World Series is where new names can spike hard on cards — and Enrique Hernandez was a preview

We got a preview of the possibilities of the postseason last week when Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder/utility player Enrique Hernandez smacked three home runs in Game 5 of the NLCS.

His few baseball cards suddenly had a lot more interest and that’s something that David Freese, Andruw Jones, David Eckstein and many others can relate to. The postseason and the World Series is where new stars are born, especially on cardboard.

Hernandez played his first MLB game in 2014 — and was drafted five years before that, ironically by the Houston Astros, who he’ll face in the World Series beginning tonight — and through all that time he’d barely appeared on 100 different baseball cards, got just one Rookie Card and one certified autograph before a rainbow of Topps Now cards arrived last Friday.

Board Buzz: Must-read threads on the Blowout Forums (Nov. 19)

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are five threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What’s Buzzing Today: Nothing but a mix of interesting box breaks today.

Black November Wave 2 is here — and here are five deals to consider

If you hadn’t noticed, there are a number of boxes with discounted prices now over on the mothership as BlowoutCards.com’s Black November Wave 2 hits today.

Many of the discounts were dramatic enough that Buzz had to sit down and ponder the possibilities in many of the boxes and cases — and here are five boxes that caught this collector’s eye.

2015 Topps baseball Mega Box case
This is the only place to find cards from the 50-card 2015 Topps Chrome Update set and buying by the case is probably the best way for a shot at key rookie parallels and autographs/Relics. Among the notables here? Kris Bryant, Carlos Correa and Francisco Lindor. Statistically there should be at least one Relic per case but the real chase are those key players and their parallels. You get five packs of standard Topps Update and only two packs of Chrome Update but it’s worth it if you buy by the case here — though there is a limit.

Indians catcher Roberto Perez a rare find when it comes to baseball cards

For all the hobby firepower on the field for Game 1 of the World Series last night, leave it to the light-hitting catcher with just one anonymous Rookie Card to grab the spotlight.

The catcher is Cleveland’s Roberto Perez and the only place to find his cards is in packs of 2015 Topps Update.  

He doesn’t have an RC logo on his lone Rookie Card. He doesn’t have a single prospect card from the Bowman realm (or any other of the countless brands from other companies) and all he has is a base card and parallels in Update save for a few team-issued minor league team sets here and there.

Buzz Break: 2015 Topps Chrome Update baseball cards (mega box)

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and break down the results here. Like this and want to see more — or maybe there’s a box you’d want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2015 Topps Update/Topps Chrome Update baseball cards mega box
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com

Packs per box: 7 (five 2015 Topps Update/two 2015 Topps Chrome Update)
Cards per pack: 8 Update/4 Chrome Update
Cards in this box: 45
Base set (Update) completion: 
33 of 400 (8 percent)
Duplicates: 0
Base set (Chrome Update) completion: 
4 of 50 (8 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notable names pulled on base cards: Kris Bryant, Addison Russell, Bryce Harper, Carlos Correa

Board Buzz: Five must-read threads on the Blowout Forums (Nov. 4)

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are five threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

Are you buying the return of the Rally Squirrel in 2015 Topps Update?

The Rally Squirrel returns as a Philadelphia Phillies squad member on this photo variation card found in packs of 2015 Topps Update, which arrived last week.

While this year’s appearance comes as one of the 25 photo variations in the product, it’s clearly not as hot as the original Rally Squirrel who led the St. Louis Cardinals to a World Series title in 2011 (after an appearance in Philly) and before a Topps card in 2012. This year’s card properly identifies the rowdy rodent — its name is on the front, not a player — and it’s sold for as much as $40 in eBay auctions.

Past big-leaguers who persevered get insert set in 2015 Topps Update

Pete Gray is one of Major League Baseball’s more unusual finds in the record books and now he can be found in packs of 2015 Topps Update as a player in its Pride & Perseverance insert set.

It’s a 12-card set showcasing past and present players who have had obstacles in life that didn’t stop them from appearing in a big-league game.

New Buzz: Products arriving this week (Oct. 19)

New this week are seven products for three of the four major sports along with the latest MMA release and one non-sport set.

Leading the way is Topps’ third and final installment of its flagship baseball card set as 2015 Topps Update arrives on Wednesday. This 400-card release includes all of the parallels and inserts collectors have come to expect from the first two releases as well as a few surprises. Standard hobby boxes will include one autograph or Relic, while HTA Jumbo boxes will include an auto and two Relics.