All-Star Winnings, Part 11

Way back in July 2012, I won a contest at Cards On Cards. The premise was to pick the Cardinals player who would have the biggest impact on the game, determined Sabermetrically. I picked the right player, and got a pile of Cardinals for my trouble. They've been sitting in that same pile, haunting me, for quite some time, so now is the time to show them to you.
Part [ I | II | III | IV | V | VI | VII | VIII | IX | X ]

2007 Bowman Chrome - Propects #BC68 Jarrett Hoffpauir
2010 Bowman Draft - Prospects Chrome #BDPP22 Nick Longmire
2011 Bowman Chrome - Prospects #BCP40 Deryk Hooker

Trying to navigate all the sets and subsets of Bowman, especially in 2010-2011 and probably beyond, gives me a headache. Part of the confusion is that my canonical source, Zistle, decides to treat "Bowman Chrome Draft" as a product, not as Chrome inserts in Bowman Draft. The same is also done for some Chrome inserts in Bowman, which are not found in packs of Bowman Chrome. The important thing is, I'm pretty sure I've determined the actual sets for these cards, and filed them appropriately. The Hoffpauir is the Chrome version of a card I got in a group break.

2010 Bowman Draft #BDP18 Jon Jay
2010 Topps Chrome #178 Jon Jay

More Bowman and more Chrome, just not together this time. 2 Jon Jay rookie cards would be a nice prize by themselves.

2007 Tristar Prospects Plus #75 David Kopp

Finally, while we're dealing in prospect cards, here's one who hasn't made the big leagues just yet, but might. David Kopp played at AAA Memphis in 2011, but has been at Detroit's AA team the last two years.

Spring Training Giveaway, part 3

[Part 1]
[Part 2]

I won another contest at Number 5 Type Collection. After ranking the 5 teams I wanted from what he had to offer, I tied another reader and so wound up with half the Tigers and Red Sox.

Let's start with some minor leaguers we may never hear from:

2007 Tristar Prospects Plus #99 Cale Iorg

 I actually recognized this last name and sure enough, he's the nephew of former Cardinal Dane Iorg. Of course, Dane is from too far back for me to remember.

2007 Tristar Prospects Plus #8 Ryan Dent

2007 Tristar Prospects Plus #76 Brock Huntzinger

2007 Tristar Prospects Plus #85 Anthony Rizzo

2007 Tristar Prospects Plus #94 David Mailman

2007 Upper Deck #574 Matt Clement

 Matt Clement was technically a Cardinal for a bit, but he never saw the majors after an injury and some minor league rehab.

2007 Upper Deck #581 Mike Timlin

 I mostly remember that we had Timlin during 2001 because he was on the team when Bud Smith thew a No-Hitter. My neurons seem to connect in odd ways.

2007 Upper Deck #591 Manny Ramirez

 This would have been a much more exciting card a few years ago. PED suspensions really put a damper on my excitement.

2008 Topps Updates and Highlights #UH123 Matt Joyce

2008 Topps Updates and Highlights #UH153 Armando Galarraga

 Mr. Almost-Perfect himself.

2008 Topps Updates and Highlights #UH195 Chris Carter

I'm a little tired or I'd make a Minnesota Vikings/X-Files reference, and it'd be hilarious.

2008 Topps Updates and Highlights #UH221 J.D. Drew

 Ah J.D. Drew, my first experience in having to root for an outwardly greedy player. I remember thinking he wasn't so great to Philadelphia for refusing to sign and playing in an independent league. Then the Cardinals drafted him the following year. I was a bit conflicted, and I'm still not sure what my opinion would be if he had been drafted by someone else instead.

2008 Upper Deck Timeline #41 Justin Verlander

2010 Upper Deck #99 George Kottaras

2010 Upper Deck #192 Edwin Jackson

Even though he and Colby Rasmus are both gone now, I think this deal worked out pretty nicely for the Cardinals in their 2011 World Series run.

2010 Upper Deck #207 Ryan Perry

Well, I've saved the best for last in part 4. You might be able to guess what's coming based on the teams I chose that I consider it the best.

Number 5 Type Collection's Cardinals Giveaway, Part 3

[Part 1]
[Part 2]
Matt at Number 5 Type Collection gave me way too many Cardinals in a recent contest.  Here's part 3:

Let's start off with some former prospects now traded away.

2007 Tristar Prospects Plus #81 Joe Mather

2007 Tristar Prospects Plus #80 Colby Rasmus

 It's a little weird to see a modern Cardinal wearing Yadier Molina's #4, but this is from the minors (AA) of course.  It does make me wonder if any of the minor league players are allowed to wear the MLB Cardinals' retired numbers

1988 Fleer - 1987 World Series #5 Throw Smoke! (Todd Worrell and Tony Pena)

 These guys are a little before my time, though I vaguely recall Tony's crazy catching stance when my dad watched games and I wasn't too interested. By the time I was really paying attention in '92, Todd Worrell had been reduced to setup man for the powerful Lee Smith.

1993 Hostess #5 Ray Lankford

I actually laughed out loud when I saw this card. It brought memories flooding back to me about seeking out and eating way too many Hostess Baseballs in 1993. What can I say, I was 10. I think I even tried to convince my dad to try them, hoping he'd replace any other sugary snack he might have with a baseball, and I'd get another box with more cards sooner. I went and grabbed my pile of hostess cards and noticed something interesting. I guess I got into the game late, because they're all numbered 17 or higher of 32, which would seem to be evidence they issued the cards in two series.

2005 Topps Total #206 (STL5) Chris Carpenter

2007 Upper Deck Future Stars #88 Chris Carpenter

1990 Fleer All-Stars #5 Joe Magrane

I have a few Joe Magrane autographs, as he hung around St. Louis a few years after he retired, making the occasional appearance. He played with the Cardinals until mid 1993, so I can recall about a year and a half of his career here.

1999 Topps - Lords of the Diamond #LD5 Mark McGwire

2000 Topps - 20th Century's Best #232 Mark McGwire

Mark McGwire was a favorite player of mine long before he came to the Cardinals, so I got even more into baseball when he was traded here. Sadly he was apparently using some illegal substances during his amazing Home Run binges. I'm glad to see he's back with the Cardinals as a hitting coach, hopefully he can rebuild his legacy that was tainted by his bad choices. He's apparently a pretty smart guy when it comes to hitting, though, and the players really seem to get a lot from him. We'll need that experience and confidence with a brand new manager this year.

More to see tomorrow...