Worth The Year Wait

I have a circle of friends who I consider to be my top traders in the hobby which are the ones that I trade with most.

I also know some of them can't always mail right away, but I know when they do and when I get it, the wait will be worth it.

Just like my latest trade with @90snichefootballcard on Twitter. Bryan and I have been trading for years, roughly ten, and every time I get a mail day from him, it's incredible.

So, this one may have taken roughly a year, but it was so worth it.

Just wait and see.

*takes a sip of freshly brewed brew*

I won't be posting all of this remarkable mail day on here, you will have to check the rest out on Big Blue Cardboard so if you aren't following that blog yet, do so.

But here is what I will be sharing,

Bryan jammed packed this box with all of the goodies. There are actually more cards in here than it looks, I won't be posting them all because of this and just pulled out some for both blogs.

I have been wanting this Judge card as he is walking among the "happy little trees" and I really think he is actually a giant among them. I really, really want the Griffey like this as well. Do you have one? Let me know!!

Never wrong with getting a Judge refractor.

He is the ringleader of the Bomb Squad this year sending out bombs all over the ballparks.

One of my favorite insert designs over the years was Unleashed. For a while I was trying to chase the entire set for a variety of years, I gave that up but still have the ones I collected and will always take more in. I simply learned you can't collect it all.

I am not sure what they call this parallel, but I am digging it.

Panini should take note on how Topps still uses game used jerseys in their products and not this jersey wasn't worn by anyone at any time at any place in particular and was just printed off the presses. Sorry, it had to be said.

The next four cards I found exceptional.

   

A fun holiday chase. I wonder if there are more parallels in the run. I feel like it needs to be finished now. Either way, these make a great addition to my holiday PC.

And finally, for the part of the mail day I am posting on here, at the bottom of the box were two Gold Rush envelopes.

Before I show those off, I need some coffee.

*takes a sip*

The first autograph I thought about showing off on Big Blue Cardboard but decided just to keep it here to make it easier on me.

Joe Morris the 5'7 beast who helped the Giants win Super Bowl XXI.

  

Goose Gossage was in the other envelope. He has one of the nicest Yankee signatures other than Mariano Rivera (still need his).

Thanks Bryan!

*takes a sip before finishing up today's post*

This mail day was sort of like Christmas when it arrived since it took awhile, but if I can get one of these every year, once again wait until you see the series of posts on Big Blue Cardboard, it was well worth the year wait.

Have a great day everyone.

*Coffee Card Blogger Out*

Don't forget you can start to nominate cards for the 2025 Coffee Card Hall Of Fame!! Cards don't have to be autographs, patch cards, super star cards. It can be whatever you think is Hall Worthy! Find details and current nominations HERE.

The 2025 Coffee Card Hall Of Fame Nominees So Far

This year has been flying by, and I haven't really been able to post a ton because I have been busy, but that doesn't mean there hasn't been some Hall Of Fame type of cards that should have been nominated for the 2025 Coffee Card Hall Of Fame.

And up to this point, only the following cards have made the list,

Nominated by Matt

 

Nominated by Ginko-5

 

Nominated by Matt, Jafronius, and Uncle Charlie

 

Nominated by Matt

 

Nominated by Me!!

With only five cards nominated so far, at this point they would all be in which doesn't leave us with the fun voting aspect since I accept five yearly into the hall.

I am hoping today's post will serve as a reminder to myself to add the following to every post going forward,

Don't forget you can start to nominate cards for the 2025 Coffee Card Hall Of Fame!! Cards don't have to be autographs, patch cards, super star cards. It can be whatever you think is Hall Worthy! Find details and current nominations HERE.

And for the rest of you to add some nominations to the cards above. Also, let me know if I happened to have missed any nominations as well.

Thanks again to those who have added in some nominees and hope to see more going forward as well.

*Coffee Card Blogger Out*

Maybe He Was Right

It was a week or two, maybe more but I lost track, Greg from Night Owl Cards had posted a break of 2025 Topps Heritage baseball and I left a comment on how I didn't really care for the product, and I think he took that to heart as a fan of it.

I just never had past luck with the product and to me the re-use of vintage designs didn't do much for me as I didn't collect in that era.

So, it wasn't anything I ever sought out and nothing that I ever planned on purchasing.

That may had changed one sunny day.

I went shopping at Walgreens for my wife with a list she had given me and as a collector you have to see if there are any card offerings, that would be like me going into a bakery and not seeing if they have any coffee, so I traveled up to the front of the store where they were on a small shelf.

My Walgreens isn't as populated with product as some, most of it was packed with those lame repacks, but this time they did have a few packs/boxes of Pokemon and also there sat two hanger boxes of 2025 Topps Heritage baseball.

For some reason or another, or maybe it was Greg sending me signals or was in my subconscious, but I felt led to grab one.

And I did. I dropped the $15 on this 35-card hanger box and left unsure of how I felt about doing the deed.

Before going on with the story, I must say that I also purchased the items my wife needed. Can you imagine if I went home with just a hanger box I didn't plan on purchasing and how that would have turned out?? That box may have found its way internally.

