They did not disappoint.
2019 Topps Opening Day Team Traditions and Celebrations #TTC-CS California Spectacular |
The card is from the Team Traditions and Celebrations insert set, which describes what's known as the California Spectacular. It's more than just flames, including "rocky knotholes, waterfalls, and geysers." It would fit right in at a theme park, and Topps points out that various Disney properties aren't far away.
Obviously, Mike Trout has been making the most of this feature, with infielder David Fletcher there to greet him at the plate. There's also a White Sox catcher tucked away in the corner, admiring the pyrotechnics, which allows us to date this card to July 25th, 2018, likely in the 6th inning when Trout went deep off of Chris Volstad with both Fletcher and Kole Calhoun aboard.
By the way, the Denver Broncos have a flame display similar to this, and it was most welcome on a cold Saturday night last year, even from quite a few sections away. The speed with which that radiant heat arrived was astonishing.
2019 Topps Opening Day Mascots #M-21 Phillie Phanatic |
Orbit doesn't get the appreciation I think s/he should, but it's hard to top how awesome a mascot the Phanatic is, which Topps describes as a "fuzzy green bird". I never really saw a bird in that costume, but it really could be anything.
Trevor already made sure I had this year's Dinger card for my collection. I pulled a couple others from this set, including the Mariner Moose once again. You know how some collectors always seem to pull cards of one particular player that isn't especially related to their collection, maybe Jorge Soler or Eric Hosmer or someone? The Mariner Moose seems to fit that bill for me, at least when it comes to Opening Day.
2019 Topps Opening Day Opening Day #ODB-SM Seattle Mariners |
Simply called Opening Day, this redundantly named insert set shows the spring festivities in ballparks across the league. The Rockies, who usually open on the road, weren't included in this 15-card insert set. As a Rockies fan, it's disappointing to have to wait a few extra days to see baseball spring to life in Denver, but that home opener is always a fantastic Friday afternoon party in LoDo.
2019 Topps Opening Day 150 Years of Fun #YOF-23 Francisco Lindor |
Topps found a photo of Francisco Lindor wearing a Cleveland Buckeyes throwback jersey, the city's franchise of the Negro American League. The Buckeyes won that league's World Series in 1945, just a few years before the Cleveland Indians last won their league's top prize.
Even with this million-dollar smile, "Frankie" has to be a bit disappointed to be sitting this postseason out. The Indians won 93 games this year, exactly as many wins as the pennant-winning Nationals. Even with the addition of the winner-take-all Wild Card game, there is still a chance for a very talented team to miss the playoffs entirely.
2019 Topps Opening Day 150 Years of Fun #YOF15 Reggie Jackson |
As an aside, if Gerardo Parra isn't in a set like this next year with his Baby Shark walk-up song or his dugout hug-fests, Topps is doing it wrong.
2019 Topps Opening Day Blue Foil #97 Brad Boxberger /2019 |
The short paragraph on the card back makes a nod to Players Weekend, the annual event where baseball allows players to display a little more personal flair than usual. The most visible element of that is the nicknames that players can choose for the back of their uniforms, and Brad Boxberger, who played for the Royals in 2019, made the most of the world of emoji, selecting the cardboard box emoji and the hamburger emoji as his nickname.
Not to get too into the weeds on emoji, but there was a fierce debate two years ago about which major tech company designed the best hamburger emoji. The Unicode Consortium, a nonprofit that seeks to standardize how computers deal with characters in a multilingual world, also manages the ever-growing list of accepted emojis. When they say there is a "hamburger" emoji, they leave it open to interpretation. Most major tech companies designed a cheeseburger for that particular emoji, although Google came up with an odd design, placing the cheese below the patty.
It has since been fixed to better match the layout of every cheeseburger you've ever eaten.
2019 Topps Opening Day Red Foil #33 Mookie Betts |
Conversation isn't always my strong suit. That's why I write.
Anyway, this year's Opening Day gave me a card of Betts practicing his primary craft. He didn't repeat as MVP in 2019, but he did lead the league in hits, keeping up the "barrage" that Topps describes on the back.
These colored parallels go a long way in making Opening Day look a bit more upscale, while maintaining the soul of the brand with lots of fun insert sets.
I'll definitely be back for more Opening Day next year.
I've liked OD's color parallels since 2006. Some years are better than others. 2019's are pretty good. Need to get a few.
ReplyDeleteThat Mookie is really cool. Love colored parallels when they match up with the team colors.
ReplyDeleteMe too. Especially the rare purple ones.
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