Sunday Night Baseball: Alex Gordon 2010 Topps CYMTO #55

THE KANSAS CITY ROYALS ARE ON SUNDAY NIGHT BASEBALL!!!

I wonder if that sentence has ever been written before. The Phillies are out of it and Team Phungo will need to look elsewhere for playoff baseball this season. One of the teams we will be rooting for is the KC Royals. Hopefully their long playoff drought will end in 2014 and their fans will get to experience October baseball for the first time in about a generation.

2010 Topps CYMTO #55 Alex Gordon 

Beyond their playoff exile the other reason I can get behind the Royals is they have a local minor league (Lo-A) affiliate, The Wilmington Blue Rocks. In recent years I have made it to about one Blue Rocks game a year. Consequently the names of some of their players are familiar to me. Those players include Mike Moustakas, Chrstistian Colon, and Kelvin Herrera.

Alex Gordon bypassed Wilmington during his accelerated ascent to the majors, but he did play a handful of games with the Blue Rocks in 2010 when he was experiencing a prolonged slump. He has had an odd career. In 2005 Gordon was the #2 overall pick in the MLB draft, he was in the majors by 2007 (but not 2006 - see below). He was a big enough star that Topps made buffoons of themselves over him. After a decent sophomore effort in 2008 at age 24, Gordon's career tanked. This hit bottom in 2010 when he found himself all the way back in A ball.

Somewhere in there The Royals moved Alex Gordon from 3rd base to the left field. This is where he has become an all-star. He has won 3 gold gloves at his new position and his offensive production has reached a point expected of a high first round pick. Currently his 5.6 combined WAR ranks 3rd among AL position players. He has a healthy .283/.356/.457 slash line yielding a 124 OPS+. His 17 Homers and 61 RBI lead the Royals. Hopefully his offensive production continues down the stretch and he can help the Royals reach the Postseason.    

2006 Topps RC
It is hard for me to believe that the MLB/MLBPA Rookie Card guidelines  have been in effect for eight years. Basically the MLB rules stipulate that a player must have played in a Major League game prior to appearing on a baseball card. For reasons I don't understand minor league centered sets like Bowman fall outside this realm.

When the new RC standards were introduced in 2006 there was a controversy over the Topps #297 Alex Gordon card. The card was included in the base set, including Rookie Card Logo, but Gordon hadn't yet reached the majors.  Topps withdrew the card.

There are a bunch of odd cutout versions of the card floating around. Topps literally cut out the image of Gordon's yet still issued the card. This is discussed on the flip of the above card:

2010 Topps CYMTO #55 Alex Gordon  (b-side)


I believe Topps has stated "it was an honest mistake" when discussing the card. They didn't say that it was a Publicity Grab to whip the media into a frenzy in the hopes that billions of people will start buying baseball cards again.

Regardless Topps withdrew the cards which is unfortunate for set collectors, because unless they have very deep pockets for a singular card oddity (or they are Keith Olbermann) they will have a gaping hole in their 2006 Topps Complete set. Or they can just use this CYMTO card.

One oddity about the CYMTO Gordon is the 2nd Topps logo. The Red logo in the top right is what appeared on the original 2006 Topps card. The ghosted grey one just upward of middle left is on the CYMTO card only.

 
    

Sources & Links
2014 Playoff Previews
Baseball CardPedia
Baseball-ref
ESPN Darren Rovell

Phillies 2015 AFL roster: Logan Moore 2011 Bowman #BDPP44

The Phillies 2014 season is in a shambles and we have been looking ahead to Phillies future since prior to the All-Star break. This week the Arizona Fall League rosters were announced. This gives us a glimpse into some of what the Phils may be thinking regarding 2015 and beyond.

2011 Bowman #BDPP44 Logan Moore (rc)

Tommy Joseph was the top catching prospect in the Phillies system, but he has had multiple health issues the last few seasons which may leave an opening for Logan Moore.  Unfortunately Moore's offensive output has been light (.226 /.290/.339 combined A & AA in 2014). On the plus side he has spent the majority of the season in Reading which is up a level for his age.

