Up For Grabs Cardinalpalooza: Colby Rasmus

Previously on the Cardinalpalooza: Yadier Molina | Allen Craig | Stan Musial | Rick Ankiel | David Freese | Keith Hernandez | Steve Carlton | Lance Berkman | Lou Brock | Dennis Eckersley | Bob Gibson

Colby Rasmus fits into a different category than most of the other players I've offered up here on the Cardinalpalooza. He's not a fan favorite whose collecting appeal is mostly limited to the Cardinals fanbase and he's not a transcendent superstar like Gibby or Musial. Rasmus is the former top prospect who was dealt to bolster a playoff run and is still trying to find his way in the league. The list of cards available follows, as always, at the end of the post.

Colby wasn't run out of town exactly, and there was much debate among the Cardinal fanbase as to whether the trade that sent him to Toronto was a good one. And then the World Series happened and everyone sort of shut up about that. Rasmus has shown his superstar potential at times with Toronto and at other teams he's been injured and/or ineffective.

In short, Rasmus is someone you'd want on your fantasy team, if anything but to have some sort of scapegoat to angrily shake your fist at on Sunday afternoons when you're about to lose to the guy who never logs in after the draft to check his lineups. The jerk.

The list:

2008 Tristar Projections #57
2009 Topps #631 [3 available]
2009 Topps Chrome #196
2009 Upper Deck X Die Cut #97
2010 Topps #207 [5 available]
2010 Upper Deck #460 [2 available]
2011 Topps #448 [4 available]
2011 Topps Chrome #71 [3 2 available]
2011 Topps Opening Day #180 [3 available]

[updated 10/2/13]

Giant Trade

A huge box of goodies arrived in my mailbox earlier this month from ARPSmith's Sportscard Obsession. While I had promised to send him "all of the Giants" or something close to that, I think I fell a bit short on my end. I'm still hopeful he found some of the stuff useful, as it was doing me no good to hang on to it.

This was the first pure Cardinals package I'd received in quite awhile. I am always working on various sets and sometimes I get cards from said sets, but with this trade I saw nothing but dudes on my favorite team. Not bad.

I may have got an entire team set of this 2002 Donruss Fan Club "Best Of" set. I had never seen these before, and they are the exact kind of card that doesn't scan well at all.

Who knew that Pete Kozma would suddenly become the Cardinals every day shortstop? I'm sure Jeff Luhnow was thinking that was a real possibility back in 2007 when he was drafted, but Luhnow is in Houston and Kozma hasn't proven to be very effective at anything in the minors. Yet, somehow Ryan Jackson's backup in Memphis this season is starting everyday in place of Furcal even with Jackson on the big league roster. He's getting some hits, too.

I don't really go for the unlicensed MLB-ish stuff, which is why you won't see Goodwin Champions on my want list any longer in the post-licensed era of Upper Deck. However, that doesn't mean I don't like to get these in trades. I just consider them oddballs in a way.

Go crazy folks! This isn't just a garden variety Ozzie mini, it's a Gypsy Queen back. You'll, er, have to trust me on that one.

Here's a much needed varation of the Colby Rasmus Topps 206 rookie card where he tries not to look too interested in much of anything.

They didn't leave much space for a photo on this card.

I got a pair of Bowman flashback style Shelby Miller cards. Miller was called up late in the season and so far has played the role of a low leverage reliever and potential long man.

Miller had a really rough first half to his season but seemed to straighten things out later in the summer. Hopefully he will be a staple in the rotation for years to come.

I don't think I have any of these white serial numbered parallels from the 2008 Opening Day set. I couldn't have even told you what they looked like before I received this card. It's kind of weird seeing the 2008 base design without the circles.

I actually liked the Topps Unique set, which made its lone appearance in 2009. I did have a bit of luck with it in a group break once upon a time, so there's that.

Here's one of those Yer Mom cards that I didn't already have. I'm actually still missing a ton of these, which is sad for a 2010 Topps product.

Finally, there were some nice bat cards in the box. Bat cards are still worth something, right? Or has everyone lost confidence in their authenticity as well? Personally, I always found bat carts to be a bit more fun as they seem to be a little more scarce.

