Players Gonna Play

This year was the 2nd Annual Player's Weekend Celebration, where players can wear any socks they want.

Topps released a set again this year, picking a handful of players from each team - I was of course looking for the Twins' set.

La Makina is my favorite of this bunch. Apparently there were also special short printed cards (please don't die of shock) if a person purchased 5X or 10X sets. Well, that's kind of dumb. Enough re-sellers bit on that, so there are 14 Logan Forsythe short prints and 10 Tyler Austin short prints that I will never see in person.

I did, however, buy my set directly from Topps, which gave me the possibility of getting a bonus card later on... and boy it was a doozy:

It got dusty in this room all of a sudden... Joe dons the tools of ignorance one ... last ... time! Mauer's last game of 2018 just may be the last game of his career, and it was a memorable day, from his Twin daughters greeting him at first base before the game, to a opposite field double in his final at bat, and finally his brief stint behind the plate and long standing ovation from Minnesota fans.

This was nice surprise to add to the 5 card set - I'm hoping that next year will have a a Twins set that features a first place finish!

Ok, So NOW What?

By the time Mitch Garver hit this walk off double, the Twins were all bu eliminated from playoff contention. The trade deadline more or less sealed the team's fate in 2018, as they traded away Brian Dozier, Eduardo Escobar, Lance Lynn, Zach Duke, Ryan Pressly, and Fernando Rodney. 

If they could have, I'm sure they would have traded away Ervin Santana and Logan Morrison too, but injuries made that impossible. Even though their season would not extend into October, there was still plenty of baseball left to play.

I didn't listen to my own rules about sticking to just Twins NOW cards, I couldn't pass up this awesome bat flip from the wunderkind 19 year old of the Nats. Soto homered in 3 straight games, the first teenager to do that since 1898. Eighteen Ninety Eight!

On the other end of the spectrum, I knew ahead of time that this would be a card I would add, as long as Bartolo could make it happen. He's made 24 starts for Texas this season, and has stated he wants to pitch again in 2019. I hope someone signs him- he's now just three wins away from 250 for his career, which is a nice milestone.

It's the first Logan Forsythe card as a Twin! He started out with the team hitting everything, including this 5 hit game, but he's cooled off considerably. His numbers now are closer to his career rates, and he looks to finish out 2018 right at the 0.0 WAR replacement level. I have my fingers crossed that the Twins make a run at bringing back Eduardo Escobar in the off season, Dozier I am less enthusiastic about. Forsythe is better suited for a team looking for a veteran backup, rather than the Twins who need a starting 2B.

Mauer watch continues as he hasn't ruled out coming back for another season, nor has he said he'll play beyond 2018. He passed Carew in August, and the next time he reaches base, he'll pass Harmon Killebrew on the Twins' All-Time on base list. Right now he's up to 2,112 career hits, he'd probably need to play full time for another 5 seasons or part time 7 or 8 to reach 3,000. I don't see that happening, though he could pass Kirby Puckett if he plays one more great year, or two average seasons. Maaaaaybe?

One of the best stories of this "lost" season has been reserve catcher Willians Astudillo. He was called up earlier for a series in Chicago and appeared in Left and Center Field, 3rd and 2nd base, and even pitched in a blowout. He blasted this walk-off home run on a Sunday afternoon and has quickly become a fan favorite. This is his first card in an MLB uniform.

You can't spell Astudillo without "A Stud." I don't know how many more NOW moments the Twins will have in 2018, but I'm hoping for one tonight as I make my way back to Target Field to catch a few more Joe Mauer at bats if these are indeed his last.

The Past is NOW the Future

This card ranks right up there with the Diamondbacks' Bullpen Car, or the Astros' funeral for Carlos Beltran's Glove. It's silly, and I love it!

I remember thinking that Turn Ahead the Clock was a fun promotion, but in Seattle there's genuine nostalgia for it. It does seem strange to me to have a 20th Anniversary celebration for a jersey, but I can't deny the fact that it's a welcome breath of fresh air.

Speaking of the 1990s - I took the opportunity to raid the COMC site for its late 90s and early 2000s treasures.

