#223 Joaquin Benoit

Ok, so I took a much longer than intended break from posting. The season is under way. If you follow my other blog, Once a Cub, you ‘ll know there were a few new collection pickup s that needed sorting through. I should be back to posting fairly regularly now but I think going forward, this will be an evening time posting instead of earlier like my other blog.

#223 Joaquin Benoit

First impression of what’s going on: Another potentially great card almost ruined by a bad crop job. Great throwback uniform. Joaquin Benoit is working the high socks but the uniform seems a little too baggy to say it’s 100% accurate. But that could just be my perception as I wasn’t around back then. I spy an umpire cameo that I’ll be looking into as well.

DETROIT, MI - APRIL 27: Joaquin Benoit #53 of the Detroit Tigers pitches while wearing a Detroit Stars Negro League tribute uniform during the game against the Atlanta Braves at Comerica Park on April 27, 2013 in Detroit, Michigan. The Tigers defeated the Braves 7-4. (Photo by Mark Cunningham/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

The Reality of the Photo: As usual, plenty of room to fit Benoit’s entire glove into the frame.  And I knew it going into this post, but this photo is from the same game as my last post, Kris Medlen’s card. So here’s the link again to the BOXSCORE and the same line score:

But now let’s see it from the Tigers’ and Benoit’s perspective.

Luckily, the Tigers were up by two when Benoit entered the game because he did end up giving up a home run to Justin Upton before the Tigers tacked on two more in the bottom half of the inning.

If Topps had cropped off Benoit’s feet, we would have missed a shot at some Free Advertising. Instead we get the New Balance logo on the tongue of Benoit’s cleat.

The background is too blurry to make out the advertisments on the outfield wall.

The umpire credited with working second base that game was Mark Carlson. According to his Wikipedia bio, Carlson has been umpiring in the Majors since 1999.

As I mentioned in the Medlen post, last season, the Tigers hosted the 11^th Annual Negro League Weekend for their series against the Braves. Here is a link from the Tigers website that talks about the weekend festivities. The Saturday game was the only one that featured the throwback uniforms though.

I probably should have spread these posts out rather than do them back to back since I’m using some of the same photos. Here again are the uniforms worn that day.

The Braves represented the Atlanta Black Crackers and the Tigers were the Detroit Stars.

And again, the high socks:

On to the back:

Rookie Fact: Joaquin won his first game on the day he was recalled, 5/9/2002.

That game went pretty well for Benoit. Six innings pitched, just one run given up.

But I want to go back to his first game, a season earlier. As you can see on the back of his card, it doesn’t look like it went well. I did notice that despite giving up six runs in five innings, Benoit didn’t suffer the loss. Did his team rally and save him?

Nope. On the contrary. The Rangers gave up 13 runs in the top of the 9^th to Benoit’s future team, the Tigers.

I don’t know if it’s a normal thing for players making their MLB debut to give post-game press conferences, but Benoit would have had time to hit the showers and wait…and wait…and wait…

In this dream scenario, I wonder how long he would have waited before starting to think it was part of his rookie hazing.

Information I’ll be tracking:

Card Number: #223

Player Name: Joaquin Benoit

Team: Detroit Tigers

Position: Pitcher

Game Date: April 27, 2013

Opponent: Atlanta Braves

Stadium: Comerica Park

Division: American League Central

Home/Away: Home

Outcome of the game: 7-4, Tigers over the Braves, Win for the player depicted

Alternate/Throwback Jersey: Yes, throwback.

Bats/Throws: Right/Right

Birthdate: 7/26/1977

Birthplace: Dominican Republic

Cameos by: Umpire Mark Carlson

Photographer: Mark Cunningham

Niche collections this card could fit into: Throwback Uniform, Free Advertising, High Socks

My Grade: The Kris Medlen card got a solid A. I do like the Stars uniform worn by Benoit better but not more than I liked the horizontal layout of the Medlen. Since it hit the same other niches, for that, it gets a slightly lower grade of A-.

#66 Kris Medlen

After yesterday’s “uncorrected error” disappointment, I wanted a palette cleanser. So the streak is over because as far as I can tell this card isn’t connected in any way to the Andre Rienzo.

