End of a century - 4 from 1999

Getting towards the end of Upper Deck week, here are four cards from the end of the 20th century, the last year starting with 19 - 1999.

Card Number 828: Upper Deck View to a Thrill insert, 1999; #V24

It's a shiny card! I gave it a couple of passes on the scanner.

That second one is a bit over-exposed. It's tricky to get this right. 

Design notes - hexagons are unusual. I've always liked them ever since watching Doctor Who in 1984 when the interior of the TARDIS was made of white hexagons. Red always looks good on baseball cards too. The red foil on the front isn't as bright as the red on the back, somehow.

This insert series is reminiscent of the last James Bond film to feature Sir Roger Moore in the role, A View to a Kill. That was also released in 1984 and featured a theme song by Duran Duran. None of that has anything to do with this card, of course. But it's funny how certain cards trigger all kinds of tangential thoughts.

Card Number 829: Upper Deck Challengers for 70, 1999; #73

Remember the power hitting contest between home run sluggers seeking to break all kinds of records for home runs, which later was revealed to be fueled by steroids? Upper Deck got caught up in the hype and released an entire 90-card set about the 'race for 70 home runs'. Depsite never, ever, being a big hitter of home runs, Tony got a card in the set comemmorating his home run in the World Series the previous year.

I'm a fan of cards that refer to Tony's World Series appearances, even if they are in weird cash-in sets like this one. Upper Deck were skimping on the photos in this set, with the same picture appearing on the front and the back.

I've mentioned before how David Wells was on the mound for San Diego the night I went to my first ever Padres game. I didn't know then that he was the pitcher that Tony hit his home run off in the World Series in 1998. I might not have ever seen Tony play, but I saw David Wells, so that gives me a personal connection to this factoid.

Card Number 830: Upper Deck MVP, 1999; #S4

Shiny insert!

"Swing Time" gives me an earworm of that song 'Springtime' from Mel Brooks's The Producers. Which is unfortunate. I love pseudo-sciencey diagrams on baseball cards. This looks like a blueprint. They add to the technical manual look on the cardback.

The write up for point 2 uses the phrase "as much as" twice in one sentence. That repetition is below Upper Deck's usual standards for cardback factoids.

Card Number 831: Upper Deck Ultimate Victory, 1999; #93

I've previously blogged three of Tony's cards from the Victory set in 1999. This is the 'Ultimate Victory' foil version of Tony's Victory base card... which is the one card I don't already have! There were 470 cards in the Victory set, but only 180 were included in the Ultimate Victory parallel set. 

It's a nice card with a posed portrait photo. The back is absolutely rammed with information including a write up of the Jack Murphy Stadium and a breathless summary of Tony's career below a truncated stats box. They have not wasted any space at all!

And that's the end of the blog post about cards from the end of the century!

Total: 831 cards

3 from 96 - DonRuss and Leaf

Continuing the theme of cards from the peak of Tony's career and the peak of the overproduction era of the card hobby, here are some cards from the same company issued under different iconic brands.

Card Number 796: DonRuss, 1996; #525

That foil panel between Tony's legs doesn't scan very well. It's a poor choice of placing for such a large graphic element. 

The back has a massive stats box and a photo of Tony. Both photos show Tony in the white pinstripes home uniform. They are from different games though, unless Tony changed his wristguards mid-game for some reason. 

Card Number 797: Leaf MVP Contender, 1996; #8

A very shiny card front.

A very complicated explanation on the cardback.

This was a redemption competition based around who would be named MVP in the 1996 All Star Game. Tony was named in the National League squad for the game, but didn't play. Mike Piazza won the MVP that year, so people would have had to send in a Mike Piazza version of this card to redeem it for one the special gold sets of MVP contenders. I wonder how many people did that.

Card Number 798: Leaf Preferred, 1996; #79

This 150 card set came with a "Steel" insert card in each pack. Steel was Leaf's version of Chrome. This is the regular base card. 

The photo on the front has an odd backdrop and it makes the card look very dull. It's almost as if Tony is in front of a giant sandstone block.

