Everything's Coming Up Rosie!

Now's your inning, set the World (Series) on its ear! Set it spinning! That'll be just the beginning!

No disrespect to the 2021 Comeback Players of the Year, but it feels like Eddie Rosario would have won comeback player of the 2nd half, if there was such a thing. Dumped by the Twins (who by the way, could have used another decent outfielder for most of the year), then injured in Cleveland, a trade deadline deal sent him to the Braves for the right to release Pablo Sandoval, the expectations for the balance of the season were not high. Could Rosie rise to meet the moment?

Even before Topps NOW, Rosie was making "NOW-worthy" moments. Hitting a homer on the very first pitch he saw from an MLB pitcher, in front of his family who cam from Puerto Rico to see his debut? Yeah, he can meet the moment.

 

How about the 2017 World Baseball Classic? It was Rosie's walk off sac fly that propelled Puerto Rico to the Finals against the U.S.

The big moments would carry over into the 2017 regular season, blasting a walk off in 2017 that helped the Twins stay ahead in the Wild Card race so the Yankees could crush my spirit again. Just kidding, I am Vikings fan too, so I've been dead inside for decades.

His family was back in town in June of 2018 (the Twins should have bought them a house), and he responded by launching 3 homers, including the game winner.

2019 of course saw Rosie reach career highs in homers and 2020 was a lost season for a lot of players. 2021 was looking like another lost year for Rosario, but once the Braves added him to the lineup it was sunshine and Santa Claus - it was Roses and daffodils! Hitting for the cycle (only seeing 5 pitches to do it, by the way, vintage Rosario), then winning the NLCS MVP was a great comeback. 

He's a free agent again now, so everything's coming up Rosie!

Oh It's On NOW Topps

I think Topps NOW is a great concept. The technology at Topps' disposal means that they can make high quality cards very quickly. While the selection of moments that are "NOW worthy" has skewed heavily towards a BOS NYY LAD bias, I can't really complain about the variety of subjects. There have been some snubs in my opinion, and cards that I would question their inclusion in the set. I am going to keep chasing the Twins, and I will make exceptions from time to time to get cards that I like for the photo or moment. 

Eddie Rosario of the Twins was also the regular Left Fielder for the Puerto Rican National Team in the WBC. I couldn't pass up the awesome Superman card they made for Chris Coghlan.

In addition to his Topps NOW card for the walk-off winner against the Netherlands, Rosario was also included in the Puerto Rico Team set. Kennys Vargas was on team PR as well (and Twin pitcher Jose Berrios), but only Rosario made the team set. Vargas did get his first NOW card in the Twins' Spring Training Team Set! Ervin Santana was the first Twin to get his own card in the regular season. Still waiting for my Joe Mauer card to arrive in the mail.

Others have pointed this out (most notably The Lost Collector), but the backs are different this year. The WBC cards have a standard card back, but all the new cards have this refractor effect on the backs. In my head, it is another step in justifying the high price tag on these cards.

I find myself rooting for the Twins to get Topps NOW cards after each game, or trying to figure out which moments deserve a card the following day. Topps successfully hooked me on the product, so congratulations!