#66 Kris Medlen

First impression of what’s going on: When I said palette cleanser, I meant something that I looked at and immediately thought it was awesome. While this isn’t necessarily the best of the remaining cards, it’ll probably be among them. The crop is a bit too tight, cutting of his foot in the upper right, It doesn’t necessarily take away from the photo but it will probably keep it from getting a A+.

DETROIT, MI - APRIL 27: Kris Medlen #54 of the Atlanta Braves pitches while wearing a Atlanta Black Crackers Negro League Tribute uniform during the game against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park on April 27, 2013 in Detroit, Michigan. The Tigers defeated the Braves 7-4. (Photo by Mark Cunningham/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

The Reality of the Photo: With all that extra space, there’s no reason the crop needed to be that tight. This caption is actually pretty thorough as we get the teams involved, the date of the game, score, and which throwback uniform Kris Medlen is wearing. But let’s check out the BOXSCORE anyway.

As the photo caption said, the Tigers won 7-4. It looks like Medlen probably gave up the first five runs and ultimately suffered the loss.

Yep. Giving up five runs is one of those things that could go either way in the win/loss column. Some of the better teams can overcome that but the perennial contender Detroit Tigers held the Braves off. Maybe I’m just used to cubs pitching but the innings didn’t seem particularly bad for Medlen; the Tigers just kept chipping away.

A single followed by a home run accounts for two runs in the bottom of the second.

After the Braves battled back to take the lead, Medlen gave up three consecutive singles that plated a run.

And then one of those pesky walks was followed by another home run in the bottom of the fourth.

Let’s get back to the positive stuff, the niches.

Starting with the free advertising, we see two Nike swooshes. One of his shoe and one on his undershirt.

We can also see a Rawling logo on Medlen’s glove.

On to the uniform. Last season, the Tigers hosted the 11^th Annual Negro League Weekend for their series against the Braves. Here is a link from the Tigers website that talks about the weekend festivities. The Saturday game was the only one that featured the throwback uniforms though.

I’ll admit I’m way undereducated about the Negro Leagues but here’s a link I found interesting regarding the Atlanta Black Crackers.

And done properly are the high socks. Nice!

On to the back:

Rookie Fact: Kris, a righty, held left-handed hitters to a .183 Batting Average.

I couldn’t find anything (with minimal effort) that broke it down but holding any group to a .183 batting average is pretty impressive, depending on the sample size.

Unfortunately for Medlen, it looks like he’ll be out for the entire 2014 campaign.

Information I’ll be tracking:

Card Number: #66

Player Name: Kris Medlen

Team: Atlanta Braves

Position: Pitcher

Game Date: April 27, 2013

Opponent: Detroit Tigers

Stadium: Comerica Park

Division: American League Central

Home/Away: Away

Outcome of the game: 7-4, Tigers over the Braves, Loss for the player depicted

Alternate/Throwback Jersey: Yes, throwback.

Bats/Throws: Right/Right

Birthdate: 10/7/1985

Birthplace: California

Cameos by: N/A

Photographer: Mark Cunningham

Niche collections this card could fit into: Horizontal, Throwback Uniform, Free Advertising, High Socks

My Grade: After filling in the Information I’ll Be Tracking portion of this card, I did find a link to Andre Rienzo from yesterday. Both pitchers were on the losing end of a 7-4 game. But I am officially done with the streak. Going random for a little while.

I also really wanted to like both cards, but what separates today’s card are the niches it fits into. The throwbacks are awesome. While researching them, I learned a little about the Negro Leagues which is an intangible part of this grading system. And I've already express my love of horizontal card and in spite of the crop, this was an excellent use of the format.

This card gets a solid A.

#225 Brian McCann

#225 Brian McCann

First impression of what’s going on: Something leads me to believe this is one of those “Play at the Plate” cards. I can’t say this one is particularly well cropped in a conventional sense, but it is such a unique angle, I’m actually going to let that slide. Catcher Brian McCann’s body language and eye line tells me he’s got the ball and this base runner is out.

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - MAY 12: Gregor Blanco #7 of the San Francisco Giants is tagged out at home plate by Brian McCann #16 of the Atlanta Braves during the fourth inning at AT&T Park on May 12, 2013 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Jason O. Watson/Getty Images)

The Reality of the Photo: I’d have to go back and check (who am I kidding, I won't) but this may the most complete caption I've seen yet. Both players are named. I've got the date and location of the game, as well as the two teams involved. I've even got the inning. The only thing missing is the final outcome of the game so let’s go check out the BOXSCORE.

