2014 Topps Archives – cards #51-100 (1980 design)

Moving forward a few years from 1973, the next year for Archives is 1980 Topps.  This was the first Topps set I featured on my blog – because it’s the Topps set from the year I was born!  As I’ve said before, the regular cards from the Topps Archives set is broken up into 4 different designs in 50 card allotments based on earlier Topps sets.  The second “allotment”, cards #51-100, is from this classic Topps set.  Topps is repeating itself here – this was a design they used in the 2012 installment of Archives.

The card front features a white border, a small flag featuring the player’s un-abbreviated position in the top left corner, player name across the top, another flag with the team name on the bottom right, and a facsimile autograph somewhere on top of the player picture. The blue card back features season stats and career totals and a highlighted moment from the player’s career along with a comic-type depiction of the moment.

Topps had 7 cards from the set.  4 of them have the correct team, while 3 of them are incorrect.

George Brett

Brett was featured in the 2012 set on this design, so I had this post just about 2 years ago.

Just like the old one, Topps got the team right – though considering that George Brett played his whole career, it would be hard not to. The year is off again – this looks like it’s from the late 80’s or even early 90’s based on the Royals’ uniform.  And Brett’s hair is cropped a little closer like it’s later in his career.  Still, this is a pretty nice card, and not one I’ll complain about.

Robin Yount

Yount is the player I most associate with Brett.  They have a rookie card from the same year, they retired the same year, they both got 3,000 hits the same season and were in the same Hall of Fame induction class.  And both played their entire career for one team.

Like Brett’s Archives photo – this isn’t the correct timeframe.  Unlike Brett – this is from a much earlier time period.   Probably Yount’s rookie year or 2nd year – 1975 or so.  The autograph is much different, too on this card.  The Archives version is in line with his signature today.

Joe Morgan

Morgan has the right team as well, though it’s worth noting that this was a change-over year for the Reds’ Hall of Famer.  Morgan left for the Astros before the 1980 season.

There’s actually an Astros Burger King set made by Topps in the 1980 design.  Most of the cards are the same picture as the Topps set, but Morgan and Nolan Ryan had to have updated photos to show them with the Astros after the offseason move.

Dusty Baker

Baker isn’t a Hall of Fame player like the other 3 guys, but who knows – he may get in on his managerial merits some day.  He’s one of the better managers in recent years, underrated in my opinion.  He’s shown here with the Dodgers – and I think it’s got to be around the right year looking at his other Topps cards.

Baker’s card is an SP – I had to grab a photo off eBay to compare these two.  One interesting thing I noticed – they just list the actual position in 1980, but Topps calls Baker “an outfielder”.  His autograph has changed a bit over the years as well.

There were 3 other cards of players who have 1980 Topps cards, but Topps has the team wrong.  Ozzie Smith was still with the Padres in 1980.  Interestingly, Topps did the same thing with Smith two years ago.

Tony Perez was next – he was with the Red Sox by 1980, after a couple of years with the Expos.  His 1980 Topps card is with the Expos.  Of course, he’s known best for his time with the Reds, much like Ozzie is known for his years with St. Louis.

Reggie Jackson is the final card – like Baker, he’s in the SP section.  Reggie is shown with the A’s, but his 1980 Topps card is with the Yankees.

2014 Topps Archives – cards #1-50 (1973 design)

The regular cards from the Topps Archives set was again broken up into 4 different designs in 50 card allotments based on earlier Topps sets.  The first 50 cards are based on the 1973 Topps set.

1973 Topps is a pretty cool design.  The set has a white border, with the player and team name down in the left hand corner.  The right hand corner has the player’s position and a silhouette that differs based on what the position is.  How they do the position is the coolest thing about the design in my mind.

There are 8 players in the 1973 section of Archives who also had 1973 Topps cards.   The original card is on the left – the Archives card is to the right.

Steve Carlton

Carlton was coming off a historic season when he won the pitching triple crown for an atrocious Phillies team.  He went 27-10 with 310 strikeouts and a 1.97 ERA.  The 27 wins were 46% of his team’s 59 victories that season – which is the most since World War II.

