Card #55: Framed Reprint Rookie

This will have to be a worthy substitute until I can add an authentic 1955 Topps to the collection.

The back is awesome too.

I have always been a fan of these framed rookie reprints.  They're museum quality pieces. This particular example is the silver frame /99 parallel from 2014. 

Card #54: Let's Play A Game

The 1968 Topps Game pieces have been getting released again in recent years thanks to sets like Heritage and Archives.

The originals surprisingly sell for very little considering the star power involved.

Roberto Clemente had been labeled as "Double" for his card.

Clemente had 440 career doubles.

Former face of the Pirates resurgence, Andrew McCutchen, got the same treatment for his release in the 2017 Heritage set.

Card #53: Beautiful Photography

I promise to get better with my updates on this blog.  I have scanned in about 40 Clemente cards so that I can do more regular updates here.

I never got a chance to see Clemente play in person having been born a decade after his death. 

From all the video footage, articles, and photos I have seen I can only imagine how great it must have been to see him play in his prime.

I often knock on Topps for using the same photos over and over, but Stadium Club is a release that they get right year after year.

Take this 2008 Stadium Club base card for example.

Such an awesome image and unique angle of Clemente holding the bat like he is a sniper.

The back features the same image along with career stats.

Card #52: Heritage in Every Sense of the Word

This post was drafted back in January / February 2018....
Due to what I perceived was a lack of interest on the blog, I stopped posting.  Here is the post as it originally appeared.


I just saw the checklist for 2018 Topps Heritage and I am really looking forward to it.  The 2018 Heritage design is based on 1969 Topps.  Cutch has card #50 in the set.  Do you know who was card #50 in 1969 Topps?

Yup, the Great One.
I have a copy of this card safely protected.
One day I will take scans of all my vintage cards, but in the mean time here is a shot of it stolen from Google images.

Card #51 :Happy Presidents Day!

I don't know much about cardtoons, but I do have a Jay Bellhop by them that played for the Pirates Parrots.

Such a unique oddball

I like the drawing on the front. It reminds me of the Lincoln Memorial statue.

Cards #49 &50: No Longer Lost

I just posted about these on Collecting Cutch, but AJ of The Lost Collector sent me a package that included 2 new Clemente cards.

Kmart!!!!

1982!!!

Gnarly!!!!

Kmart again????!!!!!!

Card #48: This Card is Action Packed

Hailing from 1994 comes this rounded embossed thicker stock card from one of my favorite 90s brands, Action Packed.

I remember buying lots of Action Packed football cards in the 90s hoping to get some sweet looking cards.

The back of the card further talks about Clemente's humanitarian efforts.

Card #47: Where'd you go Cutch?

Clemente has been getting SP photo variants in recent Topps sets.  Here is one that removes Andrew McCutchen from card number 650 in 2017 Topps and replaces it with Clemente.

The back features 5 of Clemente's prime year stats.

This version sells for significantly more than other Clemente SP photo variants.  

Card #46 : Gallery of Greats

Here's another insert set that Topps has produced in the recent 5 years with a title including Greats.

It makes sense for Clemente to be included as the bronze statue outside PNC Park recognizes Clemente as The Great One.

Cards #43-45: More Golden Moments

It's Super Bowl Sunday.  Someone today will have a moment that will lead them to greatness.  Could it be a member of the Eagles leading the team to their first Super Bowl victory?  Could it be Tom Brady leading the Patriots to their 6th Superbowl?

History will be made today.  That's for sure.

I showed off another of these last week

Here are three more that I have.

I am currently missing GG40

Card #42: Remembering #42

Since today's card is #42, I thought I should show off #42 himself.
I will show off another Jackie Robinson card on April 15th when the league celebrates the great feat that Jackie accomplished.

This is one of my favorite Clemente cards in my collection.
It features a nice bat relic of Clemente (it's getting rarer and rarer to find jersey relics of Clemente these days) along with a jersey swatch of Jackie Robinson.

Card #41: Friday Flashback

Here's a 2014 Heritage recognizing a flashback to 1965 when Clemente won his 3rd batting title.

The back details how he accomplished the feat by going 2 for 4 on the final day of the season and hitting a homerun that gave the Bucs the lead.

Card #40: Calling Jeff Torberg and Cap Paterson, you're needed

It's Thursday so let's show some vintage cardboard to have fun with #tbt.

For $1 I grabbed this checked off Roberto Clemente checklist from 1967 Topps.

One of the previous owners needed 11 cards from numbers 371 to 457.  Not bad at all.  Hopefully they were able to complete it eventually.

Card #39: Golden Great

Considering that this card is number 39 it seemed appropriate to show it off today.  I have a few more of these Golden Moments

This insert was from 2012.  Topps produced these to be inserted in Series 1.  The 75 card checklist featured 5 cards of 15 of the greatest ballplayers to put on a pair of cleats.  Besides Clemente, others included Lou Gehrig, Babe Ruth, Nolan Ryan, Derek Jeter, Ty Cobb, Willie Mays, Cal Ripken Jr, Hank Aaron, Tom Seaver, Sandy Koufax, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, Albert Pujols, Jackie Robinson.

