Filling the pages of Sports Illustrated

At the end of the 90s, Fleer teamed up to release sets under the Sports Illustrated brand name. I've previously blogged about the decline of Sports Illustrated when blogging about these sets. In 1998, Tony featured on at least six Sports Illustrated cards and a mini-poster. I've previously blogged one card - here are five more!

Card Number 869: Sports Illustrated, 1998; #55

The picture on the front reminds me of all those photos from the same game used by multiple companies in 1995.

The back is, well, a boring photo of a scoreboard behind a boring stats box.

The predicted stats are a novel twist though. How did Tony do compared to the predictions?

Actually, not that well. He played fewer games than predicted by the end of the year and the only metric where he beat the predictions was on home runs (16 instead of the predicted 12).

The main Sports Illustrated set had some subsets as well.

Card Number 870: Sports Illustrated, 1998; #131

In the 'Baseball's Best' subset, Sports Illustrated selected Tony as "Baseball's Best Contact Hitter". No further comments are necessary. They were one hundred per cent correct. 

The blurb on the back explains the reason for their selection, in case there were any doubters.

Card Number 871: Sports Illustrated, 1998; #189

Tony was also included in the 'Year in Review' subset towards the end of the set's checklist.

Sports Illustrated liked their 'scoreboard' backgrounds in their multiple layers of photos. They liked it so much they did it on both sides of this card. 

The review of the season is succinct.

In addition to the 200-card main set, there were two more sets relased under the Sports Illustrated brand in 1998.

Card Number 872: Sports Illustrated World Series Fever, 1998; #56

This was a 150 card set. Tony's inclusion was appropriate, as he played in the World Series that year.

This photo is straight out of the Topps school of  'don't show the player's face, name or number'. But the pinstripes are bright!

Base card dullness on the back.

Card Number 873: Sports Illustrated Then & Now, 1998; #90

This 150-card set was split into three sections. The Sports Illustrated card from 1998 that I previously blogged about was from the 'A Place in History' subset. This card is from the 'Legends of Today' section, which was actually most of the cards in the set.

It's a batting donut photo. This one is included in Fuji's list.

I have no idea what the Fleer designers were trying to do on the back. It looks like an attempt to compare Tony with Hall of Famers in certain aspects of the game. 

If I've interpreted this correctly - and that's a big if! - this is saying that Tony has 3/5 the batting power of Harmon Killebrew. 3/5 the speed of Lou Brock and 4/5 the fielding skills of Brooks Robinson. It all seems very unscientific and more the sort of thing produced in a pub argument over who was the better ball player. It looks nice though. And if anyone collects those players, then this is a cameo card for them!

Total: 873 cards

Saying goodbye to Upper Deck week

After lots of Upper Deck cards this week, what better way to sign off than some of the cards produced when Tony signed off his career?

Card Number 832: Upper Deck Tony Gwynn Celebration of 20 Seasons, 2001; #unnumbered

This one-sided 'thank you' note to the fans acts as a 'header card' for the five card set. Trading Card Database lists these cards as an insert series in Upper Deck's 2001 set, but Baseballcardpedia does not. These cards feel like they were given out as freebies somewhere, based on what this card looks like.

The back of the card is totally blank. I have made the rare decision not to show the cardback because there is literally nothing to show.

Card Number 833: Upper Deck Tony Gwynn Celebration of 20 Seasons, 2001; #1

This card has the same design template at the Upper Deck 2001 set. Tony's base card from that set was the 267th card that I blogged about. 

Considering this was a 'tribute' series, the massive stats box on the back feels a bit unnecessary, particularly when it was replicated across all the cards in the set (which it was!)

The factoid kicks off the series with the best known statistic about Tony Gwynn - his .394 batting average in 1994.

Card Number 834: Upper Deck Tony Gwynn Celebration of 20 Seasons, 2001; #2

While I would never want to underplay Tony's achievements, it feels a bit odd to read the claim on the cardback that Tony "flourished" in the post-season. Tony only played in the post-season three times, which amounted to a National League Championship defeat and two World Series defeats. 

The Padres lost both their World Series without taking the series to game 7. In 1998 they lost 0-4 to an absolutely dominant Yankees team. 

Tony's personal post-season records weren't particularly spectacular by his exceptional standards - with the exceptionof the 1998 World Series when he posted .500. He Posted .368 in the national League Championship season in 1984. but only .263 in the World Series - well below his career average. 

There was then a 12 year wait for Tony's next post-season appearances, in 1996. The Padres crashed out in the divisional series and Tony posted a .308 batting average. The three post-season series in 1998 saw him build up to that .500 World Series average. In the four games of the divisional series his batting average was a measly .200, and in the Championship series he posted .231.

In total, in 27 games in the post-season, Tony posted an overall batting average of .306, which is well below his career average. It's not really what I would describe as "flourishing". (Although, he still has more World Series appearances as a Padre than anyone else who has ever played for them!)