I think the photo is about the right timeframe for 1973 Topps, just a few years off.  From his old Topps baseball cards, it looks like he sported the mustache in the 1974 and 1975 seasons.

I do kind of like this one better than his original 1973 Topps card, which is cool in that it features Carlton’s battery mate John Bateman – but has clear shadowing issues.

Tom Seaver

Carlton’s biggest rival for best pitcher in baseball during this era was Tom Seaver.  Seaver’s card looks like it could be spot on as far as getting the year right.  Definitely the right era.

I kind of like the original better, though both are good.  I also just noticed – Topps gets the pitching side correct with the position silhouette.  Seaver’s silhouette is shown as a right-hander, while “Lefty” is shown as a … lefty.

Catfish Hunter

Another very good pitcher from this era was Jim “Catfish” Hunter.  Hunter was a feature of a Bob Dylan song – but this was before his trade from Oakland to the Yankees.

It’s crazy how similar this card is – though it’s clearly not the same photo.  He doesn’t have the ball in the Archives version, and you can tell he’s posing from a different spot on the field.  But everything else is so similar – you can tell it’s the same stadium and probably the same photo shoot.  Which means Topps probably got the year exactly right.

Topps didn’t start using the name Catfish until much later in his career.

Jim Palmer

The theme here seems to be great pitchers.  Palmer’s didn’t have quite the longevity as that of Carlton and Seaver, but at his peak he was just as good as them, seemingly winning 20 games every year in the 1970’s.

The picture from the Archives set is a little earlier than his 1973 card.  It looks like it’s from either 1969 and 1970, based on the fact that he hadn’t grown the hair out too much, but did have the sideburns going.  I kind of like the windup from the actual 1973 Topps card – but this is another good effort from Archives.

Juan Marichal

Continuing with great pitchers of the era – though Marichal was nearing the end of his career.  He was traded from the Giants after the 1973 season, and didn’t have much impact with the Red Sox or the Dodgers in his next stops.

This photo looks about right as well.  It may be a little earlier than 1972/1973, but I don’t think by much.  It’s definitely from the 1970’s.

Lou Brock

The last player I can do a comparison from is the former all-time base thief.

Brock’s photo is clearly from when he’s a bit younger – this may be the furthest from the “proper” era of any of the cards I’ve showcased.  The card to the left definitely has more of a 1960’s feel to me – it seems like the era of the Cardinals’ championship teams, or maybe their 1968 World Series loss.  I really like the photo though!

Graig Nettles

Nettles is in the SP portion of the set, and I was surprised his original card featured him with the Yankees.  He was traded to the Yankees from the Indians in the offseason between the 1972 and 1973 seasons.  Back then that usually meant you were shown with your old team, but I think he was in a later series (card #498).

I like the Archives photo better – but I think it’s about 4-5 years later than the 1973 era based on the uniform and how Nettles looks.  This is the only 1973 card from the SP section of the set that has a guy who played in 1972 or 1973.

The 8th player did have a 1973 card, but isn’t with the right team. Frank Robinson was far removed from the Reds in 1973.  In fact, he wasn’t even with the Orioles any more.  His 1973 Topps card says he’s with the California Angels, but the card was an airbrushed photo of him in a Dodgers uniform from a 1972 at bat.  Here’s his Archives card.

 

2014 Topps Archives box break #2

On to the second box of Topps Archives that I bought.  I did finish the regular part of the set, so I don’t have any cards left from the first 200 cards.  I also didn’t get any duplicates from the SP cards in the set.  The SP’s aren’t any different from the base cards, so this doesn’t look like a super-special scan from that aspect.

I was glad to get Billy Hamilton – I’ve pulled Abreu and Hamilton, two of the more sought-after rookies in the SP side of the set.  And, of course, getting Puig is always good.

These are the 3 gold foil parallels I pulled.  Tiger players almost always seem to have cards with Palm Trees in the back.  The Banks is kind of neat – he retired in 1971, so he hasn’t had a 1973 design.

And here are the two silver foil parallels.

Here are the 1987 All-Star inserts.  Does that Gary Carter look familiar?  That picture has only been used on about 10 different cards in the last 2 years.

The Deckle Minis.  Glad to get Trout and Harper!

