By the Box: 2008 Donruss Threads baseball
Here are the results from a randomly selected box I recently opened …
2008 Donruss Threads Baseball (hobby box)
Suggested Retail Price: $96 ($4 per pack)
Packs per box: 24
Cards per pack: 5
Cards in this box: 122
Base set completion: 98 of 100 (98 percent)
Duplicates: 9
Insert/short-print cards (overall odds 1:3 packs) found: 15
– Autographed Rookies — 3. No. 74, Ruben Tejada 316/999, No. 81 Jose Tabata 382/975, Jose Ceda 679/999.
– Baseball Americana memorabilia — 1. No. BA-1 Bud Abbott 231/500.
– Diamond Kings Materials — 1. No. DK17 Drew Cumberland 129/250.
– Rookies (Green #’d/250, Silver #’d/100) — 2. No. 112 Jack Egbert 92/100, No. 117 Brad James 84/250.
– Baseball Americana (#’d/500) — 1. No. BA41 Bob Gibson 81/500.
– College Greats — 1. No. CG2 Reggie Jackson
– Century Stars — 1. No. CS11 Bob Gibson
– Century Legends — 2. No. CL7 Joe Jackson, No. CL8 Duke Snider
– Diamond Kings Framed Red (#’d to 100) — 1. No. DK34 Billy Williams 91/100.
– Diamond Kings — 2. No. DK33 Ryne Sandberg, No. DK34 Billy Williams.
Notes: This box delivered more than it should have — three autographs and two memorabilia cards — five hits instead of four, but felt a bit flat money-wise. (Yes, there were some recognizable names among the rookies but this isn’t Tabata’s first autographed card.) … On a historic note, pulling a Bud Abbott card from a baseball box is a big plus — the “Who’s on First?” sketch by Abbott and Costello holds a great place in baseball lore. … The “Shoeless” Joe Jackson card is a good find and this A’s fan couldn’t help but be pleased with a Reggie Jackson in the too-small and too-rare but sure to be popular College Greats insert set, which shows past stars in their college uniforms. … The Diamond Kings memorabilia card did not have a canvas finish on its front — perhaps there are variations of these cards? … Tabata is listed with New York (NL) but actually was traded from the Yankees — New York (AL) to use this set’s unlicensed terminology — to the Pittsburgh Pirates during this season. (I’d seriously doubt that this error was corrected.)
Box Grade: *** out of *****
Chris Olds has collected sports cards and memorabilia since 1987. Before coming to Beckett Media, he wrote about the hobby for the Orlando Sentinel on his blog, SportsStuff, and for the San Antonio Express-News and The Tuscaloosa (Ala.) News. Do you have a comment, question or idea? Send e-mail to him at colds@beckett.com.