Looks like the play wasn’t crucial to the game but it can still be demoralizing to be thrown out at the plate. How did Blanco get into this position?

Whoa, talk about a crazy inning. So much going on. An error. A walk. A hit. A sacrifice that only kind of, sort of worked (no run, but it advanced a different runner). A fielder’s choice out at home (the play captured on the card). And a base runner caught stealing. If a run didn't score, that would seem almost Hollywood scripted. Or at least something you’d see on Looney Tunes.

I couldn't tell from the card or photo, but thanks to one of my new favorite features on Sportslogos.net, I can find exactly which uniform the players were wearing that day. According to the site, both teams were wearing their respective standard home and away uniforms.

Because it was Mother's Day, they had a special pink ribbon patch over their hearts. McCann's ribbon is covered by his chest protector and Blanco's front is facing away from the camera so you can’t actually see either. Therefore, the card won’t get any special consideration for the commemorative patch niche. You do get a small taste of the Mother's Day festivities with Gregor Blanco's pink arm sleeve/wrist band at the top of the card.

McCann does double dip on the Free Advertising though with a Mizuno logo on his chest protector and mitt.

On to the back:

Rookie Fact: Brian was the first Braves player ever to homer in his initial postseason at-bat.

That would be pretty magical for just about anyone. But take a minute and remember that this is a Rookie Fact and it's that much more impressive. Here’s a list of all the players who have played at least 1,000 regular season games without ever playing the postseason. Or if you don't want to click on the link, here's a screenshot of the top twenty:

* designates a Hall of Famer

Hall of Famer Ernie Banks played for 19 seasons and hit 512 home runs but never played in the postseason. Then this whippersnapper, rookie catcher not only makes the postseason his first year, but cranks a homer in his first at bat!? Kids these days, with their six divisions and wild cards.

I did a double take at the end of the blurb when it said McCann had his seventh All-Star season in 2013. Man, I’m getting old. How has McCann already played 9 seasons and been an All-Star seven times? It’s definitely the Cubs bias, but when I think of Braves catchers, I still think of Cubs-turned-Braves Jody Davis and Damon Berryhill in the late 1980’s-early 1990’s. And yes, I've heard of Javy Lopez, but he came later.

Information I’ll be tracking:

Card Number: #225

Player Name: Brian McCann

Team: Atlanta Braves

Position: Catcher

Game Date: May 12, 2013

Opponent: San Francisco Giants

Stadium: AT&T Park

Division: National League West

Home/Away: Away

Outcome of the game: 5-1, Giants over the Braves, Loss for the player depicted

Alternate/Throwback Jersey: No

Bats/Throws: Left/Right

Birthdate: 2/20/1984

Birthplace: Georgia

Cameos by: Gregor Blanco

Photographer: Jason O. Watson

Niche collections this card could fit into: Play at the Plate, Cameo, Free Advertising, Partial Southpaw

My Grade: This is a pretty cool looking card with a unique angle for the play at the plate. It’s not overflowing with niche collections but the ones it fits into are some of the more popular ones. I guess I can overlook the fact that McCann is showing up Ernie Banks, Ron Santo and Don Kessinger on the back of the card and let this one slide by with an A-.

Getting to see the Mother’s Day ribbon and maybe a little bit of red text on the back (League Leader status) would have made this card an A.

As a 7x All-Star and 5x Silver Slugger, I’m actually kind of surprised McCann hasn't led the league in something that Topps tracks in his near decade in Atlanta. I never really thought about McCann’s Hall of Fame potential (mainly because I didn't realize he had already played so long), but after looking at his stats, I’m not sure he comes close to passing the sniff test, despite those accolades.

#247 Anthony Gose

No strategy today, just the randomizer.

#247 Anthony Gose

First impression of what’s going on: Oh my goodness, what is this mess? I think this will be a polarizing card. Some will like it for its uniqueness or will be nostalgic for the kind of cards where Spring Training/warm up/batting practice photos were the norm, while others will wonder why in this day and age of gajillion megapixel cameras are we still taking pictures through the BP netting.

