A Big League Blaster For the Road Part 1

One day before I'm set to officially leave for Cleveland (my Dad and I decided to leave Monday afternoon instead of early Tuesday morning), I took a quick trip to Target for various last-minute travel items that I need before I am set to leave tomorrow around 1:00 PM and you know what going to Target means; checking the card aisle to see what products (or lack thereof) are available.

I was originally just going to pick up 2 packs of 2018 Topps Allen & Ginter. One pack would be for today and one for when we get on the road tomorrow. However, I eventually discovered that the retail A&G packs were $3 which was expected, but they also only had 6 cards each. I was not going to pay 50 cents a card for retail A&G, so my eyes shifted to the rest of the card aisle. Eventually, a $10 blaster box of 2018 Topps Big League caught my eye.

Somehow, I was under budget regarding the rest of my stuff at Target. I also needed a blog post idea for today and tomorrow which I was relying on getting at Target anyhow. Finally, the cost of this blaster is merely a buck more than 3 packs of 2018 Allen & Ginter would've cost me. So, I decided that a blaster for the road would be a good idea, especially since I've been dying to open some of Big League ever since I started seeing bloggers post about it.

Today, I'll go over the first 3 packs of the box. Tomorrow, I'll go over the final 2 plus the 4 exclusive blue parallel cards and the 1 green parallel cut-out on the back of this box. There are 10 cards per pack, including 1 guaranteed gold parallel card.

Pack #1

#247 Parker Bridwell

Parker Bridwell may not be the most exciting first card to pull, but the card is a prime example of the images choices and base set design of Topps Big League. The product is designed to appeal to kids, and it does a pretty good job at that with the 400-card checklist. This set seems like Topps Bunt's replacement, but I also have heard whispers that it could also replace Opening Day which I'm more than okay with. 

#104 Jose Altuve

The card backs of 2018 Topps Big League is one of the strong points of the set. While it still doesn't include full stats for every player, the "Did You Know" fun facts and the vintage-looking color scheme is very appealing to a collector like me. 

#277 Kyle Seager

#87 Avisail Garcia

#124 Brandon Nimmo

#326 2017 AL Saves Leaders

As much as I originally liked the individual league leaders cards from Topps Flagship, I do miss having the top 3 leaders on one card which is what is done on the Stat Kings cards. Even better, the first one I pulled includes Craig Kimbrel who finished 3rd in the AL in saves in 2017. Therefore, this card will go straight to the Kimbrel Collection. 

#111 Paul Goldschmidt

#363 Bernie's Dugout

#MI-8 Ministers of Mash Giancarlo Stanton

Although I enjoy the concept of the Ministers of Mash set that includes the players' career home run total on the back, I agree with all the bloggers that have stated how the inserts seem like a bit of an after-thought. Moreover, I mentioned yesterday how I do not want any cards of Stanton on the Yankees in my PC of him so this card will be added to the list of cards available for trade if anyone wants it.

#181 Travis Shaw Gold Parallel

The 1-per-pack gold parallels are a concept similar to the 1-per-pack blue parallels from 2017 Topps Bunt. Although they appear more yellow when scanned, I can confirm they do appear more gold in-person. 

Pack #2

#133 Nick Markakis

Out of all the players in the 2018 All-Star Game (Red Sox excluded), I was most happy that Nick Markakis made it. Unbelievably, the 34-year old is having possibly his best year yet, leading the league in hits and doubles while also maintaining a .316 average. Additionally, his 2018 Topps Big League card is probably my favorite base card so far.

#128 Danny Duffy

#372 Scott Kingery

#349 Mariano Rivera

From what I've heard regarding Topps Big League, there are about 50 or so retired players included in the set. Including a wide variety of retired players from different decades is what I'm hoping to see out of Big League. After all, the set is designed to appeal to kids, and teaching kids about all different legends from all different decades is the best thing to do in a set like this.

#265 Stephen Piscotty

#144 Nelson Cruz

#304 2017 AL Runs Scored Leaders

I can't remember the last time I saw the runs scored stat get its own league leaders card. It's quite an underrated stat nowadays, and I think it's really an interesting and good decision for Topps to include this stat in the Big League set. I was also surprised but not shocked to learn that Aaron Judge led the AL in runs with 128. 

#1 Aaron Judge

This is my 2nd Judge card pulled in a row, and both of them will be going to the Aaron Judge PC instead of Altuve or Springer's PC for the card above. My rule for league leader cards is that the highest-ranked player on the card that I also collect will get the card in their PC. So, even though I collect Judge, Altuve, and Springer, Judge had the most runs scored so he will get the card.

#38 Byron Buxton Players Weekend Image Variation

Despite looking like an insert, the Players Weekend cards are actually variations of the base cards. They are based off the Players Weekend jerseys and nicknames from 2017 which will return for this year as well. The guy I pulled was Byron Buxton, and his nickname last year was "Buck."

#126 Roberto Osuna Gold Parallel

Pack #3

#57 Carlos Martinez

#259 Tim Beckham

#299 Zack Greinke

#12 Whit Merrifield

#342 Pedro Martinez

Although the first 4 cards of the pack were rather boring, pulling a card of Red Sox Hall of Fame pitcher Pedro Martinez more than makes up for it. Like Topps Bunt, Big League also has very good attention to detail regarding team logos. They make sure to use the correct logo from the time period that the player played for their respective team.

#282 Noah Syndergaard

#396 Jurickson Profar

#315 2017 NL Batting Average Leaders

I think the Stat Kings cards remain my favorite part of the 2018 Topps Big League set. In an era where it seems like home runs are the only stat that matter, it's nice to see other stat categories with all the leaders being well-represented. They also help me brush up on my 2017 baseball knowledge as I did not know Charlie Blackmon was the 2017 NL Batting Average leader.

#40 Yoan Moncada

#178 Albert Pujols Gold Parallel

I certainly cannot complain about the final card of pack #3. I pulled a gold parallel of Albert Pujols, a player I collect and one of just 4 players to hit 600 homers and have 3,000 career hits along with Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, and Alex Rodriguez. 

That's all for the first 3 packs, but I'll make sure to post the highlights of the rest of the box tomorrow along with my final thoughts on the 2018 Topps Big League product.