The Phillies entire minor league system appears pretty soft, and catcher is no exception. When the time comes to replace Carlos Ruiz, I am not sure the answer will be Cameron Rupp, Tommy Joseph or Logan Moore.   If he is adequate defensively Logan Moore may be able to contribute at the Major league level simply because he is a left-handed hitting catcher. This will help him get a nod as a platoon backup and situational pinch hitter.

The Phillies will send seven players to their AFL rep, the Scottsdale Scorpions. Joining Moore will be Pitchers Ryan O'Sullivan, Colton Murray, Nefi Ogando, and Ethan Stewart, along with Shortstop Roman Quinn (BA #10 Phillies Prospect). The final spot is TBA.

Other than Quinn, there doesn't appear to be a lot to get excited about in that list. Hopefully one of the pitchers will find themselves during the fall and can emerge as a 2015 prospect.  

Updated 2014 10 08
Adam Morgan has filled the TBA spot according to Williamsport Crosscutters via Twitter (@crosscutters) 

Sources & Links
Arizona Fall League (twitter)
Baseball-ref
@ChrisEckstein via That Balls Outta Here 
Baseball-America
@crosscutters

Snapshots 2014 08 22 White Sox @ Yankees

Team Phungo took a road trip to New York this past weekend to catch what is likely our last Derek Jeter home game. 

Derek Jeter (Tyler Flower Catching - I believe this is in the 1st inning)

We may have been there to see the Captain but the evening belonged to Martin Prado.  The veteran super utility player got both a Home Run and a Walk off single accounting for 3 of the Yankees runs in the 4-3 victory.

Jeter went 1-5 in the game with the ht being a single. Regardless the Yankees crowd was glad to see him play and showed their appreciation.


Snapshots

Shane Greene vs Tony Abreu

The Three White Sox runs came courtesy of a Home Run by Cuban Rookie of the Year candidate Tony Abreu.  The photo above is of the pitch upon which Abreu hit is homer. The ball just cleared the wall in left center. Greene settled down after a miserable first inning and was able to pitch into the 6th. 

John Danks vs Jacoby Ellsbury (5th inning) 

We didn't sit there much but our tix were int he CF bleachers. It was a fun atmosphere for a game. We had an obstructed view that kept us from seeing Left Field, but it to allow me to take some ok shots of the action at the plate.

In my opinion Yankee Stadium is better lit than Citizen's Bank Park. There is a bank of lights behind the plate that were not even lit during the game. Not sure of the reasoning, but adequate illumination form the remaining lights does seem a possibility

Retired Numbers

The Yankees retired Joe Torre's #6 the day after our game, so I imaging Friday night was the last time that the Retired number board had "only"17 numbers displayed.

Sources
Baseball-ref

On The Road: 2014 0822+ NYC

Highlights
Central Park
Caxellula
 
Recomended
Citiizen M
Yankee Stadium (White Sox 3 @ Yankees 4)
Whitney Museum
Balkanika
 

Meh
The Breslin
This is Our Youth

Overrated/Disappointing
NJ Transit

On The Road: 2014 0812+ DC

Highlights
Stupid F-ing Bird (and Wooly Mammoth)
Jose Andres Pepe
National Portrait Gallery
Compass Rose

The Swann House
 
Recomended
the Board Room
Hilton Dupont Circle
Tryst
National Zoo
Proof
Filter

American History Museum

Meh

Annoying

I-95 In a rainstormDC Driving

Snapshots 2014 08 19 Mariners @ Phillies

The Seattle Mariners spoiled Ryan Howard Bobble Head Night by beating the Phillies 5-2 in a game that really wasn't that close

Snapshots

The Phillies may not have looked that good, but the August Sunset did provide some nice views
 

 Ryan Howard did connect with a Double in his 1-4 night which pretty much made him the Phillies offensive star on a rather dismal night for the squad.

