Group Break Box Example: 2010 Panini Century Collection Break

I feel like this group break will be very fun. Check it out here for details. Only six slots left!

One of my initial goals from this year was to rip open those non-conventional boxes for a first world collector like myself. I wanted to jump ankle first into the high end pool, and there was one set that caught my eye for a few reasons and that was 2010 Panini Century Collection.

 1. I wanted a relic card of an astronaut.
 2. There were autos of HOFers across all the major sports.
3. I felt like I needed another stamp card for some inexplicable reason.
4. I was looking for a card with some '70s glasses styled and profiled.

Basketball HOF Nate Thurmond  Auto/Stamp card 23/36: Generally regarded as one of the top 40 players all-time in the NBA.  He averaged 15 points and 15 rebounds for his career.  He's also known as the player to record the first ever quadruple-double.

Astronaut Ed Gibson Relic/Stamp card 38/100: Ed Gibson was a key physicist for Skylab 4 space station in 1973, amazing.

Frank Sinatra and Audrey Hepburn Dual Relic/Stamp card 113/250: Two icons of the silver screen and golden stage.

NHL HOF Mike Bossy Relic/Stamp card 26/250: Bossy scored 573 goals in only 10 seasons and won 4 Stanley Cups with the Islanders.

MLB HOF Lou Brock Relic card 9/25: 3000 hits, 938 steals, we're mostly baseball fans here. What you may not know: batted .391 for his career in the World Series with 14 steals in 21 games.

MLB HOF Ryne Sandberg 1/1 (encased):  This is my second ever 1/1 pull from a pack.

Check out the back with the serial number.

In any case, as you can see, the box only calls for five cards per box, but I received six in my particular box. (Note: any unclaimed extra hits from the initial 39 that are supposed to be in the group break originally will go into the "Wild Card Choice" election to begin with)

For the price, in my opinion, this gives some of the best value on the market right now. I even like the high school portraits.....in most cases...not all players are destined to be photogenic.



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Is this the Results of the Worst Trade Ever?

Dateline: Offseason before 1982 season.

Ivan DeJesus has been a light hitting shortstop for the Cubs. This has been the norm of the time since we are still just emerging from the mindset of the dead hitter's zone of the '60s. The shortstop's first job is to catch the ball and turn the double play. DeJesus fit that mold in a manager's eye, though he had an average to below average fielding %

The Phillies have had Larry Bowa as their shortstop for many years (since 1970). He is a polarizing player, loved by fans and teammates and also hated by other teammates and opponents. He is now on the downside of his career, aged 35 years old. He is also light hitting, but his fielding % is always high.

The Phillies were forced into dealing the hotheaded Bowa after he called out the management in the papers for refusing to give him the contract he wanted. Enter the Cubs and their GM Dallas Green (coincidentally the manager of the 1980 Phillies).

He wanted the surehandedness of Bowa and in return offered the younger DeJesus. But the deal wouldn't go through without another player; after all, DeJesus was 7 years younger.

Green had an intimate knowledge of the Phillies' organization at the time. And he was the one who requested the little known third base prospect of Ryne Sandberg. With the Phillies trading Bowa, they considered Sandberg as a shortstop replacement, but they didn't think his glove would translate there. They already have Mike Schmidt at 3rd, Manny Trillo at 2nd, and Garry Maddox in center. Sandberg was sufficiently blocked from any regular playing time in Philadelphia.

Ah, but how did he become the supporting player in this deal? Even without Sandberg, considering talent and potential team contribution, the Phillies would be receiving the short end of the deal. In the Bill James 1982 baseball abstract, Bowas was the 9th ranked shortstop while DeJesus was the 22nd ranked shortstop. All the statistics at this time show this deal would favor the Cubs (AVG, RBI, Fielding %).

The Phillies are desparate to trade Bowa and pull the trigger anyway, bringing in the ineffectual DeJesus and giving away the volatile Bowa with the raw Sandberg, who at the age of 21 already had more hitting ability than either of the two shortstops.

Update:The Cubs did not realize their heist until halfway through the 1982 season when they shifted Sandberg from 3rd to 2nd, where he won a Gold Glove as early as 1983 and began his HOF career.

How did such a trade come to pass? This was not a win now trade or salary dump trade. Shouldn't there be an equal exchange of talent? Even in the metrics of the time, the Phillies would have lost the trade without Sandberg.

What trades of the present day from your team bring the same tinges of regret and "did they really see these guys play before"?