Come Check Out My Recently Completed 2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ Subset!!!

Come Check Out My Recently Completed 2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ Subset!!!

Yep, another subset has been completed.  This one is the 2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ set.

The 20-card set offers a nice mixture of both current players and legends.  And the design allows for a nice, large image to be the main attraction.

Here is the full set:

Ultimately, I will always get behind a set like this.  I like subsets that celebrate baseball’s great history, player achievements, and heroic play.

But, this set offers up enough ‘duds’ to leave me slightly scratching my head.  And there are also some notable omissions from the set.  And while, I know that not every set can be a complete picture of the theme, especially when dealing with a budgeted number of cards to play with, I think that this set could have been built better with these changes:

Swap Joe Carter for David Wright
Swap Andy Pettitte for Justin Verlander
Swap Greg Maddux for Edgar Renteria
Swap Miguel Cabrera for Kirk Gibson

There, there you go – a few more historic players entered and a few that have yet to truly leave their mark on the postseason omitted.

‘Postseason Heroes’ – I love the idea, and the design is grand.  I just wish that it included a few more heroes and a few less zeroes…

2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ Subset – David Wright

2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ Subset – David Wright

The 2013 Topps Update baseball card set includes a subset tagged as ‘Postseason Heroes.  And with that theme, you would expect to find cards of modern players like Albert Pujols, Edgar Renteria, and Pablo Sandoval but none of these guys made the checklist.

That does leave room for some nice surprises…

This is the card of David Wright from the set:

 

At the conclusion of the 2013 baseball season, David Wright completed his tenth year in the big leagues.  And during that time, Wright has played in the postseason just one time – 2006.

In 2006, Wright and his New York Mets teammates made it to the NLCS after defeating the Dodgers in the NLDS.

In 10 career postseason games, David Wright has compiled a .216 batting average with 8 hits, including 3 doubles and a home run.  He has scored 3 runs while driving in six.  And he has struck out 8 times while amassing an on-base percentage of just .310.

2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ Subset – Justin Verlander

2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ Subset – Justin Verlander

The 2013 Topps Update baseball card set includes a subset tagged as ‘Postseason Heroes.  And with that theme, you would expect to find cards of modern players like Albert Pujols, Edgar Renteria, and Pablo Sandoval but none of these guys made the checklist.

That does leave room for some nice surprises…

This is the card of Justin Verlander from the set:

 

In his 9 season career, Justin Verlander has made it to the MLB postseason four times.  He has yet to win a World Series title, but he did play in both the 2006 and 2012 World Series.

Verlander has a 7-5 postseason record, including going 0-3 in the World Series.  He has a 3.28 ERA in 15 postseason starts and has struck out 108 batters in 93 innings of work while walking just 29.

2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ Subset – John Smoltz

2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ Subset – John Smoltz

The 2013 Topps Update baseball card set includes a subset tagged as ‘Postseason Heroes.  And with that theme, you would expect to find cards of modern players like Albert Pujols, Edgar Renteria, and Pablo Sandoval but none of these guys made the checklist.

That does leave room for some nice surprises…

This is the card of John Smoltz from the set:

 

In his 21 season major league career, John Smoltz made it to the postseason 14 times – 13 times with Atlanta and 1 time with St.Louis.

Smoltz has a career postseason record of 15-4 with 4 saves with 209 innings pitched.  He compiled an ERA of just 2.67 while striking out 199 batters while walking just 67.

In 1992, Smoltz won the 1992 NLCS due to his 2-win performance versus the Pittsburgh Pirates.

2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ Subset – Deion Sanders

2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ Subset – Deion Sanders

The 2013 Topps Update baseball card set includes a subset tagged as ‘Postseason Heroes.  And with that theme, you would expect to find cards of modern players like Albert Pujols, Edgar Renteria, and Pablo Sandoval but none of these guys made the checklist.

That does leave room for some nice surprises…

This is the card of Deion Sanders from the set:

 

It was kind of odd to find Deion in this set – especially since he never won a World Series.

But, if you look at the performance he put on in the 1992 Fall Classic as a member of the Atlanta Braves, you will quickly see why he was included.

Facing the Blue Jays, Deion went off – In 4 games he went 8-for-165 with two doubles and six singles.  He stole five bases and scored four runs while amassing a batting average of .533 and an on-base percentage of .588.

