Topps Cards That Should Have Been: 2009 Blue Jays

 

Two cases of wishful thinking involving the 2009 Blue Jays, a team that was able to rehabilitate a lost cause in Jose Bautista, and maybe not so with some other people.

Mike Maroth was a crucial starting piece for the 'too ugly to watch' early 2000s era of Tigers baseball. Through his first four seasons he never had a winning record, lost 21 games in 2003, and somehow became a standout by sucking the least out of the Tigers' many options. There were signs of talent from Maroth, and he did have sharp years in 2004 and 2006 as the team got better, but by the 2006 playoffs, there wasn't much use for him. By the time he suited up for the Cardinals in 2007, an arm injury made it even more difficult for Maroth to succeed, and his MLB days were basically over.

But Maroth was nothing if not resilient, and kept making MLB auditions. In 2009, Maroth tried out for a Toronto rotation that was eventually going to rely on several young options, but his arm woes made him more of a liability to the Jays than even someone like Brett Cecil or Mark Rzepczynski. 

Stranger still was another former fireballer trying to make camp with Toronto, Bryan Bullington. Bullington was the #1 overall pick in 2002, and as high as the Pirates' hopes were for him, by the time of his MLB debut his arm was completely messed up, past the point of no return. As hard as they would try to surgically repair his arm, he'd never become a mainstay with Pittsburgh, and would bop around various farm systems trying to make it. After a few games in Cleveland in 2008, Bullington signed with the Blue Jays, made camp, and had a 3.00 ERA in 4 appearances out of the 'pen, with 5 Ks in 6 innings. Unfortunately, he'd be sent back to AAA after this and wouldn't scrape the majors with Toronto again, instead settling for a shakier run with Kansas City the following year.

Tomorrow, I'll post some intriguing omissions from the 2005 Braves.

Topps Cards That Should Have Been: 2009 Astros

 

Let's...be very honest with ourselves. If the Astros force a Game 7 tonight, they're gonna win the whole thing. They're at home, surrounded by the things that help them continue to cheat, and oh, the lineup MIRACULOUSLY dried up while they were in Atlanta. If they win tonight, they're winning tomorrow night as well. Nobody'll like it, but...that's the Astros.

So instead, I wanna flash back to when the Astros weren't so hateable, and weren't so good. The 2009 season, back when they were still in the NL Central. Here are some customs of people of note that played for this team.

Russ Ortiz was a 20-game winner in 2003, by 2005 he had lost his mojo and by 2007 he was playing for the Orioles. Kinda sums things up. But after missing 2008 entirely, Ortiz tried to bounce back with the Houston Astros, started 13 games and did...alright. He had a 6.61 ERA as a starter, a 2-5 record, only 45 Ks. They shifted him to the bullpen, where he was a little better. 

Speaking of bullpen, Danny Graves, one of the more fearsome closers in Cincinnati Reds history, had been bopping around the leagues for a few years, trying to make people's spring training squads with no avail. In 2009, it was the Astros' turn, and while he probably did well enough, there was no place for Graves on a team with Jose Valverde. 

I'm not sure if the story of Chris Coste made it out of the Philadelphia area. Chris Coste was an undrafted MLB hopeful who got his start in the independent circuit, was playing in and around the filming locations for the movie Fargo, where he became a hero over there, then finally got picked up by an MLB team, spent another 6 years in the minors before, upon an injury to Mike Lieberthal, the Philadelphia Phillies finally gave him a chance. His 2006 season, as a 33-year-old rookie, was the stuff of baseball legend, and he was a crucial part of the Phils' 2008 WS run. By 2009, the magic had worn off, and he was backing up Carlos Ruiz, so he was waived by Houston, who were about to lose Ivan Rodriguez and be forced to start Humberto Quintero and J.R. Towles. Coste did alright in Houston, hitting .204 with 10 RBIs in 43 games, but he wasn't worth the risk anymore. He tried some spring training auditions afterwards but never made it back. 

For tomorrow's A's post, we're going back to the year 2007.

Topps Cards That Should Have Been: 2009 Angels

I did a A-Z January with the backlog of Topps Cards That Should Have Been that I've made earlier this year, and I'm doing something similar in November. All 30 days you're getting a different team's customs from a year. So today, you're getting a few landmark players who should have had an Angels card in 2009 Topps.

2009 was Darren Oliver's third and final season in Anaheim, before the 38-year old reliever would go to Arlington to become one of the 'two old men' in that bullpen alongside Arthur Rhodes. Oliver still had some great material left to deliver, becoming the Angels' best relief specialist, with a 2.71 ERA , 65 Ks and 5 wins over 73 innings. Oliver would also have a nice postseason, with 8 Ks and a win between two playoff series, despite some trouble against the Yankees. 

