2004 Topps Florida Marlins Team Set

2004 Topps Florida Marlins Team Set

The great thing about collecting team sets of a team that has just won a World Series is that they tend to get a little more attention in the collecting world the following year.

And that was the case when the Marlins came off of a 2003 World Series title as Topps gave them quite a few ‘extras’ in their 2004 flagship set.

The team set consists of 22 cards.  And then you have a few extra goodies:  Dontrelle Willis ROY card, 2 Gold Glove cards featuring Derek Lee and Luis Castillo, and two Postseason Highlights card.

Here is the full set:

I love it – and the 2004 design allows a nice, large image to take center-stage as the card’s main focal point.

I do wish that the ‘Postseason Highlights’ set had a few more cards in it – not having cards that feature Josh Beckett or Jeff Conine or Juan Pierre is a bit of a letdown…

Andre Dawson 2013 Topps Allen & Ginter – Mini Black Border

Andre Dawson 2013 Topps Allen & Ginter – Mini Black Border

Scratch another card of Andre Dawson from the 2013 Topps A&G set off of my ‘Need List’.

This time around, I was able to land the mini Black border card for my collection.

Check it out:

 

Adding this one to my collection now makes 4 versions of the Ginter card of Andre are home with me.

Now, it is time to hunt down the truly pesky ones…

Joe Morgan 2011 Topps Tier One – Base

Joe Morgan 2011 Topps Tier One – Base

I don’t get too wrapped up in the elite Topps releases like Museum Collection, Five Star, and Tier One.

My main reasons – pricing and availability.

Simply stated, there are not a lot of bargains to be found from these sets.  The cards are not available through retail outlets, and that hurts too.

But, every once in a while, I find a card while not purposely seeking it out.

The card?

A 2011 Topps Tier One card of Joe Morgan.

Have a look:

 

This is the base card of Morgan from the set.  It is serial numbered as
780/799 and features a nice shot of Wrigley Field’s backstop in the background of the image.

I am happy to have found this card for such a low price.  Maybe in time, I will find one of the colored parallels to match, but for now I am very happy with this purchase – even though I wish the image was zoomed-out just a bit more…

Giancarlo Stanton 2011 Bowman Chrome

Giancarlo Stanton 2011 Bowman Chrome

I already had the Black border base, and I already had the Gold border card as well.

So, when I had the chance to snag the perfect card to accompany those two, it was a no-brainer to add the 2011 Bowman Chrome card of Stanton to my collection.

Here it is:

 

The card is the same as the Black border version from the base set; this one was just dipped in Chrome.

In the picture used for this card, it looks like Stanton is tossing his bat towards the dugout after connecting for a home run.  Or maybe a pop-out. Or a whiff.  It’s really hard to tell.

The photo leaves a lot to the imagination, and I like that.  But, I really don’t like having NO CLUE as to what truly happened…

Did You Know…

Sam Crawford was the first player in major league history to capture 300 triples.

Hall Of Fame Debate: Is Dustin Pedroia On Track For Hall Of Fame Induction?

Hall Of Fame Debate: Is Dustin Pedroia On Track For Hall Of Fame Induction?

For now, this will be my final ‘Hall Of Fame Debate’ regarding players that starred in the 2013 World Series.

We’ve already debated Carlos Beltran and David Ortiz.

Now, we will take on the debate that surrounds Boston’s second baseman – Dustin Pedroia.

While I try not to have such conversations about players that are still in the prime of their career, I think Pedroia is a very interesting player to discuss.

In my opinion, Pedroia is on the border of elite and superb.  What makes him stand out is his approach to the game, his demeanor on the field, and the respect he has of the ballclub he plays for.

His numbers are pretty solid as well – a career .302 hitter with 1,218 hits in 8 major league seasons.  He offers a nice display of power for a little guy with 287 doubles and 99 dingers.  And while he is not blessed with the best speed on the team, his is a terrific base runner and has 119 career stolen bases and has scored 651 runs during his career.

Pedroia is also a terrific defender.  He is a 3-time Gold Glove Award winner and is the best defensive second baseman in the American League.

Pedroia won the Rookie of The Year Award in 2008, and followed it up with an MVP Award in 2009.  He has captured 1 Silver Slugger Award thus far, and as I mentioned earlier, he has 3 Gold Gloves to his credit.  He is also a 4-time All-Star.

Dustin Pedroia has won two World Series championships with the Boston Red Sox and has a postseason batting average of .247 with 25 RBI and 30 runs scored.

So, now to the debate….

Is this enough to say that Pedroia is a candidate for future Hall of Fame induction??  With so much already accomplished and so much still ahead of him, has he put together enough at the start of his career to be in the conversation of ‘current players most likely to be enshrined’??

For now, I will say that he is on track and I put him at a 60% chance of getting in.  I think that with so many years and seasons of playing big league ball ahead of him that anything can happen.  The beginning of his career has been very impressive, but taking it to the next level and becoming a perennial MVP candidate is something that would solidify his ranking among the current elite crop of players.  It is not his fault that he plays on very talented teams, but to be seen as the ‘best player on his team’ while they’re winning titles would be a huge feather in his cap!!

What do you think – Is Dustin Pedroia On Track For Hall Of Fame Induction?