1997 SP looks fantastic, even today. I don't think I had anything from that set before. Bonds before Bonds was BONDS, though he was still getting intentionally walked at a crazy rate. Gonzalez had a ridiculous June in 1996 - 15 homers, 36 RBI, and a .407 batting average.

In the 90s, Inserts look amazing and base cards look almost like inserts.

Collector's Choice had a photofile's dream insert called "Big Shots" - this one of Ripken was my favorite.

And then there's Colon, who is still cruising along in the big leagues today!

This subset tried to predict where Colon would be in 2001 in the new Millenium. The 28 year old (Ahem, TSC couldn't predict that Colon's real birth year was 1973...) didn't find himself as a closer, though he did finish one game that season- he just happened to also be the starter. He would have his first 20 win season in 2002, and it was arguably better than his Cy Young year in 2005. In 2000, Colon was close to the predicted K rate, he fanned 212 batters in 188 innings.

NOW That Will Leave A Mark

Didja ever order a Topps NOW card and the guy gets traded before the thing arrives? NOW that really stings, Topps!

It's a nice curtain call for Dozier, though I think it's a bittersweet final image.

In more promising prospects, Topps issued a set of cards for the AL and NL All-Star rosters, which included Jose Berrios. He pitched 1 inning, allowed no hits and one walk. Since the AL won the game, Berrios was credited with a Hold.

Last but not least, local kid Joe Mauer made headlines by passing Kirby Puckett on the career Doubles list. He has more than any other Minnesota Twin, and is 3rd all-time for the Washington Senators / Twins franchise, behind Joe Judge (421) and Sam Rice (479). His next milestone? He currently has 992 career runs scored. Barring injury he should be able to reach 1,000 by the end of the season.

NOW With An Unexpected Bonus

I picked up 4 Topps NOW cards in June. 2 were MN Twins. Eddie Rosario is definitely a Top 5 Twins Eddie, along with AL Doubles leader Eduardo Escobar and bullpen coach Eddie Guardado. Rosie is probably going to be the All-Star from the Twins' roster this year.

I put this right into a One Touch, so apologies for the blurry scan. This was a bonus card for ordering the Spring Training Twins team set- since Eddie had such an impressive game, Topps made a gold parallel (with a new photo) to commemorate his 3 HR outburst.

The other Twin was the team's best starter this year, Jose Berrios. He's been brilliant and, well, the opposite of brilliant so far this season, tossing a couple Complete Games, and having some big strikeout totals, and also having some real clunkers. His last good start was against Texas, a pitching duel against his old teammate, Bartolo Colon.

Colon had 3 cards this month (and a 4th if you count the Living Set), I opted to just get one- 2,500 Ks seemed more momentous than the other two which were about tying specific win totals of other pitchers. When he passes Dennis Martinez and becomes the winningest Latin American born pitcher, I'll probably pick that one up too. I'm hoping he gets at least 5 more victories this season to make an even 250 for his career.

Oh, yeah, and this overachiever. I liked the picture, I like milestones, I hadn't added any Trout NOW cards to date... so... there ya go.

NOW More Convenient Than Ever

Topps NOW can be funny sometimes - I can't say I had any specific rooting interest in any team or player involved in this card, but sometimes the silliest things can be the most appealing to me. Let's check the video:

Kind of a bummer that Topps didn't use a shot with McHugh actually riding in the cart, but it's the thought that counts.

To me, this is a better use of Topps NOW than every single game winner, and every Yankee HR milestone ending in a 5 or a 0 . . . (I have to believe even Yankees fans are exhausted by that) . . .  It's a moment on the field that you don't see every day, and that is something I can support.

NOW, More Than Ever

What a moment! I am unabashedly a Twins fan, and part of me was disappointed that Cleveland won this game, but there's no denying the excitement that Lindor brought to the crowd in San Juan, Puerto Rico last month. Topps Now of course was there to capitalize.

But Topps decided to do something special for this card, donating a portion of the proceeds to Puerto Rico hurricane relief efforts. Normally I would have skipped this card, but it tangentially involved the Twins, and directly benefited people in need. Topps would also add donations to two Stephen Piscotty cards, who lost his mother to ALS in May.