The biggest omission from this Angels team was waiver deal addition Scott Kazmir, brought to the team in an August deal with the Rays that gifted the latter team with Sean Rodriguez. Kazmir's first half-year in Anaheim was something of a success, with a 1.73 ERA and 26 Ks in his first six starts with the team. His postseason starts didn't go as well, with a 7.61 ERA over 3 appearances, beaten up by 2 different AL East teams. This may have been the beginning of his troubles, of which the Cleveland pitching coaches would help out with. 

Tomorrow, let's shift to 2008 for some Astros.
 

Topps Cards That Should Have Been: The Gregg Zaun Chronicles

 I don't know if you guys have been keeping track, but January I was doing these Topps Cards That Should Have Been posts in alphabetical order. Just a little challenge. Ah, let's see if I can do a Q name, so on, things like that.

So that should explain why I'm posting a ton of customs of switch-hitting backup catcher Gregg Zaun on the last day of January.

......look, it was either him or Todd Zeile.

Nevertheless, there is a lot of things to talk about regarding Gregg Zaun and Topps' gaps in documenting his career on cards. It may be a niche guy to include, but he played throughout the 2000s and was a reliable choice for catcher when other guys wouldn't do. 

As this project starts in 2000, we begin with Gregg Zaun's 2000 season in Kansas City. In 83 games he hits .274, and the starting gig is his for a bit.

Flash-forward to 2003:

Zaun spends 2002 in Houston backing up Brad Ausmus, which he continues to do for 2003, as he hits .217 in 59 games as backup. That doesn't seem to cut it for Houston, and they release him. 

Only for the Colorado Rockies, who need a solid backup option for Charles Johnson, to pick him up. Zaun does miles better with the Rox, hitting .261 with 3 homers in 15 games. 

Then, in 2004, Gregg Zaun figured out that the key to his longevity in the bigs would be playing in Canada. So he signed a minor league deal with the Expos, which would have been an opportunity to play in Montreal in their last season. However, the Expos had Brian Schneider, strike one, and they were going forward with Einar Diaz as a backup, strike two. Which means the Expos had no use for Gregg Zaun, and released him.

About a week into the season, the Toronto Blue Jays realized that their catching options, including Kevin Cash and Greg Myers, were too thin, and they went...not far, and got Gregg Zaun. Zaun quickly became the starting option in Toronto, hitting .269 in 107 games with a 2.3 WAR. Here, Zaun's scorching run in Toronto begins, and the Jays fans couldn't be any more here for it.

Topps, on the other hand, seems to miss the boat. No Zaun cards in Update, which is a foresight, even if it is a low-tier Jays team.

It becomes even more infuriating in 2005 when Gregg Zaun has his best season. Yeah, that's right. Out of all the hitters in Toronto in 2005, including Vernon Wells, Orlando Hudson, Eric Hinske, Alex Rios and Aaron Hill, you know who has the highest WAR? SWITCH-HITTING CATCHER GREGG ZAUN. He only hits .251 with 61 RBIs, but his defensive numbers are so impressive that it propels him to a 3.6 WAR. Which is huge. No longer the backup, Zaun has a beautiful year in Toronto, cements his status as a Canadian legend, and doesn't have to worry about moving around for a bit.

After this season, Topps listens up and makes Gregg Zaun cards in flagship for the next 4 seasons. Zaun is the primary option at catcher for the Jays for the next few seasons, then in 2009 he signs with the Orioles to start. Only problem is that in 2009, the Orioles bring up a guy named Matt Wieters to play catcher, and Zaun's numbers aren't enough to stop him from usurping his playing time. So the O's trade him.

Thankfully they trade him to a decent team that needed catching options behind Dioner Navarro. So Gregg Zaun gets to compete with the Rays. Unfortunately, thanks to a dismal September, the Rays don't make the postseason. Zaun still hits .287 with 14 RBIs in 34 games. The trade happens after the Update cutoff, so no Topps card. In fact, Topps kind of checks out as far as Zaun is concerned.

In 2010, the Brewers sign Zaun to look over the two burgeoning catchers they have, George Kottaras and Jonathan Lucroy. Zaun's 39, he's clearly just doing this to play, not really worrying about numbers. He actually does fairly well, hitting .265 in 28 games. He's still a decent defender but he's...39. On May 20th, he gets injured, sits out the rest of the season...and it's not looking good for him as a defensive catcher. 

Zaun would try one more season, signing a minor league contract with the Padres in 2011. Just to see if anything was left in the tank. He tried his best, but he really couldn't find any of his former strength left, and retired out of camp. Dignified way to leave, but he did it on his own terms.

