Last month I stopped by my local cards and collectables store and on a whim grabbed 3 packs of 1991 Topps. It's been awhile since I did a pack war, so let's get ready to rumble!
For me, it's
all about star power. I'll award 1 point for every All-Star Game nod
a player gets, plus additional points for the major awards (MVP, CY,
ROY, etc.) and 3 points for a Hall of Fame player. Add a point for every Red Sox card, and subtract a point for every
Yankee that makes an appearance!
In honor of 1991 Topps, I'll award additional points for any error cards or dark back variations (I haven't owned a black light in decades, so I'm not even going to try and see if I have any of those!)
As an extra bonus, I'm going to award a whopping 5 points for every card that I still need. As of the day of purchase, I had 657 of the 792 cards (not including errors/variations) - 83% complete! If nothing else, I hope I can add to that total!
let the pack war begin!
Pack #1
Andres Galarraga - 9 points (5x All-Star, 2x Gold Glove, 2x Silver Slugger)
Robin Ventura (ASR, COR) - 13 points (NEED!, 2x All-Star, 6x Gold Glove)
Mike Greenwell - 4 points (Red Sox, 2x All-Star, Silver Slugger)
Eddie Whitson - 1 point (All-Star)
Mike Perez (RC) - 5 points (NEED!)
Sid Fernandez - 7 points (NEED!, 2x All-Star)
Robin Yount - 12 points (HOF, 2x MVP, 3x All-Star, Gold Glove, 3x Silver Slugger)
John Kruk - 3 points (3x All-Star)
Alez Fernandez (DP) - 5 points (NEED!)
Greg Vaughn - 10 points (NEED!, 4x All-Star, Silver Slugger)
Chris James, Craig Worthington, Frank Wills, Sil Campusano, Tim Crews - 0 points
Points scored: 69
The first pack is disappointing, but not because of the cards. As I opened the pack, I noticed that the gum was on top but the gum-stained card was on the bottom. I have a feeling someone may have opened theses packs. Other than the fact I probably won't pull a Chipper Jones First Round Draft card, it's not a big deal, but still you hate to see it...
As for the pack itself, not a bad start! Five needs, including the corrected version of a card I had the error of.
Pack #2
Danny Tartabull - 1 point (AS)
Dave Smith - 2 points (2x AS)
Keith Comstock (COR) - 5 points (NEED!)
Jim Eisenreich - 5 points (NEED!)
Jim Lefebvre (MGR) - 7 points (NEED!, ROY, AS)
Jose Mesa - 7 points (NEED!, 2x AS)
Tom Henke - 2 points (2x AS)
Cal Ripken Jr. (RB) - 35 points (HOF, 2x MVP, ROY, 19x AS, 2x Gold Glove, 8x Silver Slugger)
Ken Dayley, Junior Ortiz, Rey Palacios, Milt Thompson, Tim Belcher, Ben McDonald, Dave West - 0 points
Points: 64 points
Whoof! This pack was saved at the very end thanks to Cal Ripken Jr., but still not enough to overtake the first pack. That's what happens when half the pack scores zero points. I was plesantly surprised by Jim Lefebre, who despite being listed as a manager did have a noteworthy playing career too! Plus I get to add 4 more needs to the set, including another corrected version of an error card I already owned.
Pack #3
Rafael Ramirez - 1 point (AS)
Dante Bichette - 5 points (4x AS, Silver Slugger)
Walt Weiss - 2 points (ROY, AS)
Rob Ducey - 5 points (NEED!)
Jeff Manto - 5 points (NEED!)
Sparky Anderson (MGR) - 10 points (NEED!, HOF, 2x Manager of the Year)
Hensley Meullens - 4 points (NEED, but a Yankee)Jeff McKnight, Chuck Crim, Sergio Valdez, Dave Valle, Bob McClure, Curt Wilkerson, Brian Harper, Bob Kipper - 0 points
Points: 32 points
Double-whoof! No Ripken-esque player to bail out this pack, although it's cool to knock off a needed Hall of Fame manager!
Pack #1 defeats all challengers!
Pretty pleased with this purchase. Eleven needs in three packs, plus the corrected version of two error cards I owned!
1991 was a pretty monumental set. Obviously, it celebrated Topps 40th
Anniversary with a special logo on the front of its cards. It also had a
huge promotion where a copy of every single card produced in those past
40 years (with redemption cards in place of older/valuable ones) were
randomly inserted into packs. It was also the last year gum was
included, the last year they used grey card stock, and it was also
around when they started transitioning away from wax paper wrappers. I have a hard time considering anything after this year "vintage".
Weird that they opened it but left the Yount.
ReplyDelete3 packs each having a HoF in them is usually a good thing. All 3 packs yielded a Blue Jay & 3 Orioles. I would disagree that Tim Crews deserves 1 pt at least cause how short his career was.
ReplyDeleteA. Entertaining way to open packs.
ReplyDeleteB. I wonder if there are any cards in the 1991 Topps set that would garner more points than Ripken.
C. I actually feel bad for the person who took the time to open up packs of 1991 Topps and then reseal them. I feel like the time and effort would be way more valuable than pulling a Chipper rookie card (assuming they eventually pulled one).
At least you got cards you needed!
ReplyDeletePoor pack three got slam dunked!
ReplyDelete11 needs is pretty darn good. Glad you're happy with the purchase.
Lots of great memories with this set. I haven't seen most of the cards in 30+ years because I have a sealed factory set. Odd about the gum indicating a potentially resealed pack - especially since that was the best of the three (at least by your scoring/needs)
ReplyDeleteWithout looking at the scoring, I had Pack 1 winning as well!
ReplyDeleteThe person may've been looking for the randomly inserted vintage cards as well. Despite opening probably a couple of boxes worth as a kid, I never came across any of those. And I've only heard of two instances where someone else did.
ReplyDelete