2003 Topps will eventually be the first base set of this decade that I collect if everything goes as planned. I recently had an opportunity to buy 5 more packs of the series 1 stuff as well as my first 5 series 2 packs. At some point I'll probably have to invest in a hobby box or two, but for now I'm just grabbing the small stuff.Pack 1:
254 - Glendon Rusch (Rusch is spelled like Busch, the beer, but is pronounced like Rush, the band.)
10 - Mark Prior
163 - Carl Everett
212 - Robert Fick (Robert Fick was a 2002 All-Star and scored the final run of the ill-fated game. How fitting. The thing was cursed before it started.)
RB-LBE - Lance Berkman Record Breakers (Ahh, this whole pack is cursed. Currrrrsed! I have no idea why I'm showing Berkman. Maybe it's because the regular season is effectively over and the Astros were knocked out of contention ages ago.)
355 - Giants Win Pennant NLCS Postseason Highlights (Nooooooo!!! CURRRRRSED! I guess I'm posting this as some sort of reverse psychology jinx thing. It wasn't really the Giants that did the Cardinals in back in 2002, it was Alex bleeping Cintron.)
69 - Troy Glaus (Glaus is threatening to make the Cardinals postseason roster all of a sudden. He looked good at the plate yesterday. He also tossed a pitiful throw to 1st that one-hopped Pujols.)198 - Gary Bennett (I'll never forget his amazing week for the Cards in the 2006 season.)
52 - Bobby Higginson
196 - Rolando Arrojo (I'd never heard of this guy. He pitched 202 innings in his rookie year and then apparently was all downhill from that point on.)
Pack 2:
100 - Ichiro Suzuki162 - Greg Vaughn (Vaughn hit 50 HRs in 1998 and slugged nearly .600. I had no idea.)
261 - Kazuhiro Sasaki (Kaz came over from Japan the season before Ichiro and established himself as a fine closer for the Mariners for a few years.)
4 - Jermaine Dye (Supposedly set to DH for the White Sox next season after the loss of Jim Thome.)
RB-SG - Shawn Green Record Breakers366 - Manny Ramirez All-Stars
55 - Brian Jordan (Brian Jordan was one of the few Cardinals to eventually go to the Braves that I actually still continued to root for. He's pictured as a Dodger here.)
85 - Kenny Rogers (There was some back-and-forth between Tony La Russa and Dusty Baker in the most recent series against the Reds that reminded me of the Kenny Rogers pine tar thing in the 2006 World Series. Usually you never hear about baseballs being checked mid-game.)
14 - David Segui
123 - Andy Benes (Benes had a decent career, but had a hard time getting things together in his second stint with the Cards.)
Pack 3:
253 - Mark Grudzielanek (Skip Schumaker might be the first adequate second baseman the Cardinals have had since Grudz, and that's saying something since Skip had never really played the position prior to this season and is still fairly green in the field.)
237 - Alex Sanchez
193 - Tony Womack (Another former Cardinal 2B.)
149 - Tony Armas Jr.
111 - Ruben Quevedo
339 - Alex Rodriguez / Jim Thome / Rafael Palmeiro League Leaders AL Home Runs (One of these guys still has credibility.)19 - Danys Baez (Not to be confused with Dennys Reyes.)
126 - Bob Wickman
214 - C.C. Sabathia (I'll go out on a limb and say that Sabathia will win the AL Cy Young Award this season because he is a Yankee and Zach Greinke is a Royal.)
72 - Rickey Henderson (Even Rickey thinks this is a pretty sad looking example of a card for Rickey's final card as a player. Rickey.)- Home Team Advantage ad
Pack 4:
272 - Bob Brenly (Catcher-turned-announcer-turned-manager-turned-announcer.)
74 - Brad Fullmer
247 - Ellis Burks
72 - Rickey Henderson (Rickey is back for an encore.)
344 - Sammy Sosa / Albert Pujols / Shawn Green League Leaders NL Runs
296 - Il Kim Gold 0289 / 2003 (I wonder if he has the shortest name of any player to appear on a baseball card.)58 - Luis Rivas
186 - Brent Abernathy
79 - Ramon Martinez (The Giants shortstop, not the pitcher.)
194 - Wes Helms
Pack 5:
34 - Jeff Nelson
258 - Wade Miller (I always get tons of Astros in older packs.)
229 - Melvin Mora
88 - Jose Cruz Jr.
Alex Rodriguez 1951 Topps thing (Okay, help me out here. I'm guessing this is part of some sort of insert set, but I haven't figured out what yet.)
365 - Barry Zito All-Stars62 - Scott Hatteberg (One of the players that is featured prominently in Moneyball.)
143 - Jose Vizcaino
15 - Trot Nixon
84 - Rafael Furcal (I'm not sure that Furcal has lived up to the hype that has followed him for much of his career... not that I mind.)
The inserts are up for grabs if anyone is looking to trade. The base cards are not, unless I already have them... not that I have a list yet or anything. I'll post the series 2 packs sometime next week.
While looking for an English book to read for my long flight back to the States, "Moneyball" was one of the books I considered. Once again, more evidence that the Taiwanese are completely nuts about baseball.
ReplyDeleteThis wasn't even in the sports section or anything like that, but mixed in with other non-fiction and stuff like Jane Austen Penguin Classics in the limited English section.
Hey Card man, I'll take any Rangers....yes even the much hated AROD...the hazards of being a team collector I guess. I don't have any 2003 Topps to trade, but I've got Cards cards set aside already.
ReplyDeleteI kinda like the Record Breakers cards.. kind of odd they didn't put the player names on the front though.
ReplyDeleteThe 1951 insert set is the Blue Backs insert styled after the 1951 Topps Blue Back set. 40 cards falling at 1:8 retail and 1:12 hobby. Red Backs were in Series 2. I only have one and I think it's a Mark Prior. If I remember, they don't have card numbers on them.
I need the Shawn Green card.
ReplyDeleteEd Ott. Il Kim ties Ed Ott for shortest name.