dynasty fantasy

just over three years ago i rolled the dice on a box of 2018 topps five star. it was the most i had ever spent on a box, eclipsing what i had paid for a box of 2001 topps tribute. i totally struck out with the purchase. the card shop guy was excited to have me open the box in the store and i know he felt badly for me when the forgettable contents were revealed.

fast forward to today, and what i spent on that box seems like chump change when you look at releases like topps transcendent and topps dynasty.  that got me wondering: what if i were to buy a box of 2021 topps dynasty?

according to cardboard connection, the "best price" on these things right now (right now being early january when i wrote this post) is $625. each box contains just one card, and that card is numbered to no greater than /10.  underneath the cover sleeve shown above lies a plain white box:

lifting the lid on the box reveals a padded foam interior:

now what if i were to purchase a box of 2021 topps dynasty and find a player that aligns perfectly with my collection? what if i were to purchase a box of 2021 topps dynasty and find an autographed patch card of steve garvey?

what if i remove the foam insert to reveal the card inside:

steve garvey dynasty autograph patch card! with a red dodger jersey number patch! huzzah!

now to be clear, i did not buy an unopened box of 2021 topps dynasty. instead, i purchased an opened box that contained this card

i wanted no roll of the dice this time around! nor did i want to pay the full retail price that the box is commanding. still, even though i spent less than the cost of an unopened box, i spent a significant amount of money on this card. i considered this my christmas gift to myself.

removed from the box, it looks like this:

here's the back:

ebay 1/1 bonus - it's his jersey number:

this card is also numbered as "dap-sg1", and it looks like there are three versions of garvey cards from this release out there, so that means that there are two other 06/10 (in addition to other levels of manufactured scarcity) cards in existence. 

i was also able to pick up a "dap-sg3" version (numbered 07/10)

which features a photo of garvey from 1980 rather than mid-70s garvey on the one i have. the "dap-sg2" version uses a photo of a younger garvey, circa 1972 or so as far as i can tell.

kudos to topps for changing the text on the back of the card:

it does mention his 1974 mvp win again, but also gives props for his annual hit totals which were a big deal to me as i followed his performance each year.

these two cards, but the first one in particular, instantly become pillars of my garvey collection. that first one is right up there with the 2001 leaf certified materials 6/6 card, the bat barrel cards, and a couple others that i haven't shown yet. i am pretty happy to have it in my collection!