#46 Kolten Wong

#46 Kolten Wong

First impression of what’s going on: Well, this card has failure written all over it! Starting with Kolten Wong being a Cardinal and then having him trying for a double play against the Cubs? Blasphemy! All kidding aside though, this is a pretty sharp looking card. Nicely framed.

CHICAGO, IL - AUGUST 16: Second baseman Kolten Wong #16 of the St. Louis Cardinals throws to first base to complete a double play as Donnie Murphy #8 of the Chicago Cubs slides into second base at Wrigley Field on August 16, 2013 in Chicago, Illinois. The Cubs defeated the Cardinals 7-0. (Photo by Brian D. Kersey/Getty Images)

The Reality of the Photo: Wow, look at all that open space. And for once, Topps didn’t over crop. The caption says that Wong is throwing to first base to “complete” a double play but it also says the Cubs won 7-0 so how much do I believe that?  I’m going to have to verify that by taking a look at the BOXSCORE.

The caption was right that the Cubs did indeed win 7-0 so I guess Murphy’s attempt to break up the double play doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things though with that score.

The Cubs grounded into three double plays that day, but only one involved Murphy.

The culprit behind it in this case was shortstop Starlin Castro.

This must have been sweet revenge for Wong as he himself killed a rally by grounding into a double play in the top of the second inning.

I don’t think the Rawlings logo on Wong’s glove is visible enough to count it as Free Advertising. And I don’t remember if I counted any previous MLB logos but there is a clear one between Murphy nameplate on the back of his jersey and his helmet. I guess between the two, I can give him a little credit.

Wong is also sporting the Stan Musial Commemorative patch that I briefly mentioned on Matt Carpenters’s post a few weeks back but didn't really go into.

Hall of Famer Stan Musial passed away in January 2013 and the Cardinals wore the patch all season.

On to the back:

Rookie Fact: Kolten was the 11^th Cardinals player to make his MLB debut in ’13.

That’s kind of crazy. He wasn’t even the last, as they had one more debut in September.

By comparison, the Cubs, who used a team record 56 players in 2013, only had 6 make their MLB debut. Houston led the Majors with 15 MLB debuts while Colorado, Kansas City and Toronto all had the least with 3. Here’s a link to all 230 players who made their dreams come true last year.

The other two Hilo players mentioned but not named in the blurb are former Dodgers pitcher, Onan Masaoka (1999-2000) and former Tigers, Rangers, Padres and Diamondbacks pitcher Brandon Villafuerte (2000-2004).

Information I’ll be tracking:

Card Number: #46

Player Name: Kolten Wong

Team: St. Louis Cardinals

Position: Second Base

Game Date: August 16, 2013

Opponent: Chicago Cubs

Stadium: Wrigley Field

Division: National League Central

Home/Away: Away

Outcome of the game: 7-0, Cubs over the Cardinals, Loss for the player depicted

Alternate/Throwback Jersey: No.

Bats/Throws: Left/Right

Birthdate: 10/10/1990

Birthplace: Hawaii

Cameos by: Donnie Murphy  (Cubs)

Photographer: Brian D. Kersey

Niche collections this card could fit into: Double Play, Free Advertising, Patch, Former 1^st Round Draft Pick, Rookie Card, Cameo, Partial Southpaw

My Grade: As I mentioned, this is a pretty well laid out card. The crop is good. The action is solid, if not unfavorable to the Cubs. And despite being shown in a poor light here, the Cubs came out victors in the game from which this photo originated. Not every rookie has a decent photo for a card so Wong lucked out here.

It pains me to do this, but I’ll give this card an A. J

#111 Mark Ellis

Continuing a string of connected cards, I’m going to pair up yesterday’s Lonnie Chisenhall card with Mark Ellis.

#111 Mark Ellis

First impression of what’s going on: Tying these two cards together are the cameos. Chisenhall had a guy on deck and an umpire. Ellis' card has the lead runner in what looks to be a double play. This card is going to hit a lot of niches but I don’t know how I feel about that. Could Topps really not squeeze in two or three more pixels to get Ellis’ throwing pinkie in the frame?

DENVER, CO - SEPTEMBER 02: Second baseman Mark Ellis #14 of the Los Angeles Dodgers turns a doube play on Josh Rutledge #14 of the Colorado Rockies as shortstop Hanley Ramirez #13 of the Los Angeles Dodgers watches in the sixth inning at Coors Field on September 2, 2013 in Denver, Colorado. The Dodgers defeated the Rockies 10-8. (Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)

The Reality of the Photo: This photo didn’t come up right away from me on Getty Images. The term “Mark Ellis 2013” brought up over 1000 results so I tried to narrow down. Next, I tried “Mark Ellis 2013 Double Play” but as you can see, Getty spelled “double” wrong in the caption so it didn’t come up. Luckily, Topps kept the Rockies Josh Rutledge in the picture as “Mark Ellis 2013 Rockies” finally brought up the picture with just a few options.

