Modern cards, modern consequences

I can’t say there was ever a time when I liked every card that came out of a pack or was in my collection.

Even in my youngest days of opening packs, between 1974 and 1976, there were cards I didn’t like. That was entirely based on the crazy whims of little kids – what the player looked like, whether they wore a hat, whether they had a “weird” (to us) name.

As I got older, my dislike became based on other ideas: what team they played for, whether their team had wronged my team, and sometimes the behavior of the player on the field, which was largely limited to Reggie Jackson and Pete Rose.

Now, disliking a card can have a whole host of reasons: certain teams and behavior, sure, but also what brand of card it is, what ridiculous parallel it is, and – here’s something we never thought about as kids – what those players say and how they behave off the field. It’s safe to say that we know too much and it affects the way I think about the cards that arrive at my home. Modern maps just aren’t as sunny as they were in the ’70s.

Max’s cards looked a bit like what Nachos sent, but didn’t cause the modern stir, so let’s look at that first.

Some Allen & Ginter Dodgers from the 2025 set. These have been coming in from different directions lately. I need a few more for the team set. Of course Ohtani is one of them. Arrgh, there is modern consternation.

I notice Allen & Ginter is curling a bit this year, I’m sure that’s been happening the last few years, but when I think of A&G I always think of the 2008 set and I don’t even think about curling.

A beautiful group from the Wicked Curves insert set. That’s a lot of Dodgers there and I need two more. The set consists of only 40 cards.

The other two cards in the envelope did not relate to A&G. I’m happy with the white trim from Joe Kelly Heritage. I had to look for what exactly this Adrian Beltre is. I was lucky enough to find it on TCDB. It’s from a Dodgers Fan Appreciation Day 3 card set from 1999. At least I think that’s what it is. The checklist does not contain images.

Okay, now for the Nachos Grande cards, which caused a little more anxiety.

First some A&G Chrome from 2025. These are welcome, although chrome A&G is still something completely unnecessary. I haven’t bothered to complete a team set since chrome became a thing in this set. But I gotta have my Dodgers, wherever they come from!

Now, this thing. In the 2025 advent calendars, Topps included buyback cards, I don’t know why, so they could spoil an otherwise collectible card, I guess.

This is a parallel blue border from the same year as the 2025 holiday set. It is from Heritage 2025. How can there be buybacks of something that was issued just months earlier??? I still needed this blue-rimmed Teoscar for the Heritage team set…without the fool’s stamp.

So you know, modern maps, modern rationalizations. I’m probably going to stick this card with the other Heritage cards instead of the Holiday cards and try really hard not to see the stamp when I look at them all on the page.

But that’s not as ugly as this:

The holiday calendars also include random packages to open. Chris had a package of Big League 2021. 2021 packages are always dangerous because Trevor Bauer as a Dodger lurks in many of them. Chris won the bizarre jackpot by pulling two Bauer parallels.

I expressed my disgust at his post. Somehow he still sent them to me, like he was Johnny’s trading post or something.

I don’t ‘need’ either of them. I already have them both, unfortunately. I consulted the wish list of the only other Dodger team that is sick (i.e. I have to have every Dodger no matter what or who) that I know and cards as I see they still need the blue parallel, so that has been set aside.

The other?

Modern cards, modern consequences. I know too much.

Also, I only used the scissors because I couldn’t find the fire starter.