Ryan Braun and 2011 Gypsy Queen

The saga with Ryan Braun today was revealing in one aspect. There is a vehement disagreement about what transpired. It doesn't say definitively whether he used a PED or didn't or also didn't reveal whether the testing process and chain of custody is sound. The process is what it is though, and the fact that MLB disagrees with the decision doesn't reveal anything either. They also disagreed with the dissolving of the reserve clause in 1974. The worst part of the saga is probably the leaking of confidential information...again, raising the issue of trust...There's more to the story in some way, but it won't be revealed anymore. The record will show that Ryan Braun was cleared of using PEDs and was not suspended...as consumers of information, we'll have to stand by this as the state of being until proven otherwise. (wow, that was a serious paragraph)

Speaking of Ryan Braun, I was lucky enough to snag a retail box of the Gypsy Queen after the craze for a reasonable price.  I signed up without hesitation for 24 packs of the elusive set. And I pulled this amazing card numbered 01/10.



Yes, that is a stamp card of Ryan Braun, and the stamp is especially meaningful for me because I love going to Yosemite (though I don't see the connection to the player at first glance).

What other excellent cards did the box reveal besides the usual assortment of base and inserts?

Minis!! of great players with different borders. I do love me some GQ minis (not the magazine in mini form).

Also, this sepia mini of Ichiro /99.  This was in the first pack, and I thought that it would have already been a great box if I pulled nothing else.

There were also a couple of the parallel set of 2011 in Al Kaline and Mariano Rivera, that was pleasing too.

Lastly, in the final pack of the box, I pulled a full sized relic of the Greek God of Walks (why, I did see Moneyball recently, how did you know?) of Kevin Youkilis.  I wasn't sure if there was a relic per retail box, but this one had one.

This may have been the best box I have ever opened....until the next best box I opened....