2006 Topps Turkey Red
What I pulled--
Inserts and Parallels:
SPs - Livan Hernandez San Francisco, Xavier Nady San Diego, Alfonso Soriano Washington, Felix Hernandez, Noah Lowry,
Alex Rodriguez Seattle
White Parallels - Justin Morneau, Torii Hunter, Chris Capuano, John Patterson, Scott Rolen, Roy Oswalt
Black Parallel - Ian Kinsler
B-18 Blanket - Kenji Johjima
Relic Card:
Mike Piazza bat
Review:
Turkey Red is gorgeous. Period.
I have to be honest. When Topps announced that they were issuing Turkey Red again in 2006, just a few
weeks after their highly touted Allen & Ginter retro set, I was a bit surprised. I really didn't think it was
necessary, especially given the limited number of sets that can e released under the MLBPA guidelines. I
was afraid that a second retro set was unnecessary, especially if it was going to replace a collector favorite
like Pristine or All-Time Fan Favorites. But now that it is here, I'm happy I am wrong.
Topps follows up the very successful 2005 Turkey Red release with this one, and it picks up where last
year's left off...literally. The card numbers start in the 300s, so that one continuous set spanning two years
(and who knows how many more years) can be made.
Turkey Red is a no-nonsense set that is about the cards. And what cards they are. The formula is
exactly the same as it was a year ago - painted cards, simple gray borders, pebble-textured cards.
If you were a fan in '05, you will be again. There are plenty of variations and short prints to keep set
builders happy, too, plus a boatload of players featuring the Rookie Card logo. The picture of the
Alex Rodriguez card to the right is all you need to know about these cards. Just look and enjoy.
Bells and whistles are minimal in a normal box - too minimal in my case, since I only got one relic
and no autographs instead of the advertised two. I did hit my allotment of short prints, white parallels and got my black parallel,
plus my boxtopper blanket, but that is it. Nothing special, nothing to write home about and, to be honest again, a minimal lure
of this product.
Some may argue that this set was unnecessary, as I did earlier. But they'll change their mind after breaking a box.......................
A-
