25 Years of Baseball

2010 Topps Series 1:

1. #41 Los Angeles Dodgers (Franchise History)
2. #67 Matt LaPorta
3. #169 Pittsburgh Pirates (Franchise History)
4. #191 Mat Latos
5. #137 Oakland Athletics (Franchise History)
6. #203 Zack Greinke/Felix Hernandez/Roy Halladay (League Leaders)
7. Tales of the Game #TOG-8 Roger Maris
8. Peak Performance #PP-43 Dustin Pedroia
9. Topps Town #TTT23 CC Sabathia
10. #212 Magglio Ordonez

“Babe Ruth’s single-season home run record of 60 stood as one of the game’s golden numbers for 34 years.  Then along came Maris in 1961, who waged a high-profile chase of the mark along with Yankees teammate Mickey Mantle.  Despite crushing scrutiny from media, the reserved Roger positioned himself for a charge with 33 blasts in the first half alone.  On October 1, the regular-season finale, he slammed No. 61.”

Maris died in 1985 and is buried in his hometown of Fargo, North Dakota, where he remains a hero among the locals.

2007 Ultra #199 Nick Johnson

2007 Ultra #200 Felipe Lopez

2007 Ultra #206 Matt Chico (Rookie)

2010 Topps Series 1:

1. #234 Tampa Bay Rays (Franchise History)
2. #286 Javier Vazquez
3. #86 Gil Meche
4. #305 Juan Francisco (Rookie)
5. History of the Game #HOTG2 First Professional Baseball Game Played
6. Turkey Red #TR25 Ernie Banks
7. Topps Town #TTT8 Zack Greinke
8. #166 Eric Byrnes
9. #285 Kurt Suzuki
10. #239 Juan Uribe

“Ernie was not just one of the most talented players of his era, he was one of the most beloved.  Cubs fans appreciated his “Let’s Play Two” approach to every gameday and the all-around skills that produced 512 home runs, two RBI titles and 11 MLB All-Star Game nods.  Banks was at his best in 1958, when he batted .313 with 47 homers and 129 RBI to win the NL MVP Award.  The next season, he became the first shortstop in history to garner that honor in back-to-back years.  In 19 seasons, all with Chicago, this Hall of Famer broke numerous team records and set offensive standards for shortstops.“

2007 Ultra #196 Ryan Zimmerman

2007 Ultra #197 Michael O’Connor

2007 Ultra #198 Chad Cordero

2009 Topps Updates & Highlights:

1. #UH54 Vin Mazzaro (Rookie)
2. #UH160 Edgar Renteria
3. #UH164 Brett Tomko
4. #UH300 Albert Pujols (Home Run Derby)
5. #UH95 Ryan Freel
6. #UH301 Ryan Zimmerman (All-Star)
7. Turkey Red #TR116 Rick Porcello
8. Topps Town #TTT52 Torii Hunter
9. #UH46 Clayton Richard
10. #UH165 Maicer Izturis

“One of the most highly touted pitching prospects of recent years, Rick was drafted in the first round by Detroit in 2007, led the Flordia State League with a 2.66 ERA in ‘08, and made the rare jump from Single-A to the Motor City the next year.  The youngest player in the Majors when he debuted at just 20, Porcello made it known quickly that he is mature beyond his years.  He gave up just one run over seven innings in his second start (April 19 at Seattle) to earn his first Major League victory.  The right-hander captured all five of his starts in May — a first for a Tigers pitcher that youthful.”

And my newest player collection:

And another Nat for my team collection:

2007 Bowman Heritage #5 Shawn Hill

2007 Bowman Heritage #17 Nick Johnson

2007 Bowman Heritage #77 Ronnie Belliard

2007 Bowman Heritage #203 Kory Casto (Rookie)

1997 Topps Series 2:

1. #289 Rico Brogna
2. #398 Vinny Castilla
3. #374 Bobby Bonilla
4. #339 Jay Powell
5. #427 Bob Wolcott
6. #469 Rod Barajas/Jackie Rexrode (Rookie)
7. #472 Mike DeCelle/Marcus McCain (Rookie)
8. #471 Chie Gunner/Paul Wilder (Rookie)
9. Awesome Impact #AI14 Neifi Perez
10. #484 Armando Benitez
11. #408 Bill Pulsipher

IMPACT ‘96:  ”Developed more quickly than anticipated… No. 11 hitter in Am. Assn. (AAA) and had a 7-hit game… Spent September in Denver.”

IMPACT ‘97:  ”May force his way into the Colorado SS picture.”

IMPACT BEYOND:  ”Long Rockie future… Can star with glove alone, but should develop into useful hitter.”

These Awesome Impact cards are fun to look at in hindsight.  Neifi didn’t quite have a “long Rockie future”, unless you consider about 4 years to be a long future.  Neifi was indeed very good with the glove.  His main accomplishment was winning a Gold Glove in 2000.  However, after he left the Rockies in 2001 his career began a long decline culminating in a forced retirement after he tested positive for amphetamines for a third time in 2007.

2007 Topps Co-Signers #16 Ryan Zimmerman

2007 Topps Co-Signers #46 Austin Kearns