There was also a pair of 2004 Bazooka Blasts bat cards, this one featuring Scott Rolen. I think it's awesome that Rolen is still in the league. I just wish he didn't play for those dreaded Reds.

So Taguchi retired from professional baseball this year at the end of July at age 43. I can always say that I his first MLB game in person, even though the game itself was very forgettable and So's presence in the lineup meant that I was denied seeing Jim Edmonds on the field. (I never got to see Edmonds play unless you count minor league games that occurred before I really knew who he was.)

5 Stages of Colby Rasmus

(Or: How the Cardinals Inexplicably Became Sellers at the Trade Deadline)

1. Denial: No way is this happening. This must be some goofy, misguided MLBTradeRumors concoction. Didn't John Mozeliak just swear up and down a couple of days ago that Colby wasn't going anywhere?

2. Anger: WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU THINKING, MO?! Why are you running this franchise into the ground? What's next, Jaime Garcia to the Dodgers for Aaron Miles and a sack of used Band-Aids? I swear I am done with you and Tony and this team. I'm just going to start watching hockey from now on. HOCKEY.

3. Bargaining: Okay, okay... this isn't the end of the trade, right? Some of those three Players to be Named Later are going to be stud prospects, right? I'll... you know what? I'll take back every mean thing I said about Ryan Theriot this year if you JUST BRING COLBY BACK. Come on. Bud Selig, step in! This trade is ridiculous. You pretend to find something wrong with it and veto it. Just pretend that you're David Stern. I will buy like 7 camouflage Cardinals caps and 10 cases of Budweiser aluminum bottles if it will bring that sweet swing back.

4. Depression: This is terrible. Jon Jay is a fourth outfielder. He fell apart last year after Ludwick was traded. That trade sunk the offense and doomed the Cardinals, ensuring that they would miss the playoffs after things looked promising. The defense needed to be upgraded and an extra bat is always handy. A lefty reliever wouldn't hurt, but you blew it when you traded a young, extreme talent who was cost-controlled for several more seasons. I'll never see one of those bombs to right field again. Colby hits the ball farther than Albert Pujols (seriously, look it up) and... oh no... not the rookie cards! What will I ever do when I look at those rookie cards?

5. Acceptance: Well... teams make trades all the time. Colby was barely sniffing .250 this year and didn't seem to be a very popular guy in the clubhouse. I get that he didn't always do things "the right way". He has a meddlesome father whom he'd sooner listen to than his employer. Sometimes it looks like he has a noodle for an arm. And I know I was totally okay with a Rasmus trade as long as the return made sense and the Cardinals got something that would help them both this season and in the future. Of course, I was thinking a similar type of young but major league ready prospect and... ZLKJLDFJSEG forget this! MO, I HATE YOU. I AM NOT ACCEPTING THIS ONE BIT. WHERE IS THAT FUUUUUUUUUUU GRAPHIC THAT DAYF LOVES SO MUCH?!!

JOHN MOZELIAK, YOU MADE COREY PATTERSON A CARDINAL. That, my friends, is an unforgivable sin.

First Rasmus Relic

It's a Brand New Day for the Senior Circuit. Home! Field! Advantage! In the World Series! Wait... make that... The! World! Series! Okay, fine, I was genuinely excited about the NL's victory last night. After it sank in a bit, however, I did come to the realization that it only really matters if the Cardinals make it to the World Series. If a certain other team that I like happens to be in it, and not the Cardinals, then I will probably be a little annoyed. Exhibition games, especially those managed like a Field Day game where everyone gets a Participation Award, should not have any bearing on things that matter - especially not the World Series!

And now, having nothing to do with anything, I want to talk about a nice little package I recieved from Bud of First Day Issue. Bud consistently sends me packages with the largest shiny card-to-non-shiny card ratio of anyone that I currently trade with. I think I sent him some Griffeys and rookie cards of someone that used to play for the Sonics. Let's take a look at some cards from that guy!

Awesome! This is a Stadium Club "Video Replay" card of Mark McGwire. It looks like Topps appropriated the Sportflics (or is that -flix?) technology. Didn't they get a patent for that stuff?