And he's been a Jays broadcaster ever since, which means, yes, Toronto has been very kind to him. For a guy who was thinking he'd be a backup in different cities, Gregg Zaun sure found a stationary home there, which is nice.

Topps Cards That Should Have Been: 2009 R.A. Dickey

 

BE A KNUCKLEBALLER! BE SOMEONE THE LEAGUE HAS NO IDEA WHAT TO DO WITH UNTIL YOU'RE 35!

Yeah. R.A. Dickey went through the wringer every year until 2010, until he found his stuff in Queens. You just get years where he's in some random city, like Milwaukee or Seattle, trying his best to stay hot but playing for crappy teams. 

2009, on the cusp of his Mets years, we find R.A. Dickey in Minneapolis. He's coming off a high-ERA, multi-purpose year in Seattle, so the Twins decide not to start him, and use him out of the bullpen. Which...is a choice. Considering that this was pre-Cy for Roy, I guess it made sense then, but in hindsight it looks like a waste.

Anyway, Dickey for the Twins went...marginally better than his Seattle run. In 35 games, Dickey held a 4.62 ERA with 42 strikeouts. 13 times he finished games for the Twins, without stepping on Joe Nathan's toes. The upside of this season is that it did give Dickey his highest WAR since his breakout season in 2003. It's not much, but it's a good prelude to his 2010 year, where the good year start coming for the knuckleballer. 

Again, if Topps...knew what was coming, they would have kept making Topps cards for Dickey in 2008 and 2009, but they just figured the story was over after 2005, which...again, hindsight is a powerful thing. But it does still give customizers like me chances to make our own versions. 

Topps Cards That Should Have Been: The Mike Hessman Chronicles

This is one of those insanely niche things I've always wanted to do if I had the proper way of going about it. Now that this SHB Topps series is doing well for me, I might as well go for it. 

Mike Hessman is a name that many MLB fans may not have heard of. Maybe if you're a Braves fan who knew a lot about prospecting in the 2000s, or just an all-around stats expert. But if you're a Toledo Mud Hens fan...oh boy, you know Mike Hessman. You probably love Mike Hessman. Mike Hessman is the closest thing we have to a real life Crash Davis, a guy who flourished in the minor leagues but could never get things going in the majors. 

In 2015, Hessman retired with 433 home runs in the minor league level, which is an all-time mark for minor leaguers. Mike Hessman hit more home runs in the minor leagues than Andres Galarraga did in the major leagues. Think about that.

Hessman's story was rewarded by Topps a few times during their Pro Debut sets, but never in flagship. And so I figured I should rectify that. 

Okay, so 2003, Hessman is called up to the Braves at 25, plays 16 games, hits .286. By this point, Hessman has already hit 136 home runs in the minors. He hits 2 in the majors 2003. 

In 2004, he gets a slightly longer major league stint, backing up Adam LaRoche at 1st. In 29 games, Hessman bats .130 with another 2 home runs. Clearly, something's not working at the major league level yet. Meanwhile, he hits .287 with 19 home runs in Richmond. 

In 2005, as he is 27 and has been with the Braves for the better part of a decade, he's granted free agency. So he signs the first of many minor league deals with the Detroit Tigers. At this point, Hessman sort of knows the drill, it seems. He gets a little play in Spring Training, kibitzes with Ivan Rodriguez and Dmitri Young, then spends the rest of the season in Toledo playing for one of the most well-attended minor league clubs in the union, and hitting more homers. He only hits .214 this season, but he notches 28 home runs. 

2006 is similar, he doesn't get to the majors at all but keeps getting lots of playing time in Toledo. .165 average, 24 homers, which is a down year, but at least he gets to play. 

2007 is probably the closest thing to a career year for Mike Hessman. First of all, he has his best year for Toledo, hitting .254 with 31 homers and 101 RBIs. Then the Tigers need assistance at 1st, they call him up for 17 games and he hits 4 more homers covering for Sean Casey. This is his first major league play since 2004, and he does what he can to make the most of it. 

2008 is a similar year. Fantastic in Toledo, 34 home runs and 72 RBIs, which most 2008 Tigers would kill for, and a few games in the majors. This is one of Hessman's best MLB stints, as in 12 games he hits .296 with 5 home runs, making himself known as a decent backup first baseman. 

However, in 2008, the first baseman is not someone easy to back-up like Sean Casey. 2008 is the beginning of the Miguel Cabrera era in Detroit, meaning Hessman is going to get less and less major league playing time. 

In 2009, he's not going to get any, spending the entire season in Toledo despite once again having a decent time in Spring Training. This year for Hessman is slightly lower-key, with 23 home runs and 77 RBI for the Mud Hens. 

