Happy 75th Birthday Paul Simon

On October 13th Music Icon Paul Simon will be celebrating his 75th birthday.  I don't believe there are any Paul Simon cards in the Phungo collection, however I think we have found a worthy substitution.

2012 Topps Archivess #138 Joe DiMaggio

I also don't have any Joe DiMaggio  cards from his active years (likely out of Phungo budget ranges), but I do have a  handful of retro cards of the Yankees legend.

As I am sure most folks are aware DiMaggio is named dropped in Simon's song "Mrs Robinson" from "the Graduate".

Paul Simon is still a baseball fan, earlier this summer he was shown on TV at an Orioles game after being spotted the previous day in Pittsburgh watching the Pirates. Pretty cool trip for any fan.

flip

2012 Topps Archivess #138 Joe DiMaggio

The day Paul Simon was born Joe DiMaggio was enjoying one of the first few days off following his celebrated 1941 season. That was the year DiMaggio authored his 56 game hit streak while on the way to his 2nd of 3 MVP awards. The streak was so Compelling that DiMaggio won the MVP award over Ted Williams who hit .406 in 1941, a mark that has been unmatched since.

The Hitting streak is noted in the cartoon on the back of the archives card. A solid choice with some rather fun artwork.

Compare

1980 Topps #300 Ron Guidry

The Archives card draws from Topps 1980 issue. For Yankees cards the homage is satisfactory, the design and colors definitely evoke the original. If one were to quibble I supposes there could be complaints about the font sizes of the text on the two pennants, but I think it is close enough for Archives.

Sources and Links
Joe DiMaggio HoF Index
imdb
MLB Network

Game 163: 2012 Topps Archives #159 David Price

Game 163: It is not by technically a playoff game however it is pretty much the definition of a Playoff Game. After all, tonight's contest between the Rangers and Rays is a win or go home game.     

2012 Topps Archives #159 David Price

The Tampa Bay Rays are sending out David Price to start game 163 while the Rangers will have Martin Perez on the mound.  Both clubs are familiar with the postseason and I hope we get to see a good game to kickoff the (pre)postseason.

2012 Topps Archives
The David Price 2012 T Archives card above echoes 1984 Topps, a set which is similar to 1983 Topps but not quite as sharp for me.

Within the 2012 Topps Archives the 1984 retros are the fourth Set represented, running from card #151-#200.     

Sources
Cardboard Connection
MLB.com
baseball-ref.com

Sloppy Topps: 2012 Topps Cole Hamels Retros - seeing double?

One of the problems with producing both Archives and Heritage is that Topps is cannibalizing their designs at such a rate that a new release of any retro product gets a yawn.

To make matters worse, Topps will occasionally mail in their effort. 

2012 Topps Archives #7 Cole Hamels
2012 Topps Heritage #132 Cole Hamels

I didn't build either of the 2012 Topps Selfies sets - yes I said Selfies, lets face it Archives and Heritage are at some small level a by-product of Topps narcissism - regardless, I didn't notice this bit of Topps sloppiness until recently.

Ok the Archives card looks a bit airbrushed, but I am pretty sure we are talking the same picture here.


Yes Neither Archives nor Heritage are high end products, but both sets run at over 30 cents/card retail. With those kinds of numbers, I would like to see at least a little bit of work. 2012 Topps Archives including the 41 card All-Time Fan Favorites short prints runs only 241 cards - how much work is it for Topps to get pix on those 241 cards that are unique?


Sources
Urban Dictionary
Baseball Cardpedia

 

2012 Topps Archives First Look

My first impressions on Topps Archives is a thumbs up.  The price tag on this rack for a single 14 card retail rack pack was $5.34 at my local big box store. 
Highlights

 2012 Topps Archives #88 Mike Schmidt

2012 Topps Archives #108 Cliff Lee
2012 Topps Archives #188 Vance Worley

2012 Topps Archives Sticker #67S-I Ichiro
2012 Topps Archives #138 Joe DiMaggio
2012 Topps Archives #32 Adam Jones

That's right the 14 card pack included 3 Phillies!!! which is probably a record for a small pack for myself.

I like this set better then what Topps did with Lineage last year.  The base cards in Lineage was just to drab for me.   It doesn't hurt that the four years that were chosen for Topps Archives 1954, 1971, 1980 and 1984 are among the better designs in the Topps arsenal.  

My 2 initial complaints are 1) The cards are on the newer posterboard rather then the classic cardboard upon which the original sets were produced. 2) The 5.30/pack retail price comes out to over 40 cents/card - kind of heavy for retail.

Regardless, my first impression is a good one.  I haven't looked at the cards much in detail, but I am thinking that a Hobby Box may be in my future. The 200 card set size appeals to me, there appears to be a fun array of inserts - although they may be a bit confusing.

There is one other thing I like about Archives - judging from my limited 13 card sample, I like the photography - the shots are cropped as tightly to the subjects.  I am a fan of trying to figure out what game in which the photos were taken.  The last few years Topps has delivered some great digital close ups, but they are often too close for my liking.