2020 Topps Final Edition: Cards #190-198

 We are just getting to the tip of 200 right at the end of April, as far as this mega-set I made is concerned. By the end of May, we'll have hit #275. Which means I feel like we'll get to the end of this set by June. If you've been enjoying this set, which I sincerely hope you have, that would be a bad thing.

Still, here are the next 9 cards in the set.

Card #190- Matt Kemp, Colorado Rockies

I am guessing that 2020 will end up having been Matt Kemp's final season, and at the very least it is a more dignified way of going out than his 2019 season, where he was bounced after 20 games with the Reds. Here, the Rockies picked up Kemp after the Marlins had cut him prior to the season, and Kemp acted as the Rockies' primary DH during their only season [to date] with the NL utilizing a DH. In 43 games, Kemp hit .239 with 21 RBIs and 6 homers, which wasn't BAD per se, but it wasn't anywhere above replacement level. To that, no MLB teams bit on Kemp for the 2021 season, so unless he has a late audition somewhere, this would have been his last issue. And Topps, with its schedules as they were, didn't get to it.

Card #191- Nick Tropeano, Pittsburgh Pirates 

Nick Tropeano was a starting success for the Angels in 2018, which made the diminishing returns of his starter numbers a little heartbreaking. However, as Tropeano missed camp with the Yankees in 2020, the Pirates had some room in the bullpen, and Tropeano couldn't pass down an opportunity. Sure enough, Tropeano was one of the best pitchers on the roster for the Bucs last year, with a 1.15 ERA in 7 appearances with 19 Ks. Note that Tropeano was used as a long-man in this period, which was close enough to starting, I guess. Tropeano tried to make camp with the Giants this season, but hasn't made the team quite yet. 

Card #192- Tommy Hunter, Philadelphia Phillies

Tommy Hunter had been a mainstay in the Phillies bullpen for a few years, and after only pitching in 5 games during 2019, made a comeback in 24 games in 2020. His 4.01 ERA and 25 Ks may not look like much, but considering the dire state of the Phils bullpen that year, Hunter was one of the few consistently not-terrible performers, and brought stability to a 'pen that had anything but. Hunter is currently signed to a minor league deal with the Mets and has not made the team yet.

Card #193- Erik Kratz, New York Yankees

Erik Kratz was one of the premier backup catchers of the 2010s. After coming up with Philly as a backup for Carlos Ruiz, Kratz became a journeyman with EVERYONE, becoming a mainstream favorite as a backup catcher with the 2018 Brewers, and splitting 2019 with the Giants and Rays. He was never a huge offensive force, but he was durable and lovable. 2020, he was brought on as a backup catcher during Gary Sanchez' injury stretch in New York, and did surprisingly really well. He hit .321 with 9 hits and 4 RBIs, which is some of the most impressive performances by a catcher during the 2020 Yankees season. Kratz hung it up after the season, though, but not without a lot of Yankee fans being thankful for his work.

Card #194- Juan Soto ASG, Washington Nationals

It should not be much of a shock when I reveal that Juan Soto would have been a starting outfielder if the 2020 All Star Game had happened. He was coming off a HUGE 2019 and a monster postseason, and had some pretty impressive 2020 numbers despite missing some time to injury. Soto is currently injured, but he was hitting .300 so far this season, so I don't even think THAT will stop this guy from continuing to dominate the majors.

Card #195- Victor Gonzalez, Los Angeles Dodgers

The 2020 Dodgers bullpen comes down to two rookies- Brusdar Graterol and Victor Gonzalez. Gonzalez had been in the Dodgers' system for 7 years, and finally made the majors at 24 last year, becoming a relief favorite by just...not really allowing many runs at all. In 15 games, he had a 1.33 ERA with 23 Ks, and a 2.70 postseason ERA with 5 Ks. Gonzalez was a very stable, impressive relief option for a World Series team during his rookie season. Tomorrow the world. Right now he has a 2.57 ERA.

Card #196- Richard Bleier, Miami Marlins

I've talked during this project about the number of relievers that were summoned to Miami due to several of their relievers coming down with COVID at once. Brian Moran and James Hoyt I've already talked about, but the other big one was former Orioles reliever Richard Bleier. Bleier actually pitched in 2 games for the Os in 2020, and Topps covered that, but once he got traded to the Marlins, he was in similarly high demand. In 19 games, he had a 2.63 ERA, which wasn't bad at all. He also has a 0 ERA in 2 innings of postseason play. Bleier is waiting for his 2021 numbers to go down, but he's still on similar workload duty in Miami.

