Brooks Robinson, 2006 Topps Allen and Ginter #276

At the risk of giving away vital information about the rest of this blog post, I did not pull a single bloody Oriole card in the last 13 packs of this box. Hence the five-year-old Brooksie A&G. Okay, I'm simultaneously relieved and disappointed that this is my last Gint-A-Cuffs entry. It's been fun breaking my first-ever box of A&G, even if I've been bitching about my underachieving performance. But this stuff is a lot more intensive than my normal routine. I don't know how you multiple-scans-per-post guys do it. Let's go!

Oh, one more note: I pulled a Troy Tulowitzki Hometown Heroes card yesterday and overlooked his status as a Favorite Player. I've gone back and added 2 points, which will clearly make all the difference. Let's go for real!

PACK 19

19 Daniel Bard - One reason I despise Steve Berthiuame and refuse to watch Baseball Tonight? The constant refrains of "Daniel BAAHD throws wicked HAAHD!" Gag.
127 James Loney
4 Jhoulys Chacin - "Jhoulys" is Spanish for "Chad". Or not.
218 Bobby Abreu
96 Daniel Boulud - This guy is a French chef whose restaurant is named "Daniel". Very subtle.
164 Heather Mitts

43 Jake LaMotta A&G Ad Back Mini +2 You should probably see "Raging Bull" if you haven't. Can't believe it lost Best Picture to "Ordinary People".

HH94 C. J. Wilson Hometown Heroes (Newport Beach, CA) +1


Pack 19 Total = 3 points. Box Total = 160 points. That pack might be the dagger. It was just "there".

PACK 20

248 Ervin Santana - Is there any style of facial hair dumber than the chinstrap?
131 Chris Iannetta
65 Ryan Howard
231 C. J. Wilson - Back again so soon?
165 Jo Frost - (Flips card over) Supernanny? Whaa? You're killing me, Topps.
147 George W. Bush - Biting my tongue...

299 Ana Julaton Black Bordered Mini +3 You digging this marble composition book border? It's different, I'll say that.

HH100 Travis Snider Hometown Heroes (Mill Creek, WA) +1 I dig his creepy mustache, which he did not grow in time to be seen on this card. Que lastima.
Topps 2011 A&G Deluxe Binder Ad Card

Pack 20 Total = 4 points. Box Total = 164 points. Looking like I sprinted out of the gate and ran out of gas.

PACK 21

292 Wade Davis - Fake fun fact: When on the road, he checks into hotels using the alias "Dade Wavis".
75 Jose Reyes - 16 triples in 87 games in 2011. Nutso.
281 Adam Lind - Oriole killer. I would never suggest that the O's should deliberately throw at a hitter, but...

135 Kyle Petty +1 Rumor has it that the G-A-C Commissioner is a NASCAR fan. I prefer to think that he deemed this card pointworthy on the basis of Kyle's sweet 'do.
133 Geno Auriemma -1 Commissioner giveth, and Commissioner taketh away.

349 Yuniesky Betancourt SP +2 Short Print - Gotta love getting a deuce for the worst everyday player in MLB.

295 Chris Carpenter Black Border Mini +3 Back-to-back black minis? Anyone else had this?

HH2 Colby Rasmus Hometown Heroes (Phenix City, AL) +1 Incredibly talented but struggling and in Tony LaRussa's doghouse. If they trade him, he'll amount to nothing. I hate LaRussa and his apparent deal with the Devil.

Pack 21 Total = 6 points. Box Total = 170 points. On to the last row...sunrise...sunset...

PACK 22

163 Ian Kennedy - 11-3, 3.22 ERA for the D-Backs this year. National League, man.
219 Johan Santana
204 Jim Thome - JIM JAM! Never fails to make me smile.
225 Jack LaLanne - Because I'm a nerd, all I can think about is his Simpsons cameo, in which he called Bart a "pudgy little pisher".
6 Micky Ward - Another boxer who was the subject of a critically-acclaimed movie. Didn't see "The Fighter", because I hardly ever see movies. I just watched "Star Wars" for the first time a few months back. No kidding.

316 Manny Ramirez SP +2 Short Print - Manny's five-game farewell in Tampa was so bizarre and disastrous, I'm surprised it didn't happen to the Orioles. Of course, they would've paid four times as much and he would've lasted the whole season and slowly drained the life out of the team. That's how the O's roll.

UG9 RMS Queen Mary Uninvited Guests Mini +3 Screaming dead sailors in Long Beach. WoooOOOOOOOooooooo....

FF4 Michael Floating Fortresses +2 If you couldn't tell by the flag, it's a 600-year-old Scottish naval ship. It's been 11 years since my trip to Scotland, and I've love to go back.


Pack 22 Total = 7 points. Box Total = 177 points. I'll need a major push to even break 200...

PACK 23

54 Austin Jackson
170 Tim Lincecum - Another of my favorite non-Orioles. Any dominant athlete that's scrawnier than me is okay in my book.
45 Annika Sorenstam
196 Jered Weaver

AOM4 Porifera Ascent of Man +1 Sponge, huh? Eh, it's still better than the Guy Fieri card.

306 Josh Willingham SP +2 Short Print - I like this guy too. Admittedly, it's only because he used Pearl Jam's "Evenflow" as his walkup music with the Nationals.

PP4 Igor Portraits in Penultimacy Mini +3 Yesss! Not gonna lie, though; I wish they went with Marty Feldman.

FF13 HMS Warrior Floating Fortresses +2
Yep, another Crack the Code Ad Card

Pack 23 Total = 8 points. Box Total = 185 points. Welp, I can still take the lead with a Wood Mini Parallel, which is worth 50 points and is found once in every 3,436 packs. Watch me get one, but it'll be a Yankee and cost me a 50% penalty. Hah!

PACK 24

249 Carlos Ruiz - Chooch.
179 Shane Victorino - So many Phillies, I've lost count. Stuck on three Orioles, if you're keeping count. This is the kind of thing that gives a card-collecting fan of a bad team a complex.
291 Grady Sizemore
48 Francisco Liriano

109 Martin Prado +2 Any Favorite Player - Well, that's a random favorite.

BHS-15 Aroldis Chapman Baseball Highlight Sketches +3 Not really feeling these horizontal sketches.

AP24 Key Deer Animals In Peril Mini +3 I needed a Wood Mini, and I got Bambi. That sounds about right.

HH90 Ryan Howard Hometown Heroes (St. Louis, MO) +1 One more Phillie, just to rub it in.

Pack 24 Total = 9 points. Box Total = 194 points. No Gint-A-Cuffs champeenship for yours truly. I shall return.