Pujols Post - 2023 Topps Chrome Ultra Violet

I usually post inexpensive base cards of Albert Pujols in this space, but I also usually don't pull expensive inserts of the future Hall of Famer out of retail packs of cards that I purchase from Target.  

It all started two weeks ago. 

I dropped off the kids at school. It was my last day of vacation, so I decided I was going to drive to Durham and hike around the Duke University hiking trail. The path circles the university's five star hotel, The Washington Duke, and their golf course, so I always make a point of making a restroom stop and fill up my water bottle somewhere nearby in Durham before starting the 3 mile hike. 

There is a Target right around the corner from Duke, so I stopped there.

Remember that time I wrote about the Durham Wal-Mart being the 7th Circle of Hell? Well, the west Durham Target is opposite. It's the most high-end Target I have stepped foot in. It's 10 minutes from the McMansions in Chapel Hill and it's not like Duke students and faculty are going to shop in an ordinary Target.  

On this trip into the store, I noted that the snack bar has been upgraded.    

"Taste of Target" 

I see the ICEE machine, but for me it's not really Target unless the front of the store smells like stale popcorn. Note the popcorn machine is empty and looks unused. I cannot take a picture of smells, but the front of the West Durham Target smells pleasant, like someone has one of those potpourri pots going or something.   

Perhaps not having a student body and faculty that eats stale popcorn is the key to a university having it's own pair of five star hotels, a golf course, and a hiking trail. The colleges I graduated from just have a bunch of rare William Faulkner books, an automated library robot, and a tunnel you can legally graffiti.  

I bought a box of Topps Chrome cards and the hiking trail was spectacular.  

Upon returning home, I discovered that the Topps Chrome cards were hot garbage except for one very nice and surprisingly expensive Albert Pujols insert card.

Here is the front of the Topps Chrome Ultra Violet Albert Pujols card.  

  

It's an art set inside of Topps Chrome, which is different. I like it.  

I believe the cards all have the same artist, they at least have a similar piece of art work. Swirly or circles around a head shot of the player along with some sort of action shot and their name drawn inside of a circle using a similar font.  

We've got a younger Albert Pujols on this card. Face is a little slimmer, no gray hair. His batting stance in the action shot is a little lower and Albert is a little smaller through the middle. Let's be honest, this card is better than 90% of the cards that Topps put out in their art sets the past few years.  

To the back of the card......

More swirly lines. 

A nice write-up about Albert Pujols playing in the All-Star game. 

I am going to go check out the artist website.  

Great card.