Life Before The Strike #2

The card shop I went to yesterday had a $10/min. for all debit/credit card transactions. Alas...the 50+ Brewers cards that I had assembled after 2 1/2 hours of digging only came to $6.00...so I said, "Okay, let me get a 550ct box...I need another one of those." My total was now a whopping $7 ... and I was forced to buy a pack of cards. I settled on the 2008 Topps Chrome hobby pack.
Yes, it WAS the least expensive pack there. Well, I shouldn't say that. It was the pack priced such that I wouldn't exceed my MAXIMUM purchase price of $10. After all, baseball card collecting is a guilty pleasure that I can't justify spending too much money on while gasoline is still $4.00 a gallon.

I noticed AFTER I got home that the pack said clearly on the front, in bold...


4 Cards??? Is that it??? I paid $4 for this pack of 4 cards. There had better be some good stuff inside.

Card #1: #19 Jose Reyes
In the 4 packs of cards I've purchased this summer, I now have the regular 2008 Topps and Topps Chrome of this same card...

Card #2: #90 David Ortiz
Same story...I now have 2 of these, the regular and the chrome. Funny, in this card he can't speak English either.
Card #3: #TCH12 Hunter Pence Trading Card History
Neat little insert, looks like a metal plate used in early photography. Too bad it's not worth crap and the Astros belong in the NL West.
Card #4: #239 Randy Wells AUTO RC
Sweet! A Topps certified autographed card! This has to be worth bank! However...a quick trip to the Blue Jays website showed me that he was designated for assignment earlier this season after pitching just 1 inning in the Bigs. Being a Rule 5 player, he was waived and went back to the AAA Iowa Cubs. He's 8-4 there, with a 3.99 ERA. This card is selling for $5.99 on ebay right now...I'll sell it for $4, the cost of this crappy pack of cards!
The fine folks at Topps Trading Card Co. were kind enough to throw in a freebie, a checklist! Lucky guy that I am, I received 5 cards for the price of 4. Score!


Editor's Note: In response to this post, a kind soul from Houston TX has agreed to trade for the Hunter Pence card...let's see what this trade produces...perhaps a 2008 Topps Chrome Yovanni Gallardo AUTO?