This one qualifies as shiny and serial-numbered. Who is Josh Pearce? I don't know! He was on a Crusade, though.

ZZzzzzz... wait... what? Hello? Oh yeah, um, Fan Favorites are great. I would gladly trade National Chicle, Topps 206 and Topps Attax for a new Fan Favorites set if it were possible.

I don't think I've ever cheered harder for a fairly routine play made by a non-Cardinal than when Rolen went first-to-third last night during the All-Star Game. Even though he now plays for the team leading the Cardinals by 1 game in their division, I hope Rolen hits about 35 HRs and finishes in the top few in MVP voting. Just don't beat out any Cardinals, alright?

Ah yes, about that Colby Rasmus Relic. It's my first one, you see. This was a great surprise and I hope to acquire more Colby Rasmus swag as this baseball card thing continues to run its course.

Thanks again to Bud!

How Topps Defeated Upper Deck in 2009: Exhibit A

I threw my wantlist into the ring awhile back and Scott from Hand Collated sent over a few 2009 Cardinals that I needed, including my first "rookie cards" of NL ROY candidate Colby Rasmus. For some reason, Upper Deck chose a cheesy spring training "signing autographs for the fans" shot for their first look at Colby. It's a strange choice, if you ask me, because this seems to be sort of a cliche photo choice usually reserved for superstar players. At this point, Rasmus had yet to appear in a counting major league game.

I think the Topps card is perfect, however. I'm admittedly a sucker for the photos where you can see the ball suspended in mid-air. This card just looks great, though. I like that you can see the coach observing his young prodigal player in the background. Colby seems a little different than a lot of young players. He did not walk once in the entire month of June and claims that he isn't interested in walking, only hitting. I am also not impressed with his arm, having seen him hit the pitcher's mound at least twice now with a throw from the outfield. But he does have a lot of talent and he did hit the big walkoff HR in Wednesday night's game. I will be rooting for him, of course, because he's a Cardinal.

I also picked up my first two Ring of Honor cards in the trade. These apparently are hobby-only inserts, which would explain why I was lacking in that department. I don't think I like the design, but anything honoring the World Series Champion Cardinals is alright in my book.

Of course, I'm not sure how this would constitute a trade if I don't actually send something back in return. Oops. I'll be poring over the want lists and will have something in the mail soon, I promise.

Getting There

I haven't completed a set in about 17 years (unless you count non-sports cards, but I'm not getting into that now.) Thanks to fellow blogs like Night Owl Cards, I'm closer than ever to completing 2008 Allen & Ginter. I've only posted about this set about, oh, maybe 10 times now, but here's another couple of cards from the set (and some extras) that I received from Night Owl this past week.

When looking at my want list, I stumbled upon someone called Takudzwa Ngwenya, not having any idea who he or she was. That's part of the fun of this set. Now that I see the card, I can go... ooh, rugby guy.

I know who Melky Cabrera is. I wonder what the Yankees will end up doing with their enormous collection of outfielders. I would hate to be a minor league player in their system.

I was also sent my first two 2009 Upper Deck cards featuring the Cardinals' former starting middle infielders. Cesar Izturis left quietly and unceremoniously, having done his job about as well as could be expected last season with a sharp glove and a toothpick for a bat.

Adam Kennedy was released about a week before pitchers and catchers were set to report. The timing was fairly ridiculous, but supposedly the team still held out hope that they could hope that they could find a trade partner for him even while publicly stating that he wasn't going anywhere. Having now seen the new Upper Deck design in person rather than just on the internet, I'm still not sure that I'm all that wild about it. They really are reminiscent of that lousy Documentary set. Still, it beats 2008 Topps.

Finally, there was a Colby Rasmus rookie card. I believe I whined in a post or a comment on some blog somewhere awhile back that I was hoping to pull one of these in a 2005 Topps Updates & Highlights pack someday because I didn't have any of his cards. Night Owl must have had one in a secret stash somewhere, because he sneaked his way into the package I got last week. I'm afraid all of the hype that is built up around Colby is going to forever surpass what he actually does on the field, but for now I'd just settle for getting to see him play. Maybe I should consider a move to Memphis.