Binder Day

Series 1, #90

Today is an especially exciting day for your's truly.  And it has nothing to do with the $400+ dollars I sank on a new set of tires this morning (not to mention the three hours of waiting in the Pep Boys holding pen).

Rather, today is Binder Day in the ol' Kaz house.  You read right, Binder Day.  Not to be confused with Boxing Day, which was just yesterday.  But today is the day that I begin loading my 2012 Topps baseball set into Ultra Pro pages which will then be stowed in the snazzy binder that Mrs. K bought me for Christmas.

For some this may seem like an arduous process, but there is nothing that I enjoy more than the mindless job of systematically and carefully sliding the cards into their final resting place.  What can I say, I love mindless tasks like this.  But it also gives me a chance to relive the set, which I have not given a lot of attention over the past few months.

Series 1, #136

I kinda forgot how much I love this set.  From the design to the photography, I think it's a real winner for Topps.  I like it much better than last year's "baseball comet" design, and it probably also tops 2010's effort, which is another that I really enjoyed.  I don't know what it is, but this year's set just had its hooks into me from the moment I first saw the sell sheets.

Now, I know for the rest of the collecting universe -- or at least much of it -- this set's design is/was met with lukewarm regard.  The "surfboard" design, as it known to many.  However, I truly think that in time those who focus a critical eye on 2012 Topps will come to a more favorable feeling for it somewhere down the road.  I can't say why for sure, I guess we can just call it a gut feeling.

Series 2, #333

But let's say that the design elements do nothing for you and you can't foresee yourself ever getting excited for it in the future.  That's fine.  But can you deny the amazing, in-your-face photography?  The above Roger Bernadina card is a perfect illustration of how Topps was able to capture such a wide array of play making throughout this year's product.  Ditto for the McGehee card above that.  And, I'm not sure what Adron Chambers is doing or who he's cheerleading for in the very first card I scanned, but that's a great shot that captures the energy of the game during a big moment.

And if you like celebration shots, 2012 Topps is the set that beats all.

Series 2, #480

I'm someone who has come to love portraits or posed photos on cards -- maybe even more so than action shots -- but cards like this J.J. Putz masterpiece kinda sway me in the other direction.  Moments like this which are captured on cardboard are among the chief reasons we love this hobby so much.

Anyhow, I'm on a brief timeout from binder stuffing, and it's time to get back to it.  After all, the daylight hours are waning and I've gotta lot of cards to still attend to.

If you're like me and you've stowed your completed 2012 Topps flagship set aside in a neglected box or binder, give 'er another whirl to see if it moves you the way that it does for me.

MK