I would have never guessed Mark Trumbo would have better numbers than teammate Albert Pujols at this point of the season - Angels fans love this guy and in just his second full MLB season, he's producing just right at his prime.

2012 Bowman three pack blister [$9.49 each at a Target] - the white borders in this year's Bowman base set make the set look a little less claustrophobic.

The metronomic black borders that was a trademark of Bowman had gotten stale and it's nice to change things up this year - even it's just the borders of the base cards.

Purple border pack
#BP 73 Will Swanner
#BP 107 Joe Ross
#BP 1 Justin Nicolino

Pack one
#8 Paul goldschmidt
#113 Yovani Gallardo
#160 R.A. Dickey
#BCP 31 Nick Maronde - Chrome
#BCP 89 Austin Hedges - Chrome
#145 Brandon Phillips - Gold parallel
#BP 79 Josh Bell
#BP 36 Michael Brady
#33 Chris Young
#176 Ichiro

Pack two
#175 Starlin Castro
#5 Brennan Boesch
#BCP 94 Charlie Tilson - Chrome
#BCP 104 Joc Pederson - Chrome
#172 Bud Norris - Gold parallel
#98 Nyjer Morgan - International parallel
#BP 78 Nick Castellanos
#BP 43 Rookie Davis
#23 Colby Rasmus
#28 Mat Latos

Pack three - first pack I actually opened and looking at the last card to start off the pack, it looked like I got a base Yu Darvish.

#106 Pedro Alvarez
#167 Asdrubal Cabrera
#BCP 17 Tyler Austin - Chrome
#BCP 9 Eddie Rosario - Chrome
#71 Hanley Ramirez - Gold parallel
#BP 24 J.R. Graham
#BP 89 Austin Hedges
#121 Neftali Feliz
#133 Gio Gonzalez
#209 Yu Darvish

I wish I could say I was there to watch Albert Pujols' first home run, but I'd tagged along with my buddy to a card show instead of staying to watch the game on Sunday - so I had to go see the moment on TV instead of in-person.

At least I was able to save the ticket stub from the game - unlike 10-12 years ago, game tickets are left intact since it's all about scanning the barcode.

Pujols still is hitting about .200 on the year - but here is hoping he can start to snap out of his season long funk.

My friend had a couple more cards [he always has a 'couple more cards' of minor league guys he needs to get signed] from the stash he gets from his card pimp overseas - so when we went to a minor league game in the California League last weekend, I got Roach to sign my friend's cards.

I would have never known this recently traded Angel farmhand [probably going from Inland Empire to Lake Elsinore] played junior college baseball with some guy named Harper in Nevada a couple of years ago - even though it says on the write-up on the back of the card I got signed.

I don't know if I could pronounce or spell this guy's last name to save my life - but the Angels traded a couple of prospects [Alexi Amarista and Donn Roach] to get him from the San Diego Padres.

Frieri might only throw in the low 90s but looks like he's done a pretty good job - as he's gotten an extended role in the Padres' bullpen the last couple of years.

Hopefully what it means is he gives the Angels bullpen some depth and breathing room - I can think of only Scott Downs and perhaps LaTroy Hawkins as the Angels' relievers worth handling the ball over.

With respect to the other guys - they are either old, unproven or ineffective.

I was hoping to make out to Angel Stadium for Wednesday night's game, hoping if Jered Weaver pitched well, maybe he'd sign autographs after the game - I think tickets were less than a buck on StubHub through early Wednesday.

I guess I picked the wrong day not to go to an Angels game - with Weaver throwing a no-hitter against the hapless Minnesota Twins and really just reaffirming himself as the Halos ace.

Baltimore Orioles rookie Wei-Yin Chen signed this baseball a couple of weeks ago - I didn't really know much about him, except he's a Taiwanese import who played in Japan to start his professional baseball career.

Who knows how he'll hold up but he's been impressive for the upstart Orioles so far in 2012 - I wanted his autograph on the sweet spot but he signed it on a panel and I realized that maybe the way he has signed baseballs in his life as a ballplayer.

If he decides or is taught to sign with a more traditional Western style autograph - maybe he'll be able to sign on the sweet spot like how collectors of single-signed baseballs likes them.

I got this card signed in-person during the last Angels homestand - Kendrick has been a pretty good signer before Angels home games, though depending on the crowd lined up along the rail, he might not be able to sign for everyone.

The Angels are my team and it hurts to watch them go through this prolonged funk while that other Southern California team playing in Los Angeles is flourishing at the moment - it looks like one of the teams has the best player in baseball right now and his name isn't Albert Pujols...

Maybe lost in the message is that Delmon can be the most laid back, chill guy under most circumstances - but he's no Josh Hamilton.

The media and fans will always assume the worst and short of what they really want to call him - Young's already had some history of immaturity, dating back when he threw a bat at an umpire in the minors, so anyone with Google will find all sorts of stuff said about him you wouldn't say to his face.

Even if Young has been a disappointment under most circumstances as a former No. 1 overall pick - he is still a professional baseball player with some stature, one who needs to get some help before he finds himself completely irrelevant.

Barry Zito has enjoyed a string of resurgent starts in the first month of the 2012 season - its not like I've followed his playing career religiously, but I remember him as part of the 'Big Three' [with Tim Hudson and Mark Mulder] for the Oakland Athletics back in the early 2000's.

Since he's been with the Giants, Zito's either been a sore free-agent disappointment or pitched as well as a No. 4 starting pitcher can - while being paid as a No.1.

I do want to say while he always had a sort of unique persona off the field - it was moving to see his relationship with his ailing father in last season's Showtime documentary about the San Francisco Giants.