repack regrets + a contest for you!

You know, I made such a big stink about these 100 Cards + one Pack repacks from Walgreens a while back, one would think I could take my own advice. Here are the oldest cards in the bunch - A pair from 1981 and a pair from 1983. I mean, it was just $5, but there were probably better ways for me to spend it.

Just one Minnesota Twin in the group of 100. 1984 Fleer has some great cards in it, and I'm a fan of the design.

4 cards featuring one-time Twins - Viola right after the trade to New York, then again with his 3rd team. Charlie Manuel played sparingly for the Twins in the late 60s/ early 70s - Don Baylor was on the 1987 championship team, joining after the trade deadline on waivers.

A no doubt Hall of Famer, a brand new Hall of Famer, A Hall of Famer in the record books, and a Hall of Famer in our hearts (or maybe just in our knuckles).

Horizontal Heroes! A Joe Mauer cameo, too.

Nick! Do you need this Jim Walewander? Is that guy in the background delivering mail, or is he about to go on safari? I guess there are at least 25 Tigers nearby...

These were some of my favorites from the bunch. The pack was 1988 Donruss. I could see through the wrapper that the card on the wax sealed side is Cal Ripken, Jr.

GIVEAWAY!

Anyone want the pack of 1988 Donruss? Just claim it first in the comments and it's yours.

CONTEST!

Guess how many cards out of the 100 I considered "keepers" - closest guess wins a reverse engineered 100 Card + 1 pack Repack of their very own. I'll put together a mailer and send it over.

Basically, just pick a number between 0 - 100.

CONTEST! Will announce a winner with Saturday's post.

Deconstructing A Repack, Forming a Repack Bill of Rights

The local pharmacy had one of these 100 Card + One Pack Repacks from the Fairfield Company, Lucas Duda was on the front.

Here are the oldest cards in the pack, '85, '86 Donruss and a glossy insert from '86 Topps Rack Packs. I feel buying these repacks the same way I feel about eating fast food. I already know I will regret it, but I do it anyway for the convenience and the cheap carbs. 

Not including Topps, here are the newest cards from each manufacturer, '94 Donruss, '92 Fleer Ultra, '91 Score and Upper Deck. Topps went all the way to 2017.

The pack - 1990 Donruss. "Orange you glad I didn't say Triple Play?" --Fairfield, probably

Members of the Hall of Fame from the repack - there was another Tim Raines from '88 Score as well.

My four favorite cards from the repack - I am pretty sure I already had all four of these already, but that's the chance you take with a repack, right?

Some Stats:
There were actually 102 cards in the repack.
65 were Topps Cards, mostly 2015 (16 cards), 1988 (16), and 1989 (11).
14 were Donruss (and the pack would be 16 more), 8 Fleer, 7 Score, 7 Upper Deck, and one '93 Pacific.

It's been a while since I purchased one of these, because to be honest they are terrible. It's not about getting high dollar cards or hits for these, but it should be about variety and surprises. If I were to start making repacks on my own, I would have a few rules for myself.

Variety is the Spice of Life

1. No duplicate cards (this repack had 2 pair of duplicates).

2. No more than 5 cards from same set. (this repack had three sets with 10+ cards)

3. Cards from every decade since the 1980s (this repack had 0 cards from 2000-2010)

Spread the love between the manufacturers

4. Topps should be less than half of the repack.

5. Non-Topps should include more years than just '88 - '91

6. It's ok to skip the main set and go with extra offerings (Fleer Ultra, Leaf, Score Select, etc.)

Repack with intention

7. Seek out interesting photo choices.

8. Select a handful of fan favorite players to include, along with a few Hall of Famers.

9. Be willing to get weird - use some box sets, oddballs, traded/update, etc.

Last but not least

10. Include cards you would want to see in a re-pack.

(This is my philosophy for blind trades, too)

More Fun With Repacks

 I was at Target yesterday for some socks-- well, really I was hoping to find some packs of Topps Update. No dice! I grabbed this repack with a 2014 Topps Update card on the front. I'm a sucker for cards featuring a Target Field patch, so I picked this one over the others on the shelf.

 Here's the pack that came with. I have to be honest, I have zero interest in Triple Play - anyone out there collect this set?

 The oldest card in the repack - this off center '82 Donruss Glenn Hubbard. Glenn was born in Germany, a bit of trivia he shares with Twins Uber Prospect Max Kepler. Hubbard made the NL All-Star Team in 1983 following a solid 1982 season. He's currently coaching the Kansas City system.

 The most recent card in the repack was from the 2014 Topps Update series. Cowgill's 2015 season was derailed by a wrist injury, but he will try to rebound next season and make a case for being a part of the Angels' outfield.

 Hey, a Hit! David's last minor league season was in 2011, a year after this card was made. Any Hooks fans out there? Cook had some decent pop, hitting over 20 homers in three different minor league seasons.

 Some awesome 90's junk

 O-Pee-Chee!

 When Julio was young!

 Is this a variation, or is this the regular base card? Either way, it's a great shot.

He's saying "Call me GianCARRRRlo!"

Dollar Store Dandies

 Ah, the dollar store. When in Rome, buy 20 card repacks. Darin Erstad in an Astros uni? Whaaaaat?

 The oldest card in the packs - Steve Comer, who is from Minnesota (and pitched for the Gophers in College). Great pull quote from Peter Gammons: "A film crew could outrun Steve Comer's fastball." A fun biography HERE written by Nat Shepard.

 The most recent card - this 2014 Bowman Chrome card of Matt McPhearson. The outfielder stole 30 bases in 56 games in Missoula, Montana this past year, still in the Diamondbacks system. He was a 4th round pick in 2013 out of a Baltimore area high school.

 Some 80's junk new to my collection.

 Some 90's Junk new to my collection.

 Big.

 That's a really nice card.

This one too. I can't articulate why the current year feels so bleh in comparison. It has to be due to them dropping the " 's "

Anyway, just a fun little diversion of repacks from the dollar store.

Whut.

 Ho hum, a four pack plus 50 junk wax singles re-pack, yeah?

 whut.

What Sorcery is this????

Totally worth it! A Factory sealed 1990 Score Rookie/Traded Set? Awesome. This is the one with the Eric Lindros Blue Jays card, a Frank Thomas rookie, along with traded cards of Dave Winfield, Cecil Fielder, Gary Carter, and several others.

And apparently, I'm not the only person to find one of these... It's cool, it's strange, it's a Repack Magic Moment!

Needed Batteries, Came Home with Cards

Well, as is often the case on Sunday mornings, I realize I need some throwaway item like batteries or some clear tape or whatever, and the options in walking distance from my house are the dollar store and the gas station. The gas station has better stories from the guy who has family in Montreal and Algeria and works behind the counter. but the dollar store has baseball cards!

The choice was as clear as tape. The card display at this store is a wreck, it's a series of gravity feed boxes that are hanging from a rack, laying on their sides, or upside down. nothing is in the same box it arrived in. Even the dollar store has gotten overpriced, with several 6-card repacks being sold for a dollar each (and the two cards you can see are '89 Topps. Instead, I go for the two remaining 20 card repacks, both of which feature cards from the years I was not collecting. This is a lot more promising, even though I am fully aware of what is coming.

First, the good news: The Magglio card on the front was serial numbered! (to 2005) . . . There's a nice Lance Johnson in a throwback uni...

other than that gem and a Ivan Rodriguez chrome card, it was '91 Upper Deck City. The repacks fell flat on their faces.

Is there a secret to a successful repack? Can you tell without being a pack searcher which repacks have potential and which are destined to disappoint? I suppose that is the gamble and the art of it all.