Card #197- Jacob De Grom ASG, New York Mets

Due to Yu Darvish's strong start, I don't think Jacob de Grom would have started the 2020 ASG for the National League, but can you imagine an ASG without him at this point? De Grom is one of the best pitchers in baseball right now, he's practically unhittable, and even if he has no run support, he is still incredible in big-game scenarios. He'll probably be starting this one anyway.

Card #198- Sam Selman, San Fransisco Giants

After a 10-game come-up in 2019, Sam Selman was able to be utilized a bit more regularly in 2020, becoming one of the more consistent relievers of the Giants' pen. Selman was a well-relied-upon mop-up man, finishing 8 games, and having a 3.72 ERA with 23 Ks in 24 games. Selman was only recently promoted back to the Giants, so hopefully you'll see some similar numbers from him in 2021. 

Monday, you get to see who got to be card #200, as well as some decent rookies.

Uncustomed Heroes of 2020: Yankees

 

I root for two teams who've been good for the last 10 years yet have absolutely refused to stick it in and even contend for a championship. The Yankees, and the Packers. Both teams could have dynasties right now if they had better luck and didn't keep getting clobbered by the same team in the semi final rounds. 

The Yanks may have it more embarrassing. We just get so tantalizingly close and then get beaten by teams who proceed to get beaten themselves in following rounds. It happened in 2012 with the Tigers, it happened in 2015 with the Astros, and it happened this year with the Rays. Whatever magic that happens in the regular season can't be contained for the entirety of the postseason. 

Speaking of fading magic, Gary Sanchez. Used to be so reliable for us, but hit .147 this season with a club-leading 64 Ks, despite 10 homers. He was an anti-presence in the Yanks lineup this year, which makes it kinda cool that he had 3 RBIs and a homer against the Indians in the postseason, but...he's gotta do better. The Yanks nearly got rid of him this year, and he's lucky to still have the catching gig.

2021 Prediction: Either he reworks his swing and gets his groove back or he continues striking out 150 times and loses the starting job to Kyle Higashioka. 

Deivi Garcia was a midyear starting callup for the Yankees, and while his debut was pretty starry, his inexperience caught up to him as he ended with a 4.98 ERA. He did get a 3-2 record and 33 Ks out of his 6 games, but he was also at the mercy of the team, which wasn't good enough in 2020. 

2021 Prediction: He and Sevvy go toe-to-toe as homegrown fireballers, both with full seasons. Garcia will have the most strikeouts for a Yankee pitcher not named Cole. 

Once again, an injury to an outfielder meant a role for Clint Frazier, who proceeded to hit .267 in 39 games with 25 RBIs and 8 homers while filling in for Aaron Judge. Frazier is still a sharp outfield bat for a team with...several, and perhaps he'll get more playing time if the Yanks do not re-sign Brett Gardner. But this is the umpteenth season where he's been absent until somebody else gets injured. Eventually he's gonna need to play somewhere where he's a guaranteed starting option.

2021 Prediction: They start him, he hits 30 homers and finally earns his pinstripes. 

Aroldis Chapman's 2020 season was preempted by an injury, so he didn't hit the field really til mid-August, which explains the higher ERA and only 3 saves. After some time to warm up he did get back to his old tricks with 22 Ks in 13 appearances, but ultimately he was responsible for the end of the Yankees' season, thanks to pissing off Mike Brosseau. 

2021 Prediction: 40 saves, but he does something else stupid that pisses off Yankee fans. 

When we least expected him to, J.A. Happ had a strong year as a starting pitcher. What can I say, the dude's unpredictable. In 9 starts he had a 3.47 ERA with 44 strikeouts and a 1.054 WHIP. Definitely an improvement over his subpar 2019, but still not enough to stay in the Bronx.

2021 Prediction: Late-rotation work in a low-market team. Maybe a Philly reunion is in store.

As the Yankees are questioning whether or not they're going to re-sign Brett Gardner, his 2020 is not looking like a great way to end his landmark Yankee tenure. Despite starting for the majority of the season, he only hit .223 with 15 RBIs, and was mostly phased out once Judge and Frazier were both in the starting lineup. He could still re-sign in the Bronx, but I reckon Gardy's elite days are over.