And the Major League inserts.  This is good – I finished off all 4 of these.  I’m also going to buy an autograph of the Margaret Whitton to complete the 5 cards you could pull from this product.

The 1 per box inserts are next.  I pulled Jose Canseco for Stadium Club Firebrand.  Canseco is a very interesting inclusion.  Both he and Mark McGwire are in this product.

And, the last insert was Roberto Clemente from 1971 Hockey.  This is cool.  Unlike Tanaka, who I pulled in the first box, Clemente was around playing when the 1971-72 Hockey set was issued.  So this is a cool “what might have been” card.

And, finally, here are the hits.  I got a fan favorite auto of Lenny Harris.  Again, this isn’t exactly in line with what Topps had established previously for the Fan Favorite autograph concept.  Lenny Harris was around in 1990, but he was playing with the Dodgers, not the Mets, at this point.  The card has his entire career statistics on the back.

This Niekro card has his entire statistical line as well – though it’s got the right team and timeframe with the picture.  Pretty cool to pull a Hall of Famer.

Lastly, I also got a relic card, which is a tough pull from a hobby box.  The odds on this is 1:215 – basically every 9 boxes or so.  These are easier to pull in retail packs.  These are based on the 1968 Sporting News All-Star subsets.  The relics are all current players, so there isn’t one you could pull and compare to the same guy’s 1968 Topps card.

Below are the “stats” for the box.

24 packs per box * 8 cards per pack – 2 cards for the relic = 190 cards

161 of the 200 card base set (80% set completion)

6 SPs

167 of the 250 card base set (67% set completion)

3 Gold Foilboard Parallels

2 Silver Foilboard Parallels

6 ’87 All-Stars

5 ’69 Deckle Minis

2 Major League

1 ’71 Hockey

1 ’97 Stadium Club Firebrand

2 Fan Favorite Autographs (P. Niekro, L. Harris)

1 ’68 Relic (Miley)

Including both boxes

200 of the 200 card base set (100% set completion)

212 of the 250 card base set (85% set completion)

2014 Topps Archives box break #1

Given the lack of consistent posting recently, I should probably be focusing on moving forward in my Lifetime Topps project, but Archives is one of my favorite sets of the year.  I love the focus on stars from when I was really young – guys like Eric Davis, Andy Van Slyke, etc. I ordered two boxes of Archives.

Each year Archives has come out – I’ve liked what I’ve seen.  Are there things they could do better?  Certainly.  I think there are a few other inserts they could have done, and they way they do short prints has never felt perfect to me.  This year they changed it up.  In the past, the first 200 cards in the set were broken up into 4 different past Topps designs – subsets of 50 cards each.  Current players were all in the first 200 cards, with a few retired stars mixed in.  The short prints were “Fan Favorites” – all retired players on many different past Topps designs.  All the Fan Favorites were of cards from that player’s career.  For example, Eric Davis appeared on a 1987 Topps design, with his stats through 1986.  I liked this – but it actually made set collecting a bit more challenging.  If you are collecting 2012 and 2013 Archives, and you come across a John Kruk card with a 1993 design – was that from the 2012 or 2013 set?  You can’t tell by the numbering, since all the cards are numbered 201 to 240-something.

This year they did it differently.  The retired players are split throughout the set evenly.  The SP’s are just an extension of the 4 other designs.  This makes it less confusing – you are less likely to mix up the years.  However, it means they haven’t put guys like Bob Horner in the base set – only in the Fan Favorite Autographs, which is now just an autograph insert.

I would have picked a few different years. Topps picked 1973, 1980, 1986, and 1989 as the 4 parts of the base set.  They did 1980 Topps 2 years ago, and they have 1989 as an insert in the base Topps set this year.  1973 and 1986 are good options.  Still, this is a fun product with a lot of player autographs that I think of as collectible.  The star players from the 80’s are great options for me!

Moving on to scans of what I got in the first box.  Here are the 6 SP cards – which come 1 in 4 packs.  There are 50 of these, 5 more than last year.  Interesting that Topps has included Manny, who is about to start a stint with the Cubs Triple-A affiliate.  Also glad that I pulled Abreu’s rookie card – that might be an expensive one to find to complete the set.