After this, the Tigers don't bring Hessman back for 2010, and Hessman hops around for a few years.

 The Mets are the first team to bite on Hessman, especially the season after losing their longtime first baseman, Carlos Delgado. So Hessman gets some playing time, though it's only 32 games. Hessman sadly only hits a measly .127, and only musters one final major league home run in his final MLB games. It's a sad way for him to go out, but thankfully, it's not the end of Hessman's baseball story.

After a mediocre season playing for the Orix Buffaloes in 2011, Hessman returns to minor league deals in America, playing yearlong stints in the AAA affiliates of the Astros and Reds, hitting 60 homers in those two seasons combined, before returning to the Toledo Mud Hens for his final two years, notching 34 home home runs in order to break the all-time minor league home run record in 2015. It's a huge moment for Hessman, for Toledo, and for the minors. 

So Mike Hessman may not have been a high priority for Topps all those years, but he was a high priority for me when I made this. One of the things I ask myself when I consider subjects for this set is 'are they important in even the most specific story of baseball?' That's why I'll include a botched draft pick that hung on for several years, or a former small-team closer who kept relieving games into his 30s. And that's why Hessman is here. You can't talk about minor league baseball in this era without talking about Hessman, and you can't tell Hessman's story without talking about his major league games. Even though a lot of these were spring training pictures that didn't amount to MLB seasons, they still warrant cards in my eyes, because Hessman's story is that unique, and that important, to this era of baseball.

Topps Cards That Should Have Been: 2009 Hall of Famers

The 2009 waiver deal was merciless. Especially if you were a Topps employee.

2009 Update's checklist is finalized, the set's being prepped for production, and a ton more deals start happening that they're just gonna miss out on until 2010 Topps. You kind of just have to shrug your shoulders at that point and head to the next set. 

So even though Ivan Rodriguez got a card in 2009 Topps Update, it was as a member of the Houston Astros, a team that traded him in mid-August to his old team, the Texas Rangers, in exchange for two minor leaguers. It was similar to Jim Thome's return to Cleveland in 2011- good that he's here, see him while you can, cause he might not be here for long.

Pudge did manage to hit .245 with 13 RBIs in 28 games with the Rangers. Nothing huge, but more of a steady catching performance that gave the fans something cool to see if they weren't getting to see a postseason run that year. Rodriguez would sign with Washington for two years to help progress Jesus Flores and Wilson Ramos before calling it a career.

 John Smoltz, meanwhile, got to pitch into the postseason in 2009.

Smoltz began the season, his first MLB season away from Atlanta, as a member of the Boston Red Sox. It didn't go well. Smoltz had an 8.33 ERA in 8 starts, and the magic seemed to be gone. After the Sox released him, the Cardinals picked him up [also in mid-August], and Smoltz began to return to his former glory. In 7 starts, he posted a 4.26 ERA with 40 strikeouts, which isn't too bad, despite only getting 1 win. He'd pitch 2 innings in the postseason, and allow 5 strikeouts in between a few hits. 

If Topps had printed a little later, we would have seen these two cards in 2009 Update rather than 2010 Topps.

Topps Cards That Should Have Been: 2009 Dodgers

The 2009 Topps Cards That Should Have Been are in full swing, and since all four of the 09 Dodgers I had ideas for are done, I'll post them now in commemoration of the 2020 Dodgers' World Series win. As you'll see, 2009 was a very different year for Dodgers baseball.

After starting the season with the Diamondbacks, former White Sox rotation standout Jon Garland found himself traded to the postseason-ready Dodgers at the end of August, in exchange for Tony Abreu. Garland was solid in 6 starts in LA, with a 2.72 ERA and 26 strikeouts. Unfortunately, he was not included on the team's postseason roster for some reason.

Perhaps it's because there was already a recently-traded starter on the Dodgers for the postseason, and that was former Phillies flamethrower Vicente Padilla. Padilla's Dodgers stint begins the period of his career where he winds up in numerous places as a sort of jack-of-all-trades type in pitching rotations, eventually becoming a reliever in Boston.

Padilla's also a midseason pickup for the Dodgers, coming to the team after the Rangers release him in mid-July. Padilla, after signing with LA, completely turns his season around, starting 7 games for LA and posting 4 wins, a 3.20 era and 38 strikeouts. Padilla was the rotation piece this team needed. He'd help out in the postseason as well [his only career postseason games], blanking the Cardinals in 7 innings during the NLDS, and getting considerably battered in two starts against his old team from Philly. Padilla would spend two more years in LA, though neither would be as productive. 

We return to the somehow unproduced days of Hong-Chih Kuo's career. The Taiwanese relief specialist had a diminished role compared to his long-man role from 2008, and made 35 appearances in 30 innings in 2009. Kuo only had 32 strikeouts that season, but still had a 3.00 ERA. He'd also notch 8 strikeouts in 5 postseason innings, only allowing 1 run. 

