Any time I get a Frank Robinson card, it's a time for excitement. Particularly if it's a card that shows Frank Robinson as a Cincinnati Red. Look, I love the Orioles, and I always will, but I am a Reds fan, first and foremost. And Frank Robinson's time in Cincinnati often gets overlooked. The guy was an MVP with the Reds. He is a member of the team's Hall of Fame. Heck, the number 20 is retired by the Reds as well as the Orioles. Robby spent ten seasons in the Queen City and served the team with distinction. When he was traded, the move was so unpopular in Cincinnati that Bill DeWitt had to come up with that line about Robby being "an old 30" just to save face and attempt to justify an unjustifiable transaction. Of course, Frank saw that as all the motivation he needed, and went out and won an MVP award and a World Series in his first season in Baltimore. You don't piss off Frank Robinson.

Here's the inserts that I pulled from my jumbo box of 2010 Topps. With ten Turkey Red cards and ten Cards My Mother (didn't) Throw Out, it put a small dent in two of the large insert sets I'm chasing. I've updated my want list to show what a still need. Please do me a favor and check it out, won't you?

Tomorrow, I'll post my trade bait from the set. I have a fair number of duplicates that I don't need, as well as some insert sets I don't collect (but you might) and some shiny cards, too.


2010 Turkey Red


TR107 - Aramis Ramirez
TR112 - Miguel Cabrera
TR116 - Jonathan Broxton
TR119 - Jason Bay
TR123 - Roy Halladay
TR124 - Ryan Doumit
TR125 - Kyle Blanks
TR132 - Ryan Zimmerman
TR136 - Rogers Hornsby
TR147 - Frank Robinson

Of these cards, the Robby is my favorite, of course, but I really also like the way the Ryan Doumit looks. When I pulled that card out of the pack, my first reaction was "wow!" Perhaps it's all the catcher's gear he's wearing, but the card seems so much more intricate and detailed than the other, standard cards that feature hitters swinging bats or pitchers just standing there.


Cards Your Mom Threw Out


CMT123 - Roger Maris
CMT132 - Brooks Robinson
CMT149 - Darryl StrawberryCMT152 - Barry Larkin
CMT157 - Don Mattingly
CMT161 - Chipper Jones
CMT163 - Mike Piazza/Ken Griffey Jr.
CMT167 - Jason Bay
CMT140 - Yogi Berra/Roy Campanella
CMT172 - Ubaldo Jimenez

You can't help but think that Ubaldo wouldn't have made this set if he hadn't pitched that no-hitter earlier this season. And it seems to me that the CYMTOs in the update series are a lot more gimmicky. The Berra/Campanella (which is a reprint of a reprint) and Griffey/Piazza are just two examples - the checklist also shows a Berra/Mantle and Lou Brock/Carl Yastrzemski pairing. This is an extension of the bad trend that started in Series two with the Babe Ruth 100th birthday and the Ichiro/Pujols cards being included in the set. Once again, Topps takes a good thing and ruins it. 174 cards is too damn much - as much as I enjoy the idea, I'll be the first to tell you that this insert set should not have gone past the Series 2 cards.

That being said, I did pull one original back card:



Legendary Lineage


LL62 - Walter Johnson/Stephen Strasburg
LL63 - Victor Martinez/Carlos Santana
LL64 - Rod Carew/Robinson Cano
LL68 - Mark Teixeira/Logan Morrison
LL69 - Tom Seaver/Mike Leake
LL70 - Ernie Banks/Starlin Castro

Another set that was really good at the beginning, but just got more ridiculous as time went on. Now, in an attempt to make the set tie in with all the rookies, some really stupid connections have been made. Of course, the hyperbole is at its best with the Baseball Jesus, as he is being compared to none other that Walter Johnson. But as I think of it, the Ernie Banks/Starlin Castro comparison is even more offensive.

Combine that with the fact that they didn't even use the same color combination as they did for the first two sets, and Topps really screwed the pooch with Legendary Lineage Mark III. Thanks for nothing, Topps. Again.