The Trading Post #24: Cards From the Quarry (Part 2: Topps)

Hiflew from Cards From the Quarry recently sent over a huge assortment of Rockies cards, so many that I had to break it up into two posts. The first post was all about non-Topps cards, and in this second post, I'll just be featuring cards from the only current MLB-licensed card manufacturer.

There seem to be a lot of cards picturing Carlos Gonzalez sliding into home. One came over from Foul Bunt not long ago.

2013 Topps Chasing History #CH-72 Carlos Gonzalez

This package had one too, and it's from 2013's Chasing History insert set, one that is rapidly evolving into my favorite insert set of that year. Along with Emerald parallels and the playful "sea turtle" design, I think Topps actually did a pretty good job in '13.

That card refers to his streak of 20 or more stolen bases in consecutive seasons (which he continued through 2013), but I highly doubt he is actually stealing home in that shot. Now that the steroid era has come to an end, perhaps the game will focus a bit more on well-rounded players that can not only hit for power, but also get on base frequently and steal. Sort of like Barry Bonds did in his early days.

Here's another card that documents how CarGo can do more for a ballclub than just mash home runs in the thin, dry air of Denver.

2011 Topps Opening Day Stars #ODS-2 Carlos Gonzalez

The back describes how he started off the year with four singles, on his way to leading the NL in hits in 2010. Charlie Blackmon did him two better last year, having a rare 6-for-6 day at the home opener. Assuming the Opening Day Stars insert set returns in 2015, I hope Blackmon gets a card. He certainly earned it.

3-D cards never scan well, but it's a recurring favorite in Opening Day sets. Maybe that's why us collectors seem to like Opening Day insert cards so much—Topps reuses a few of the same great themes from year to year. Superstar Celebrations, these 3-D ones, and of course the sought-after Mascot cards. You'll find these old standbys in addition to a few new insert sets each year, and I think it's a winning formula.

Speaking of the thin, dry air of Denver, to say that Coors Field is a hitter's park is a massive understatement.

2010 Topps Update More Tales of the Game #MTOG-8 Mile-High Humidor

Yes, Topps made a card of the famous humidor at Coors Field, meant to keep baseballs from drying out and turning into little ballistic missiles. It's helped a bit, but slugfests are still pretty common at 20th and Blake. These days, they are at least the exception rather than the rule. Even with the installation of the humidor in 2002, the Yankees came to town that year and combined with the Rockies for a record 70 runs over a three-game series. Derek Jeter compared it to playing a video game.

Arizona has kicked the humidor idea around as well, and if an MLB team ever plays in Las Vegas, I'm sure they'll consider it too.

Topps Archives sets of the last few years haven't been at the top of my favorites list, but they appear in discount boxes rather frequently, so it's neither hard nor expensive to see which sets Topps has chosen to recreate. However, I do really like the semi-gloss coating on these cards. It's pretty easy to pick them out by touch alone.

2014 Topps Archives #24 Michael Cuddyer

In 2014, one of the sets they chose was 1973. Like most early- to mid-1970s sets, it usually ranks pretty high on the list of best Topps sets. The silhouette of a player in action in the lower corner is an iconic touch.

Cuddyer was a Home Run Derby participant in 2013, but since he's wearing his Rockies home jersey with the Mets All-Star Game patch rather than just a National League jersey, this must be from the exhibition game itself. The NL pulled off a streak of wins after many years of AL dominance, but it looks like the tables may be turning again, as the NL has now lost two in a row, including this game where Cuddyer was a starter.

One thing the Rockies aren't known for is All-Star pitchers. There have been a few, including Ubaldo Jimenez, who might be the best hurler to ever take the mound for the Rockies, but with a 6-11 record last year, Tyler Matzek isn't likely to make that short list.

2011 Topps Pro Debut #163 Tyler Matzek

Matzek only made the majors last year after numerous injuries to the rest of the rotation, and he's pictured here playing for the Asheville Tourists, a Class-A affiliate of the Rockies. Minor League cards are pretty hard to come by, especially of Rockies players, who never seem to draft the great prospects. In 2006, the Rockies had the 2nd overall pick, and missed out on Kershaw, Lincecum, Longoria, and Scherzer, They took Greg Reynolds instead.

2013 Topps Update Emerald #US206 Reid Brignac

Green.

Anyway, moving on from current cards, there was an eye-catching assortment from 1999 Stadium Club, the brand that made a terrific comeback in 2014.

