisite Basketball, the booklet cards made their mainstream upper deck debut, to much fanfare. These "upper-deckers" were little more than glorified triple threads foldouts, even though they were signed on card and very low numbered. Topps even took it a step further to stay ahead of the wave, introducing cards that were tri-hinged for extra vomit, and cards hinged vertically rather than horizontally.

Being a part of that vocal minority, I have voiced my opinion quite a bit on the existence of foldouts. Oddly enough, some of those collectors with relic manifest destiny on the brain have started complaining to. The main reason is that these cards are very hard to protect without paying 20 bucks on ebay for a custom holder. Add in that jerry rigging a holder out of two top loaders doesn’t give you complete coverage, and there is a larger problem at bat here. Yes, I realize its only a matter of time before one touch comes out with something, but until then, I will laugh heartily at the people who chase these hobby versions of the people of Wal Mart.

See, I am not a person who cares how many pieces of jersey you can stuff onto a card, no matter if its game or event used. I want to see cards that look good. Most of the time, these foldouts are created for the sole purpose of tickling the testicles dangling from the collectors who live and die for jersey cards, not those who care about design and content. I also think it’s a good reason why these rare cards, even when autoed, hardly eclipse the price of a simple and elegant single jersey auto or patch. Hopefully this gimmick will go the way of the atomic refractor very quickly, though its not looking good at this point. As long as Joe Collectors outnumber those of us who don’t scream "LAST PACK MOJO!" everytime we bust a box, things will continue as is. All I can say is bring on the boredom, ill stick with my old favorites.

Worst of the Worst 2004-2009 #3 - 2007-2009 Topps Triple Threads

Everyone knows how much I absolutely despise Triple Threads, but it only made it to number 3 on this list. That’s how bad the top two are. In my opinion, this shit house of a product is one of the longest running crap fests in the history of the hobby, stemming from 2007 through 2009. Usually, if a product is bad, they dump it before losing face on another year's worth of bad cards. Not so with Triple Threads. This product has somehow built a following with Joe Collectors hobby wide, who have cared more about how many "relics" and stickers you can stuff onto a card than how it looks when its done. In fact, many of them consider it to be the best product ever made. How they have kidded themselves into thinking that is beyond me.

First, lets start with the format, because this is where most of the JCs even have problems with this product. For the price you would normally spend on a box of a vastly superior product, Triple Threads gives you absolutely nothing. Your first hit is a triple jersey card, most of which are from back end rookie premiere players, or oddly comboed triads of "related subjects" (I use the term related loosely). These cards are usually one color swatches of material "not from any specific game or season." These cards can sell for less than the cost of some of the base parallels, and rarely get you back any of the cost of the 100 dollar MSRP pack. Your second hit is an auto, which over 75 percent of the time will be a crap rookie. This means "getting Simpson'ed" runs rampant in this product, more than any other product of this cost bracket. Just for comparison, here are some other products and their cost, and how they relate to this product:

Topps Triple Threads 170 dollars, 1 auto, mid range resale value

SP Authentic - 120 dollars, 3 autos, high resale value
Leaf Limited - 80 dollars 1-3 autos, mid range resale value
Ultimate Collection - 80 dollars, 1 auto, mid range resale value
Leaf Certified Material - 80 dollars, 1-2 autos, mid range resale value
Topps Chrome - 50 dollars 1-2 autos, mid to low range resale value

When you look at it that way, things get crazy. Topps Chrome uses better designs, the same stickers, and people love it, yet the box costs less than half of what a Triple Threads box costs. The format of this product is ridiculous and justifies a spot on this list, but wait! There's more!

The design of this product is one of the worst in the industry, year to year. Since 2007, the cards have changed so little that some people cant tell the difference between an older card and a newer one. The layout that Topps' design team chooses is always a combination of neon colored rainbow foil, huge swatch windows diecut with odd words and phrases, tiny player pictures, and foil auto stickers that are recessed into the actual design of the card. Yes, despite being a high end product, Topps still wants us to look directly at the gaudy foil sticker.

I havent even started with the fold out cards, which have proven to be the worst part of this worst of the worst set. Because Topps couldn’t find enough room on one card for their junk, they needed find a way to STUFF more crap onto an extra card that is connected to the first one. Actually, there are now TRI-fold cards in this years product because two werent sufficient. Wow. Don’t even ask about some of the weird ass phrases they try to confusingly spell out with die cut windows. More space = more confusion for these.

Then we have parallels. So many parallels that I cant even name them all off. They all have their own neon foilboard color, and some even spell out more stupid shit. Each card has at least 10 parallel versions, 4 printing plates, a 1/1, and as many prime versions. Each player can have up to 4 different designs for the set, and when the top level is as high as /199, things can get fucking crazy.

If this was a contest for worst product of the year, Triple Threads would be at the top year after year. Its just the worst product ever conceived for a long run in the industry. Sadly enough JCs buy and melt for this product that it should continue in Baseball, but luckily for us, football is done after this year. Maybe Topps will put out one last set just to fuck with me. Funny enough, this set spawned the golden rule of Topps. This is what started it all.

I actually wish I had the intellectual fortitude to continue writing about this product, but it is so bad that I am choking down the remains of my breakfast from two hours ago. I can only imagine what I will have to go through for the set up next.