These are the 2 types of foil parallels this year.  Gold Foil parallels are back, just like last year – these are again numbered to 199.

There are also Silver Foil cards, numbered to 99.

I’ve said this each year of Archives, but I think these seem like “hey let’s just throw a parallel or two in there.  The foil is well done at least.

Next up are the inserts.  The easiest to find are based on the 1987 All-Star inserts.  You’ll get 6 of these per box – the same rate as the SP’s.  Topps has done a version of the Rookies that look like this, back in 2011 Lineage – but this is the first time with the All-Star version of these cards from the 1980’s.  Obviously there is a mix of retired and active players.  I like that they included a year the player was actually an All-Star.

The second-easiest pulls are mini cards.  This year, Topps inserted mini version of the Deckle Edge cards.  Not too sure about this – they already did this set back in 2012.  Though it is a cool design.  This is a whopping 40 cards to complete.

The big news for Archives this year was the inclusion of inserts from the Major League movie in the 1989 Topps design.  A very cool idea.  There are 4 cards in the set – and each is available in a version signed by the actor.  I’m not sure why, but Margaret Whitton (Rachel Phelps) only has an autographed version.  I posted a few days ago about the 6-card jumbo set of these, which I purchased directly from Topps.  Jobu is the missing 6th card for that one.

A design from the 1971-72 Topps Hockey set comes at the rate of one-per-box.  Topps started doing this last year with 1 insert each of old football and basketball designs – this year they went to the other major sport.  I got Tanaka – so both foreign AL rookie studs were featured in this box.

Topps also started inserting popular Stadium Club inserts from the 90’s last year.  Following up the Triumvirate set from last year is the Firebrand insert set, which has a fake wood finish.  This is from 1997 Stadium Club. I got Carlos Baerga.

And, finally, here’s the hits.  I got 3 different types here.  First – a regular Fan Favorite autograph.  Now, I don’t like the change here.  The point of “Fan Favorite” has always been a card design from the player’s playing career, but with a different photo from his actual Topps card.  Rondell White was not around in 1990.

I did pull a parallel version of my other autograph card.  This is the silver version of Paul Goldschmidt’s card.  Again, not true to the original concept of “Fan Favorite” – but I can’t complain about a hit that qualifies as some MAJOR MOJO…

Last, I pulled a printing plate of Evan Longoria.  Also some “MAJOR MOJO”.  I may try to sell these guys to recoup some of the box.

Below are the “stats” for the box.

24 packs per box * 8 cards per pack = 192 cards

163 of the 200 card base set (81% set completion)

6 SPs

169 of the 250 card base set (68% set completion)

3 Gold Foilboard Parallels

2 Silver Foilboard Parallels

6 ’87 All-Stars

5 ’69 Deckle Minis

2 Major League

1 ’71 Hockey

1 ’97 Stadium Club Firebrand

1 Fan Favorite Autograph (R. White)

1 Fan Favorite Autograph Silver (Goldschmidt)

1 Black Printing Plate (Longoria)

Saturdays Suds: Pubs near the Park #3 – Harry Caray’s tavern

A couple of things – this is only the third “Saturday Suds” that I’ve done which is based on a venue (i.e. – a drinking establishment).  I’ve done about 50 posts about specific beers.  Second, this isn’t really a bar that’s close to a Major League park.  It used to be!  There was a Harry Caray’s Tavern on the Southeast corner of Sheffield and Addison, in a spot now occupied by O’Malley’s Liquor Kitchen.  It closed in late 2010.  The one I went to recently is at Navy Pier.

Regardless of being close to the park or not – I’m really looking for the baseball connection.  As a tavern bearing the name of the famous Cubs/White Sox and Cardinals broadcaster – this one sure has it.

Establishment:  Harry Caray’s Tavern

Ballpark:  Wrigley Field in Chicago

Location: 700 E. Grand Ave. (about 5 miles from Wrigley)

Beers served:  A good, but not great selection.  About a dozen beers on draft, with an emphasis on local Goose Island beers.  They also have about 25 bottles.  Caray was a simple beer drinker – a “Bud Man” as the commercial goes.  You can most certainly find Anheuser Busch products.  If you’re looking for anything different, I’d suggest their cocktails over the beer selection.  If you’re looking for a few of the American big 3 – you’re in luck here.