 The biggest Topps omission for the Dodgers in 2009 was gold-glove-accumulator Brad Ausmus, one of the most consistent defensive catchers of his era, and a good low-cost pick to back-up Russell Martin in his peak. In 36 games, he hit .295 with 28 hits, and was still a brick wall behind the plate. His lack of playing time made it difficult for Topps to include him in Update, I reckon, but I still think he deserved something, especially in the wake of his contemporary managerial success. 

Those are the 4 Dodgers 2009 Topps customs I had ready. Topps really should have included any of the 4. 

Topps Cards That Should Have Been: The Charlie Morton Chronicles

Topps took a while to figure out that Charlie Morton was something special. As did we all.

Morton didn't have his first Topps card til 2011, yet started in the majors in 2008, as a starter for the Braves. Despite starting 15 games in 2008, Morton was kept down for the first half of 2009, eventually being traded along with Jeff Locke to the Pirates for Nate McLouth. Good deal for Pittsburgh, because Morton and Locke WERE their rotation for the first half of the decade. 

Morton did eventually have some 2009 starting numbers, with a 4.55 ERA and 62 strikeouts in 18 games for Pittsburgh. It was a modest start that didn't allow itself for a Topps card in 2009 OR 2010, though he got a 'When They Were Young' insert in 2010T, as well as an UD base card in 2010.

Morton continued as a lower-tier starting option in 2010 for the Pirates, posting a paltry 2-12 record and a 7.57 ERA in 17 starts. Something wasn't clicking. Morton hadn't found himself in the majors yet. 

Thankfully, from there he turns things around, and in 2011 he has a much better season, with a 3.83 ERA and 110 Ks in 29 starts, and he's a trusted starter for the Bucs until 2015. And here Topps gets wind of his talents and starts actually making cards of him, from 2011-2015. 

After the 2015 season, Morton is traded to the burgeoning Philadelphia Phillies in exchange for a minor leaguer. The prospect of a surging, veteran Charlie Morton helping out the post-Hamels Philly rotation was a good one. 

 Unfortunately, it was a short-lived season for Morton, as he'd only pitch 4 games for the Phillies, all in April, with a 4.15 ERA and 19 strikeouts. Then, Morton tears his hamstring, is out for the rest of the season, and never plays another game for the Phillies.

The rest, as they say, is history- Houston picks him up on a cheap deal, he becomes the #3 starter for a World Series team, makes an All Star team in 2018 and becomes the strikeout artist that Tampa has grown to love this postseason. It just kills me that his 2016 season in Philly was his final human moment before becoming truly great. 

Still, I'm glad Morton's gotten his stuff together and become one of the better hurlers in the majors. I don't know if his Rays are gonna make it 7 tonight, but either way, he's given them some amazing performances.

Also, this last custom means I finally know how to do 2016 Topps customs. It's tricky, especially the nameplate gradient, but I'm getting the hang of it. 

Topps Cards That Should Have Been: 2009 Topps Bartolo Colon

 In another universe, this would have been Bartolo Colon's sunset card.

After a strong career, a Cy Young, and a few injury plagued seasons, Colon returned to Chicago as a starter in 2009, pitched 12 games, and came up with a 4.19 ERA, a 3-6 record, and 38 strikeouts. Not bad, but for a team with great performances from Mark Buehrle, Jake Peavy and John Danks that year, it wasn't enough.

While Topps does make a card of Colon as a White Sock in its Heritage High Number series, which should benefit from being released later in the year this year, it doesn't make a flagship release of him. The 2008 Update card of Colon in Boston evidently was enough for them.

As Colon spent his 2010 season in independent leagues, trying to make it back...there was an indication that Colon's 2009 season may have been his final one. So Topps not cooking something up for 2010 Topps is also suspect. Colon's eventual return with New York in 2011 must have felt very unlikely, and if he doesn't come back for a minor league deal with the Yanks, Colon never achieves his late-career appreciation with the Mets. 

This Sox card could have marked the end of Colon's initial run in the majors. And I wish it existed.

Topps Cards That Should Have Been: The Jim Thome Chronicles

 

I've discussed this on the blog before, but growing up, Jim Thome was one of my favorite players.

In the early days of Citizens Bank Park, I went to a lot of games, basked in Philly fandom, and began to appreciate the raw power and skill of Jim Thome. Then, once Thome got hurt, the Howard-Utley era took hold and they became the playoff monolith I always wanted them to be. Thome's years definitely set the stage though, with help from people like Randy Wolf, Billy Wagner, Bobby Abreu, Endy Chavez and Mike Lieberthal. I do have a lot of nostalgia for those teams.