Hisashi Iwakuma

Credit has to be given to the Mariners starting pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma who is having an incredible season. He pitched 8 innings struck out 11 while walking NONE and yielding only 4 hits, Howard's double and three singles. For the season Iwamura is posting a very healthy 10.0 K/BB ration (120-12). A year ago Iwakuma led the AL in Pitchers WAR. 

AJ Burnett

The Tuesday night start by AJ Burnett put him over some sort of Game Started Threshold that netted the veteran more coin then Team Phungo takes home in a year. Postgame it was revealed that Burnett mentioned that he doubts he will pitch in 2015.

 

The Phanatic gives Robinson Cano some pointers. 

I was watching a rebroadcast of the game (Team Phungo is a glutton) and Tom McCarthy mentioned that Cano gave Phillies coach Larry Bowa a Rolex Watch as a thank you gift for all the help that Bowa had given Cano while both were with the Yankees. 

I was impressed with Cano's field presence, while he had an unremarkable game (single in 4ABs, RBI, Run Scored) he showed some leadership. He captained the infield on shifts and appeared to be frequently discussing hitting with rookie 3B Kyle Seager  

GGA

  Felix Hernandez

Good Guy Award goes out to Felix Hernandez who signed A TON of autographs. Other GGAs for The Phillies Cody Asche and the Mariners Fernando Rodney. Several of the Mariners signed a couple of autographs. Pretty good for a club that is right on the edge of the playoff hunt. Princeton Alum Chris Young also appeared to hosting some local fans and invited them down on the field for BP.

 Bobblehead

Just wanted to note that the Ryan Howard comes with a busted bat, which seems pretty appropriate.

A few seasons ago every Phillies game was a sellout and Bobble Head nights were a particularly tough ticket. This week they Honored one of their biggest starts the Phillies drew less than 32 thousand fans.

Sloppy Topps Photoshop: 2009 Topps Heritage #563 Pedro Martinez

A few weeks ago we discussed the Hall of Fame qualifications of Pedro Martinez. While Pedro did play for the Phillies, I elected to present a Red Sox Card in the post. He played for several clubs beyond the Sox and Phils but to me he is part of Red Sox Nation.

Tonight we return to Pedro and post him as a Phil. 

2009 Topps Heritage #563 Pedro Martinez 

2009 Heritage homages the horizontal 1960 Topps Set which also features two photos. The large color photo is a portrait while the smaller black & whilte photo is a non-game "in action" shot.

On this card I believe that both of these pix are likely photoshopped. Martinez only pitched a dozen times for the Phillies - I forgive Topps for not getting a pix of him in a real live Phils Jersey.

PhotoSloppy
I do want to draw your attention to a bit of sloppiness on Topps part on the smaller B/W shot. Notice in the shadow of Perdo's left arm you can see his uniform number. It is a little hard to make out so Check out this enlargement:

The front number is fine on a Mets jersey. However that isn't the csse with a Phillies uniform - To my knowledge the Phillies don't carry a number on the A-side of any of their current jerseys.

I don't think this is a photoshop disaster, just an oddity you find out about when you look at too many cards. 

Sources & Links
Pedro Martinez HoF Index 

Baseball-ref
HoF Candidate Pedro Martinez

Sunday Night Baseball: 2015 Hall of Fame Candidate John Smoltz - 2003 Topps #556

For tonight's Sunday Night Baseball feature we are posting the 2nd installment of our 2015 HoF candidates. With the Braves hosting the Nats we turn to John Smoltz.

2003 Topps #556 John Smoltz

The HoF case for John Smoltz is interesting.  Due to a career arc that moved him to the closer role Smoltz is pretty unique in the history of the game.  Despite only starting five games over a 5 year period (2000-2004) Smoltz still found time to win 213 games. In addition to that big number Smoltz won a World Series (1995) and collected a Cy Young award. He was a member of 8 All-Star teams and started the 1996 game that was hosted by the Phillies.