I did see the Big Hurt beer on the menu when we went; Caray’s tavern was the first place I had ever heard of the beer with Frank Thomas’s backing.

Menu (if applicable): Basic, standard bar food.  Burgers, appetizers, sandwiches, and pizza.  I had their wings when I went there a year ago, and wasn’t impressed.  When we went last month, my wife’s parents both got a chicken sandwich, she got a pulled pork sandwich, and they had similar impressions as me.  I got a burger this time around, and I thought it was actually pretty good.  Look – you should know what you’re getting when you come here.  It’s a fairly simple menu in a huge tourist area of Chicago.

Is it baseball-themed?  Or is it just close to the ballpark?   YES to the baseball theme – it bears the name of Harry Caray, of course!  And it’s got a ton of Chicago memorabilia with a focus on baseball items. No to the 2nd question, however!  Like I said – there used to be a Harry Caray’s near Wrigley, but it closed in 2010.

Description:  Like I said – take this place for what it’s worth.  A decent place on Navy Pier to take a load off and grab a bite.  But if you want the best tavern food in Chicago – well, that’s somewhere else. The memorabilia is the coolest thing about the place.  It actually has an overall sports theme, and there are a number of famous folks who have invested in the Harry Caray restaurants who have contributed.  You can see pictures of Caray and other famous folk all throughout, but the coolest thing is the mini-museum in the middle.  There are numerous autographed baseballs, some jerseys, gloves and even some memorabilia from the movie Ghostbusters!  The shining centerpiece is the famed “Bartman ball” from the 2003 NLCS game 6 loss.  The ball was actually purchased by the ownership group.  It was then blown to smithereens by a fire started by Caray’s old glasses, mixed in with a pasta sauce and served to anyone who wanted to help “break the curse”.

The remnants, or the parts that weren’t devoured by anxious Cub fans, sit in the middle of the restaurant.  Hopefully the Billy Goat curse will be broken some day!

Completed insert set – 2012 Gypsy Queen Hallmark Heroes

It took me quite a while, but I finished up this retail only set – Hallmark Heroes from 2012 Gypsy Queen.

Info about the set:

Set description: 15 all-time greats and the a description of the notable way they left their mark on the game.  Hence, their “hallmark”.  This set features a blue border around a barrel-shaped photo frame, with the Gypsy Queen logo at the bottom and a write-up on the back.

Set composition: 15 cards, 1:4 odds (2012 Gypsy Queen retail only)

Hall of Famers: 15.  Bob Gibson, Cal Ripken, Ernie Banks, Frank Robinson, Johnny Bench, Joe DiMaggio, Jackie Robinson, Lou Gehrig, Mickey Mantle, Nolan Ryan, Roberto Clemente, Sandy Koufax, Stan Musial, Ty Cobb, Willie Mays

How I put the set together:

• 1 card from a jumbo pack
• 7 cards from trades
• 1 card from the 2013 National
• 6 cards from COMC

Thoughts on the set:  I like the set overall, but it doesn’t stand out much after a number of similar Gypsy Queen inserts since then.

Card that completed my set: #HH-JD – Joe DiMaggio

This is one of 4 cards I got back in the COMC Black Friday sale.  (yeah, I’m behind on the old baseball card blog)

Highest book value: #HH-MM – Mickey Mantle

Whenever there’s a Mantle in this set, he will be the answer here.

Best card (my opinion): #HH-RC – Roberto Clemente

The picture here goes really well with the design and the frame, and the back of the card talks about dignity.

My Favorite Reds card: #HH-JB – Johnny Bench

He’s the only one.

RIP Tony Gwynn, 1960-2014

Of all the amazing things about Tony Gwynn, I thought the most interesting was the basketball career he might have had.

I also found it interesting how Topps would re-use photos of him from 20 years ago.

