Do you like Buzz Breaks? Today's your day then as we launch 8 in 8 -- a series of a eight breaks of wax boxes and wax packs in as many hours today. We'll post one every hour ... this is Hour 5.

The box: 2020 Topps Series 1 baseball cards
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for hobby)
First Buzz preview with checklist/SPs/more: Click here

What's inside this one? Keep reading ...

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Do you like Buzz Breaks? Today's your day then as we launch 8 in 8 -- a series of a eight breaks of wax boxes and wax packs in as many hours today. We'll post one every hour ... this is Hour 3.

The box: 2020 Topps Series 1 baseball cards 
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com
First Buzz preview with checklist/SPs/more: Click here

What's inside this one? Keep reading ...

Continue reading →

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2020 Topps Series 1 baseball cards 
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com
First Buzz preview with checklist/SPs/more: Click here

Packs per box: 8 (seven standard, one medallion card pack)
Cards per pack: 14
Cards in this box: 99
Base set completion: 
82 of 350 (23 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Mike Trout, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Christian Yelich, Keston Hiura, Buster Posey, Eloy Jimenez, Bryce Harper, Anthony Rendon, Cody Bellinger, Shohei Ohtani

Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.

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The newest Topps On Demand set of the year is here and it's one that carries with it a dramatic and nearly colorless look at Major League Baseball.

It's the 2020 Topps MLB Black & White and it includes a 75-card base set and more

Packs of this one are $60 and include a one-in-two chance at an autograph with 25 base cards and five parallels/inserts also inside when bought directly via Topps.com. The format is the same as it was for this one last year.

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Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but one of my goals is to rip a little less and talk more about cardboard that I -- and you -- might like. One way to do that? Simple show and tell -- present a few pick-ups and say why they captured my attention.

So, with all that said, here are a few Buzz Buys.

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BIG INK
The Card: Mark McGwire 2017 Topps Tier One Tier One Autographs (/30)
The Price: $45.75
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: For years, my only Mark McGwire autograph was one on a somewhat average-condition Oakland A's World Series team-signed ball that I found in an unusual way and got via a trade. (In short, it was sitting in a mug on co-worker's desk. He didn't know what team it was ... it was just his dad's ball that had been brought in for some reason. There it sat ... until I happened to pick it up and look. Then I picked up my jaw.) I added a similar and different item in recent years -- a bat -- and both pieces are 100-percent legit but without authentication. (That happened back in the day when teams signed items ... without merch deals and MLB Authentication around.) This time, though, I added a fresh McGwire release that's on both the rarer side and the cheaper side since the price was right (and dramatically lower than others out there for comparable cards). McGwire has always been a pricier auto -- he didn't sign much during his career except for very early on (before certified auto cards) -- and then became an Upper Deck guy after his record-setting years. Topps got him back in the fold in 2014 releases and he's also been in Panini stuff. I liked the price and the look of this one, which has him watching a homer from late in the 1998 season.
Grab a box right here: 2017 Topps Tier One baseball cards

Keep reading for more interesting items ...

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2020 Topps Series 1 baseball cards 
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com
First Buzz preview with checklist/SPs/more: Click here

Packs per box: 8 (seven standard, one medallion card pack)
Cards per pack: 14
Cards in this box: 99
Base set completion: 
82 of 350 (23 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Mike Trout, Aaron Judge, Cody Bellinger, Gleyber Torres, Trea Turner, Stephen Strasburg, Juan Soto, Max Scherzer, Anthony Rendon, Justin Verlander

Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2020 Topps Series 1 baseball cards 
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com
First Buzz preview with checklist/SPs/more: Click here

Cards per pack: 67
Base set completion: 
57 of 350 (16 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Juan Soto, Mike Trout, Fernando Tatis Jr., Shohei Ohtani, Nick Senzel, Gleyber Torres, Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander, Buster Posey

Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.

Continue reading →

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2020 Topps Series 1 baseball cards 
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com
First Buzz preview with checklist/SPs/more: Click here

Packs per box: 8 (seven standard, one medallion card pack)
Cards per pack: 14
Cards in this box: 99
Base set completion: 
82 of 350 (23 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Rafael Devers, Alex Bregman, Miguel Cabrera, Carlos Correa, Max Scherzer, Ramon Laureano, Clayton Kershaw, Mike Yastrzemski, Christian Yelich, Shohei Ohtani, Keston Hiura, Cody Bellinger

Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.

