CTB: 1998 Topps #334 Andruw Jones (ASR)

Our Second of Three 1996 HOF Profiles featuring inductees who were also honored on Rookie Cup Cards is of Phillies Nemesis Andruw Jones.  

1998 Topps #334 Andruw Jones (image swiped from tcdb)

On this card we have a quality action shot of Andruw just prior to contact - something that would result in hits 1933 times during Jones 17 year career (2541 hits as a professional). His Career Home Run totals were even more impressive 434 MLB/550 Pro. 

Notice on the card that Jones is wearing the Jackie Robinson 50th Anniversary Patch that all players wore during the 1997 season. Andruw finished 5th in the Rookie of the Year Voting - an Award that has been named after Jackie Robinson since 1987.  Nice seeing Two Hall of Famers represented on a rookie cup (keep reading there's more!) 

Rookie Cup Credentials 

Before his 1997 rookie campaign even started Andruw Jones was already a World Series hero who hit a Pair of Home Runs vs the Yankees, albeit in a losing effort. 

To earn his ROY votes Andruw Jones played a full NL season in 1997 with 18 HR, 70 RBI but only a .231 AVG (93 OPS+ / +3.3 WAR) which was similar to the 3 Cup Team outfielders - Jose Cruz Jr (26/68/.248, 101/+2.2), Jose Guillen (14/70/.267, 82/-3.3). Mike Cameron has a Snub Beef (14/55/.259, 109/+4.4) as does Vlad SR (.302 BA, 117 OPS+). In fact the BBWAA ranked Guerrero ahead of Guillen by a handful of votes on the NL side and Cameron received more AL votes then Guillen did within the NL bracket.  

Flip

1998 Topps #334 Andruw Jones (b-side image also tcdb)   

First we want to look at the demographic info and note that Andruw Jones was the 3rd MLB player from Curacao, after Hensley Meulens (1989) and Ralph Milliard (1996). In the 3 decades since Andruw Jones the number of players born in Curacao has grown to 17 (that is a 560% increase for a territory that had ZERO players 40 years ago)

Moving down the text mentions Jones as both an Offensive and Defensive threat. And he was - Andruw just missed the 20/20 targets during his rookie campaign but did hit them 3 times in his early career. In the Outfield he earned 10 gold gloves. 2005 was his standout season where he led the league in HR & RBI with 51 & 128 respectively (+6.7 WAR) good enough for 2nd place in the NL MVP voting (Albert Pujols 41/117/.330 +8.4 WAR) 

We also get a quote from Andruw Jones' Manager Bobby Cox that invokes the name of another well known CenterFielder, Joe DiMaggio. If you're keeping score at home that is 4 HOF on a single Rookie Cup Card Andruw, Jackie, Bobby Cox (as a Manager) and Joe D. 

Andruw Jones HOF Index

1998 Topps #334 (Rookie Cup)

2001 Topps Stadium Club Pat Burrell (Game Dated Card/Phungo Challenge)

Sources and Link

1998 Topps All-Star Rookie Cup Index

TCDB

National Baseball Hall of Fame

Baseball-Ref

Phun Cards and a Phungo Challenge

Phun Cards is a new feature that we are going to try running here at Phungo.  There have been numerous series that have been started here and never quite finished or returned to at all.  Like everyone here, I have a bit of ADHD and bunches of ideas dance around my brain and don't make it to the page or only do in a half-ass way.

Well today I want to introduce one of those ideas.....and see where it goes.

I am hoping that Phun Cards can be our version of the Cardboard Appreciation err I mean CA feature.  Typically single cards that are interesting for one reason or another.  I would also like to bring Hall of Fame profile back and make it part of Phun Cards.

Enough blabbing - Here is the first ever Phun Card 

2000 Topps Stadium Club #148 Pat Burrell

yeah yeah I know, gotta get the scanner hooked up.  not a priority - I have all this house stuff to do and all these important twitter feeds to follow.  And it's a shame because this is a pretty decent looking action shot from way back at the turn of the century.  Stadium Club has always had banging photography - in 2008 I think it may have come at the expense of Topps Flagship product which had horrid photos.

This card features a young Pat Burrell at the other end of his career which appears to be coming to an end.  We also have a pretty decent guest star on the card in the Person of Andruw Jones.  Amazingly Jones had already been in the league 4 years and will likely bookend Burrell's career by playing for the Yankees this season. 

Phungo Challenge

It is a Friday and you read this far because you really don't feel like working so here is your Phungo Phriday Challenge ....

I have always wanted to do this - Ok all you Baseball-Reference junkies - you know where we are going here:  What day was this game played?