“After being carried by their pitching and some lesser-known hitters in the NLCS, the Cardinals turned to the heart of their order to dispatch Detroit in the World Series opener.  Their Nos. 3-4-5 men — Pujols, Edmonds and Rolen — combined to go 5-for-11 with 4 RBI in a 7-2 win.  Pujols and Rolen homered.”

Jim Edmonds just officially announced his retirement last month.  He played 17 seasons in the Major Leagues, winning 8 Gold Gloves for his exceptional fielding abilities.

2006 Topps Updates & Highlights:

1. #UH91 Oscar Villarreal
2. #UH103 Aaron Sele
3. #UH47 Elmer Dessens
4. #UH75 Wilson Betemit
5. #UH55 Julio Lugo
6. #UH227 Alfonso Soriano (All-Star)
7. #UH250 Carlos Lee (All-Star)
8. Gold #UH328 Johan Santana/Francisco Liriano (Serial#0278/2006) (Classic Duos)
9. #UH197 Albert Pujols/Jim Edmonds/Scott Rolen (Postseason Highlights)
10. #UH264 Mariano Rivera (All-Star)
11. #UH317 Frank Thomas/Barry Zito (Team Leaders)
12. #UH263 Dan Uggla (All-Star)

Of these three hitters, Freddy Sanchez was the one who declined the most since winning the batting title in 2006, hitting only .290 since 2007.  Miguel Cabrera and Albert Pujols hit .316 and .330, respectively, since 2007.

2006 Topps Updates & Highlights:

1. #UH20 Jeff Conine
2. #US32 David Riske
3. #UH12 Brett Tomko
4. #UH40 Jeremy Accardo
5. #UH24 Eddie Guardado
6. #UH226 Kenny Rogers (All-Star)
7. #UH175 Trevor Hoffman (Season Highlights)
8. Rookie Debut #RD-2 Ian Kinsler
9. #UH185 Frank Thomas (Postseason Highlights)
10. #UH268 Bobby Jenks (All-Star)
11. #UH211 Freddy Sanchez/Miguel Cabrera/Albert Pujols (League Leaders)
12. #UH266 Tom Gordon (All-Star)

“From Japan and Dominican Republic, respectively, Ichiro and Pujols made dramatic big-league debuts in 2001.  Ichiro won the AL bat crown (.350), Rookie of the Year Award and MVP Award.  Albert smashed .329-37-130, won the NL Rookie of the Year prize and finished fourth in NL MVP voting.  Each player ripped at least .312 in ’02 and ’03, with Pujols copping his first NL bat crown (.359) the latter year.”

After 10 seasons of play, neither Ichiro nor Pujols have ever hit under .300 in a season.

2004 Topps Series 2:

1. #537 Paul Konerko
2. #430 Garret Anderson
3. #523 J.T. Snow Jr.
4. #634 Shea Hillenbrand
5. #401 Troy Glaus
6. #702 Mike Cameron (Gold Glove)
7. #646 Cleveland Indians (Team Card)
8. #643 Chicago Cubs (Team Card)
9. #694 Ichiro/Albert Pujols (Fan Favorites)
10. #638 Anaheim Angels (Team Card)

““Albert the Great” might soon have to be redubbed “Albert the Greatest.”  Pujols got off to such a dynamic start in 2006, he missed 15 games in June and, when he returned, he still led the NL in home runs.  And he was so feared by pitchers that in the 73 times he came up with runners in scoring position and first base open, he was walked 31 times!”

2007 Topps Series 2:

1. #654 Ivan Rodriguez/Fernando Rodney (Classic Combo)
2. #642 Sean Henn (Rookie Card)
3. #462 Edgar Gonzalez
4. #411 Jason Bay
5. Gold #393 Milton Bradley (Serial#0667/2007)
6. Stars #TS6 Albert Pujols
7. Red Back #351 Mark DeRosa
8. Red Back #493 Greg Norton
9. #407 Nick Johnson
10. #516 Bartolo Colon

2010 Topps Series 2:

1. #650 Dustin Pedroia
2. #657 Chris Young
3. #561 Ryan Zimmerman
4. #430 Kazuo Matsui
5. #370 Robinson Cano
6. #438 Jason Bartlett
7. #584 Matt Capps
8. #359 Aramis Ramirez
9. #425 Dontrelle Willis
10. #574 Milwaukee Brewers (Team Card)
11. #371 Nick Hundley
12. #494 Andrew Miller
13. #589 Edinson Volquez
14. #416 Ruben Tejada (Rookie Card)
15. #376 Esmil Rogers (Rookie Card)
16. #431 John Raynor (Rookie Card)
17. #503 Austin Jackson (Rookie Card)
18. #476 Yadier Molina
19. #520 Randy Wells
20. #654 Collin Balester
21. #632 Daric Barton
22. #604 Atlanta Braves (Franchise History)
23. #543 Adam Jones/Nick Markakis (Checklist)
24. #486 Raul Ibanez
25. #480 Boston Red Sox (Team Card)
26. #379 Phil Hughes
27. #559 Nick Markakis
28. Gold #356 Angels (Franchise History) (Serial#1353/2010)
29. The Cards Your Mom Threw Out #CMT66 Warren Spahn
30. History of the World Series #HWS2 Walter Johnson
31. Million Card Giveaway #TMC-20 Carl Yastrzemski
32. 2020 #T18 Clayton Kershaw
33. Vintage Legends #VLC9 Ozzie Smith
34. Turkey Red #TR90 Johan Santana
35. Legendary Lineage #LL-42 Lou Gehrig/Albert Pujols
36. Peak Performance #PP-89 B.J. Upton
37. #420 Shin-soo Choo
38. #448 Joakim Soria
39. #529 Carlos Lee
40. #614 Kelly Johnson
41. #660 Brandon McCarthy
42. #585 Dioner Navarro
43. #631 Marc Rzepczynski
44. #519 Alexi Casilla
45. #621 Aaron Cook
46. #521 Jeremy Bonderman
47. #484 Mike Fontenot
48. #396 Jake Westbrook
49. #447 Jeremy Guthrie
50. Attax Code Card #MH Matt Holliday