SUPERB!!!

2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ Subset – Bret Saberhagen

2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ Subset – Bret Saberhagen

The 2013 Topps Update baseball card set includes a subset tagged as ‘Postseason Heroes.  And with that theme, you would expect to find cards of modern players like Albert Pujols, Edgar Renteria, and Pablo Sandoval but none of these guys made the checklist.

That does leave room for some nice surprises…

This is the card of Bret Saberhagen from the set:

 

Bret Saberhagen played in the major leagues for 16 seasons.  He played for four teams during that span, and had his greatest postseason success during his time with the Kansas City Royals.

In the 1985 World Series, Saberhagen was the MVP.  He started two games for the Royals – winning and going the distance in both.  He pitched 18 innings, allowing just 1 run while striking out 10 batters and walking just one.

2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ Subset – Nolan Ryan

2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ Subset – Nolan Ryan

The 2013 Topps Update baseball card set includes a subset tagged as ‘Postseason Heroes.  And with that theme, you would expect to find cards of modern players like Albert Pujols, Edgar Renteria, and Pablo Sandoval but none of these guys made the checklist.

That does leave room for some nice surprises…

This is the card of Nolan Ryan from the set:

 

With a major league career that spanned 27 seasons and four decades, Nolan Ryan appeared in the postseason just five times.  He and his New York Mets teammates made it to and won the 1969 World Series.

Ryan’s postseason career numbers are: 7 starts, 2-2 record, 1 save, 58 innings pitched, 3.07 ERA, 63 strikeouts and 14 walks.

2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ Subset – Mariano Rivera

2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ Subset – Mariano Rivera

The 2013 Topps Update baseball card set includes a subset tagged as ‘Postseason Heroes.  And with that theme, you would expect to find cards of modern players like Albert Pujols, Edgar Renteria, and Pablo Sandoval but none of these guys made the checklist.

That does leave room for some nice surprises…

This is the card of Mariano Rivera from the set:

Mariano Rivera’s postseason resume is incredibly impressive.  In 19 big league seasons, he made it to the postseason 16 times.  He has played in 7 World Series match-ups, winning 5 titles.

Rivera has a postseason record of 8-1 with 42 saves.  He has a postseason career ERA of 0.70 and has allowed a total of 13 runs in 141 innings of work.  He has struck out 110 batters in those 141 innings while striking out 21.

2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ Subset – Buster Posey

2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ Subset – Buster Posey

The 2013 Topps Update baseball card set includes a subset tagged as ‘Postseason Heroes.  And with that theme, you would expect to find cards of modern players like Albert Pujols, Edgar Renteria, and Pablo Sandoval but none of these guys made the checklist.

That does leave room for some nice surprises…

This is the card of Buster Posey from the set:

 

In a short, 5-year career, Buster Posey has already established himself as a big-time postseason performer.

Posey has made it to the World Series twice, each time walking away with championship hardware.  In 9 games, Posey has amassed a .286 batting average and a .324 on-base percentage.  He has collected 10 hits including two home runes while driving in 5 runs and scoring 3 times.

2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ Subset – David Ortiz

2013 Topps Update ‘Postseason Heroes’ Subset – David Ortiz

The 2013 Topps Update baseball card set includes a subset tagged as ‘Postseason Heroes.  And with that theme, you would expect to find cards of modern players like Albert Pujols, Edgar Renteria, and Pablo Sandoval but none of these guys made the checklist.

That does leave room for some nice surprises…

This is the card of David Ortiz from the set:

 

While he is still in the process of writing his postseason legacy, David Ortiz has already cemented himself as one of the sport’s great playoff heroes.

As a member of the Boston Red Sox for the past 11 seasons, Ortiz has helped take Boston to the playoffs seven times.  He has compiled a career playoff batting average of .295 while connecting for 17 home runs and driving in 60 runs.

Amazingly, in World Series play, he is even better.  Much better.  In three World Series match-ups, Ortiz has played in 14 games.  He had amassed a .455 batting average while going 20-for-44.  Of his 20 hits, 6 are doubles and 3 are home runs.  He has driven in 14 RBI in those 14 games while also scoring 14 runs.