Anyways, I didn't open the hanger in the car or even when I got directly home, I got some chores done around the house and then made my way towards the box wondering if I had made a big mistake.

I quickly opened the box revealing the see-through packaging. I could notice something a little different in the stack of cards once I turned it sideways as I opened.

I ripped open the pack and began digging in. I completely brushed through the stack of base that began the pack and immediately went for the good stuff. Usually, I am the one who will eat the Oreo cookie part first and save the frosting for last but this time I dove right in because I didn't care for the cookie, I wanted the double stuff.

Here is what I found,

Nickname variation 1:160 packs. That was surprising.

Heritage Throwback 1:9 Packs

 

1976 Player Icons 1:9 Packs

I don't have the odds on this one, but /76 can't be an easy find. If only it was a better player.

Burgandy/Purple Sparkle? 1:1 Packs

Chrome Parallel 1:2 Packs. Not numbered that I could find.

Light Purple Parallel 1:1 packs

and then the thing I saw from the outside of the pack....

 

I don't know the odds for this one, but it's /25 dual clubhouse relic gold and has two spectacular young guns.

Wow is all I can say. After years of opening this product for product reviews (back when I did those), I never hit anything more than a single relic of some pitcher. This break more than makes up for all of those bad years.

So maybe Greg, you were right. Maybe this product isn't as awful as I thought. Or maybe I am just riding the high from a sweet victory for once. Let's just leave it at the middle of both ideas for now.

Don't forget you can start to nominate cards for the 2025 Coffee Card Hall Of Fame!! Cards don't have to be autographs, patch cards, super star cards. It can be whatever you think is Hall Worthy! Find details and current nominations HERE.

*Coffee Card Blogger Out*

The Final Draft

*takes a sip, coffee is burning hot this morning, takes mini sips*

*feels hungry, grabs a small snack to go with coffee and to hold off until lunchtime*

*sits down, time for some Cards Over Coffee*

Recently, I have made more time in my schedule to be on here and create new posts from my drafts since I haven't had a lot of cards incoming.

The problem I am running into now is that today's post is the final post I have in drafts.

Where do I go from here? Maybe I wait until I actually get some mail days or maybe I try to create something from nothing?

We will see and see if the coffee kicks in so I can have some creativity flow through me so I can create some new content going forward.

For now, let's take a look at a couple recent, well not so recent, non-sport additions.

 

I have these Topps Heritage relics saved in my searches, why, well, they are unique. There are swatches of the USS Constitution (I totally want), shirt relics from American Heroes, Celebrities, Soldiers, Space, Stadium Walls, I believe the White House floor and plenty of stadium seats like the George W. Bush above.

The second relic is the latest addition to my Chevy Chase collection. It's from 2023 Leaf Pop Century and my first relic from the new product. There are other Chevy cards in the product, but for now just glad to have one of them.

*takes a sip now that the coffee is cooler before finishing up today's post*

So far, the few sips of coffee I have taken haven't completely worked my creativity flow yet. I also would leave the floor open to you guys as well to give me some suggestions on what you would like to read about.

In the meantime, have a great Tuesday. Drink a ton of coffee, buy someone a coffee and smile. Life isn't always easy, but life is life. You're alive today and that's a blessing.

*Coffee Card Blogger Out*

Coffee Break:2022 Topps Heritage Minors Baseball

*it's been awhile, but here is my coffee-well not awhile on that-but awhile on a hobby box break. let's see how this one goes today*

Today's product isn't a product for everyone, but it does aim at a specific audience. Mainly the prospectors but the ones who enjoy Heritage and its throwback designs may have something to say as well.

It's not a product that has fared too well for me in the past, so maybe today is the day.

*takes a sip before gets ready to rip*

Every hobby box of 2022 Heritage Minors baseball comes with 18 packs of 8 cards. Boxes come with 2 autographs and boxes are a little less than $50.

*takes a sip, begins to rip*

When you bust open the box of Minors, you are greeted with three-card box toppers. These are done in the 1973 Topps Baseball Pin-Up design.

BASE:

Speaking of the 1973 design, just like the MLB version,

the MILB version tackles that same design as well.

 

 

There are 200 cards in the base set, plus 20 extra Sp cards to make it a 220-card set. There are base cards and subsets that feature more than one player as well.

PARALLELS:

You can find the following parallels in Heritage Minors,

Blue /99, Green /75, Black /50, Flip Stock, Gold /18, and Red 1/1.

Gold /18 falls 1:215 packs.

INSERTS:

1973 Topps 1953 Reprint Set falls 1:5 packs and has 15 cards to collect.

1973 Topps Pack Cover Set falls 1: 5 packs and has 20 cards to collect.

1973 Topps Tarjetas has 15 cards that falls 1:5 packs.

AUTOGRAPHS:

Redemption autograph of Colson Montgomery. First time I have pulled a redemption in a long time.

 

Henry Mendez on-card autograph.

Doesn't appear to be any big hits today, but, with prospects, I guess you never know until they play the game.

Ratings (ratings based on 1-5 🍵 on my break and not on the overall product)

Design 🍵🍵
Photography 🍵
Inserts 🍵🍵
Hits 🍵
Price 🍵🍵🍵🍵
Value 🍵

*takes a sip before finishing up today's post*

Let me know your thoughts on today's break in comments and what players you are searching for.

