Topps Cards That Should Have Been: The Fernando Rodney Chronicles

Fernando Rodney may have been one of the most important relievers of the first 20 years of the 21st century. He may not have had the flashiest stats or the most saves, but his career spanned years and teams that people wouldn't even predict they would. 

2003 would have been the first season he could have gotten a Topps card, so I won't be sad that they didn't cause he was...just a lowly reliever for one of the worst Tigers teams of all time. He averaged a 6.04 ERA his first two seasons, over 47 appearances. He wasn't handed the ninth quite yet, and that'd take a few more years of people like Ugueth Urbina and Todd Jones closing games in Detroit, but he was beginning to be plugged in more and more.

2004 he sits out the year with an injury, which also explains why he doesn't have a card in 2005 Topps:

Rodney's 2005 season is a breakout year for him in the Tigers bullpen; In 39 games he posted 42 Ks and a 2.86 ERA, complete with 9 saves. The closing gig isn't his yet, and won't be until late 2006, but he's still trusted. 

'06 and '07, he gets Topps cards. In 2007 he doesn't close games thanks to Todd Jones, and mostly doesn't do much more than middle relief...

Which explains, I guess, why Topps didn't bother making a base card of his in 2008. Gotta admit, this move even surprised me as a young collector. I'd thought Fernando Rodney was a necessary relief inclusion, even in 2008, before he really took off. I was very confused. Rodney's 2008 was a step back in the right direction, saving 13 games even with a 4.91 ERA. 

From 2009, Topps doesn't miss a beat. They make flagship cards of him in Detroit, Anaheim, Tampa and Seattle, even in his waning Ms years. From 2012 to 2014 he saves 133 games, and it's absolutely huge, but he can't sustain the magic.

By the end of 2015, the Mariners give up on him in favor of Tom Wilhelmsen. So they deal him to the Cubs at the waiver deadline, which means Topps won't get to see the...very odd sight of Fernando Rodney as a Cub. This is incredibly odd. In 14 games in middle relief, Rodney had an 0.75 ERA and 15 Ks. Plus, he got to COMPETE for the first time in a while. He did well in early rungs of the playoffs but got beat up by the Mets in the NLCS. 

By 2016, Topps still wasn't convinced that Rodney was back, even if the end of the 2015 was at least worth a card. So they shrugged and missed out on Rodney's LAST ALL-STAR STINT. Yes, they got it in Update, but they had cards of him on the Marlins, which he showed up in for the ASG. Forgetting, of course, that his INSANE 0.31 ERA with the Padres was the thing that got Rodney there in the first place. In 28 games, Rodney had 33 Ks and 17 saves. These were the final indicators to Topps that Rodney was finally worth making cards of again. 

From 2017 to 2019, Topps would be pretty prompt with Rodney issues. D-Backs, Twins, A's...all good.

Yet the final stop on Rodney's journey, and the one that gained him that coveted World Series ring, went completely ignored by Topps. Yes, Fernando Rodney was a trusted relief option for the 2019 Nationals, pitching in 38 games with a 4.05 ERA and 35 Ks, and getting some postseason playing time as well. It was a great season to go out on, despite Rodney not officially throwing in the towel until the dust had settled on the 2020 season. I just wish Topps had produced a card of it, rather than making me finally branch out into customizing the relatively-tricky 2019 design. 

Still, Fernando Rodney had a long, prosperous career, marked by so many Topps cards that DID happen, that it should be a compliment to him that Topps missed so many times.
 

Uncustomed Heroes of 2019: Nationals

I wonder how future sports historians are gonna talk about this World Series, and this Nationals team. I personally thought it was a fun underdog story, and one of the better heroes and villains matchups of the decade, as well as catharsis for lots of veterans who deserved a ring. I'm still pretty happy it happened, I guess, even if it was at the expense of my Phillies.

Stephen Strasburg I already did a custom of this year, but I made another one because he had an awesome season and deserved more than one.

 Brian Dozier was signed by the Nationals before the season to be the primary second baseman. Unfortunately, Dozier's bat had calmed down completely since leaving Minnesota, and while he notched 20 homers in Washington this year, he also only had 50 RBIs, and struck out 105 times.
Why Him in 2019?: By September, he'd lost enough goodwill that the starting gig belonged to Howie Kendrick, leaving him open to make some huge postseason memories.
2020 Prediction: Will hit 15 homers from the bench.