Continue reading →

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2020 Topps Series 1 baseball cards 
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com
First Buzz preview with checklist/SPs/more: Click here

Packs per box: 24 (plus one 1985 Chrome pack)
Cards per pack: 14 (four in Chrome)
Cards in this box: 336
Base set completion: 
310 of 350 (89 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Fernando Tatis Jr., Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Pete Alonso, Eloy Jimenez, Mike Soroka, Ramon Laureano, Austin Riley, Mike Yastrzemski, Michael Chavis, Nick Senzel, Tommy Edman, Jeff McNeil, Chris Paddack, Juan Soto, Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, Masahiro Tanaka, Matt Olson, Luis Castillo, Ronald Acuña Jr., Mike Trout, Aaron Judge, Bryce Harper, Cody Bellinger, Manny Machado, Gary Sanchez, Buster Posey, Anthony Rizzo, Kyle Schwarber, Andrew Benintendi, Jacob deGrom, Clayton Kershaw, Anthony Rendon, Carlos Correa, Gleyber Torres, Shohei Ohtani, Justin Verlander, Alex Bregman, Christian Yelich

Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.

Continue reading →

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2020 Topps Archives Signature Series Active Player Edition baseball cards
First Buzz preview, gallery & signer list: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com

Packs per box: 1
Cards per pack: 1
Base set completion: 
N/A

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Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it's to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it's to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.

Here's this month's grading diary here on The Buzz ...

The Card: Kobe Bryant 1996-97 Upper Deck #58 Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: I actually bought this card more than a year ago and thought I had it waiting in my stash of cards to present here at some point but, after doing some searching, realized that I never took a photo of this iconic 1990s card and it had been waiting for its time to appear. Unfortunately, we know why this NBA legend has been on the minds of many sports fans out there this week so here we are. I picked up this Rookie Card back then since it was a decent grade for a decent price -- just $9 -- and I didn't ever pull one way back when. It doesn't have any obvious flaws on the front, so it looks much better than its grade, too. (Sub-grades on the back of this slab are all 9 or higher except for an 8.5 on corners and one corner shows why.) The shocking news of this week has created a frenzy of interest for Bryant's RCs and autographs -- and a card in this same grade (not an elite grade, really) sold for $200. Mine will remain in my stash.
The Grade: BGS 9

Reality Check: The pop report on this card is a lot stiffer than I had expected with this being the most-common grade and fewer than 600 checking in higher. I had expected there to be more but I suspect the pop reports on this card could change a lot in the coming months -- and it will be interesting to see if any ever reach BGS Black status. Bryant has a number of RCs -- more than 20 -- and this one is unique in that it doesn't show him in his Lakers uniform. The debate as to whether Bryant's cards will hold values in comparison to what people are paying right now is an interesting one over on the Blowout Forums where there are a number of discussions. I think this is a scenario that may defy common collecting logic -- I'd think that anything is possible in this case and there are a lot of buyers right now who will pick up cards and stash them away forever, leaving a smaller volume of stuff available for everyday collectors to grab on eBay and other market hot spots. Finding unopened boxes won't be an option for a lot of his Rookie Cards that people want to track down, either.

Keep reading for more of this month's pick-ups and new slabs for Buzz.

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2019 Topps Gallery baseball cards (blaster box)
Checklist: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (when available)

Packs per box: 8 (seven standard and one Artist Proof pack)
Cards per pack: 4
Cards in this box: 32
Base set completion: 24 of 150 (15 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Shohei Ohtani, Clayton Kershaw, Jose Altuve, Manny Machado, Willson Contreras, Javier Baez, Francisco Lindor, Matt Chapman, Rafael Devers

Rookie Cards (11) – Eloy Jimenez, Yusei Kikuchi, Nick Senzel, Mitch Keller, Brendan Rodgers, Chris Paddack, Elvis Luciano, Daniel Ponce de Leon, Nicky Lopez, Pedro Avila, Luis Arraez

Continue reading →

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2019 Bowman's Best baseball cards (hobby box)
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com

Packs per box: 12
Cards per pack: 5
Cards in this box: 60
Base set completion: 
22 of 70 (31 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Prospects set completion: 
10 of 30 (33 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notable base cards – Ronald Acuña Jr., Walker Buehler, Bryce Harper, Shohei Ohtani, Anthony Rizzo, Justin Verlander, Nolan Arenado, Christian Yelich, Jacob deGrom

Rookie Cards (3) – Will Smith, Justus Sheffield, Kyle Tucker

Prospect cards (10) – Adley Rutschman, Wander Franco, Bo Bichette, Riley Greene, Corbin Carroll, Taylor Trammell, Nolan Gorman, Forrest Whitley, J.J. Bleday, Josh Jung

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2018 Topps Gallery baseball cards (blaster box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for collector's box)

Packs per box: 8 (seven standard, one Artist Proof pack)
Cards per pack: 4
Cards in this box: 32
Base set completion: 
25 of 150 (17 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Continue reading →

A new year is here and with this being the first Thursday that means it's time for the first Topps #TBT set of 2020.