Topps found that there are still more ways to get me to shell out some cash with a new Topps Now feature called "Moment of the Week."

Ohtani has been every bit as good as advertised, and I couldn't pass up a chance to get in on the fun. I was unaware of the voting period this first time around, so I missed out on the gold parallel of this card, given out to collectors that voted for Ohtani to be the first moment of the week.

Last but not least, I still collect the Twins when they manage to make it on Topps Now cards. I was fortunate enough to be in attendance for this game, in which the Twins nearly gave away a 10 run lead to the defending champs. Kepler's homer was an absolute laser beam out to right field, and the whole ballpark knew it was gone the moment he connected with it.

I was able to see this game in person as well, as Mauer collected both hit # 1,999 and hit # 2,000 on the same night. The 2 run single for 2,000 was vintage Joe Mauer, a screaming grounder up the middle past the pitcher and into center field. His first hit of that night was greeted with a big roar from the crowd and the team played Prince's "1999" over the PA. It was good timing by Mauer, as the rest of the Chicago series was postponed due to snow and rain, meaning it would be some time before he would play in front of his home fans again. He's up to 2,025 hits now, though he just landed on the DL with a neck injury.

Bringing it full circle - the night after Lindor's homer, it was the Puerto Rican Twins players that put on a show. Jose Berrios pitched 7 shutout innings, and the winning run was scored by Eddie Rosario. This is the first appearance for Ryan LaMarre on a Twins card. He was a journeyman AAA outfielder and tore up spring training. Given the opportunity to start in the big leagues, LaMarre played very well for the Twins in April.

It seemed to me to be the very best outcome for the fans in P.R., with the heroes each night being from Puerto Rico.

NOW The Twins Finally Have A Little Spring In Their Step

The Twins are winners of 5 straight and are nipping at Cleveland's heels for first place in the AL Central. It took them quite some time to heat up, just like the weather in MN, and just like the shipment from Topps with the Twins' 2018 Spring Training Team set.

The two rookies included were Zack Granite and Felix Jorge, both of whom are currently in the minors. Granite is on the DL at the moment with a bum shoulder, as are veterans Ervin Santana and Miguel Sano.

The Twins' shiny new Relief Corps has been hot and cold, though Addison Reed has been the most consistent of the bunch. Berrios is appropriately shown working out, as he's taken on the mantle of the hardest working man in the off-season, with crazy workouts of pushing cars on the beaches of Puerto Rico popping up on social media all winter long. 

The set features the first appearance of Logan Morrison in a Twins' uniform, and he's just now starting to swing the bat well after a horrendous April. Topps sent an extra copy of Zack Granite for some reason...

The backs of the cards are all identical below the player's name and the card number.

Since I am a sucker, I opted to buy the "autograph" edition and I was pleasantly surprised to pull a Brian Dozier card.

I like the photo selection, and even though they didn't include my dude Kennys Vargas, I think they did a good job of player selection.

NOW things are starting to heat up

Topps NOW is back and testing my wallet already. Topps has added a "Moment of the Week" and the Topps Living Set in addition to the daily Topps NOW offerings and weekly TBT (Throwback Thursday Offerings). I will still be picking up the Twins as the days go by, and I will tell you right NOW that they are going to have at least one if not two or more cards this week with their historic trip to Puerto Rico vs Cleveland. Jose Berrios is a beast, and if it weren't for Mauer's 2,000th hit, he might have been featured again last week. He hurled a 3 hit shutout against the Orioles on April 1st, but his start against Chicago was also impressive.

I don't go outside of Twins cards too often for Topps NOW, but I saw this one and had to make an exception. Ichiro has been one of my favorite players for over a decade, and he's still making plays.

Here's a peek at the card backs. in 2017, Topps added a glossy refractor coating to the backs of Topps NOW, this year's version is a little more subtle. The "Topps" logo catches the light as the card is tilted, but at other angles, it is almost invisible. This is their "Upper Deck Hologram" security feature, which I assume is more flash than substance.