I was sad to learn of Gwynn’s passing today.  He was too young.  I can’t add much to anything that has been said and will be said about him, other than to say – with some guys, you can just tell.  Gwynn was one of the good guys.  Some guys you think and hope that they are that way – because they seem like it on interviews and in public.  You hope, but you don’t know for sure.  But for Tony Gwynn, I had no doubt.

Gwynn is the 9th HOF-er to pass away since I started this blog.  I hope he’s the last one for quite a while.  I also hope he’s in a better place now – maybe smacking the ball through the 5.5 hole.

• Tony Gwynn
• Stan Musial
• Earl Weaver
• Gary Carter
• Harmon Killebrew
• Duke Snider
• Bob Feller
• Ron Santo
• Sparky Anderson

2014 Archives – Major League jumbos

Happy Father’s Day!

I ordered the jumbo cards for the Major League movie that Topps offered directly via their website.  Kind of a neat way to sneak some of my money!  They package this in a real wax pack, which is pretty neat.

 

The set is the same as the inserts you could pull from this year’s Archives boxes, except there is also a Jobu card.

These are obviously done in the 1989 design, commemorating the 25th anniversary of the movie.  The other 5 cards are all available in the 2014 product as standard size cards.

Completed insert set – 2012 Topps Gold Standard

I recently completed an insert set from 2012 Topps series 1 & 2 – Gold Standard.  This is one of the better ones from 2012 in my mind.

Info about the set:

Set description: “Recognizing players who have gained entry into some of the most exclusive clubs in baseball, like the 3,000-Hit club, the 500-Home Run club and the 3,000-K club.”  This set is horizontally oriented, with a marble background, a top/bottom border and the player’s picture to the right.  There’s a gold foil “badge” in the middle that lists the specific accomplishment the card honors.

The back lists the date that the player reached the accomplishment.  The cards are made to create a relic (by replacing the circular “badge”) or autograph version.

Set composition: 50 cards, 1:6 hobby odds (2012 Topps series 1 & 2)

Hall of Famers: 21 – Nolan Ryan (3 cards), Stan Musial (2), Paul Molitor (2), Cal Ripken Jr. (2), Bob Gibson (2), Mike Schmidt (2), Frank Robinson (2), Ernie Banks (2), Willie McCovey (2), Tom Seaver (3), Reggie Jackson (2), Al Kaline (2), Frank Thomas, Ty Cobb (2), Joe DiMaggio (2), Andre Dawson (2), Mickey Mantle (2), Willie Mays (2), Hank Aaron, Lou Gehrig, Roberto Clemente, John Smoltz (2)

The set is skewed toward retired players given its nature.  Jeter, A-Rod, Thome, and Chipper are the only players who aren’t in the HOF.

How I put the set together:

• 20 cards from my series 1 & 2 HTA Jumbo boxes
• 2 from other hobby/HTA packs
• 3 from retail packs
• 23 cards from trades
• 1 from a card show
• 1 from Sportlots

Thoughts on the set:  This is one of the better insert sets in 2012 Topps.  I like the design, it’s more attractive than some of the other insert sets with the gold theme from 2012.  And I like that it has a specific basis – guys who have made a certain statistical club.  The fact that the card lists the date of the milestone and discusses it is great.  The set doesn’t really need to be 50 cards (with 2 cards for almost every player included) – Topps could have eliminated some of the lesser milestones.  They started doing things like “25-win season” in series 2.  They could have split it up in order, too – put all the strikeout guys together, etc.  At least it’s numbered and not lettered unlike some of the other insert sets they’ve done recently.  All in all – a good set.

Card that completed my set: #GS-50 – Ty Cobb

I got this card from Sportlots in a May purchase

Highest book value: #GS-24, GS-47 – Mickey Mantle

Best card (my opinion): #GS-1 – Nolan Ryan

The first card in the set honors his 5,000th strikeout.  I love the introduction on the back of the card.  “There was a future U.S. President in the stands, a future Hall of Famer at the plate, and, of course, a future Hall of Famer on the mound.”  Ryan struck out Rickey Henderson in Arlington in front of George W. Bush.  The Hank Aaron card is pretty awesome as well.