The photo on the back is gorgeous. 

I think that could quite possibly be my favourite photo on a cardback. Look at Tony's grin!

Combined with a simple stats box and a margin of bio-data, I can see why people would prefer this set of Leaf cards.

Total: 798 cards

Fleer makes some MVPs

Somewhere I have read a story about Tony Gwynn nervously waiting for the announcement of whether he had been inducted into the Hall of Fame, and saying that he wasn't going to get in because he never won the MVP Award. I can't remember where I read that. I have looked through He Left His Heart in San Diego a couple of times but can't find the reference, so I must have read it somewhere else, probably on the Internet somewhere. 

Anyway, Tony might never have won the MVP, but that didn't stop card companies from including him in MVP subsets.

Card Number 674: Fleer Baseball MVPs, 1989; #17

This card was sent to me by Michal. It took 2 weeks to travel the 30 miles from where Michal lives to where I live. I think I could have walked to pick it up and walked back home again quite easily in the time it took for the mail to get it to me.

This card is from one of the 44-card complete sets that Fleer produced. They seemed to produce a few of these sets every year in the late 80s. I have a couple of cards from other sets issues in 1989, and this card brings me up to 12 Tony Gwynn cards issued in sets like this overall. They have a nice quality glossy finish and the card stock is higher quality than the regular Fleer base cards.

The back is a bit dull, but it is nicely laid out.

The blurb has an oddly specific comment about ruining a pitcher's attempt at a no-hitter, which takes precedence over his batting title in 1988. There's also a mention of his brother Chris playing in the Major Leagues too. Chris had played 25 games for the Dodgers in the two previous seasons.

Fleer had given Chris Gwynn a rookie card in their 1988 set, which he shared with Peter Smith from the Braves. He also had a Score card in 1988 as a "rookie prospect". In 1989, Chris got a card to himself in the Fleer main set. He was also in the Upper Deck set that year, and was also still appearing in minor league sets. He didn't get a Topps card until 1990, although he was mentioned on the back of Tony's 1985 Topps card.

I have noted before how despite never winning the MVP Award, Tony appeared on a lot of MVP-related cards, mainly from DonRuss cards. Tony was in an MVP insert series in the 1994 DonRuss set, and in earlier sets too. That second link also includes some cards from the Upper Deck MVP brand sets.

Total: 674 cards

Most Venerable Player

One of the few honours Tony never picked up in his career was the MVP Award. In fact, he felt not winning it would count against him in the Hall of Fame ballot.

The lack of the actual award, notwithstanding, Tony often featured in sets called MVP. Here are a couple of examples.

Card Number 529: DonRuss - MVP insert, 1994; #13

28 players had a MVP insert card in the DonRuss flagship set for 1994.

Tony has a bit of an odd expression in the photo on the cardback.

There's some irony in the write up on the cardback as it describes 1993 as a big year for Tony, when 1994 was of course the year he set the modern-day record for batting average. It also notes his 2000th hit.

Card Number 530: Upper Deck MVP, 2001; #271

The MVP sets were smaller baseball card sets from Upper Deck. Tony is poised to run in the photo on the front, although that does mean he is captured in an odd pose.

On the back, Tony is described as "venerable", which is fair enough considering this was in the final season of his career.

Apart from the word 'venerable', there isn't much otherwise of note about this cardback.

Total: 530 cards

Monday MVP Mixer

Some cards today that hail Tony as an MVP. Although, ironically, that was one accolade that eluded him throughout his career.

Card Number 195: DonRuss, 1988; #BC-6
This was one of 26 bonus cards available in wax packs of DonRuss cards. It looks very similar to both Tony's base card and his All Star card in the 1988 set.

It has a standard DonRuss 1980s card back as well. Apart from the number, this is exactly the same information as the base card.

Eagle-eyed readers may have noticed that there isn't a full stop after LEAF INC on the top right hand side of the card. Trading Card Database keep notifying me that they have updated their database to take into account that versions exist of this card with and without full stops after INC. But I have to admit I really don't care!