Smoltz Advanced stats numbers give him a little trouble. The four years he spent closing likely hurt Smoltz career WAR numbers. His 69.5 WAR number is a few ticks below the Average for HoF candidates. That number puts Smoltz above Jim Palmer, Don Sutton, Juan Marichal and Don Drysdale. It also puts him below Non-Haller Rick Reuschel.

There is a significant third aspect to Smoltz's HoF resume - His Postseason numbers. The man was 15-4 in 209 playoff innings. His ERA in those game was a very solid 2.67. 

Phungo Verdict
HoF - This is a pretty easy one for me. Even with the baseball world turning towards SABRmetrics I think the BBWAA will agree and put John Smoltz in the Hall on Ballot One.  The overall career numbers coupled with the World Series Ring and Smoltz's dominant postseason numbers make for  a pretty strong case. In addition I think the BBWAA will look favorably upon Smoltz for being able to accept any role to help the team.

2003 Topps

I love this card. In general I think 2003 Topps is underrated. The rich colors throughout the set work and I like the profile pix in the lower corner which echoes 1983 Topps, another Phungo favorite. Beyond that I am a fan of cards with the throwback unis. The Braves Hank Aaron era throwback meshes well with the set color scheme.  HoF card for a HoF player.

Pix
The photo on this card was taken in the 9th inning of a Braves 5-3 victory over the Phillies on July 27, 2002. There are couple of Phillies and Braves cards in 2003 Topps that have the throwbacks, not all of these can be attached to the July 27th game as the teams wore the unis for all 3 games of the weekend series. The 7/27 and 7/28 games were both day games while Friday 7/26 was played at night. We were able to pin down the Smoltz card as the middle game on Saturday as it was the only time he pitched in the series.

John Smoltz HOF Index

1991 Score #208 (Year of the No-Hitter)

2002 Topps #145 (1996 ASG w/ Eddie Mathews Memorial Patch)

Sources and Links
Phungo HoF Index

Game Date Cards Index
The Throwback Report 
2015 Topps HoF Candidates
Baseball-ref

Update
20017 0727: The Pix paragraph was added, Sources and Links reconfigured.

2014 Topps A&G: Quick Hits and Thoughts

Yeah I am way behind on this quick hit review but I am going to publish it anyway.

Picked up a Rack Pack and a single of 2014 Topps A&G a few weeks back. These are the Highlights.

 

2014 Topps A&G #307 Cliff Lee 

Decent Design, still says Ginter but it just different enough form other sets to keep it interesting. 

The Team Name dwarfing the player name is a bit jarring. This is a departure from prior A&G designs.  For most part past A&G designs have not featured team names. In 2011 a square team logo was displayed on each card.

Lee was the only Phillies player I got in the bounty. 

2014 Topps A&G Heritage #223 Tony Gwynn

I don't remember how many cars I picked up in the packs. I am thinking 24. Close to half of them were Hall of Famers. This is probably my favorite out of those - Pulling a card of the recently deceased Tony Gwynn brought a pang of sadness to me. 

2014 Topps A&G 129 Hank Aaron

2014 Topps A&G 228 Orlando Cepeda

2014 Topps A&G 215 Johnny Bench

I have a pretty solid HoF cards collection and these are nice additions. I like the classic Braves uni on Hammerin' Hanks card. 

2014 Topps A&G Minis

Minis are always a highlight of AnG. The Carew and Wacha cards are both members of the 3 card special border pack that comes inside rack packs. Massaccio was a painter, the image Topps used is directly from wikipedia - glad I spent $3 on that pack.

2014 Topps A&G Pastimes #PP-MT Mike Trout #PP-NR Nolan Ryan

I think this is the 2014 A&G common insert. The B-sides lists the players hobbies - Trout collects baseball cards, Nolan runs a baseball team. 