My Favorite Reds card: GS-11 – Tom Seaver (the only one)

An interesting thing I noticed – if you know the back story on Ty Cobb’s hit record, you know that later research basically concluded that a game in 1910 where Cobb had two hits was double counted.  That would have changed the timing of his 3,000th hit to 2 hits later.  More importantly it actually made the difference in the batting title that year (though runner-up Nap Lajoie had his own side of the controversy).  but MLB hasn’t officially acknowledged the error.

Here’s the list of the cards, the milestone, and the date it happened.  One thing that’s really cool about this set – they have the right team for each player.  For example, Tom Seaver is shown with the Reds for his 3,000th strikeout, the White Sox for his 300th win.  I appreciate that – it makes the set even better in my eyes.

1. Nolan Ryan, Rangers.  5,000th strikeout – August 29, 1989 in Arlington, TX.
2. Stan Musial, Cardinals.  3,000th hit – May 13, 1958 in Chicago, IL.
3. Paul Molitor, Twins.  3,000th hit – September 16, 1996 in Kansas City, MO.
4. Cal Ripken, Jr., Orioles.  3,000th hit – April 15, 2000 in Minneapolis, MN.
5. Bob Gibson, Cardinals.  3,000th strikeout – July 17, 1974 in St. Louis, MO.
6. Mike Schmidt, Phillies.  500th home run – April 18, 1987 in Pittsburgh, PA.
7. Frank Robinson, Orioles.  500th home run – September 13, 1971 in Baltimore, MD.
8. Ernie Banks, Cubs.  500th home run – May 12, 1970 in Chicago, IL.
9. Willie McCovey, Giants.  500th home run – June 30, 1978 in Atlanta, GA.
10. Reggie Jackson, Angels.  500th home run – September 17, 1984 in Anaheim, CA.
11. Tom Seaver, Reds.  3,000th strikeout – April 19, 1981 in Cincinnati, OH.
12. Al Kaline, Tigers.  3,000th hit – September 24, 1974 in Baltimore, MD.
13. Alex Rodriguez, Yankees.  600th home run – August 4, 2010 in New York, NY.
14. Frank Thomas, Blue Jays.  500th home run – June 28, 2007 in Minneapolis, MN.
15. Ty Cobb, Tigers.  3,000th hit – August 19, 1921 in Detroit, MI.
16. John Smoltz, Braves.  3,000th strikeout – April 22, 2008 in Atlanta, GA.
17. Jim Thome, Twins.  600th home run – August 15, 2011 in Detroit, MI.
18. Joe DiMaggio, Yankees.  1,500th RBI – July 29, 1951 in New York, NY.
19. Andre Dawson, Red Sox.  1,500th RBI – April 12, 1994 in Kansas City, MO.
20. Derek Jeter, Yankees.  3,000th hit – July 9, 2011 in New York, NY.
21. Chipper Jones, Braves.  1,500 RBI – April 13, 2001 in Atlanta, GA.
22. Nolan Ryan, Rangers.  300th win – July 31, 1990 in Milwaukee, WI.
23. Tom Seaver, White Sox.  300th win – August 4, 1985 in New York, NY.
24. Mickey Mantle, Yankees.  500th home run – May 14, 1967 in New York, NY.
25. Willie Mays, Giants.  600th home run – September 22, 1969 in San Diego, CA.
26. Andre Dawson, Red Sox.  400th home run – April 15, 1993 in Boston, MA.
27. Jim Thome, White Sox.  1,500th RBI – May 1, 2009 in Arlington, TX.
28. Stan Musial, Cardinals.  400th home run – May 7, 1959 in St. Louis, MO.
29. Cal Ripken Jr., Orioles.  400th home run – September 2, 1999 in Baltimore, MD.
30. Willie Mays, Giants.  3,000th hit – July 18, 1970 in San Francisco, CA.
31. Hank Aaron, Braves.  700th home run – July 21, 1973 in Atlanta, GA.
32. Ernie Banks, Cubs.  1,500th RBI – September 12, 1969 in St. Louis, MO.
33. Bob Gibson, Cardinals.  1.12 ERA – 1968 season.
34. Reggie Jackson, Angels.  1,500th RBI – September 3, 1984 in Cleveland, OH.
35. Chipper Jones, Braves.  400th home run – June 5, 2008 in Atlanta, GA.
36. Al Kaline, Tigers.  1,500th RBI – July 29, 1973 in Baltimore, MD.
37. Willie McCovey, Giants.  1,500th RBI – June 2, 1979 in Chicago, IL.
38. Paul Molitor, Blue Jays.  1,500th run – June 13, 1995 in Toronto, ONT.
39. Frank Robinson, Orioles.  1,500th RBI – June 25, 1971 in Boston, MA.
40. Nolan Ryan, Rangers.  5,714th strikeout – September 17, 1993 in Anaheim, CA.
41. Mike Schmidt, Phillies.  1,500th RBI – September 26, 1987 in Philadelphia, PA.
42. John Smoltz, Braves.  55 save season – September 28, 2002 in New York, NY.
43. Tom Seaver, Mets.  25 win season – September 27, 1969 in Philadelphia, PA.
44. Alex Rodriguez, Yankees.  1,500th RBI – September 28, 2007 in Baltimore, MD.
45. Derek Jeter, Yankees.  1,500th run – June 2, 2009 in New York, NY.
46. Joe DiMaggio, Yankees.  56 game hitting streak – July 16, 1941 in Cleveland, OH.
47. Mickey Mantle, Yankees.  1,500th RBI – August 27, 1968 in New York, NY.
48. Lou Gehrig, Yankees.  400th home run – July 10, 1936 in New York, NY.
49. Roberto Clemente, Pirates.  3,000th hit – September 30, 1972 in Pittsburgh, PA.
50. Ty Cobb, Tigers.  1,500th RBI – May 29, 1993 in Detroit, MI.