We also get to see Dodgers shortstop, Hanley Ramirez who was cropped out of the card and the caption credits him as “watching” the double play. That makes me wonder if this actually was a 4-3 double play that Ellis handled on his own or if Hanley is watching after feeding the ball to Ellis for a 6-4-3 twin killing. Guess we’ll have to check out the BOXSCORE.

Screenshot from Baseball-Reference.com

The Dodgers were winning 8-5 at this point in the game, so a double play was definitely crucial to stopping a potential rally. Let’s see how it went down.

Screenshot from Baseball-Reference.com

Wow. The Rockies had runners on first and third with no outs and the Dodgers managed to get out of it. Thanks in part to Mark Ellis and the double play. And as you can see, Ramirez did more than just “watch” the play.

I mentioned that this card qualifies for a couple of niches so let’s break those down. From the top down, we have sunglasses (even if not worn over his eyes) and a pair of logos for some Free Advertising.

There’s a Nike undershirt and a Rawlings logo on the glove. I believe there’s a second Nike logo on his wrist band but since the card is already getting Nike credit from his undershirt and you can’t really see it, I didn’t screenshot it.

I also thought it was worth noting that even though Ellis is not wearing an alternate or throwback jersey, Josh Rutledge is wearing one.

Screenshot from Chris Creamer's Sportslogos.net

On to the back:

Rookie Fact: Mark’s .368 AVG in the 2002 ALDS included a ninth-inning 3-run homer.

Unfortunately for the Athletics, it was a case of too little too late. In Game 5, the A’s were down 5-1 before Ellis’s homer and couldn't quite complete the comeback. They lost not only the game, but also the series. 

Screenshot from Baseball-Reference.com

Because of his veteran status and years of playing experience, there’s no blurb on the back of the card.

Information I’ll be tracking:

Card Number: #111

Player Name: Mark Ellis

Team: Los Angeles Dodgers

Position: Second Base

Game Date: September 2, 2013

Opponent: Colorado Rockies

Stadium: Coors Field

Division: National League West

Home/Away: Away

Outcome of the game: 10-8, Dodgers over the Rockies, Win for the player depicted

Alternate/Throwback Jersey: No, kinda. Cameo player has one.

Bats/Throws: Right/Right

Birthdate: 6/6/1977

Birthplace: South Dakota

Cameos by: Josh Rutledge

Photographer: Doug Pensinger

Niche collections this card could fit into: Free Advertising, Double Play, Sunglasses, Cameo

My Grade: I think I’m supposed to like this card as it hits a couple of the bigger mini collections but something about it doesn’t do it for me. I’m ok giving it an A, but again, this is not a “No Doubter” of an A+. 

#298 Chris Getz

More randomization.

#298 Chris Getz

First impression of what’s going on: Pretty simple here. Looks like Getz is turning two. Some sketchy tactics by the base runner trying to break it up. As an above average fielder, I played quite a bit of middle infield growing up, until being left handed and my below average height caught up to me in high school. Luckily, there weren't very opportunities to turn two so my shins, ankles and groin remained intact. Looks like Getz got just enough air to avoid any serious mishaps.

Kansas City Royals second baseman Chris Getz (17) forces out Detroit Tigers' Andy Dirks (12) at second and completes a double play on Torii Hunter at first in the fifth inning at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri, Monday, June 10, 2013. (John Sleezer/Kansas City Star/MCT via Getty Images)

The Reality of the Photo: The caption says the double play was completed, but early on I have trust issues. With both Getty and Topps so I will definitely follow up with the BOXSCORE.

The Royals pulled out a squeaker here. Did the double play squash a potentially game winning rally? (Even if was only the fifth…)

Nah not really, just the second batter of the inning after a leadoff single.  Maybe, but I guess we’ll never know.

On to the back:

Rookie Fact: Chris’ seven errors in 2009 were fewest of regular AL second basemen.

My skepticism ran a little high here. I have trust issues. I went over to FanGraphs and ran a chart of American League second baseman from 2009.

Placido Polanco, Dustin Pedroia and Mark Ellis all had fewer errors than Getz as regular second basemen. Ugh. Why do I have to keep digging deeper?

Information I’ll be tracking:

Card Number: #298

Player Name: Chris Getz

Team: Kansas City Royals

Position: Second Base

Game Date: June 10, 2013

Opponent: Detroit Tigers

Stadium: Kauffman Stadium

Division: American League Central

Home/Away: Home

Outcome of the game: 3-2, Royals over the Tigers, Win for the player depicted

Alternate/Throwback Jersey: No

Bats/Throws: Left/Right

Birthdate: 8/30/1983

Birthplace: Michigan

Cameos by: N/A

Photographer: Kansas City Star

Niche collections this card could fit into: Double Play, Cameo

My Grade: I’m torn on this one. These inaccurate blurbs/rookie facts are getting annoying. But I really like the photo. Good crop, good action. Getz is up in the air. The play was made. There aren't too many niches this fits into but I’m still going to give it a B anyway because I think more people are interested in the fronts of cards than the backs. Still no excuse for bad facts though.