If you don't know, this is a weekly offering via Topps' website where a memorable design from the past gets a new go with some new players in a small, affordable format.

For this one, they're throwing things all the way back to ... 2020.

No, really.

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

 The box: 2019 Topps Heritage High Number baseball cards (blaster box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for hobby)
First Buzz preview, SPs & checklist: Click here

Packs per box: 8
Cards per pack: 9
Cards in this box: 72
Base set completion: 
65 of 200 (33 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Austin Meadows, Byron Buxton

Rookie Cards (15) – Fernando Tatis Jr., Keston Hiura, Skye Bolt, Justus Sheffield, Braden Bishop, Cal Quantrill, Kyle Zimmer, Griffin Canning, Jake Bauers, Eric Stamets, Connor Joe, John Means, Josh Fuentes, Ryan Helsley (SP)

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Making The Grade is a monthly department here on The Buzz that ran all year long in 2019 -- its first complete season so far. Its a place where newly slabbed cards and a few pick-ups get the spotlight -- a little show-and-tell to get people talking and thinking about cards beyond "What's it worth?"

Sometimes I picked cards for fun, sometimes I chased 10s, but other times I slabbed with some longer-term "investment" thought -- and I don't even do that often. (My go-to is to simply slab stuff that I like.) The card you see up top? You can firmly place it in the red-hot fun file. The card at right? You can put it in the long-term keeper stack along with the guy below him, who had plenty of appearances in the series this year.

As one of a couple of 2019 retrospective posts I have planned -- they're at least on my to-do list at least until other work pops up -- here's a look at the series where I talked about 158 new slabs this past year. You can see them all at the links below.

January -- Making the Grade: Patrick Mahomes, The Mick, Tommy Chong, Whitney Houston, botched cardboard & more

February -- Making the Grade: Patrick Mahomes, Bo Knows, Wendy Peffercorn, Tom Brady, Super Bowl stars & more

March -- Making the Grade: Young MVPs, iconic Hall of Famers, Silent Bob, March Madness, a Future Superstar & more

April -- Making the Grade: Vince McMahon, Steve Austin and WrestleMania icons plus Ronald Acuña Jr. & more MLB stars

May -- Making the Grade: Baker Mayfield, JLo's Rookie Card, Joe Cool, Nuke LaLoosh, Hailie Deegan & more past gems

June -- Making the Grade: The Dream Team, Ronald Acuña Jr., Bart Starr, Mike Trout, Deadpool, Kelly Hu's rookie & more

July -- Making the Grade: Aaron Judge, Jayson Tatum, Ric Flair, Michael Jordan, Ronald Acuña Jr., Billy Ripken's bad bat knob, Chrissy Teigen's Rookie Card, The Big Lebowski's ink & more

August -- Making the Grade: New Vladdy, Acuña, Rally Squirrel, Undertaker, Juggernaut, Michael Jordan, Paige, Kurt Cobain, The Bad News Bears' ace ... and Keith Comstock's beanballs?

September -- Making the Grade: Joe Namath's ink, Dak & Jerry Rookie Cards, Saquon Barkley, Lonzo Ball, 1990s NFL classics, high-grade vintage, The Four Horsewomen of NXT & more

October -- Making the Grade: Ronald Acuña Jr. heaters, Clerks, Ernie Davis, hot ink, Supergirl, Catwoman & real Nuke LaLoosh

November -- Making the Grade: Dak Prescott, Luka Doncic, Magic Johnson & John Cena rookies, Robert Mueller, the first perfect Keith Comstock, Meghan Markle's MLB card & more

December -- Making the Grade: Rare Shohei Ohtani, Star Wars, Pete Alonso, Tim Duncan, vintage, several WWE stars & more

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Need even more? See previous months' Making The Grade posts by clicking here (scroll down)

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Follow Buzz on Twitter @BlowoutBuzz or send email to BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com. 

>> Click here to buy cards on BlowoutCards.com

What: 2020 Panini Diamond Kings baseball cards
Arrives: April 29 June 10
Box basics: One autograph and one memorabilia card per 12-pack box (24 boxes per case)
Order: Click here (live soon)

What's buzz-worthy: Diamond Kings will take to the field once again with an insert in every pack and plenty of notable names from the past and present inside, too.

Keep reading for more and a full gallery of images.

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Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it's to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it's to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.

Here's this month's grading diary here on The Buzz ...