“Is Pujols the new Gehrig?  The comparison is compelling.  Through their age-29 seasons, Lou holds slight edges in RBI (1,146 to 1,112) and OPS (1.084 to 1,055), but Albert is way out in front in HRs (366 to 267).  They also rank third and fourth in most XBHs in a player’s first 5,000 career ABs — “The Iron Horse” with 761 and “Prince Albert” with 744.”

I think Topps is stretching it a little just to put Gehrig on a card with Pujols.  Pujols is actually much closer to Jimmie Foxx in comparison.  Through age 29, Pujols batted .334 with 366 home runs, while Foxx batted .334 with 379 home runs.  Foxx hit more home runs through age 29 than Pujols because he had 405 more at-bats.

Some other nice cards from this pack:

It’s amazing how Austin Jackson can lead the league in strikeouts, yet still maintain a batting average above .300:

I’m assuming this is from the Angels’ 2002 World Series title?

The Big Train:

and the Wizard of Oz:

I FINALLY got a pre-1970s card in the Topps Million Card Giveaway lottery!

1958 Topps #141 Ken Lehman

He was a relief pitcher in a time when needing a relief pitcher was a sign of weakness.

2006 Topps Updates & Highlights:

1. #UH49 Kelly Shoppach
2. #UH69 Kyle Lohse
3. #UH57 Kip Wells
4. #UH41 Shawn Green
5. #UH65 Greg Maddux
6. #UH165 Chad Billingsley (Rookie Card)
7. #UH236 Derrick Turnbow (All-Star)
8. Rookie Debut #RD-44 Joe Saunders
9. #UH199 Chris Carpenter (Postseason Highlights)
10. #UH278 Trevor Hoffman (All-Star)
11. #UH288 Miguel Tejada (Home Run Derby)
12. #UH296 Albert Pujols/Chris Carpenter (Team Leaders)

Pujols ended the 2006 season with a career-best 137 RBIs (it still stands today as his career best).  Carpenter finished 2006 with a record of 15-8, leading the team in wins.  Both Pujols and Carpenter are still playing for the Cardinals, and both are All-Stars this season.

Last pack of 2010 Topps Series 1!

1. #101 Scott Baker
2. #23 Shane Victorino
3. #317 Ryan Doumit
4. #327 Albert Pujols (MVP)
5. #268 Juan Pierre
6. Gold Border #217 Gio Gonzalez (Serial#0072/2010)
7. Turkey Red #TR21 Johnny Bench
8. Topps Town #TTT4 Adrian Gonzalez
9. #152 Nyjer Morgan
10. #226 Juan Rivera

By hitting his 17th and 18th homers of the season yesterday afternoon, Albert Pujols tied Stan Musial for the most multi-HR games in Cardinals history with 37.  Other similarities with Musial include:

• Both have made the All-Star team every season after their second season.
• Pujols’ career batting average is currently .332, while Musial batted .331 in his career.
• Through his first 10 seasons, Pujols has a 171 OPS+, while Musial had 172.

2009 Topps Series 1:

1. #68 Brandon Inge
2. #222 Curtis Granderson
3. #92 David Eckstein
4. #329 Colorado Rockies (Franchise History)
5. Million Card Giveaway #TMC-1 Roy Campanella
6. Peak Performance #PP-1 Albert Pujols
7. Topps Town #TTT22 Andrew McCutchen
8. #47 Brad Penny
9. #125 Ichiro
10. #229 Daniel McCutchen

“Pujols’ remarkable power consistency continued in 2009, when he became the first player in MLB history to start his career with nine straight 30-homer seasons.  Extending his unprecedented run never seemed in doubt; Albert reached the level a full two weeks before the MLB All-Star Game, collecting Nos. 29 and 30 against the Giants on June 30.”

Prince Albert is on his way to a 10th straight 30-homer season.  However, they’re starting to get harder to come by as opposing pitchers are being more cautious when pitching to him.  He has led the league in intentional walks since 2008.

My Million Card Giveaway blind dart throw nets me:

1974 Topps #26 Bill Campbell