2021 Prediction: A bench role somewhere. 

In the weeks where Aroldis Chapman was injured and we were left without a closer...Zack Britton dusted off his ninth inning magic and stepped into the role, with 8 saves in 8 opportunities. After Chapman came back, Britton shifted back to his reliable setup man role, finishing the season with a 1.89 ERA and 16 Ks in 20 appearances. 

2021 Prediction: Another solid relief year for Britton. Expect more makeshift saves as Chapman flails off. 

Britton's relief battery partner, Adam Ottavino, didn't fare as well- Ottavino left the season with a 5.89 ERA, a massive WHIP and too many earned runs despite some nice strikeout work. Ottavino hasn't had a down year in a while, so this felt like an anomaly, especially after a strong year last year. 

2021 Prediction: An injury interrupts some improved stats.

Mike Tauchman had another strong year as an extra outfielder, getting some playing time as Judge and Hicks got hurt. Tauchman hit .242 in 43 games, with 15 RBIs. Nothing more than a solid alternate outfield bat. 

2021 Prediction: After not playing as much next year, winds up on another roster with more playing time.

In the absence of Gary Sanchez' better numbers, the Yankees called upon two unlikely catching options. One of them was their usual backup, Kyle Higashioka, who's been a great backup catcher who's never been able to hit at the major league level. Until now, that is. Higgy came out in a big way in 2020, with 10 RBIs and 4 homers in 16 games, some major power coming from the unlikeliest source. Higgy also had 2 more RBIs and 1 more homer in the playoffs. 

2021 Prediction: If Sanchez screws up, you're looking at the new starting catcher in New York. 

And the other backup catching option, and occasional DH, for New York was the 40-year-old career backup Erik Kratz, who'd gotten some playing time last year with the Yankees. In 16 games, Kratz hit .321 with 9 hits and 4 RBIs, helping the Yankees get through the stretch. Kratz is most likely calling it a career after this, so it was one hell of a way to go out. 

Tomorrow, we wrap up the year like we usually do around here. 

NLCS Update: Down to the Wire Edition

Just like that, with one game left to be played in Milwaukee, we've got a fight on our hands.

The Brewers' offense came alive last night, knocking Hyun-Jin Ryu back for several runs, and exposing the holes in the Dodgers' bullpen, as well as cementing the status of their insanely strong bullpen. Great nights were had by Erik Kratz, Mike Moustakas and Jesus Aguilar, and Corey Knebel stayed on to add another great night to his killer postseason.

...and THIS GUY was responsible for both of Los Angeles' runs last night. Which just proves that David Freese's year just starts in October every year.

Tonight is for all the marbles. Jhoulys Chacin vs. Walker Buehler. Winner plays the Red Sox in the World Series, loser goes home to think about what they've done. The Dodgers may have more of a chance against the Sox, but the Brewers would be the more fun choice.

Anyone Can Pitch: Erik Kratz

Of the teams I've been featuring in this series, the Brewers may have the most accomplished duo of hitters that pitch. Not the most, but the most accomplished- both Erik Kratz and Hernan Perez have had three appearances each on the mound, and have both notched two strikeouts, which is more than I can say for most people in this series. Since Perez is currently dealing with a 13.00 ERA, I figure I'll talk about the other guy, possibly a stranger case.

Erik Kratz, pre-2018, was best known (at least to me) for being the Phillies' backup catcher during the  2012-13 seasons, when Carlos Ruiz had some suspensions and DL stints. He wasn't bad at it either, posting some good numbers in his games behind the plate, but after that season, he bopped around, and became a go-to backup-backup catcher. We're talking a borderline Sal Fasano type here, just with less stability.

Kratz landed in Milwaukee in a year that Stephen Vogt would be out for the season, and the starting option was Manny Pina, so needless to say he's gotten a bit of playing time as backup, and is arguably a better catching choice than Pina, with a .260 average, though Pina has improved in the last month or so.

Kratz, in three games on the mound, has also impressed, with only 3 earned runs to his name, three hits, and a 1.3 WHIP. Not bad at all, but it's some interesting stats from a 38-year-old catcher, who's not the fleetest of baserunners. This is also not his first season on the mound- during a 2016 season split between Houston and Pittsburgh, he notched 2 appearances, getting a strikeout with Pitt, but leaving with a 9.00 ERA in Houston.

I hope Kratz keeps up the good work, and I hope maybe he can pitch an inning in the postseason, just for the hell of it.

Next time I post one of these, expect a San Francisco legend.