The First Topps Heritage Pack Of 2009

OK, I broke down and actually bought a pack of 2009 Topps Heritage. I have yet to complete the 2008 set. I don't have any intentions of collecting anything but the White Sox cards out of the 2009 set, but I feel compelled to purchase a pack.

I don't have to feel guilty about it though because I found a White Sox card in my first, and so far only pack of 2009 Heritage.

Rather than play Sox Or No Sox today, I'll just post the results of the pack here. It will show the great lengths the pack gods went to tease and belittle me.

Card 1: 207 - Aubrey Huff - Orioles
Aubrey was once coveted by the White Sox GM. Alas, it was never meant to be.

Card 2: 253 - Alex Cintron - Orioles
Alex Cintron gets a card!! A former backup utility player for the White Sox.

Card 3: 317 - Joey Votto - Reds
I know a few people who would like this card. It also mentions him hitting 3 homers against the Cubs. I know who this will be earmarked for.

Card 4: 408 - Carlos Lee - Astros
Another former White Sox!! If the Sox didn't get rid of him, there would be no World Series championship in 2005.

Card 5: 367 - David DeJesus - Royals
He's a Royal. He's been rumored to be on Kenny Williams radar. He will be in a White Sox uniform after his prime.

Card 6: 316 - Wilson Betemit - White Sox
Woo hoo!! A White Sox card!! A card of a newly acquired player who may not make the Opening Day roster. Um... woo hoo!!

Card 7: 136 - Matt Tuiasosopo - Mariners
I don't even want to tell you the vile and disgusting things that immediately popped into my head while trying to sound out that last name. He got a double off of Andy Pettitte for his first hit. Not bad!

Card 8: 99 - Lastings Milledge - Nationals
Lastings led the Nationals in home runs, RBI and stolen bases last year. 14, 61 and 24, respectively, if you were curious. You know you were.

Not a single short print or gimmick card. I did get a White Sox card, so I'm happy. I bought the pack at Target, so I'm bummed I didn't get a Mayo card, but what are you gonna do about it?

Aparicio Heritage Stadium Relic Pulled

Usually, there's nothing that special about relics anymore. The luster has worn off. The excitement has died down. They are passe.

There's a special type of excitement surrounding this card, for me at least. One, it's a vintage Hall Of Famer. Two, the design is supposed to mimic the 1960 Topps set. Three, it features the less used stadium seat relic. Four, the relic comes from a stadium that no longer exists.

The seat relic comes from Briggs Stadium, as it was known from 1938 until 1960. In 1961, it became known as the more familiar Tiger Stadium. Tiger stadium last hosted Major League Baseball in 1999. The stadium itself was partially demolished in 2008.

I wasn't fortunate enough to pull this card. I haven't even purchased a pack of Heritage this year. That will come later. This was pulled by Three Of A Kind Cards on eBay. They have a blog called Extra Innings, where they showcase their box openings for the eBay store. I was, however, fortunate enough to win this in the eBay auction. Sometimes you've just got to treat yourself.

At least someone is getting these things right from the packs! They also pulled a Wayne Terwilliger red ink card from the Heritage boxes. Of course, I immediately thought of Sideshow Bob on the Simpsons. Yes, I immerse myself in way too much pop culture.

Topps Heritage Failure

What we've got here is failure to communicate. Some companies you just can't reach, so you get what we had here last week which is the way they want it. Well, they get it. And I don't like it any more than you men (and women).

I've stood by and watched Wal-Mart and Target get their own parallels of Topps cards. From what I've seen of the Wal-Mart version, they look cool. At least Topps was honest about everything when directly asked about the situation. They even offered up the Target information before we suspected anything.

While this is all innocent and cute, it reveals a larger problem with Topps. They just don't know when to stop. Are parallels and short prints a necessary evil in today's card collecting? Apparently so, since all the card companies seem to be doing it. This is the type of thinking that got Donruss' license revoked and led to Pinnacle Brands going bankrupt. These were all innovative when first thought of. Now, they are tired and recycled.

There needs to be a quality set released without a chase card or a gimmick. This not only will provide relief to wary collectors, but would be a throwback to the old sets which no retro product could ever provide. All these artificial creations are hurting the industry in the long run. Why can't a set stand on its own merits? Topps Heritage shouldn't need a short printed gimmick.

The final short print list has yet to be officially released. If Topps has short printed the last 75 cards in the set, there would be four short printed cards involving the White Sox that I could pick out. If for some odd reason, Nick Swisher isn't airbrushed into a Yankees uniform, that would make five short printed White Sox cards. That is absolutely ridiculous.

You know that Topps wouldn't make the short prints that easy to pick out. If last year's set is any indication, there will be short prints scattered throughout the other 425 cards. This means that some sucker paying huge money on eBay for a card in the last 75 cards, might be wasting their money on a common card. I don't care how good the set looks, I will only be collecting the White Sox cards this year. I still haven't been able to collect last year's Heritage base set because of all the short prints and variations. I don't need this aggravation.

Come to think of it, A.J. Pierzynski is probably the most short printed White Sox player in history. I can't think of any Sox player in the past five years that has been short printed as many times. He is short printed in this year's set, based on early information.

Can Topps get over themselves and turn out a decent product this year without any gimmicks, short prints or parallels? Doubtful. I am hopeful that it will happen again in my lifetime. The kids of today may never experience a new quality set without artificial scarcity. That's a shame.