The career highlights are the usual collection of factoids, including that Tony had two 5-hit games in the 1987 season.

Card Number 196: Upper Deck MVP, 1999; #176
OK, this is cheating a bit as the card range is called MVP, but hey...

It's not the most exciting card, from a fairly turgid set. Upper Deck went through a bit of a malaise towards the end of the 90s, and it shows here.

The back mentions an interesting milestone - Tony's 2,900th hit.

Card Number 197: DonRuss, 1989; #BC-20
This card looks very different to Tony's base card in the 1989 set.

That MVP graphic is a harbinger of change. The 1990s were coming... and so was the era of baseball cards designed on computers.

The most noticeable difference about the cardback from the previous year was the colour. Most of the content was regurgitated from the 1988 card. They added in a mention of his injury in 1988. That's about it. It's exactly the same as what was printed on his base card.

Card Number 198: Upper Deck MVP, 2000; #130
This really looks similar to the 1999 design, except for the card borders which have gone all angular.

The back has a posed photo, a stats box, and no factoids. Which is a shame because after mentioning his 2,900th hit on his card in the previous year, they could have mentioned his 3000th one on this card.

Also, the first time I saw this I thought the card was #19. But it's not. That's annoying enough for me to moan about it.

Tomorrow we will hit the 200 card marker on this blog. Until then, have a great Monday!

Total: 198/394 (over half way!)

Back to 1990, with DonRuss

One of the things I love about collecting cards of a player who played through the "junk wax" era is the sheer variety of baseball cards churned out by multiple manufacturers. DonRuss was a cheaper card brand, although it was part of the Leaf bubblegum company. It's still sort of in the baseball card game as it's one of Panini's brands now and they put out a couple of ranges as DonRuss.

Anyway, back in 1990, DonRuss cards had bright red borders and looked like this...

Card Number 22: DonRuss 1990, #86

For all the fuss over Upper Deck cards in 1990, DonRuss got it right here. The photo is Tony ready to thwack the ball. The thwacking is almost inevitable really as he only struck out between 21 and 22 times a season on average. (434 times in his career, which equates to 21.7 times per season.)

Tony's 'Career Highlights' on the back are already impressive. First National League player to win three straight batting titles since Stan Musial in the early 50s. Batted .370 in 1987, the highest in the National League since Stan Musial (again) back in 1948. The first player in history to steal 50 bases (actually 56) and bat .370 in the same season. Already setting records for the Padres. They also mention his injury in 1988, which should probably have been a lowlight not a highlight. 

Like Topps, DonRuss also included All Star cards in its set.

Card Number 23: DonRuss 1990, #705

A very similar card. Same anticipatory pose. Except on this one the green top of the dug out behind him is at head height. I would love to be able to identify the blurry lounging team mate stretching his legs out from the bench while Tony bats. Who is that guy? He looks relaxed.

DonRuss helpfully include the National League logo along with the words All Star as other markers to distinguish this from his base card.

In my former career in comms we had an unofficial policy of writing copy once and using it multiple times. My old manager used to say "You never buy a hammer just to hit one nail." I used to write with that in mind - rejigging the lines from the press release to use in a marketing letter, and then in web page copy, and then in an article for my employer's promotional magazine. But I would never just reuse the exact same copy. That would be almost as lazy as the copy and paste Career Highlights on the back of this card!

At least they changed the stats - those are Tony's stats from the 1989 All Star Game in Anaheim. Tony didn't have to travel very far from home to play in that game. It was his fifth All Star Game.

And there was a third DonRuss card for Tony in 1990 too.

Card Number 24: DonRuss Bonus MVPs, #BC-4

(I don't know how the  bonus cards were sold. The Trading Card Database says there were 26 cards in the set.)

I find this card slightly ironic, as Tony's main reason for thinking he wouldn't be a "First ballot selection" for the Hall of Fame was because he never won the MVP award bestowed by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. Yet here he is with MVP splashed all over the background of the card.

And there's the back of the card. It is exactly the same as his base card. I hope whoever wrote that Career Highlights blurb got paid three times for it!

Total: 24/394