This particular card discusses two games where Clemente amassed 10 hits.

Card #38: Help Me Piece This Together

Earlier in the month I mentioned that I am trying to put the 1986 Donruss Roberto Clemente puzzle together.  In order to do this I will need two copies of each "puzzle card"

When completed the puzzle will look like this beautiful painting by Dick Perez as seen below.

This card represents all the puzzle pieces inserted in the old wax packs.  The back talks about both Clemente and Perez.

Currently I only have this card which contains 3 puzzle pieces.

I do have the completed mini puzzle which as you can see by comparing to the puzzle card above features different pieces.

I am looking to get two of each "puzzle card" so if you come across any PLEASE send them my way.  I want one copy to put the puzzle together and glue it in a frame.  I want the other copy to put in the Clemente binder.

Any and all help would be appreciated especially since these sometimes end up in dime boxes.

Card #37 : Class of 73

We just watched six new former ball players have their names called for election into the Hall of Fame Class of 2018.  Two were selected by veterans committee last month and four more last week.  It looks to be a very long day for the Class of 2018.

Roberto Clemente was elected to the Class of 1973 following his untimely death earlier that year.  His only classmate was Warren Spahn.

Oddly enough both players wore number 21 in their careers.
The back of the card discusses the impact both these fine men had on the game.

Card #36: The Toys Made Us

I have been watching a lot of Netflix in my down time recently.

One show/documentary that I particularly like is a series called The Toys That Made Us.  It is a four episode web series discussing the origins of hit toy lines and the impact they had on pop culture.  So far Star Wars, Barbie, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, and G.I. Joe have been featured.

Kenner of course not only made Star Wars figures, but in the late 80s went on to produce one of the most collectible lines of sports figures ever produced.

I doubt it would ever happen, but I would love to see one about Starting Lineups.  As a kid I had two small waste basket bins full of Starting Lineups.  I had so many of the stars and nonstars.  I would go to my friend's house and we would pretend to play a game using the figures.

My 1988 Cal Ripken Jr. figures lost both arms trying to hit a nerf ball, keep in mind he was a fielding figure.

I didn't have many of the legends figures as I didn't know much about them.  I remember having a twin pack of Willie Mays and a Willie McCovey.  I also had a Hank Aaron, which I used for my shoebox diorama I had to construct for my book project about a historical figure.  Yup, I chose Hank Aaron as a historical figure to write and present about.  Take that George Washington.

One figure I never had and still don't have is the twin pack of Roberto Clemente with Willie Stargell.

I did however manage to grab the card that came with the figures.

The Starting Lineup cards featured images of the players not usually seen in major releases and your standard offensive statistics on the back.

Card #35: Stroke of Inspiration

Today we look at the painting inspired design of the 2016 Diamond Kings release.

The lack of logos for "old timers" doesn't bother me so much. The card features a sleeveless jersey with a long sleeve undershirt worn by Clemente in their home uniform.  It appears that Clemente is wearing a wristband which I rarely seen him wear in other cardboard.

The back of the card features a neat fact about how Clemente switched to a heavier bat in 1961 which turned him from a career .288 hitter to winning the batting title that season with a .351 average.

Card #34: Welcome To the Hall Vlad

Yesterday it was announced that Vladimir Guerrero would be joining the likes of Ken Griffey Jr, Roberto Clemente,  Joe DiMaggio,  and many others in the Baseball Hall of Fame.

The back makes mention not of their offensive abilities, but what they accomplish defensively.

The Hall of Fame class this year will consist of Vlad,  Chipper Jones, Trevor Hoffman, Alan Trammell, Jack Morris, and Jim Thome.   Congrats to the Class of 2018.

Cards #32 & 33: Triple Threads Pairings

I won a small lot of Pirates Triple Threads cards back in September 2017.  In addition to an emerald parallel of Cutch I also got two Roberto Clemente parallels.

The Emerald is numbered 232/250 and the gold is numbered 35/99.

Not only does the back include your standard counting stats (G, AB, R, H, RBI, and AVG) found on many older Topps cards there is also Total Bases, Slugging Percentage, and OPS.

It also has the standard 3 quick notes detailing facts about the player both on the field and off field.

Card #31: Welcome To 1992 Roberto

Roberto Clemente passed away twenty years prior to the 1992 Topps release.

2017 Archives gave us a nice What If? moment though by providing the greatest rightfielder in Pittsburgh history to be seen on a card design he unfortunately wasn't alive for.

The image used isn't an overused image by Topps so that was a nice surprise.  The colors match the same colors used on all other Pirates players from the original 1992 set.

My only gripe with the card is that it doesn't have an image of Forbes Field or Three Rivers Stadium on the back.