#100 Queen Victoria @#119 Felicia Day

Some of the non-baseball cards in this year's set. Here we have the one time Queen of England and an actress from "Buffy the Vampire Slayer"

 

At the outset A&G inserts were always minis, not so much anymore. Neither of these do anything for me, maybe if I see some of these other members of these sets I will change my mind, but both of these are losers.

 

Reading the Competition: Jose Alutve 2013 Topps Archives #176

A quick post that allows me to continue complaining about the Phillies lack of youth movement. This week the Houston Astros are in town which gives us the opportunity to cover Jose Altuve.

2013 Topps Archives #176 Jose Altuve

Jose Altuve is having a breakout year. He is leading the league in Batting Average, Hits and Stolen Bases.  Offensively, I think Altuve's output is what the Phillies would like to see from outfielder Ben Revere.

At 24 the Astros 2nd baseman is in his 4th major league season yet he is younger then the entire Phillies Roster outside of Cody Asche and Rookie Ken Giles. Contrast that with the Astros who have 6 of their 8 starters under the age of 25.

1990 Topps
I should really dislike this card, This is my least favorite Topps design. In addition I am not a fan of the Astros 1970s/80s rainbow unis. They may be for some folks, but not me. Strangely the combination, the bright threads and the bright green border work well together. The orange yellow inner border also contributes. It doesn't appear this color combo was used a lot in the original set. The inner boarder appears to be across most Astros cards but the outer border varies with the green not be really common. Veteran pitcher Jim Clancy's #648 card carried this combo, unfortunately he isn't wearing the colorful rainbow Jose Altuve is sporing.  

Sources
Baseball-ref
Baseball Card Database

Noteworthy: 2013 Bowman Platinum #BPP10 Javier Baez

There are dozens of disappointments in the Phillies 2014 season. The recent call by the Cubs of Javier Baez reminds us that the Phillies future looks bleak as well.

2013 Bowman Platinum #BPP10 Javier Baez 

September Call Ups are looming but the Phillies have no one near the caliber of Baez in their system.  At AAA this season the Cubs future second baseman or shortstop has knocked out 23 Homers along with 24 doubles. His BA is an ok .260 with a very respectable .510 slugging number. This is a followup to a 2013 season where Baez hit 37 Homers across 2 levels.

We don't know what the future holds for the 21 year old Javier Baez. We do know that prior to the season 3 different prospect ranking services placed Baez in the Top 10. There is no Phillies that were held in such high regard - Maikel Franco drew rankings ranging from #17 to #52, Jesse Biddle #53 - #94. Neither has had a good 2014, although Franco has played well for the last month.

As the Phillies turn the page to 2015 hopefully some prospects emerge and we can post a Bowman Card of a Phillies player next year.  

Sources
Baseball-ref

Checker Checking 2014 Heritage/1965 Topps Phillies

Topps Heritage is designed to homage an original Topps set from decades ago. There are several items that Heritage nods towards in replicating the originals. one of the obvious ones is replicating the design. A second is giving attention to the Checklist. Tonight I would like to take a look at how the Phillies 2014 Checker compares with the original from 1965.



That is a solid checker for the Phillies. 17 cards featuring 18 players. You would have to dig deep to find a snub, Pitchers AJ Burnett who came to the team late or Kyle Kendrick would be the closest. Carding Mayberry and Ruf could be seen as questionable. Halladay is either an honorarium or laziness on Topps part.

The original 1965T Phils team set checked 29 players on 27 cards (2 rookie pairs) plus a team card and the Gene Mauch manager card.

For 2014 Heritage, Topps chose to rhyme four subjects with the original set.

#20 Jim Bunning and Cliff Lee
This is a good pair, Bunning is a low tier Hall of Famer. Cliff Lee is an All-Star with significant Postseason exposure.