 I'm glad the Nats were open to a reunion with Matt Adams after he spent the first half of 2018 valiantly covering for Ryan Zimmerman. He was so good at it in 2018 that he did it again this year, though, like Dozier, with diminishing returns; Adams led the team in strikeouts with 115, and only hit 20 homers as well.
Why Him in 2019?: Had a hit in his only at bat of the NLCS
2020 Prediction: Will be signed as a backup, but will still get some prime power-hitting done.

 Gerardo Parra had a weird year. He began the season tanking in San Francisco, was cut, landed in Washington and took some reps at 1st for the first time in a while. Over the course of the season he'd grow a sharp fan following, admirably gaining the nickname 'Baby Shark', and hitting .250 with 42 RBIs off the bench.
Why Him in 2019?: Also went 1.000 in his only NLCS at bat.
2020 Prediction: Will take his charisma to another continent.

Perhaps the most heartwarming part of this Nats win is the realization that Fernando Rodney, 13 years after pitching in a World Series with Detroit, finally won a ring at the age of 42. Granted, his season wasn't the most steady, as he was cut by the A's, and pitched a 4.02 ERA with 15 earned runs in 38 innings, but...he still got to pitch in a World Series and win this time.
Why Him in 2019?: Notched 5 more postseason strikeouts in a Nats uniform.
2020 Prediction: Probably retirement.

Coming Tomorrow- The Orioles. Thankfully I don't have many.

Uncustomed Heroes of 2018: Athletics

Perhaps the biggest surprise of 2018 was the sudden rise of the Oakland Athletics, a team that everyone had marked for death. Using a micro-payroll, homegrown talent, and very cheap free agents, this A's team clawed their way past an ailing Angels team and an unlucky Mariners team to battle the Yankees for the Wild Card spot. While this didn't exactly work well for them, their playoff appearance during an era of doldrums for Oakland baseball was definitely worth celebrating, especially after the tragic dissolution of their 2013 squad.

Despite said dissolution, one of the charter pitchers from said era, Trevor Cahill, returned to Oakland (along with Brett Anderson). Cahill had a comeback year, giving some solid middle-rotation work, and being a reliable arm when other pitchers opted out due to injury. Cahill's a free agent this year, and I expect him to sign with an AL West rival, perhaps the two that REALLY need pitching help about now.

Chad Pinder was a member of the A's outfield platoon that worked so well this year, and he graduated from the bench to being a starter after Matt Joyce's demotion. Like Mark Canha, he's a nice little young outfielder who's great with hits. He also gives the A's some options for 2019, because they have Pinder, Canha, Stephen Piscotty, Ramon Laureano and...

...Nick Martini, who had a mid-season debut and became an occasional member of the A's offense. He's also pretty impressive, and ended with an average just under .300. I feel like if the A's do some concrete moves with this outfield, Martini may be the one that either gets shafted or traded, but he's still sharp.

Daniel Mengden's presence in the rotation was certainly a throwback, as it harkened back to the days of Rollie Fingers' handlebar mustache. His numbers weren't bad either, though he spent some time on the DL, and his numbers waned after a while. Hopefully a full season will be a step-up for him.

Shawn Kelley's story was certainly an interesting one this year- he was dropped by the Nationals out of the blue, after Dave Martinez read a glare Kelley gave him after an allowed home run as a personal threat. So Kelley goes to Oakland and gets to play for Bob Melvin, which is nice. He also gets some serious time down the stretch, and helps his already-low ERA get even lower.

[Fun fact: this was the only picture available of Kelley on the A's. So thank the gods it was a good one]

Another addition the A's made to their strong bullpen was adding the great Fernando Rodney, who had been pitching well enough in Minneapolis, by fulfilling the rest of his 2 year deal. Rodney, at 41, gave some surprisingly sharp stuff in middle relief, keeping an ERA below 4, and only allowing 9 earned runs in 20 innings. Rodney, in his tenth uniform, and his seventh in four years, continued to be one of the more legendary relievers in the game.

Coming Tomorrow- Even after seeing them up close, I was still underwhelmed by the Toronto Blue Jays, but I can't help but admit that they had some serious talent waiting there.

Fernando Mania?

I was supposed to post a Michael Brantley custom this morning, but recent actions have required me to get this 'Fernando Rodney as a Twin' custom out of my system before it comes anymore outdated. And naturally, this gives me the opportunity to talk about two pressing matters.