A BIG BLASTER PULL
The Card: Shohei Ohtani 2018 Topps #700B hand on helmet SSP photo variation
The Reason Graded: Not that long ago, I pulled this card from a Series 2 blaster box and decided that it needed a slab since these SSPs appear to be relatively rare -- and I was even more surprised to see how they didn't grade all that well on the pop report. Meanwhile, mine looked very clean ... so I had to do it.
The Grade: BGS 9.5

Reality Check: Only one card graded better than mine and four others have equaled it while eight cards have checked in at a BGS 9 or lower -- that seems pretty low for a modern card, though the skinny stock here clearly could have issues after these cards hit packaging. I'll admit that this was a pull while Ronald Acuña Jr. hunting in Series 2, but this feels like a win on top of a win with it grading so well after being pulled from a discounted box. Here's hoping his third season is as strong or better than his first two, which are remarkably similar from the batting side.

Keep reading for more of this month's pick-ups and new slabs for Buzz.

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 From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2019 Topps Gallery baseball cards (collector's box)
Checklist: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (when available)

Packs per box: 21 (20 standard, one jumbo box-topper)
Cards per pack: 5
Cards in this box: 102
Base set completion: 
90 of 150 (57 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Ronald Acuña Jr., Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Bryce Harper, Aaron Judge, Blake Snell, Alex Bregman, Josh Donaldson, Max Scherzer, Christian Yelich, Kris Bryant, Joey Votto

Rookie Cards (40) – Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Cavan Biggio, Fernando Tatis Jr., Brad Keller, Mike Yastrzemski, J.D. Hammer, Jacob Nix, Cedric Mullins, Sean Reid-Foley, David Fletcher, Josh James, Garrett Hampson, Harold Ramirez, Jake Bauers, Michael Chavis, Josh Naylor, Brandon Lowe, Bryan Reynolds, Jalen Beeks, Dennis Santana, Kevin Newman, Elvis Luciano, Brendan Rodgers, Ryan Helsley, Bryse Wilson, Lane Thomas, Christin Stewart, Dakota Hudson, Will Smith, Kolby Allard, Ryan Borucki, Cole Tucker, Nate Lowe, Steven Duggar, Chance Adams, Willians Astudillo, Shawn Anderson, Kyle Tucker, Rowdy Tellez, Taylor Ward

Continue reading →

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2019 Topps High Tek baseball cards (hobby box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com

Packs per box: 3
Cards per pack: 6
Cards in this box: 18
Base set (any pattern): 8 of 112 (7 percent)
Duplicate players (any pattern): 0

Base cards – Derek Jeter, Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Arenado, Jose Ramirez, Javier Baez, Andrew Benintendi, Anthony Rizzo

Rookie Cards (any pattern) (1) – Christin Stewart

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2019 Topps Heritage baseball cards (blaster box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (a few formats)

Packs per box: 8
Cards per pack: 9
Cards in this box: 71
Base set completion: 
63 of 400 (16 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Boston Red Sox World Series Champions, Max Scherzer, Bryce Harper, Yu Darvish, Josh Donaldson, Anthony Rendon, Ryan Braun, Christian Yelich

>>> For variation details, click here

Rookie Cards (7 cards, 16 rookies) – Kolby Allard, Touki Toussaint, Kyle Wright, Framber Valdez, Josh James, Dean Deetz, Edmundo Sosa, Adolis Garcia, Daniel Poncedeleon. Dakota Hudson, Ryan O'Hearn, Meibrys Vitoria, Chris Shaw, Aramis Garcia, David Fletcher, Taylor Ward

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2019 Topps 582 Montgomery Club Set No. 5
Where to buy: Only part of membership

Base set completion: 
20 of 20 (100 percent)

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing Today: Big pulls, Topps Holiday boxes arrive, Zion Williamson and iconic inserts in today's edition.

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2019 Topps Holiday baseball cards
Checklist: Click here
Where to buy: Initially at Walmart; (here when available)

Packs per box: 10
Cards per pack: 10
Cards in this box: 100
Base set completion: 
91 of 200 (46 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Juan Soto, Justin Verlander, Carlos Correa, George Springer, Anthony Rendon, Shohei Ohtani, Aaron Judge, Bryce Harper, Trea Turner, Ozzie Albies, Nolan Arenado, Giancarlo Stanton, Corey Seager, Albert Pujols, Noah Syndergaard, CC Sabathia, Anthony Rizzo, Blake Snell, Matt Chapman, Christian Yelich

Rookie Cards (22) – Fernando Tatis Jr., Eloy Jimenez, Will Smith, Mike Yastrzemski, Spencer Turnbull, Trent Thornton, Luis Arraez, Nate Lowe, Austin Allen, Griffin Canning, Corbin Martin, Jeff McNeil, Taylor Clarke, Ryan Helsley, Nick Anderson, Nicky Lopez, Thairo Estrada, Ryne Harper, Jon Duplantier, Brendan Rodgers, J.D. Hammer, Harold Ramirez

Continue reading →