Card Number 835: Upper Deck Tony Gwynn Celebration of 20 Seasons, 2001; #5

I'm missing number 3 and 4 in this little set!

This is easily the best photo on the cards I've got from this set. Tony always seemed to take really good "candids".

I'm not sure on the timing of this card set release because this refers to Tony's retirement in the past tense.

As I remarked about the first card, having the massive stats boxes on all these cards seems daft. 

Total: 835 cards

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

A Finest example of the .394 season

This week I will reach my target of blogging about 394 Tony Gwynn cards. As we edge closer to that 394th card, I thought it would be nice to look at a card from the season that is the inspiration for the project - the year that Tony Gwynn recorded a batting average of .394 and was literally just 3 hits shy of recording .400 for the season.

It was, of course, a bit of an anomalous season, as it ended in disarray in August. In a way that makes it a parallel to this year's Major League season which has been significantly restricted because of the global coronavirus pandemic. 

The San Diego Padres have had an excellent 2020 - their most winningest season ever! - and tomorrow night will be playing the Dodgers after having already won their first post-season series since 1998! All their achievements, however, will be noted as taking place in a truncated season. That doesn't make them less special or worthy, just that things are different this year.

The same was true of 1994. The unanswered question will always be, would Tony have scored .394 over a full season if it had run on into September? There is evidence both ways. His form was blistering at the point when the season was cancelled, but he may well have peaked then and not been able to maintain it. We will never know, and we have to accept the stats for what they are, from when they are.

Card Number 392: Topps Finest, 1994; #201

This is a rare "peeled" version of a Finest card.

The scan does not capture the vibrant nature of this card, when held in hand. It is shiny and colourful. The swirl pattern creates a  very mid-90s look.

The "Finest Moment" on the back relates to an event ten years previously. Tony's batting average the season this card was produced would become the achievement he was most known for. Up until that year though, Topps had decided that winning the National League pennant for the Padres was his moment of glory.

It is an achievement that perhaps gets overlooked now. But back in 1994 the 1984 post-season was the only one the Padres had qualified for in franchise history. Tony went on to be the sole player to feature in both the Padres' two World Series appearances to date, with a 14 season gap between appearances. 

After 1994 and the .394 batting average, Tony's achievements in the 1980s were eclipsed. This Finest card is a shiny memento of what will always be his finest season.

Total: 392/394 

Number One Card Only Redux

Today's one card only post is another #1 card. Two years after Tony's 'Star Power' card kicked off the 1996 Topps set, he was allocated the #1 card in the Topps flagship set again.

Card Number 175: Topps, 1998; #1
It's not a particularly inspiring card front.

Topps made it very hard to spot the number on the cardback. Can you find it?

Of course, Topps didn't know that the player leading off their card set in 1998 would also be leading his team to their second, and to date most recent, World Series. There was a long season ahead before the Padres played the Yankees in the Fall Classic. But it is sort of cool that Tony got honoured with the #1 card in such a notable season.

He was also the #1 card in the Pinnacle set for 1998. Doubly cool!

Total: 175/394

Monday Mixer Time Again

Here's a Monday Mixer of totally unconnected cards from my collection. Because sometimes when life is less organised it can be more fun. Same with collecting.

Card Number 85: Fleer E-Motion XL, 1996; #277
This was a weird card set from the Fleer / Skybox company in the mid-90s. I have a few of these cards for other Padres players. The basic premise is that every player illustrates an emotion. Tony's emotion is "relaxed".

It might just be me, but I don't think he looks relaxed. He looks like he's about to club the catcher.

He doesn't look like he's relaxed in the photo on the back photo either. If anything he looks like he's about to exert himself throwing the ball or something.

Is "relaxed" even an emotion? I understand it is a state of mind, but is that the same thing? There is also no explanation on this card as to why he illustrated being relaxed. But while it's a very odd selection, he did get off lightly. One of his team-mates, Fernando Valenzuela, had the word "wily" written next to him, which isn't very complimentary.

In fact, I went and found the relevant page in my Padres binder and here's the list of players' cards that I have, and their designated E-Motions.

• Fernando Valenzuela - "wily"
• Jody Reed - "joyful"
• Steve Finley - "surprised"
• Wally Joyner - "calm"
• Ken Caminiti - "solid"
• Brad Ausmus - "springing"

Fleer were really reaching with those last two "emotions".

Card Number 86: Panini Prizm, 2015; #168
Allan from the Baseball Card UK Facebook groups sent me this. I really appreciate his kindness. However, Panini Prizm are hard cards to love.

They are shiny, but they scan grey. Panini airbrush off the logos because they don't have a license with MLB. However, the need to circumvent the licensing does make me smile sometimes, like in the blurb on the cardback.

"Playing against the Bronx squad"? Seriously, what? I know a few Yankees fans and even they would find that drop-dead hilarious.

