1997 Topps Alejandro Pena

Card #25 in the first series of my custom set was supposed to be a 1982 Topps Traded Wade Boggs card. I was excited about the 1981 Topps Minnie Minoso that I had just finished, and was even more excited about the next cards coming up after the '82 Traded Boggs (a 1980 Topps Disco Demolition Night Highlight card, a 1990 Topps Bo Jackson All-Star Game Highlight card, a 1978 Topps Ted Turner Manager card, and even the 1993 Topps Stadium Club Derek Jeter 1st Day Issue card, and I HATE the Yankee$). So I decided I would do cards #26 and 27 first (Disco Demolition and Bo Jackson) before I did #25 (the Boggs). I also had a list going of about 100 players who I followed growing up in the '90's who I believed Topps hadn't made a final card of. After checking on Wikipedia and Google, probably 80% of the players hadn't had a final Topps card. So I made a list of cards for Series 5 and 6, and have a partial list for Series 7. Now the last thing I could think about was a boring 1982 Topps Traded Wade Boggs card, and since other bloggers have done it, I decided to scrap the Boggs card, and put another card in it's place. I don't know why, but for some reason, Alejandro Pena stuck out at me. He played for the 1988 Los Angeles Dodgers championship team (one of my favorite teams of all-time), he won 3 World Series titles, and pitched for a few decent playoff teams, and he was a decent pitcher in his prime, winning the NL ERA title in 1984, tying for the lead in Shutouts, and becoming a decent reliever after getting injured the following year. So, I decided to make his last Topps card, a 1997 one. It was pretty difficult finding letters that didn't take too much re-touching, and the back was easier than the front, but I'm happy with how this card turned out, apologies to Wade Boggs. The first series is done, and now to start the 2nd series will be card #26, 1980 Topps Disco Demolition Night Highlights.

Shout out to some great custom makers!

I wanted to dedicate this post to some great custom card makers. Many of the blogs I follow, others, I have just stumbled upon recently, but I wanted to let anyone who reads my blog know about them in case they missed them.

Similar to my blog, John from http://cardsthatneverwere.blogspot.com does cards that never were, like this 1952 Bowman Hoyt Wilhelm. I love some of the cards that he has come up with, like a 1981 Fleer Minnie Minoso.

The Shablotnik Report does customs that I've enjoyed following. I found out about the site while doing a search for Jacob deGrom cards. Turns out that the daughter of one of my co-workers is going to Mr. deGrom's wedding in a few weeks. Small world. I'm going to try to pass along the link to the card, and maybe Jacob will get to see it.

I have to admit, when I first saw this Andrew McCutchen custom from The Writer's Journey, I thought I found a picture of a sample of 2015 Topps cards. It was that good. There are some custom card makers that could give Topps a real run for their money, and in my opinion, The Writer's Journey could put Topps out of business.


There are many other custom card blogs out there that I feel are doing a great job. Bob Lemke does some great cards that never were as well, and he also does the backs of them. He was nice enough to give me some pointers when I was just starting out.
Punk Rock Paint also does some great custom cards, and did a great series a few months ago based on the 'Choose your own Adventure' books. I hope you find some of these other blogs enjoyable.

-Jeremy

1990 Topps Bo Jackson Highlights

Topps gave Bo a base card in 1990, but left him off of the All-Star subset even though he was the Game's MVP. Donruss gave him an All-Star card, and Score and Upper Deck had cards that highlighted the 448-foot Home Run he hit in the 1st Inning. Topps didn't have a Highlight subset in the 1990 set, only Record Breakers and All-Stars. I decided to give Bo a card highlighting his Home Run. Maybe in one of the future series, I'll make the former Auburn Tiger a 1990 Topps All-Star card too. I have some really good ideas for cards for Series 5 (the next checklist I'm working on) and am excited for many of the cards in Series 2, 3, and 4. Here is card #2 in Series 2, and #27 in the set.

1980 Topps Highlights: Disco Demolition Night

While Topps hasn't normally done Highlight cards of promotions, and Disco Demolition Night was more of a catastrophy than a highlight, I thought I would make this card protraying one of the most memorable promotions in Major League History. In 1979, Chicago White Sox owner Bill Veeck wanted to generate more ticket sales, so he decided to have Disco Demolition Night during the middle of a doubleheader between the Detroit Tigers on July 12. A local DJ invited listeners to come to the game, which helped lead to the boost in attendance for the game. People could attend the game for 98 cents, and were invited to bring disco records to be burned/exploded in a giant bin in centerfield during the middle of the 2 games. The Sox drew a little over 15,000 people to the previous night's game, and Veeck expected maybe 10,000 to 15,000 more people to come to Disco Demolition Night. Over 50,000 people came. During the first game, many fans threw records on to the field. Many people broke into the stadium through windows and openings once the gates were locked. After the records were blown up, fans poured onto the field, tearing up grass, stealing the bases, and climbing the foul poles. The field had a hole in it from where the records were destroyed, and players could smell pot smoke and feared for their safety as fans chucked empty liquor bottles onto the field. The second game was postponed, and untimately forfieted. I don't believe any card companies have made cards comemmorating Disco Demolition Night, and I was surprised, seeing how Tristar Obak had a few cards that were different (first person to sell hot dogs at a baseball game, first person to catalogue baseball cards, inventor of Heisman Trophy), and all of the random cards that are in the Goodwin Champions and Allen/Ginter sets. Here is what Topps may have had their Disco Demolition Night card look like in their 1980 set.

1991 Topps Jeff Bagwell

Jeff Bagwell got a card in the 1991 Topps Traded set featuring him as a Houston Astro, but never was featured as a Boston Red Sock. His 1991 Stadium Club card was hot at the time, and he was a pretty decent prospect, so I wonder why Topps didn't include him in the base set as part of their Future Star subset. Here is what his regular Topps card may have looked like in 1991.

1981 Topps Minnie Minoso

Minnie Minoso first appeared in the Majors in 1949 with the Indians. His last season as a regular was 1964. He recieved a Topps card in 1964, but not 1965. He came out of retirement in 1976 and became the oldest player to get a hit, and Topps did put him in their 1977 set. Then, in 1980, Bill Veeck decided to let Minnie play in the White Sox's last 2 games, adding a spark to what was an otherwise miserable season. Topps, Donruss, and Fleer didn't include Mr. Minoso in their 1981 sets, although John from Cards That Never Were made a nice 1981 Fleer card. Minnie also played in Minor League games in 1993 and 2003 to get playing time in those decades. Who knows, he might just be able to play a game this year.

1992 Topps Mike Piazza/Carlos Delgado Prospects

This card could've realistically happened. Both Piazza and Delgado appeared in the 1992 Bowman set, Lopez made it on Bowman a year earlier, and Wilson appeared on the 1991 Topps set in the #1 Draft Picks subset. They weren't as far along in the minors as Brad Ausmus and Dave Nilsson (who appeared on the original 1992 Topps Catchers Prospect card), but all 4 had potential. Piazza is a Hall of Famer in my mind, and I really think he should already be in. You could make a case for Lopez and Delgado. Lopez was the #1 catcher for most of the successful Atlanta Braves teams of the '90's, and he hit a good amount of Home Runs. Delgado had a 4-Home Run game, and he was at the top of the charts in HRs and RBIs at his peak. While probably not a Hall of Famer, Wilson played a good decade as the Seattle Mariners #1 catcher, and was an excellent defensive catcher. Finishing this card means there are only 4 more cards left in Series 1. There are some fun cards coming up, and I can't wait to get started.