Of course, I followed Thome throughout the rest of his HOF career, as he sort of mellowed into a one-dimensional bat/bench bat/DH type. After a solid couple seasons in Chicago replacing Frank Thomas as the heart of the lineup, Thome was traded to the Dodgers in a waiver deal in August 2009. That surprised me. But the Dodgers were making a playoff run, so I went with it.

In all honesty, Thome's Dodgers numbers weren't too great, hitting .235 in 17 games, used solely as a bench bat, without any of his trademark home runs. His postseason numbers were slightly better, and he had a hit in his only plate appearance in the NLCS, but the Phillies, ironically, took out LA en route to another World Series. 

Topps did a Thome Dodgers card for 2009 Heritage High Number and in 2010 Topps, but he never got a flagship release for the year he actually played for the Dodgers, hence why I made one. 

Topps figures him out soon after. He signs a 2-year deal with the Twins to be their DH, he hits more homers as a bench tool and DH, gets his 600th homer, and he gets Twins cards in 2010 and 2011, all is well.

And then in 2011, another waiver deal claims Thome.

Thome's old team, the Cleveland Indians, came calling, as they were chasing a wild card spot that would eventually go to Tampa. They purchased his contract from the Twins, he came to Cleveland and immediately got back to his old tricks. In 22 games, he hit .296, had 71 at-bats [THEY STARTED HIM], and 3 more homers. It was a welcome return to form for the Indians legend, and the fans were absolutely stoked to have him back.

Topps, unlike the Dodgers issue, decides to omit this stint entirely from the records, obviously not doing a card in 2011 as it was past the cutoff, and already moving onto the Phillies for 2012 Topps [which I thank them for]. Hence this version.

Now, under normal circumstances, I'd make a 2012 Topps card of Thome's half-year stint on the Baltimore Orioles, also for a stretch run, but by a technicality, one already exists. Topps made a Thome card in Update...but the bastards short-printed it. It will never cease to piss me off how Topps will short-print actual traded players in a traded set. So an Orioles Thome issue exists, it's just maddeningly hard to find. It's not like the 2017 Yu Darvish where I can pay like 2 bucks for it online cause it's surprisingly well printed. The Thome one is just...rare as hell. So I don't know if I'll ever own it, but it's a nice dream. 

But that's why I didn't make a 2012 O's one. Cause Topps, in their own twisted way, already did.

Whatever, made my job slightly easier anyway. 

Topps Cards That Should Have Been: The Nomar Chronicles

Topps SHB #12: 2008 Nomar Garciaparra, Los Angeles Dodgers

 Topps' contractual meddling will never cease to annoy me.

Takes them an extra 4 years to rope Alex Rodriguez in. Takes an extra 2 years to rope Hideki Matsui in. Then in 2006, we lose Nomar Garciaparra, they don't re-up with him til after he's retired. In 2009, Matt Wieters signs with Upper Deck and Panini, but not Topps, and they eventually get him in 2016. So now they have everybody, right? Well in 2018 they lose Madison Bumgarner, and now only Panini makes cards of him. However Topps keeps screwing this up, they're clearly good at it.

Because of this meddling, former Boston great Nomar Garciaparra's Topps legacy ends in 2006, with his Update card with the Los Angeles Dodgers. His career goes on for three more years, even if Topps doesn't seem to care.

My photo source only goes back as far as 2007, so for the purpose of this project, we start in 2008. Nomar Garciaparra is a charter member of the division-leading, NLCS contending 2008 Dodgers. Nowadays, that sort of thing would be depicted on a card, but Topps was led by Michael Eisner at the time, which should explain everything.

Nomar's 2008 season was marred by injuries from the start, but eventually he became a starting shortstop due to an injury to Rafael Furcal, and started heating up along with the team in August. He hit .264 in only 55 games in 2008, but was still a crucial member of the team, and a notable bench player in the postseason, hitting .429 in 7 at-bats.

Topps SHB #13: 2009 Nomar Garciaparra, Oakland Athletics

Nomar's 2009 season with the A's was an improvement on several levels, as he hit .284 in 65 games, and returned to his contact sensibilities with a very low-budget team. Again, he was used as a bench player, and slowly phased out in favor of players like Daric Barton and Jack Cust, but he was still a trusted veteran presence on a team that was very youth-based. It may not have been an ideal final season for Nomar, but he ended with dignity and respect, which is all that a Red Sox alum should ever want.

After that, Nomar hung up his cleats and switched to broadcasting, and has appeared in numerous Topps sets as a Red Sock. I doubt Topps will ever acknowledge Nomar's stints in LA or Oakland, or even Chicago, but I guess that's why I do this- to cover for Topps when they have these blind spots like this.