#107 Rookies Corrales/Shockley(65) Martin/Ruf (14)
I would like to think that the Ethan Martin Darin Ruf pairing will have a better career than the Pat Corrales/ Costen Shockley combo

#280 Dick Stuart and Ryan Howard
These two match on match on position, both were power hitters and both won World Series Rings - although Stuart won his with the Pirates. In fact on his 1965T card Stuart appears to be wearing Pirates threads. In addition to the similarities above the two share a reputation of poor play in the field, a rep that earned Stuart the nickname Dr StrangeGlove.

#310 Johnny Callison and Dom Brown
These two share a position and both were reigning All-Stars at the time of set production. Callison made 3 all-star games. At this point in his career Dom Brown's all-star selection appears it could be a one and only despite the outfielder being only 26.


Sources 
My Baseball Card Blog
Cardboard Connection
Team Sets 4 U
PSA Card
Baseball-ref

Sunday Night Baseball: 2015 Hall of Fame Candidate Pedro Martinez - 2001 Topps Chrome #45

Tonight we take over our intermittent Sunday Night Baseball postings with our Hall of Fame ballot feature. In 2014 we made it through 10 candidates - This year we are starting a bit sooner, hopefully we hit more of the ballot.

With the Red Sox hosting the Yankees yet again on the big E, it seems like a very appropriate time to look at Pedro Martinez.

2001 Topps Chrome #45 Pedro Martinez

Pedro took the mound for five different teams in his career, including a dozen starts with the 2009 Phillies but to me he will always be a member of the Boston Red Sox.

The HoF resume for Martinez is pretty solid, Curse busting World Series Ring, 3 Cy Young Awards, Eight time All-Star, A W/L record 100+ games over .500. He won 5 ERA titles and his 3154 Strikeouts are 13th all-time. For the cool kids Martinez 86.0 career WAR ranks 17th all time. Everyone ahead of him is Either in the Hall or on the ballot.

Phungo Verdict
Despite the fact he lost the Game 6 of the 2009 World Series. Pedro remains one of my favorite players. He was the rare player who wanted the ball, believed he would deliver and then would - the notable exception was of course his last couple of starts with the Phillies.

I found him to be pure theater on and off the mound from much of his career and he gets a Thumbs Up on the Phungo HoF ballot.  

2001 Topps Chrome
It is likely coincidence but in 2001T Chrome Pedro Martinez occupies Card #45 which is his uniform number. Last year there was a mini kerfuffle due to Topps moving away from their traditional hero numbers system. I didn't get the folks that were disappointed with the change. I thought it was kine of neat, but hey if you need something to get upset about, I suppose that's fine. 45 was not Pedro's card number in base - instead in 2001 Topps went with the semi-hero #60

Sources And Links 
Pedro Martinez HoF Index

Baseball-ref
2015 HoF Candidates

2015 Hall of Fame Candidates Index

Paul Bako
David Dellucci
Adam Eaton
Eric Milton
Marlon Anderson Veto
Scott Eyre HoF
Paul Byrd Veto
Pedro Martinez HoF
Tom Gordon HoF


Sidney Ponson
Kevin Millar
Chad Bradford
Aaron Boone
Jason Schmidt
Troy Percival
Nomar Garciaparra
Tony Clark HoF
Cliff Floyd
Carlos Delgado
John Smoltz  HoF 
Gary Sheffield HOF
Rich Aurilia 
Jermaine Dye
Alan Embree
Darin Erstad
Kelvim Escobar
Brian Giles
Eddie Guardado
Randy Johnson
Mark Loretta
Doug Mientkiewicz
B J Ryan
Jarrod Washburn
Less than 10 MLB Seasons
So Taguchi
Tim Redding
Brandon Webb Veto


2015 Golden Era HoF Candidates
Dick Allen Veto
Billy Pierce Veto


Links & Sources
Phungo HoF Page
Baseball Hall of Fame