Cheap Wax Wednesday Box Breaks: 1996 Upper Deck Baseball Tech
1996 Upper Deck Tech Baseball features base cards from the main 1996 Upper Deck Baseball release. All 480 base cards are included and they’re the same. The only difference is that you won’t find any of the same inserts.
Diamond Destiny inserts are the real draw when opening this configuration. They are only found in Upper Deck Tech boxes, which were exclusive to Walmart. The good news? You will find one in every single Tech pack. The full 40-card checklist has two parallels as well, Silver (1:35 packs) and Gold (1:143 packs).
1996 Upper Deck Tech Baseball Box Break
Cards per pack: 9
Packs per box: 20
Price paid: $100
Shop for 1996 Upper Deck Baseball Tech boxes on eBay.
Pack 1 highlights:
Gary Gaetti BTO, Tony Gwynn, Bobby Cox MS & Kirby Puckett Diamond Destiny (one per Tech pack)
Bobby Cox finished his managerial career with 2,504 wins. He also won Manager of the Year four times.
Pack 2:
Brian Jordan, Frank Thomas, Garret Anderson, Ron Gant BTO, Eric Karros, Ken Caminiti SBT & Chuck Knoblauch Diamond Destiny
Pack 3:
Will Clark, Ivan Rodriguez, Mark McGwire BTO, Trevor Hoffman, Kirby Puckett GEN & Alex Rodriguez Diamond Destiny
Pack 4:
Joe Carter, Mike Piazza GEN & Hideo Nomo Diamond Destiny
Nomo was coming off a 1995 season that saw him make his only All-Star appearance. He also won the National League Rookie of the Year Award.
Pack 5:
Jeff Kent, Alan Trammell, Eddie Murray GEN & Barry Larkin Diamond Destiny
Pack 6:
Sammy Sosa, Manny Ramirez, Frank Thomas GEN & Eddie Murray Diamond Destiny
Pack 7:
Bret Saberhagen, Shawn Green, Ozzie Smith GEN & Chipper Jones Diamond Destiny
Saberhagen missed the entire 1996 season following two shoulder surgeries.
Pack 8:
Omar Vizquel, Cal Ripken, Jr. GEN & Roberto Alomar Diamond Destiny
Pack 9:
Larry Walker, Juan Gonzalez, Tommy Lasorda MS & Randy Johnson Diamond Destiny
Pack 10:
Jorge Posada, Juan Guzman, Buck Showalter MS, D-Backs/Devil Rays & Joe Carter Diamond Destiny
Check out that glove!
Pack 11:
Vinny Castilla, Roger Clemens GEN, Ken Griffey, Jr. Diamond Destiny & Jay Buhner Diamond Destiny Gold (1:143 packs)
Pack 12:
Dante Bichette, Barry Bonds GEN & Bonds Diamond Destiny
Pack 13:
Kirby Puckett, Hideo Nomo, Albert Belle, Wade Boggs GEN & Tony Gwynn Diamond Destiny
Between 1984 and 1999, Tony Gwynn was selected to all but one All-Star Game. He was not selected in 1988, even though he would finish 11th in the NL MVP voting following the season.
Pack 14:
Andres Galarraga, Albert Belle GEN, Billy Wagner SR & Matt Williams Diamond Destiny
Pack 15:
Derek Jeter, Greg Vaughn, Johnny Damon, Roberto Alomar GEN & Derek Jeter Diamond Destiny
Pack 16:
Mike Greenwell, Bernie Williams, Dennis Eckersley GEN & Darin Erstad Diamond Destiny
Greenwell played just 77 games in 1996, the last season of his career. He hit .303 over the course of 12 years.
Pack 17:
Cliff Floyd BTO & Manny Ramirez Diamond Destiny
Pack 18:
Ellis Burks, Mike Piazza BTO & Sammy Sosa Diamond Destiny
Pack 19:
Dennis Eckersley SBT, Eddie Murray Milestones & Frank Thomas Diamond Destiny
Eck appears on two different teams in this release, the A’s and Cardinals. He was traded to the Cardinals February 13, 1996. The A’s received Steve Montgomery in return.
Pack 20:
Mike Piazza, Cal Ripken, Jr. Milestones & Jeff Bagwell Diamond Destiny
Lastly, the Piazza card back. Always like a second player photo and full career stat lines.
I really do love these Diamond Destiny inserts. Luck was on my side in this one with the Gold Buhner pull. These Golds are extremely tough. Out of curiosity I looked up the last Gold Griffey Gold sale. One went for over $250 last month.
Want more installments of Shane Salmonson’s Cheap Wax Wednesday? Check out his other breaks in the archives.