This reminds me...I have a ton of Matt Wieters cards to make for this project, don't I?

Topps Cards That Should Have Been: 2009 Billy Wagner

The 2009 season  for Billy Wagner is bookended by two seasons that mark the best output of his borderline-Hall-of-Fame career. In 2008, for the Mets, he notched 27 saves and an All Star appearance. In 2010, for the Braves, he capped his career with 37 saves, 104 strikeouts, and his 7th and final all star appearance.

Yet...2009 still happened. Topps, only putting out a flagship card of his Mets stuff from the previous year, swept it under the rug in flagship and update. But, there was a bit of business that occurred.

Wagner missed most of the 2009 season  due to recovery from Tommy John surgery, which had shortened his 2008 season. Once he finally got on the mound for the Mets in August 2009, he was no longer the Mets' closer- Francisco Rodriguez made the job  his own, and had reduced Wagner to a middle reliever. To this end, Wagner proclaimed he'd pitched his last game as a Met. So, right before the waiver deadline, the Mets traded Wagner to Boston for two second-stringers.

The situation was similar for the Red Sox. Jonathan Papelbon was the designated closer, and he was doing a  great job, in the midst of a 38-save year. So, again, Wagner would be called upon  for middle relief. Despite the downgrade, Wagner would post a 1.98 ERA and 22 strikeouts in 15 games. In two postseason appearances for Boston, he'd allow two earned runs, helping the Angels advance.

Despite his  woes, the numbers weren't bad, he could still pitch like a champ, and he cemented his  status as an all-time great reliever, paving the way for the Braves to sign him in 2010.

Wagner got a Heritage High Number release that year [sidenote-Heritage High should always be released late enough to include waiver deals], but not a flasgship Topps card as a Red Sock in 2009. So I made one. I think this one works.

Keep On Smilin', Garrett

This is Garrett Atkins, perennial infield standout for the Rockies teams of the 2000s. And he sure is happy.

Now, I'm not gonna speak for him in terms of general mood. He wasn't breaking out into giggles or cartwheeling or anything. But on all of his Topps cards in the 2000s, he just seemed...very smiley.

We have his debut turn, in 2005...

And his sophomore card in 2006. Even if you zoom in, you can still see those pearly-whites.

And in 2007, on an Opening Day issue that seemed to dwarf the whiteness of Atkins' own teeth. Let's see, via a super-zoom, whether he is in fact still smiling:

YOU CAN SEE IT! THERE IS DEFINITELY TEETH THERE!

And you'll even note here, this isn't an especially happy pose or posture for Atkins. It might even be straining. But there he is...STILL SMILING.

2008 Topps. No question here. He's overjoyed.

2009 Topps, his last Topps issue. Even if he can see the end in sight, he's still using the correct amount of toothpaste for the job. And that is hella admirable.

Now...a postscript to this is that Atkins played his last MLB season in 2010, with the Orioles, and it was a whimper from a guy who used to be steady and fun. But that's not important.

The real question is...did Garrett Atkins smile as a member of the Baltimore Orioles?

...YOU'RE DAMN RIGHT HE DID.

Garrett Atkins: Even in the dregs of despair and hopelessness, he just keeps on smiling. Let that be a lesson to you all.

Five Years (What a Surprise)

 

(This post was supposed to be for yesterday. However, I had half the post written, and then I went to watch the Beatles 50th Anniversary thing, and forgot. I'm awful at this remembering thing. But oh well).

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Five Years ago today I was a young, thirteen year old baseball card collector, racking up cards from everywhere and wanting to share it with the world. I had no idea that I'd get into customizing, Stadium Club, or any of the stuff I've immersed myself in now.

The custom above was my first-ever custom, from June 2009, after many failed attempts at blog series'. I figured it'd be nice to put new players in old designs, so I followed a tutorial, threw Derek Jeter into a 81 Topps design, and posted it. Now, honestly, compared to the stuff I've been producing lately, it's really subpar. Like, for example, here was a 1981 custom I made last year:

Better cropped, better photo, better condition, better gradients and filters. I started simply putting more effort in, and pretty soon I made a name for myself as a customizer.

But, as today's the blog's fifth anniversary, I wanted to look back at the five previous years of the blog, and all the things I was talking about back then.

2009: The First Year

You'll see it in my writing, in my customs, and in my content that I clearly had no idea what I was doing. I was a kid, I was too young, and I banked so much on the fact that nobody was reading, so I felt like I had so much freedom. Around the end of the year I got some followers, and a few trade offers, so I was beginning to get big.

A lot of the posts this year are just me trying hard to be funny, or reporting one-sentence long news stories, or something. The content isn't great, and it's cringeworthy by today's standards.