*moves stack of cards over to move the coffee back into place and begins next post*

*Coffee Card Blogger Out*

The Pope Has Arrived

When I window shop on eBay, I always run into the funnest (still not sure if this is a word) cards that weren't even a part of my shopping.

One of those cards popped up in the past couple of months when I was window shopping for presidential relic cards from the 2009 Topps American Heritage set. 

I immediately added the card to my watch list as I didn't have the funds, which is how it works for me with most cards I want.

Luckily for me this time, I fell into a situation of winning a contest on Twitter and was able to bring the card home. The contest was from @GloriousMattB who would purchase a card on eBay under $25 for the winner. I was chosen because the card was so unique.

This Pope Benedict XVI card fit my non-sport card collection, my Yankees collection and my unique relic collection all in one. 

The card showcases the Pope and features a swatch of authentic Yankee Stadium Wall.

 

Back of the card gives the usual gibberish. If Panini wrote this card back, it may have said this wall relic is not from any specific Pope event, not Pope warn, Pope touched, or even from Yankee Stadium.

These relic cards weren't terribly tough to land like some cards in the set as it fell 1:33 hobby and 1:135 retail packs. Some of those tougher to find relics are the ones I really want with pieces of the White House. That's pretty cool!

If you are curious about the Pope and Yankee Stadium connection, it's from when the Pope did his U.S. tour and held a massive mass in 2008 at Yankee Stadium. I guess you can say this is a moment in history on this card.

Thanks again to Matt for the card. It's a lot funner (yes blogger keep red underlining this word as a misspelled word, but I plan to keep using it) to actually own the card.

Thoughts on my latest addition and if you have seen or heard of this card before welcomed in comments.

Coffee Break:2022 Topps Heritage Hobby Box

*takes a sip, gets ready for the newest post on #CardsOverCoffee which is another fun Coffee Break. takes another sip and let's go!*

It's early I know, but it's time for another Coffee Break on Cards Over Coffee. I hope you have your brew in hand and are ready to check out the latest post. I know I have my coffee and I have my cards so let's see how today's break goes.

*takes a sip...or two, begins to rip*

Every hobby box of 2022 Topps Heritage baseball comes with 24 packs of 9 cards. Each box comes with 1 autograph or relic and a box topper (not pictured in this post but it was Pete Alonso) and each box costs roughly $100.

This years product also takes us back to 1973 for it's base card design.

BASE:

HUGE base set is what Topps Heritage is all about with 400 cards plus 100 short prints making it a 500 total card set.

There are veterans like Mike Trout with posed photos (some veterans have action photos)

Along with Rookies (yes Wander to)

World Series

A little surprise by adding a legend into the mix

Topps Gold Cup

Home Run Leaders

League Leaders

Rookie Trios

And then the High Number Short Prints make up the last 100 cards that fall 1:3 packs. As a set collector myself, I like the challenge and it puts added value on base card sets. That's something we don't see in today's collecting society.

*takes a sip before moving on with this post. some breakfast sounds good as well*

PARALLELS/SP'S

Parallels,

French Text /73, Black Border (50 copies), Flip Stock (5 copies).

Base Card Variations,'
Error Short Prints, Player Icon Color Swap, Team and Name Swap, Throwback Uniform, Image, and Nicknames.

Usually, each box will come with one, mine is an Image Swap.

Back of the card near the number tells you what variation it is. The card was also in the pack backwards so I knew I had one. I must also note since we are looking at the back of the card, with the black backs, these cards get damaged very easily. Just by looking at this through the screen I am sure it has whiting somewhere on it now. That was an issue I had in every pack.

Topps Heritage Chrome

Each box usually has one of these /999, I wished they would make this a set, and they come with the following parallels,

Hot Box Refractor, Refractor /673, Red /573, Silver /373, Green /273, Black /73, Gold /5, and SuperFractor 1/1.

Green /273

INSERTS:

New Age Performers has 25 cards of the newest players in the league.

News Flashbacks and Baseball Flashbacks bring you back to the biggest news of 1973. I like the News Flashbacks myself for my non sport PC. Each one has 15 cards in their respective sets.

Then and Now has 15 cards and features a player of today compared to one of the past. Not quite sure if Robbie Ray is a good one in this case. Or if anyone is.

HITS:

9.9 percent of the time, you will pull a relic card. 9.8 percent of that time, it will be a plain swatch Clubhouse Collection.

 

And that's what I find every time. At least it's a Game Used relic.

*takes a sip before finishing up today's post*

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

I always enjoy opening Topps Heritage and even though there are some massive hits to be found, I don't focus on that part as I never pull one. I treat the hit as a bonus. It's all about the base, inserts and especially chrome for me.

I know many of you will hate this thought, but a chromed Heritage product would be beautiful. I would probably shorten the base set down some. Maybe 150 veterans and legends, 25 rookie and 75 short prints kind of set.

Thoughts on this product is welcomed below.

Have a great Friday.

*Coffee Card Blogger Out*