1999 Stadium Club #9 Vinny Castilla

Castilla is launching a throw to first base with all his might, and the card number happens to match his uniform number (mini-collection idea, anyone?). It's a Coors Field card, to boot. That's the tarp in the background under its cover, which is kept by the wall near shallow left field. Over my fifty or so visits to Coors Field, I've seen the tarp deployed more than a few times, including during that "video game" Yankees series in 2002.

1999 Stadium Club #83 Darryl Hamilton

Though there is ivy at Coors Field on the batter's eye behind the bullpen area, Hamilton's card is obviously from Wrigley Field. The way this photo is cropped, it almost looks like he's fielding a fly ball on some British estate with trimmed hedges. Great photography in Stadium Club goes way back, long before 2014!

Two other cards from this set look fantastic when viewed side-by-side, and I'd wager they're even from the same game. Based on the cameo, it must have been from when the Rockies were visiting Philadelphia.

1999 Stadium Club #302 Kirt Manwaring

1999 Stadium Club #230 Larry Walker

Kirt Manwaring was a catcher who spent most of his career in the NL West as a Giant and then a Rockie. He's not the most well-known player, but when his 1999 Stadium Club card is paired with Larry Walker's, it looks pretty magical. I'll have to check if I have any other copies of these. Daniel from It's Like Having My Own Card Shop has a mini-collection of all-dirt backgrounds that these would be perfect for.

I am fully sold on having a "most-wanted cards" list, which I call "Eight Men Out", because it's already helped fill a few gaps in my collection.

2011 Topps Town #TT-48 Troy Tulowitzki

In our first email exchange, hiflew said he had around 20 copies of this ToppsTown card. He threw in two for good measure. Though another trader beat him to it, as seems to be a common occurrence when it comes to mini wantlists, I can't stress how much I appreciate my fellow collectors and bloggers taking the time to look at my specific needs when putting together trades. It's part of what makes this community so great. Even though he wasn't the first to send the ToppsTown card, I'm still happy to give him credit.

The baseball community is still mourning the loss of Ernie Banks, so I thought it would be appropriate for Mr. Cub to make another appearance to wrap this up.

2012 Topps Timeless Talents #TT20 Ernie Banks/Troy Tulowitzki

Given the outpouring of sympathy and fond memories following the passing of Ernie Banks, I think it is indeed clear that he was truly a "timeless talent." Those aren't just words that Topps is throwing around on that insert set; Banks was truly a legend. And Troy Tulowitzki should consider himself honored to be compared to such an amazing player. I hope he plays his whole career in Denver, because us Colorado fans don't have a "Mr. Rockie" just yet.

The Trading Post #23: Cards From the Quarry (Part 1: Not Topps)

Given that I'm rather fond of the Colorado Rockies, it's only proper that I should be trading with the most well-known Rockies blogger out there, hiflew from Cards From the Quarry. I've mentioned some of his work before, such as his Quarry Unlimited custom sets, but after I commented on his want list post saying I had a few needs, he offered to send back a bunch of his Rockies extras to "a good home".

A small flat-rate box showed up not long ago, packed full of those Rockies extras. As you might expect from a collector focused on the same team I like, there were a ton of great cards in there. So many, in fact, that I had to break this up into two posts. This first part will cover the best of the non-Topps cards, starting with the late Darryl Kile, who pitched for the Rockies for two years.

1998 Ultra #303 Darryl Kile

There's plenty of green on that card, including most of the outfield behind Kile fielding a comebacker, as well as the raised foil lettering. The design is pretty typical of a Fleer Ultra set, especially with that script font.

Pacific was always trying to be one of the big boys in the card collecting world, often one of the first to put forth some minor innovations, such as listing which set a card was part of near the card number. Upper Deck didn't adopt that until many years later.

Topps is well-known these days for short-printed photo variations, and there has been lots of buzz about this year's SPs with the recent release of 2015 Topps. However, Pacific was printing photo variations long before Topps became known for it.

1999 Pacific #141 Dante Bichette

1999 Pacific #141a Dante Bichette (Headshot)

Like Topps, these Pacific "headshot" cards (on right) don't really differentiate themselves from the base cards (on left) unless you already know what to look for. It's hard to know that you're holding something unusual without having the run-of-the-mill version right alongside it. And even then, you don't know which is the rare one. However, Pacific did it a bit differently than Topps' does, in that there are different player photos on the back of each card.

I don't have an issue with having different varieties on the market; in fact, David Freese's Rally Squirrel card is one of my favorites in recent years. I just wish there was less of a super-secret-handshake feel to them. Just print it as card 141b or something.