Firstly...Fernando Rodney, as beloved as he is, may be one of the more inconsistent closers in recent memory. He's just insanely streaky. He'll be an All Star one season, blowing 10 saves the next season. And yet, he's 41, he's still employed by a major league roster, AND he just got traded to the Oakland Athletics, a team that's making a run at the playoffs. Rodney, so far this year, is working with a 3 ERA, 25 saves, and 6 blown saves. That's not THE WORST numbers he's done, as he had 7 blown saves in a half-year with Seattle in 2015, but at least here, you can tell that the problem is less Rodney and more his team. The Twins have been disappointing this season, and especially now that they've lost a lot of their better players, Rodney's been finding it more difficult to keep leads without his team blowing it.

He's also a 41-year-old closer, with a tendency to blow saves. So...Craig Kimbrel he is not. In fact, in a MATTER OF DAYS, I bet Kimbrel is gonna lap Rodney as the active saves leader. Rodney will likely be working long relief in Oakland, setting up Blake Treinen, so...I don't think he'll be saving many games. Meanwhile, Kimbrel is at 324 career saves, 1 less than Rodney, and...Kimbrel is not 41 and setting up Blake Treinen, so it's gonna happen.

Also, let's talk about the A's for a moment. In the past week, they've traded for Mike Fiers from Detroit, Shawn Kelley from Washington, and now they've traded for Rodney. They also traded for Jeurys Familia a little while ago. They currently have a stranglehold on the second Wild Card spot, which is very hard to believe, considering that they started the season in 4th place. Yes, Seattle could still steal it, but...Seattle's been on the downslope in the last few weeks, and didn't make as many deadline moves as the A's did.

The A's augmented an already strong team, and they've been absolutely solid since the ASG break. They're also one of the most HR-friendly rosters not named the Yankees, which is nice. Even with the inconsistency of Fernando Rodney, I still think the A's are gonna go on a tear. Which is a nice phrase to say in 2018.

Coming Tonight: Speaking of closers, the guy responsible for saving games in Pittsburgh. The offensive has gone down a bit since last month, but that isn't stopping them from fighting.

Uncustomed Heroes of 2017: Diamondbacks

After years of just barely getting by on Paul Goldschmidt, the Diamondbacks finally built a team ready for October, and though they fell a bit short of everyone's expectations, they were still a sight to behold this year. Chris Owings was injured for a bit, but he was still capable of some clutch moments throughout the year.

Nick Ahmed spent most of the season playing off the bench, as he's become sort of the weaker link of the original core-four infield (Goldy-Amhed-Owings-Lamb). He still had some nice moments this year, though.

Another big piece of the team that spent the year on the DL, Yasmany Tomas, did as well as he could in the outfield and third, but was employed for his bat, which was pretty trusty when he was healthy.

With all of those starters on the DL, it was up to bench heroes like Daniel Descalso (former 2011 Cardinal, eeeerrggh), to step into the lineup and start lifting things. He was also a really nice presence when it came time for the playoffs. He may have been used to that sort of time of year.

This year's closer in Arizona was Fernando Rodney. It's become clear that Rodney's consistency is less than it used to be, but when the team's in first and close games are being saved, it doesn't matter. Rodney was as good as he could be in the ninth, though I'll be surprised if he has another nice season left.

Of course, this guy was the true catalyst for everything. As per usual, Goldschmidt had a great season, racking up MVP votes and raising the team. Unlike past years, it wasn't all on him- J.D. Martinez, Jake Lamb and Zack Greinke were also scarily tough this year, and Goldy was able to thrive in a more consistently great environment. Hope this stays a thing.

Coming Tomorrow- They nearly won the World Series. Maybe they will for the 30th?

Customs for Christmas: Rays

 The Rays were able to clinch the AL Wild Card in 2013, but you wouldn't know that by the way that the Red Sox kicked their asses afterwards. Like, they were in the postseason one second, and then they were out.

I think this is my first Ben Zobrist custom. I never really got the appeal of the guy. Just another shortstop in the AL East. Jeter doesn't need competition.

 Fernando Rodney's season was nowhere near as good as his 2012 season, but he was an active closer in a division carrying a legend. Who knows if he'll be any good in 2014, but he probably will.

James Loney actually had a pretty nice comeback season. But being that it took place in Tampa, not too many people noticed.

Will get to the Reds a little later on.

Year by Year Customs: 1987

 

 This one's a very special custom. Sure, it's a custom of someone who only played one game, but who cares about that? It's a portrait of resiliency, of perseverance, and determination. Adam Greenberg's story is one of the most inspiring of the year, and if I don't customize that then I'm overlooking him.

I find it even better that he just signed with Baltimore. This is the return he needed.

 

Texas' last hope in the rotation.

 

Isn't this card awesome? I think it's a great display of the comeback season Rodney had.

 

Not shown: cornrows.

Coming Tomorrow- Our first 90's design.