Leading the league in the middle of the 90s

I like cards that show 'league leaders'. They are usually relatively easy to find, and they provide a bonus card of certain players if those players happened to trouble the leader boards. Tony often did, so that often meant he had an extra card in sets issued in the 1990s.

Card Number 993: Fleer (league leaders insert), 1995; #6

The base cards in the set issued by Fleer in 1995 are all kinds of mid-90s crazy- when I blogged about Tony's card in the set I called it "the most 1995 card ever". Fleer toned their hyperactive designers down a lot for these inserts.

The write up on the back is how Tony had to "settle" for winning the batting title in 1994 with .394. The writer notes that Tony's average was rising at the point the season was curtailed. 

A couple of years later and Tony was picking up another National League title...

Card Number 994: Upper Deck Collector's Choice, 1997; #56

Of the eight batting titles that Tony won, his title in 1996 was the only one when he wasn't the outright winner across both major leagues. In 1996 he missed out to a young buck who was in his third season in the majors, Alex Rodriguez. Whatever happened to him, eh?

The way Upper Deck positioned the two photos makes it look like A-Rod is about to swing at Tony who is distracted by something else. 

There are a few names on the back that instantly jump out. And several that I'd never heard of before. Bernard Gilkey? Kevin Seitzer? 

Tony's team-mate, Ken Caminiti was sixth on the list. Ken was integral to the Padres National League West pennant win in 1996 and was also an All Star that year. 

But it's not just batting average that produces leader boards. In baseball, every statistic has leaders and sometimes the card companies decided to highlight some of those.

Card Number 995: Fleer Ultra [On Base Leaders insert], 1996; #3

This seems to be a weird stat for an insert set to focus on because it's very similar to batting average. The designer maybe felt the same way and it doesn't look like much care has been taken on the photo placement on the front. 

The back is much better. 

I had a Twitter conversation with Tim from Pennsylvania recently about the decision by Major League Baseball to ban the defensive shift, and we agreed that it just showed the reduced quality of hitting in the modern game. Would Tony have been curtailed by the shift? Unlikely, and this Fleer card from 26 years ago agrees.

I never think of Tony being the kind of player to draw a lot of walks, but his on base percentage of .404 suggests he got a few in the preceding season. A few blog posts back, I noted a stat on a Topps Gold Label card about walks, so pitchers sometimes opted to intentionally put him on base rather than risk a hit. And I don't blame them!

Total: 995 cards
 

Hitting the sweet spot

Upper Deck released several ranges that were themed around relic or autograph cards. The "Sweet Spot" sets featured autographs on pieces of leather cut from baseballs. The autograph was in the 'sweet spot' between the seams of the baseball. Like all sets with high-end collectibles inserted into them, the base cards for this are effectively just pack filler. However, they are still nice cards.

Card Number 443: Upper Deck Sweet Spot Classic, 2003; #84

In 2003 there were two 'sweet spot' sets, Upper Deck Sweet Spot, and Upper Deck Sweet Spot Classic. The 'classic' range featured retired players, while the regular range featured active players.

The card is printed on slightly heavier stock than usual and the foil edging at the top and bottom has a milled edge.

The back is very neatly laid out and outlines Tony's batting achievements.

While I appreciate it's traditional to have a stats box on the back of a baseball card, this is an odd choice as it shows the final 5 years of Tony's career. If they were going to show an excerpt of his career, they could have shown his stats from 1994-1997, which are the years mentioned in the write-up. That would have made more sense.

Card Number 444: Upper Deck Sweet Spot Classic, 2005; #89

As a retired player, Tony featured in the Sweet Spot Classic set again in 2005. The photo is printed in black and white, which is in keeping with a lot of photos in the set. A lot of the other players featured are from an era when only black and white photos exist.

At first glance, I thought Tony was holding a bat in his left hand, but actually the handle of his bat in in his right hand. The bat that looks like it's in his left hand, with the batting donut on it, is being held by his team-mate Ken Caminiti, who is standing on the on deck circle behind him. That would date the photo to sometime between 1995 and 1998, as Caminiti left the Padres after the 1998 World Series. Based on the arm patch, I think this is a photo from 1998.

It's also a bit poignant that when this card was released in 2005, Ken was sadly deceased. He died in 2004 at the tragically young age of 41 from an overdose, on the same day that Superman actor Christopher Reeve passed away. He is in the San Diego Padres Hall of Fame, having achieved one honour that always eluded Tony. In 1996, Ken was the National League MVP. 

The stats box on the back has the stats for five seasons when Tony won the batting title. It doesn't say that. They aren't the highest scoring seasons, though - that would be his four title-winning seasons in the 1990s and his .370 average in 1987. It seems they have picked his first title season, his last title season and the three highest ones in-between.

Total: 444 cards