Triple Threads Continues To Fail

Take a look, take a good hard look and see if you can spot the mistake.

I saw this mentioned over on FCB, and I couldnt help but laugh. Seriously, how pissed would you be if you pulled a card like this and then saw that the front borders were meant for another player? I would fucking flip a shit. Aside from being fucking ugly, this card is VERY valuable due to what it contains. The problem for this guy is that Jonathan Stewart will haunt him for the rest of his life.

It does make me wonder though, does the Stewart one have a Stafford front?

I Hate Printing Plates. So Much.

I have always criticized the use of printing plates in a high end product. They are ugly, they are worthless to many people, and most of all, they are still considered to be 1/1s that really arent 1/1s. Basically if you are producing a base product, and you want to include printing plates for shits and giggles, fine. But if you expect me to spend more than 100 dollars a box for this piece of shit that you call a case hit, you gotta be fucking kidding me.

We all are very familiar with the culture of the 1/1, as everyone in the hobby craves them like the Heroin dragon. They will do anything for a shot at a one of a kind card of any player, let alone their favorites. The problem is that many times, the Printing Plates are inserted in place of true and worthy 1/1s, and that leaves me with a very bitter taste in my mouth.

There is also another dimension to the plates, as the auto ones can usually never contain a hard signed signature. 99% of the time, they are sticker autos on an ugly plate, and that is just a complete cop out. Hell, Upper Deck puts them into Exquisite and the Cup, and that is pretty much the most inexcusable of all. Why would anyone fucking care about a used piece of thin scrap metal with a reverse negative of a player they cant identify for 500 plus per pack? Thats just plain stupid.

Lastly, I just hate seeing stale ideas run rampant akin to levels of Lavelle Hawkins autos in SP Signature Edition. Printing Plates are a very stale idea, and yet they are present in just about every single product. There are even products that frame the plates inside bordered cards in an effort to make them look better. Then you have a product like Triple Threads, who actually designates them as the top pulls of the product. Why? As if the design wasnt bad enough, now we have to get cards with all the elements of a normal hit, but a priting plate front. How terrible can that get? Obviously pretty bad.

If printing plates went away, the only people who would care are those people so desperate to pull a 1/1, that they run around the store screaming "MOJO!!!!!!!!!!!" at the top of their lungs when they pull one. To that, many of the informed collectors out there know that some of the best cards of any player are not 1/1s, and I agree with that 100%. Although my Mauer, Harvin, and Peterson collections are full of cards, none of them are one of a kind. Some of them are low numbered, but I dont care if I have the only card in existence. I just want one that looks cool. Printing plates have never been that, and never will be.

More 2009 Triple Threads Cards Are Live, Worse Than Expected - UPDATED

Looks like the Triple Threads visual abortion that is the 24 piece relic is back, and worse than ever. Aside from being one of the worst concepts since the sticker auto on a letter patch, this card looks WORSE than it did last year. Just when you think the impossible couldnt happen, it comes up and slaps you right in the knob.

No player picture? Check.

Confusingly spelled out diecut windows? Check.

Overly excessive "game-used" relics STUFFED into the card? Check.

Fugly design and fold out orientation? Check.

Is a Joe Collector salivating over this card? Check.

Wow, thats five for five. Unbelievable.

Here is last year's diarrhea for reference.

EDIT: Here is one more card that I am just mortified by. Why in god's name would anyone want a card that spells out "PRIME" in diecut windows? At least last year, the cards had "RC" with prime diecut in the shield part of the cut out. It was still horrible, but this takes it to a whole new level.

Secondly, which would you rather have: The card above (foil board, die cut prime patch window, sticker auto, millions of parallels), or the card below (foil board, die cut prime patch window, sticker auto, millions of parallels)? Both feature almost identical elements, but in this case, I actually think Panini did well with what they had. At least the focal point isnt some big die cut "I." The bottom card also features a full player picture and the concept fits with the rest of the card's content. Just shows how important design is with a card.

2009 Triple Threads Is Live, Horrid, Ugly, and Whatever Other Adjective You Can Think Of

Everyone who is a regular reader of this site knows of my personal hatred for the worst set ever conceived/produced on a regular basis. Triple Threads is a crime against collecting, and no surprise, the fucking Joe Collectors love it to death. I guess if you love paying 170 dollars for stickers autos built into the design, ugly concepts, and needless diecut relics shoehorned onto a packed card, this product is for you. Now leave my site forever, as your "kind" isnt welcome here.

The first cards of the year showed up today, rainbow neon colored foilboard and all. I didnt think they could get any worse than last year, but just like Topps always does, they found a way. Who could pass up quarter sized pics of the players with a medival theme? I mean, this stuff is ROZDUCULOS, right?




People who buy this need their heads examined.

Fake Pujols Triple Threads Autos Are Bad News

Reader CT sent me this thread over on Collectors Universe that brings about a troubling situation with Topps Triple Threads. When you look at these cards, its pretty simple to see that something is up with Pujols' sticker. Im guessing that either the seller has removed the real stickers and just used the trick from before to fake the autos, or Topps is being had, and just didnt care to run QC on the stickers that Pujols "signed."

Regardless if these stickers are real or fake, the problem remains. Stickers do nothing but cause problems, and there are a ton of horrible people out there who will take advantage.

Here is a real one:

Here are the fakes: