I read on several different blogs today that trading has slowed down. I personally would disagree with that statement. I am happily buried in cardboard… Payment packages for the next rip, the Spring Break Packs Gone Wild! Rip have started rolling in and I am still getting more from the last one. Anyway, I am loving the full mail box life and I am loving life with players rolling into sunny Florida. Last night I ran into one of the newest members of the Minnesota Twins and one of my personal favorite sluggers of all time. That was awesome! This post is gonna focus on something else that is awesome. For those of you who religiously check my Carl Crawford Collection page, you know that I have not gotten my hands on any Carl Crawford 2010 cards yet. Well, that changed yesterday with an awesome package from Steve of the White Sox Cards blog. Steve hooked me up huge, but this post is going to focus on one card in particular, the 255th different Carl Crawford card in my collection. 
When I opened the envelope and saw this I flipped out a little bit. I don’t have a ton of CC relic cards, but I have searched and found 100s online, so I recognize most cards even if I don’t actually own them. This one stumped me; it didn’t look like anything I had ever seen before. That was because it is from 2010 Upper Deck!!! I was psyched. I had bought my single pack of this product out of curiosity and even though I thought it looked somewhat decent considering it is license free, I didn’t like it enough to pay 3 bucks a pack for it. Especially with the 2010 Topps right beside it with a license, a better design and a lower price tag. Seriously Upper Deck. I work for you and I know you aren’t paying us nearly what Topps photographers make, I know it doesn’t cost 30 cents to print a card and I know you aren’t paying for licensing. Where does all the cash go? I guess this isn’t the appropriate time for this as this is a happy time and I am jumping out of my skin in excitement over this one! It has a catchy design to it, a nice swatch of fabric and a small photo of CC batting with a close-up pic (with his hat obscured like the neighbor on Home Improvement). The top reads: outfield, Carl Crawford, UD Game Jersey and it says Tampa Bay in small red letters on the side. 
The congratulation portion on the back is signed by Richard P. McWilliam of the Upper Deck Company as it has for a while, but the wording is a bit different now. Now it says: “You have received a trading card with Carl Crawford Game-Used baseball memorabilia. The memorabilia has been certified to us as having been used in a baseball game. We hope you enjoy this piece of baseball history as we continue to keep you as close as you can get!”
The part that gets me is “having been used in a baseball game.” There are a lot of things used in a baseball game and there are a lot of things that qualify as a baseball game. Obviously we have always had our doubts about what player wore what swatches, but at least they were from a MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL GAME! I don’t know Upper Deck… If this were a brand new company trying to break into the market, I would say great job and A for effort, but they aren’t… Either way, I am THRILLED with the card. Thanks so much Steve! Even though I am NOT a fan of the Chicago White Sox anymore-there are a few players like Billy Pierce, Minnie Minoso, Larry Doby, Danny Tartabull, Ray Durham, Nellie Fox and Chico Carrasquel who I am a big fan of. I have always enjoyed reading your blog and learning from your vast knowledge of the team and its history. Seriously, you are the blog where I have EVER read about my buddy Rich Saveur. White Sox Cards is one of the elite-it is among the BEST baseball blogs out there. Keep up the great work. Thanks so much for this awesome card and everything else you sent. I can’t wait to show off the other goodies you sent my way! If anyone else out there has CC cards to spare, you can read my complete list HERE. Go Rays! Troll out.
When I opened the envelope and saw this I flipped out a little bit. I don’t have a ton of CC relic cards, but I have searched and found 100s online, so I recognize most cards even if I don’t actually own them. This one stumped me; it didn’t look like anything I had ever seen before. That was because it is from 2010 Upper Deck!!! I was psyched. I had bought my single pack of this product out of curiosity and even though I thought it looked somewhat decent considering it is license free, I didn’t like it enough to pay 3 bucks a pack for it. Especially with the 2010 Topps right beside it with a license, a better design and a lower price tag. Seriously Upper Deck. I work for you and I know you aren’t paying us nearly what Topps photographers make, I know it doesn’t cost 30 cents to print a card and I know you aren’t paying for licensing. Where does all the cash go? I guess this isn’t the appropriate time for this as this is a happy time and I am jumping out of my skin in excitement over this one! It has a catchy design to it, a nice swatch of fabric and a small photo of CC batting with a close-up pic (with his hat obscured like the neighbor on Home Improvement). The top reads: outfield, Carl Crawford, UD Game Jersey and it says Tampa Bay in small red letters on the side. The congratulation portion on the back is signed by Richard P. McWilliam of the Upper Deck Company as it has for a while, but the wording is a bit different now. Now it says: “You have received a trading card with Carl Crawford Game-Used baseball memorabilia. The memorabilia has been certified to us as having been used in a baseball game. We hope you enjoy this piece of baseball history as we continue to keep you as close as you can get!”The part that gets me is “having been used in a baseball game.” There are a lot of things used in a baseball game and there are a lot of things that qualify as a baseball game. Obviously we have always had our doubts about what player wore what swatches, but at least they were from a MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL GAME! I don’t know Upper Deck… If this were a brand new company trying to break into the market, I would say great job and A for effort, but they aren’t… Either way, I am THRILLED with the card. Thanks so much Steve! Even though I am NOT a fan of the Chicago White Sox anymore-there are a few players like Billy Pierce, Minnie Minoso, Larry Doby, Danny Tartabull, Ray Durham, Nellie Fox and Chico Carrasquel who I am a big fan of. I have always enjoyed reading your blog and learning from your vast knowledge of the team and its history. Seriously, you are the blog where I have EVER read about my buddy Rich Saveur. White Sox Cards is one of the elite-it is among the BEST baseball blogs out there. Keep up the great work. Thanks so much for this awesome card and everything else you sent. I can’t wait to show off the other goodies you sent my way! If anyone else out there has CC cards to spare, you can read my complete list HERE. Go Rays! Troll out.
Did you happen to tell that new Twins slugger that he should approach each AB this year like he was facing a Twins pitcher? He really liked that in the past...
ReplyDelete255 Crawford cards! Awesome.
ReplyDeleteGood point on the UD/Topps pack comparison.
I had a feeling you'd like that card. Call it a hunch. LOL! I'm glad I could bring such a thrill with the first relic that I pulled this year.
ReplyDelete