Completed insert set – 2013 Topps Heritage Baseball Flashbacks

This is one of the “standard” insert sets in 2013 Topps Heritage, that has been a recurring set for the past few years.  It honors some of the better games or achievements from players in 1964.

Info about the set:

Set description:  “Flashback highlights from the 1964 season.”

The set has a white border with the Baseball Flashback set name at the top and the name of the featured highlight at the bottom.

Set composition: 10 cards, 1:12 odds (2013 Topps Heritage)

Hall of Famers: 9.  Al Kaline, Bob Gibson, Carl Yastrzemski, Ernie Banks, Frank Robinson, Hank Aaron, Juan Marichal, Sandy Koufax, Willie Mays

The only card that’s not of a HOF-er is a card commemorating the opening of Shea Stadium.

How I put the set together:

• 4 cards from the 2 hobby boxes I bought
• 1 card from a blister pack
• 1 card from a trade
• 1 card from the NSCC (the National)
• 3 cards from Sportlots

Thoughts on the set:  They’ve done this each year for Heritage – and I like continuation.  The point of Heritage is to honor a past Topps set – and having an insert set that also shows what happened in baseball is a good thing!

The thing I’d change are the same as last few years.  I’d number the cards in chronological order – I HATE THE ALPHABETIZING!  Also, 4 of the cards are just representative of good days that the given player had, and 2 more are something in between a historic achievement and a good day.  I like it much better when they commemorate historic achievements, not “Yaz had 6 RBIs”.  Things Topps could have considered:

• A commemorative card of Reds’ manager Fred Hutchinson, who passed away due to lung cancer
• It would be sweet if they did a Hall of Fame induction card.  Red Faber, Burleigh Grimes, Tim Keefe, Heinie Manush, John Montgomery Ward, Miller Huggins and Luke Appling all were elected in 1964.  Some kind of montage with their plaques would be cool.
• Ken Johnson of Houston pitched a no-hitter against the Reds – but lost the game!  This has only happened twice in baseball history (though baseball no longer recognizes 8-inning no-hitters, in which case there would be 4 more).
• Bert Campaneris became the 2nd player (3 have done it overall) to hit 2 homers in his MLB debut.

Card that completed my set: #BF-FA – Hank Aaron

This is one of 3 cards I got from Sportlots back in March to finish up the set.

Highest book value: #BF-SK – Sandy Koufax

Best card (my opinion): #BF-BG – Bob Gibson

This card commemorates Gibson’s dominance of the 1964 World Series.  This was his first time Gibson established his greatness in the Fall Classic.