Buzz Break: 2018 Topps Allen & Ginter baseball cards (hobby)

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The box: 2018 Topps Allen & Ginter baseball cards (hobby box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com

Packs per box: 25 (24 plus box-topper)
Cards per pack: 8
Cards in this box: 193
Base set completion: 
130 of 300 (43 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Hank Aaron, Sloane Stephens, Buster Posey, Derek Jeter, George Brett, Manny Machado, Champ Pederson, Jose Altuve, Ryne Sandberg, Gary Sanchez, Michael Rapaport, Sonny Fredrickson, Ty Cobb, Jackie Robinson, Mark McGwire, Theo Epstein, Lou Gehrig, Roberto Clemente, Jim Thome, Luis Severino

Rookie Cards (14) – Shohei Ohtani, Erick Fedde (SP), Christian Villanueva (SP), Rafael Devers, Jack Flaherty, Scott Kingery, J.D. Davis, Walker Buehler, Amed Rosario, Clint Frazier, J.P. Crawford, Garrett Cooper, Lucas Sims, Ryan McMahon

Insert cards: 64 (a sampling of everything in gallery below)
Short-prints (Nos. 301-350) (12) – Erick Fedde (RC), Christian Villanueva (RC), Carlos Santana, Dennis Eckerlsey, Dwight Gooden, German Marquez, Carlos Carrasco, Josh Harrison, Brett Gardner, Josh Hader, Hyun-Jin Ryu, Matt Chapman
Mini parallel (9) – Bullpen car, Roger Maris, Lance McCullers, Joc Pederson, Ben Zobrist, Tommy Pham, Hunter Renfroe, Chipper Jones, Dallas Keuchel
Mini short-print parallel (3) – Jay Bruce, Lorenzo Cain, Ender Inciarte
Mini Black parallel (3) – Jose Canseco, Josh Reddick, Hunter Renfroe
Mini Allen & Ginter back parallel (5) – Rougned Odor, Hanley Ramirez, Josh Bell, Amed Rosario, Tom Segura
Indigenous Heroes (1) – Mangas Coloradas
Folio of Fears (1) – Entomophobia
Flags of Lost Nations (1) – Rhodesia
The World's Hottest Peppers (1) – Carolina Reaper
Fantasy Goldmine (6) – Frank Thomas, Mariano Rivera, Ryne Sandberg, Hideki Matsui, Lou Brock, Ichiro Suzuki
World Talent (6) – Shohei Ohtani, Jose Abreu, Luiz Gohara, Gift Ngoepe, Didi Gregorius, Yu Darvish
World's Greatest Beaches (4) – Trunk Bay, Paradise Island, Roatan, Venice Beach
Magnificent Moons (4) – Titan, 10, Moon, Triton
Baseball Equipment of the Ages (4) – Vintage uniform, modern cleats, vintage glove, vintage catcher's mitt
Topps Home Run Challenge (1) – Freddie Freeman
Cabinet (1) – Kris Bryant (box-topper)
Double Rip Card (1) – Sandy Koufax & Clayton Kershaw (/15)

Autographs/Memorabilia: 2
Full-size Relic Version 1 (1) – Travis Shaw
Full-size Relic Version B (1) – Yadier Molina

What's Buzz-worthy: Allen & Ginter has delivered big for me this year on the hobby box front so far and this box was right there with them with a Double Rip Card of two popular and very notable stars for the Dodgers. It's also one of those rarities that I won't rip -- and it's one of only a few through the years I wouldn't rip. Without that card? Not the greatest box but still not a bad one, especially at less than $100 a box. (If the price was above that? Less palatable ... at least for me.) The base set this year feels like it's an improvement over the ovals of last year and the baseball-focused insert sets just feel right along with the oddities we've also come to expect since Ginter's revival in 2006. Ginter boxes guarantee three hits per, though these boxes have had some collation issues here and there, but once again they don't guarantee ink. Maybe I'm riding the wave of a few above-average boxes, but Ginter feels like it's delivering pretty well this year. As long as the prices remain reasonable, I'll probably dig into hobby boxes a few more times.

Product Grade: A
Box Grade: A
Fun Grade: A-

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