2014 Topps NL ERA League Leaders Card w/Fernandez, Kershaw, and Harvey – Purple Border Version

2014 Topps NL ERA League Leaders Card w/Fernandez, Kershaw, and Harvey – Purple Border Version

I’m not nearly as far along on this ‘rainbow’ as I am on the one I am building of Giancarlo Stanton, but it is nice to still be able to find some more cards to fill holes in my collection.

The card comes from the 2014 Topps Series 1 set and celebrates the league leaders in ERA from the 2013 baseball season in the National League.

This is the Purple, Toys-R-Us, version.

 

Purple is certainly not a traditional color for a baseball card border.  But, Topps has injected quite a few ‘non-traditional’ colors into their cards over the last few years.

And it is not as bad as one may expect, though it is also far from spectacular – kind of right in the middle…

But, another great addition to my Jose Fernandez collection!  And that makes this collector very, very happy.

1975 Topps Set Card 136/660 – #232 – Diego Segui, Red Sox

1975 Topps Set Card 136/660 – #232 – Diego Segui, Red Sox

Progress: 136/660

Player Name:  Diego Segui

Team:  Boston Red Sox

Position:  Pitcher

Image Style:  Posed Portrait

Years In The Major Leagues:  15 seasons, 1962-75, 1977

Notes From His 1975 Season:  Diego Segui appeared in 33 games for the Red Sox in 1975.  By season’s end, he had a record of 2-5 with 6 saves and an ERA of 4.82.  Segui struck out just 45 batters in 71 innings of work while allowing 71 hits and 41 runs.

Notes From Career:   Diego Segui sported a 92-111 record by the end of his career.  He notched 71 career saves as well.  Segui was used as both a starting and relief pitcher, and he notched 28 complete games including 7 shutouts.  He has a career ERA of 5.69 and a strikeouts per nine innings ratio of 6.5.

1975 Topps Set Card 135/660 – #177 – Vic Correll, Braves

1975 Topps Set Card 135/660 – #177 – Vic Correll, Braves

Progress: 135/660

Player Name:  Vic Correll

Team:  Atlanta Braves

Position:  Catcher

Image Style:  Posed Portrait

Years In The Major Leagues:  8 seasons, 1972, 1974-80

Notes From His 1975 Season:  Vic Correll played in a career high 103 games during the 1975 season.  He connected for 70 hits in those games en route to a .215 batting average.  Of his 70 hits, Correll had 12 doubles, a triple, and 11 home runs.  He scored 37 runs for the Braves in 1975 while also driving in 39.

Notes From Career:   Vic Correll played for three different teams during his 8 year big league career.  He is a lifetime .229 hitter with 259 hits on his resume.  Correll was primarily used as a backup catcher and pinch hitter during his career.  He has a 97.9% fielding percentage at catcher.

Happy Birthday Thurman Munson!!!

Happy Birthday Thurman Munson!!!

Today we celebrate the birthday and marvelous career of Mr. Thurman Munson.

An 11-year veteran, that spent his full career in New York wearing pinstripes, Munson was and still is a beloved Yankee.

Taken from us way to early, Munson passed away at the age of 32 in an airplane accident.

Still, what he was able to accomplish in just over a decade on the baseball field is what to this day holds him in very high regards in New York and in the baseball world.

The stats:  1970 Rookie of the Year, 1976 AL Most Valuable Player, 7-time All-Star, 3-time Gold Glove winner, 2 World Series titles, and the hearts of millions.

Happy Birthday Mr. Munson.  You are missed dearly!!!

Dustin Pedroia 2009 Topps World Baseball Classic

Dustin Pedroia 2009 Topps World Baseball Classic

I’m starting to really like pulling cards of players that are sporting ‘Team USA’ gear on their baseball cards.

I like the WBC logo and the colors work very well for cards.

This is a card from 2009 that features Red Sox superstar, Dustin Pedroia.

 

My lone issue with the card is that so much of the surface is dedicated to the graphics and layout.

By my estimation, Dustin Pedroia makes up just 23% of the card’s surface area.  If he was wearing his standard beard, it may jump to 24%.

Miami Marlins 2014 Bowman Team Set

Miami Marlins 2014 Bowman Team Set

Well, I have another great addition to my Miami Marlins collection.  This time the team set comes from the recently released 2014 Bowman product.

The set consists of just 4 cards, but packs quite the punch when it comes to action.

Have a look:

 

Along with great action, the colors are packed with color as well.  And with minimal graphics, and not a lot of ‘random’ stuff added to the design of the card, the images are able to truly be the focal point of the card.

I especially like the card of Jake Marisnick.  And while he is not on the current major league roster, he may get the call up in September again to re-join the team.