And now for a moment I like to call "Jon's utterly torturous personal links to Tony Gwynn, part 1"- the cardback notes that Tony clocked his home run at Yankee Stadium in the World Series off pitcher David Wells. In September 2004, I went to watch the Padres play the Giants at Petco Park, and David Wells was the starting pitcher for the Padres that night.

(The Padres won that game 4-3 in the 10th inning, in case you needed to know the score. I had decided I would follow the fortunes of whoever won that night. On such small winning margins are life decisions made.)

Card Number 87: Upper Deck, 1994; #279
This was from the Homefield Advantage series of insert cards in the Upper Deck 1994 set.  It's not particularly interesting as a card design, with the diagram of the field taking up most of the space.

The back is about the ballpark and how well the Padres have done when playing at home (or not).

Tony never played at the Padres new stadium, Petco Park, which opened for the 2004 season. However, the player's entrance to Petco Park is 19, Tony Gwynn Way. Tony was also the first manager to stand in the 'home' dug out, as his San Diego State team that he was coaching played the first competitive baseball game in the new ballpark. The attendance that evening set a new record for collegiate baseball.

Jack Murphy Stadium was also the home of the San Diego Chargers American Football team until they relocated to Los Angeles in 2016. It is now the home of the San Diego State University American Football team, the 'Aztecs'. I like the cardback factoid about the ground being invaded by a skunk. A better factoid is that it is the only sports stadium to host the Superbowl and the World Series in the same year (1998).

There's your Monday Mixer. I hope you enjoyed it.

Total 87/394

Monday mixer

Here are 3 random, unrelated cards, that I'm posting because it's Monday and we can all use some random drops of joy in our lives on a Monday.

Card Number 62: Sportkings  (Series D), 2010; #180

There are two versions of this card. This is the slightly smaller version. It's not as small as a Topps Mini, but it's smaller than a regular sized trading card. This is also another entry into the 'When is a baseball card not a baseball card?' category. The Trading Card Database lists this as a 'multi-sport' card. The series includes famous sportsmen from across a range of sporting activities.

Sport Kings Gum was one of the ranges brought out by the card manufacturer Goudey before the Second World War. The brand got revived several decades later, and this is from when it was an independent little company. It has also been part of Leaf. When this was produced the company had no affiliations with Major League Baseball, but look at how cunning they have been in their portrait of Tony - on the front of his cap are his pioneering sunglasses, and you can just see a little bit of the SD logo.  That's sneaky!

On the back there is nice little bio and we also learn the card was printed in Canada. Just another odd little aspect of this odd little oddball card.

Card Number 63, Pacific Invincible, 1999; #122

I have one card in my collection so far which is part acetate. This is the card. That little window with Tony's face is actually a window. Pacific are one of those card companies that created little masterpieces that no-one really asked for. Die-cuts and gold foil and see-through bits and all kind of things to make their cards stand out. This may be an unpopular opinion, but the hobby is poorer without Pacific.

There's the back. There's some blurb in Spanish as well as English and the picture of Tony is mirrored because it's printed on acetate. It's weird to think this is the view Tony would have had of himself if he looked in a mirror. He is properly legging it in that photo as well. That's a man on a mission to reach the next base!

Card Number 64: Upper Deck Collector's Choice (The Big Show Insert Series), 1997; #39
The Big Show was one of 20 insert series in the 1997 Collector's Choice set. The premise is that baseball commentators Keith Olbermann and Dan Patrick, hosts of ESPN's SportsCenter, are talking about various players in a commentator style.

The cards are foiled on the front, so look nicer than in this scan.

The back has one of the most confusing layouts I've ever seen on a baseball card. It's another 90s design classic!

Basically the text is interlinear as if the commentators are talking over each other. It's horrible to read and I can't work out which person is saying what. Separately they are saying:

"Hit .353 in '96 to win his seventh batting title, which is third-most in Major League history... Has hit .300 or better for 14 consecutive seasons ('83-96)... Has .337 career average, highest among active Major Leaguers ... Posted 2,500th career hi 8-14-96."

"If there is such a thing as a hitting artist, Tony is it. "Mr Padre" is another one the small list of players that I would pay to see. He won a batting title in '96 despite suffering from a painful heel injury. If you broke his legs, he'd probably still get a hit off you."

Am I the only one who feels a slightly sinister undertone in that final sentence?

Keith Olbermann has also been a political commentator but he is back on ESPN now. In He Left His Heart in San Diego Keith recalls meeting Tony Gwynn, who called him Mr Olbermann until Keith asked him not to. They became friends and Keith knew how excited Tony was to be playing at Yankee Stadium in the 1998 World Series. He asked the Yankee stadium announcer, Bob Sheppard, to record his intro for Tony Gwynn and then put it in a talking photo frame and gave it to him. Apparently Tony was so taken by it, that he kept the frame in his trophy cabinet next to the silver bats he won.

That's your Monday Mixer. Have a great day!

Total: 64/394