The only thing that stayed constant were the customs. I didn't use too much filter on them, so they're just the straight photos, but in terms of doctoring the original cards, I had the right idea. The ones I did for 'Year by Year' and the postseason are honestly some of the best of that year.

This was also the year that both my teams played each other in the World Series, and I got to go to Yankee Stadium to watch them. It was an okay first year of blogging, but it was nice to be a part of the sphere, and have people like Dayf, Canuck and Night Owl occasionally comment on your posts.

 

2010: Finding the Knack

First of all, that logo. I dunno what I was thinking. I thought it looked pretty cool, and I thought it was a swell enough idea. Some bloggers weren't amused.

2010 was the year that I became more of a regular blogger, and did more of the normal blogger stuff. I made trades. I ranted. I took part in a blogger worst-autograph tournament (thanks Drew!)

I also started doing a lot of open ended editorial-type posts, which took on some pretty nice topics, like the uselessness of Bowman,  the addictiveness of ToppsTown,  and the fact that everyone despises my team.

My customs were more improved, as I added more filters and just did more work on them. The quality of my writing improved as well.

By the end, I was talking about heartbreak as a fan of two teams unceremoniously booted from the playoffs within two days. I think that the moodier I got back then, the better my posts were.

Like with last year, some of the best stuff was during Year by Year.

2011: Finding the Sweet Spot

I think that 2011 was the year I really settled into the blogosphere. I had an ill-prepared blog contest, bought and ripped some vintage Stadium Club, had some trades with big time bloggers, and started churning out better posts.

One of the more viewed posts of the year was one about how pretty much every team had its haters, so the Yankees weren't free of blame. It soon became an omnibus of all the bloggers' teams of hatred. Reminds me, I should probably update that post.

I started accumulating some pretty nice fans in 2011. One in particular, a Dodger fan, gave me a lot of ideas for customs, as detailed in this post. That same fan ended up leading me to Brent Lillibridge, the first (and only, that I know of) actual ballplayer to actually like one of my customs. He made a custom of mine his Twitter photo. I will take that to my grave.

I had some nice road trips in 2011, going to Indians, Pirates and Nationals games, as well as staying in Meredith, New Hampshire for a week. Also, I went to the Super Bowl, but that's another story.

I think this was the peak of my popularity before I went back to being a regular fringe blogger like I am now.

2012: The Consistent Year

Overall, in 2012 I think I finally hit my stride, and started writing and customizing the way I do now. I learned to control the filters so that I stopped having so many overdone customs. Also, I had more well-written posts, and more well-formed ideas.

2012 was the year that Archives came back, but basically just as a way of copying my set. I had a very angry rant here about how they were stealing my idea. I also had an angry rant about the 2012 Topps gimmicks, which was even more hate-fueled than the Archives one. I had a lot of emotional posts this year, as you can see.

2012 was my biggest year in terms of customizing, as I produced more customs in 2012 than I did any other year. None were real newsmakers, though the Chipper Jones one is a favorite.

I won a contest over at Thorzul's this year. Honestly, I'm drawing a blank on anything else that happened that year.

2013: Making my Mark

Toward the end of this year I was buying Stadium Club boxes, and customizing football players. I was tussling with Topps and still making great baseball customs. Everything I really wanted to do, in my blogging career, I ended up doing in 2013, so it was really a success in my eyes.

You could argue that it was a lot of the same stuff. Making customs, going to lake George, buying cards, telling the world how awful Topps is. For a month I kept getting boxes of football products from a mysterious contact to rip. I think I ripped more actual hobby boxes of products in 2013 than I did in any other year.

2013 was a great year for me even though it wasn't really too different than the other ones. But it really exemplified how I write more than the other years. I think I'm in in my prime, unless in five more years I become as good a blogger as Night Owl or Dime Boxes or something like that.

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To make a long story short, I never did anything on this blog for popularity, for accolades, for followers. I did it mostly for myself, but also for the rest of the world to see my opinions. And I didn't think it would last this long. I didn't think it would last a month.

I'm just glad it lasted part March 2009, and into February 2014.

Will the blog last ten years? Who's to say? Certainly not me. I have no idea what's going to happen to me a year down the line, let alone five. I'll blog until I'm done, and I'll know when I'm done.

Thanks for sticking with me, by the way. For reading when I had nothing to say. And, thankfully, when I had too much to say. I really appreciate it.

Five years, stuck on my eyes
Five years, what a surprise
We've got five years, my brain hurts a lot
Five years, that's all we got...









P.S.- If you were expecting me to pick my favorite custom in all my years of making them, I'll say this-  I'm not one for picking favorites...




....but this one