TORONTO, CANADA - MAY 27: Anthony Gose #8 of the Toronto Blue Jays takes batting practice before an MLB game action against the Atlanta Braves on May 27, 2013 at Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images)

The Reality of the Photo: The photo itself is fine. Batting practice is something not a lot of people see so pictures of it can be kind of cool. But why on a baseball card? And can I do a boxscore breakdown on a photo that wasn't part of the game? Gose is a young guy, maybe not even a starter. What if he didn't even play that day? OK, I’m getting ahead of myself so let’s check out the actual BOXSCORE.

Blue Jays blowout. I’ll have to check my statistics on this but the team of the player depicted seems to have a pretty good record on the day their card's photo was taken. But did Gose play?

Barely! And I swear I expressed the concern before looking at the boxscore. It’s never good when you look better warming up than you do at game time.

So he pinch ran for Melky Cabrera in the 7^th inning and later scored on an Edwin Encarnacion home run.

Gose stayed in the game and walked in his only plate appearance of the day.

On to the back:

Rookie Fact: In only 56 games, Gose’s 15 SBs were third-most ever by a Toronto rookie.

So I was curious and thought it would be helpful if I tried to figure out who the two Blue Jay rookies with more than 15 SBs were. But I opened up a can of worms. I headed over to FanGraphs.com and plugged in my information. Blue Jays. Rookies. 1977-2013. And then sorted the results by SBs. I got this:

Not only was Gose not third, but he was tied for fifth? Now I feel like I had to go back to Baseball-Reference and look at these guys individually and see if Topps was wrong.

Top guy Homer Bush got some playing time with the Yankees, but was still technically a rookie by MLB standards when he stole 32 bases in 1999 for the Blue Jays:

Homer Bush

Second place was Alfredo Griffin. Like Bush, Griffin had some playing time before coming to the Blue Jays but was still a rookie when he joined them. Enough of a rookie that he won the Rookie of the Year award despite playing in parts of three previous seasons. There seems to be a discrepancy in the stolen base total as FG lists 20, but Baseball Reference has 21:

Alfredo Griffin

True first year rookie Junior Felix had 18 in 1989.

Junior Felix

I don't know what to think about this Mike McCoy one. FG has him listed as having 17 stolen bases but in his first year in Toronto didn't use up his rookie eligibility and only had five stolen bases. In his second year with the Blue Jays, he was considered a rookie but only stole 12. So they’re combining his two seasons? I don’t even know.

Mike McCoy

Alex Rios is another true first year rookie and also had 15 stolen bases.

Alex Rios

Bob Bailor was a third year rookie and also had 15 stolen bases.

Bob Bailor

See, can of worms, right? But if you look at the number of games each of these guys played to get their stolen bases, you have every right to be impressed with Gose.

As for the blurb? One last screenshot to confirm that he did indeed tie for the team lead in triples in 2013.

Well, at least Topps got that one right.

Information I’ll be tracking:

Card Number: #247

Player Name: Anthony Gose

Team: Toronto Bue Jays

Position: Outfield

Game Date: May 27, 2013

Opponent: Atlanta Braves

Stadium: Rogers Centre

Division: American League East

Home/Away: Home

Outcome of the game: 9-3, Blue Jays over the Braves, Win for the player depicted

Alternate/Throwback Jersey: No, but wearing BP gear

Bats/Throws: Left/Left

Birthdate: 8/10/1990

Birthplace: California

Cameos by: N/A

Photographer: Tom Szczerbowski

Niche collections this card could fit into: Batting Practice, Southpaw, Sunglasses

My Grade: F

From a different angle, the photo may have been unique in a good way but personally I don’t like the netting. Gose barely played in the game that took place after the warm-ups.

And don’t get me started again on the false fact on the back. I’m already spending more time on these than I anticipated so to have to go dig around because of inaccuracies is not going to win any points in my book.

Sorry, Anthony, if you happen to Google yourself and find this review. Nothing personal!

Always, the helper, I don’t just tell you you’re wrong, I show you how you could have done it better. Here are two photos that would have aided this card:

A head first slide into home. The caption says safe but with Gose looking up (at presumably the umpire) to get the call, it must have been a close play!

And what makes the original card such a shame is the photo below would have made this card a contender for card of the year. Taken the day before the batting practice photo and by the same photographer, I see no reason why this photo couldn't have been used instead. Check out this awesome overhead bunting shot: