To start, I’m giving a shoutout to myself. That’s only because I was able to purchase and write this post within day (instead of weeks). *pats own back*
I actually found it a bit awkward with Kershaw on the cover. Don’t get me wrong, great dude and a great player, but it’s a little bit of a “too soon” vibe. It’s not like Topps could have predicted this most recent early playoff exit. In fact, I’m sure they were predicting the opposite given the last two years of World Series appearances for L.A..
But I do find it funny that I used Kershaw’s seemingly open fly in my 2019 Topps design post (link below). Now that we know how it all ended up for him and the Dodgers, it just feels awkward.
I’m not going to go over design because I’ve killed that in the Series 1 and Design Special posts… and it hasn’t changed obviously. But I will say that it almost seems like this third time around is the best version of execution within this design. There are actually some pretty sweet pictures to be found in the Update Series release.
So let’s check it out shall we…
2019 Topps Update
This is what we want from Update rather than the previous series. In Series 1 there was an Adam Jones card on the Orioles – a team he quite obviously wasn’t going to play for this year. And now we get a card of him on the Diamondbacks. I could argue he shouldn’t have been in Series 1 and this should be Series 2, but it still fits into what Update is for right?
Same with Goldschmidt and Keuchel, and especially with Keuchel. I know he appeared in Stadium Club and he wasn’t playing yet.
Something I do notice with execution so far, and I think it comes across in Series 2 as well… dark cards. Dark pictures anyway. Keuchel looks good but Jones and Goldschmidt feel darker than normal. Maybe it’s just more pictures taken at night during the season rather than during the day?
Wow… More Updates
This is more of what we should expect in Update. Stuff happens during the season and it’s covered in the product. That’s not a surprise by any means, but it helps define update I think.
Of course the All-Star Game cards should be there. Home Run Derby…, meh. But I really like the “accomplishments” type of cards like the Yelich. When I come across those as I update it gives me even more reason to stop and read and admire the card.
OMG… More Updates
Of course rookies are the other thing you should be finding in Update. It’s just more of an excuse to get that RC logo on more cards for the hot rookies. I only got this one Vlad Jr. card but I think that I got an Austin Riley rookie and then a “rookie debut” like Vlad’s above. They both have the logo of course. So again, more of a way to squeeze in rookie cards.
Gimmie My Muts
I’m going to lead in with one of the most disappointing things about the Mets season. The thing that was most disappointing and now just causes different disappointment. Edwin Diaz.
That dude was just terrible this year and by extension some much of the bullpen was too. If we only blew half the games we did during the season, it would have been us in the playoffs and not the Nats. That’s just twisting the knife in my own leg writing that. But hey, if IFS and BUTS were candy and nuts…
The Syndergaard was definitely a cool moment in the season. And seeing the Pete Alonso card is cool. How cool is it to be his buddy who pitched to him and now be immortalized on a card? And then of course there’s Squirrel. I really hope he comes back from his injury at the end of the season OK because he will be important for the team next year.
The Usual Suspects
The Ohtani is an “exclusive” to the blasters at Target. They always pick a player to highlight. I’m just glad it’s not another Yankee. Topps has gone to that well a lot.
The other cards are similar to other inserts from this year. I do like the Clemente card because it’s nice to see him in that design. But I don’t like these inserts anymore because they are cheapening Heritage (like Archives is). If I wanted to stretch it, I could have considered the Stroman in my Mets cards, but it’s not.
Insert-a-thon
The Ortiz and Robinson are newer inserts to the Update series. Topps seems to be putting those All-Star style inserts into Update more recently. I like the idea of carrying a theme like that in the product over the years. But it does seem like more of the same at some point.
I’m not sure of the point of the insert Robinson is in, but I don’t mind seeing Frank on a card.
Parallel Universe
I pretty much got the usual parallels with these gold and rainbow ones above. I also got a “150 years” stamped card but I don’t think those are worth showing.
I really like opening this Update blaster and some other packs of it that I picked up. The “moments” cards made me stop and read and some of the better picture cards really made me look at the cards a little more. I feel like I spent more time with this as I opened it than Series 2. It was a fun blaster to open and nice to go through as the season is closing down.