Box Break: 2007 UD Masterpieces (Hobby)

This is the second of two boxes that I purchased from Atlanta Sports Cards with some hard earned Christmas cash. I've wanted to collect 2007 UD Masterpieces for quite some time, but besides an odd pack here and there from a repack box, I had not busted much of the product. I love the design and feel of the base cards and the fact that each box yields three jerseys and one on-card auto is just icing on the cake. Though I didn't hit any homeruns, I was happy with what my packs yielded and I will likely get another box or two in order to finish up the set. Here's what I pulled:

Derek Jeter 4 x 6 Boxtopper: A great looking card of El Capitan and a great way to start the box. Up for trade if someone wants it.

Joe Mauer Green Linen Parallel: The base set by itself is incredible, but throw in a raised frame border and "shazaam" you have, well, a masterpiece. The Mauer is my favorite, but I also pulled a Billy Butler RC, Michael Jordan, Sandy Koufax and Reggie Jackson.

Victor Martinez Black Frame Parallel #88/99

Bucky Dent Shiny Green Frame Parallel #37/50: I'm not sure exactly what frame this is but I know for certain I didn't want it to be a Bucky "Effin" Dent. Not only is it a Yankee, but it's a marginal one at that. Will a Yankees' fan or Red Sox's fan just looking for kindling trade me anything for this?

Curt Schilling Captured On Canvas jersey card: Yawn.

Rich Harden Captured On Canvas jersey card: Double yawn.

Roy Oswalt Captured On Canvas jersey card: Will there ever be a day in my life when I don't have to constantly live in fear of pulling yet another Roy Oswalt hit from a box? How long will he haunt my dreams? Does anyone collect the Astros?

Ryan Zimmerman Stroke of Genius Autograph: Whew, this card really saved the box from being a complete stinker. These are some of the best on-card autographs of the past few years and I was happy to pull one of an up-and-coming star like Zimmerman. I've always wanted a Stroke of Genius for my collection, so I don't think I will be trading this one. A real beauty.

Overall Thoughts: Loved the cards and enjoyed opening every pack of this box. It's nice when a product delivers base cards that aren't throw-aways because a box isn't a complete failure if you don't pull good hits. I got about 65 of the 90 base cards in the set and if I don't get another box (or do and don't pull what I need), I will post a needs list in the near future. Thanks for tuning in and email me if you are interested in any of the cards.

Box Break: 2009 Upper Deck Icons (Retail)

As mentioned yesterday, Upper Deck was kind enough to include a box of Icons along with the other cards they sent to me. I wasn't expecting a whole lot out of the box but was pleasantly surprised with what I pulled. The base set is extremely small (100 cards) so there was plenty of star power in each pack, and I pulled the requisite Ichiro, Griffey, Pujols, Jeter and Halladay from the box. I thought there was only supposed to be one jersey card per box, but I pulled two along with some rookies and plenty of shiny parallels. Here are the highlights:

Roy Oswalt Icons Jersey Card: A nicely designed card that focuses on the jersey swatch, I seem to be like a magnet to Oswalt insert cards (I pulled an Upper Deck X jersey of him a few weeks ago and my brother pulled a mini #1/1 wood card of Oswalt from A & G). Any Astros collectors out there?

David Freese RC #529/999: I am actually a big fan of these rookie cards. I prefer this design to that of the base set (even though it's not much different) and there is a fairly strong checklist headlined by Matt Weiters. Freese finished the season strong for St. Louis and looks like the Cardinals third baseman of the future. It's already bound for Cards on Cards (or will be soon).

Joe Mauer Silver Board Parallel: I'll never complain about pulling a shiny card, especially not when it's one of the game's best players. I think there were six of these total in the box and it is impossible not to fingerprint them. Still, a nice card of Mauer.

Brett Anderson RC #422/099: That's no typo, this card is actually numbered 422/099. I'm sure it was just an error in printing, but I still got a good laugh out of it. Does that make it an eBay one-of-one?

Tom Glavine Icons Jersey Card: I pulled this in the second to last pack of the box and it was a complete surprise because I thought there was only one game-used inside. I always liked Glavine. He was a consistent winner and seemed like a great guy.

Thanks Upper Deck! I sure got quite a haul from this box and the other cards.