bo knows team breaks

so far this year, i've been more inclined to join team breaks to get my dodger fix. in fact, i haven't participated in this many team breaks since the day of "i am joe collector" and his monthly team breaks. unlike those breaks, these ones today can get a bit spendier, and there's more of a chance that you won't get "value". i just like that i can get most of the team set filled along with some parallels and/or inserts.

it's a good thing i had that mentality with my 2023 topps allen & ginter break, because there were no "hits" per se. just dodger base, parallels, and inserts. and bo jackson.

the breaker must not have spent a lot of time sorting the base cards, and so i benefited from the royals being mistaken for dodgers. i'm not mad about it.

here are the dodger base cards that i received

it's not quite a team set, and there's only one (of four) dodger short prints represented, but it's andre ethier! kind of a random choice to be in the set but i don't mind.  one of the other dodger short prints is steve garvey (of course). i did my pc responsibility thing and picked up his card

which is number 318 in the set

as opposed to 322 last year.

i also added the silver hot box parallel of garvey to my non-team break order

even though one of the boxes that was included in the break was a hot one. i wound up with four base dodgers

and the ethier short print

the team break didn't net me any of the foil feligree cards, so i picked up the garvey separately

just as i did with his mini parallel

and the a&g back version

oddly enough, the only minis i got in the break were clayton kershaw and mookie betts

a&g back varieties along with a tony gonsolin black bordered version

i did net the complete dodger team set of the spotless spans insert set, however

it's great to see don drysdale get a card in this set, but it begs the question - where is orel hershiser? fernando and his shutout streak to start the 1981 season would also have been a good one for this set, but i am certainly not complaining about seeing cards that celebrate big d's streak, eric gagne's consecutive saves streak, corey seager's 2020 postseason, or a clayton kershaw scoreless innings streak.

the one card i was really hoping for in the break was the "only in" los angeles box topper. i didn't get that card or the mini version, but i have picked up the latter online

this is the second time the dodger dog has been included in a set now, with 2021 topps big league being the other. i relate more to this version of the eastern corn fed pork farmer john product. of course, farmer john hasn't been the provider of the extralong weiner since 2021, but i will always think of them as the definitive ballpark hot dog experience. they have to be grilled, and i would prefer not to get them wrapped in foil as it makes the bun somewhat soggy, but i could not find unwrapped versions at the stadium this past spring. what we endure for expediency's sake, i guess. anyway, like the subject on the card, i am a mustard and ketchup guy. i don't go for relish, onions, or sauerkraut. or jalapenos, for that matter.

in addition to my team break and targeted online purchases, i also picked up a blaster at target using some circle savings. i didn't really get much, but figured i would show some of the variety. here's what the gold bordered minis look like

and here's another black bordered one featuring mlb employee sarah langs

her story and als diagnosis was publicized during the lou gehrig day ceremonies. her inclusion in the set as one of the non-mlb players makes sense to me - moreso than some of the other choices this year.

here's a corbin carroll mini

that is the rookie variation version. i think it's modeled after 2007 a&g.

as for the game show category type sets, let's see what i found.

the world of wonder, for 200 alex:

from the back: "these volcanic islands situated in the pacific ocean form a massive, unique living musem"

next, "talon"ted for 400:

from the back: "the andean condor is considered the largest bird of prey in the world."

music to your ears for 600:

from the back: "greek mythology credits the instrument's origin to its god hermes, who they say created it from the entrails of a sacred cow attached to a tortoise shell."

fun in the sun for 800:

from the back: "typically executed on bodies of water like lakes and rivers, some have even attempted it on flooded roads and car parks with automobiles doing the towing."

finally, by any other name for 1000:

from the back: "famous for his creepy tales of mystery and macabre, edgar allen poe is considered the father of the short story by may literary historians."

keep ginter weird, i guess.