Any trade package with mid-'90s cards is bound to have lots of shiny, and 1997 Pinnacle Certified certainly fits that bill.

1997 Pinnacle Certified #86 Eric Young

This set might hold the record for pure reflectivity. You could probably shave or tie a tie by using those mirrored triangles in each lower corner. Not only that, but this set comes with a peel-off coating that is way easier to remove than Topps Finest. The card backs in this set are a bit like overproduction-era Bowman cards because they break down the previous season's stats by opponent, rather than just a whole year's performance on one line.

The shininess doesn't end there; although this Castilla isn't reflective enough to put on your side-view mirrors.

1995 Flair #128 Vinny Castilla

Fleer's ultra-premium Flair brand made some of the thickest cards around in the mid-1990s. The brand got pretty weird toward the end of that decade by jumping on the insane "fractured set" bandwagon, but prior to that, you could always count on sharp photography, thick card stock, usually some cursive, and something that wouldn't look entirely out of place on the end of a gold chain.

The post-strike hobby was a weird place. Like many collectors that return after a long hiatus, I'm still finding cards and sets from that era that I had no idea about.

1996 Pinnacle Aficionado #152 Larry Walker GR

Ever heard of Pinnacle Aficionado? I sure hadn't. And the above isn't even a standard base card; it's from the Global Reach subset. That black background of latitude/longitude lines and the map of Canada is made of a strange, raised black surface that is rough to the touch.

Donruss Studio was still alive and kicking in 2004, and one of their insert sets that year is pretty similar to the 1995 base set. You know, the one that was supposed to look like a credit card.

2004 Studio Stars #48 Todd Helton

Though they don't have raised lettering or a facsimile of a magnetic stripe, Studio Stars aren't cardboard at all. This insert set is made of a flimsy plastic like an insurance or library card. Donruss also made a fairly serious goof by sticking a Diamondbacks logo right on top of that checkered background of Rockies logos.

I've blogged about the 2008 Baseball Heroes set before, but I don't think I've yet shown one of the black parallels, one of the many colors you'll find this set in.

2008 Upper Deck Heroes Black #57 Troy Tulowitzki

Though he was instrumental in bringing the Rockies to the World Series in 2007, Tulo finished as the runner up for the 2007 NL Rookie of the Year award, as this card notes. He finished a very close second to Ryan Braun. Of the two, I'll point out that since then, only one has been to a World Series, and only one has been suspended for much of a season for violating MLB's drug policy.

Perhaps Tulo's second-place finish isn't as big a snub as Ken Griffey, Jr. finishing third in 1989, but I think that voters made the wrong call by picking Braun.

But that's water under the bridge, so let's move on to something a little more fun.

1999 Fleer Tradition #311 Jamey Wright

Not only is this a fantastic shot of the right-center stands at Coors Field, but it's always amusing to see a pitcher storing his glove on his head. I usually tucked it under my arm or on the end of my bat when I needed impromptu glove storage, but then again, I never got my call-up. Maybe Jamey Wright knows something I don't.

One thing I do know for sure is that the Rockies play in a beautiful state, one I am proud to call home.

There are a few cards that show off the glory of the Rockies (the mountains, not the team), like the card backs of 1993 Leaf...

1993 Leaf #244 Freddie Benavides (Reverse)

...and this multi-player card from the legendary 1993 Upper Deck set.

1993 Upper Deck #478 Dante Bichette / David Nied / Andres Galarraga

But those are just plain photographs. What if it were 1998 and we wanted to make it shiny and difficult to scan?

Then you'd have 1998 Metal Universe.

1998 Metal Universe #151 Mike Lansing

Mike Lansing joined the Rockies prior to the 1998 season, so he's still shown as an Expo. But Fleer's Skybox division found a lovely autumn shot of the mountains, complete with a twisted-up log partially submerged in a high-altitude lake. There are lots of places like that in Colorado, so it could be anywhere.

But I know where this one is.

1998 Metal Universe #39 Vinny Castilla

Though the scans don't do either of these cards justice, those are the Maroon Bells, a pair of 14,000-ft. mountains just outside Aspen. They're some of Colorado's most iconic peaks, and judging by how much snow is still up there, that photograph was probably taken in late spring; likely early June.

This weekend has brought unseasonably warm weather to the Denver area, and it won't be long until the Maroon Bells look like that once again.

Baseball will be well underway by then.