Belated Star Trek Day

Star Trek

To boldly go where no man hs gone before...

Even if that means going back a day from the future.

Yup, I forgot to tie in a Star Trek Day post yesterday because quite frankly I had no idea such a thing existed. 

Star Trek Day is celebrated every September 8th in memory of it's original airing on September 8th, 1966.

I was never a big Star Trek fan.  

Star Wars was more my thing.

Truth be told though the Alien and Predator film franchises are my true Sci-Fi loves.

To celebrate (a day late) Star Trek Day I thought I would look at some Andrew McCutchen cards in my collection that tie into the Star Trek Mythos.

Let's get started with an actress I have neglected from including as part of my SaveSecondBase event.  I am talking about Jeri Ryan who plays the Borg drone character, 7 of 9 on the show Star Trek: Voyager.

7 of 9

You may recall that a few years ago I attempted to make a Frankenset of Andrew McCutchen cards numbered to 9 copies as part of Daniel's 9 year blogging anniversary contest.  I couldn't quite fulfil that request because I was missing a 7/9.

That all changed when one follower on Twitter hit me up that he had pulled a Cutch 2020 Triple Threads gold parallel numbered...

7 of 9.

Speaking of 9, there was a series called Star Trek: Deep Space Nine that ran for 3 seasons from 1993 to 1995.

This September 8, 2014 issue of Sports Illustrated features Cutch on the cover and the main article is called Andrew McCutchen Goes Deep.

Star Trek debuted in 1966 and Cutch has been featured on several 1966 Topps designed cards.

The 2015 Topps Heritage design used the 1966 Topps design and pictured above is a 3 card advertising panel found in the box toppers.

Star Trek: The Next Generation followed up the success of the original Star Trek and it debuted September 1987.  Now I could easily show off some of the 1987 designed cards I have, but I'm going to boldly go beyond and show off one of my favorite Superfractors in my collection.

Above are the 2015 Topps Finest Generations red parallel /5 and Superfractor 1/1.  These cards pop!!!!

So there are some of my Cutch cards and magazine article that I could tie into some Star Trek items.

What is your favorite Sci-Fi franchise?

Do you like Star Trek?

Superman Day

Every June 12th is celebrated as National Superman Day.

You may recall I discussed this day back in 2019 when I showed off a super rare 1 of 1 autograph booklet letter patch card.  

I was never a huge fan of Superman compared to other superheroes.  I always liked the darker more angsty heroes like Wolverine, Green Arrow, or Batman or I liked the comical heroes like Flash or Deadpool.

I do respect Superman though.  He is an American icon.

Superman is also known as The Man of Steel.

Here are some other Men of Steel from my Andrew McCutchen Triple Threads collection

Twitter Hookups in Red & Gold

I got tagged in a few Twitter posts over the past month and it resulted in 4 new cards added to the collection all seen below, all either red or gold cards.

These cards were awesome to add to the collection with half of them being limited to less than 10 copies

Let's take a look at each one and I will thank them each

First up is a card I received PWE from our very own blogger Daniel of It's Like Having My Own Card Shop.  This is the red foil 2020 Topps Fire card.

This is the gold foil 2020 Topps Triple Threads numbered 7/9 and features Bat relics and road grey jerseys. Brandon sent me this for an incredible price. Check him out   @bfcoach22 on Twitter.

I will always have a soft spot for gold parallels of Cutch in a Pirates uniform. ALWAYS!  Getting this limited print run (50 copies produced) gold border 1983 design of Cutch from 2018 Topps for $3 via PWE seemed too good to pass up.  Huge thanks to John for the awesome deal and hookup.  Check him out @ _JjOoHhNnZz_ on Twitter.

Topps Chrome is pretty cool.

😎Topps Chrome red parallels of Cutch in a Phillies uniform are cooler. 😎

John aka JohnnyBones aka Dr.Booo hooked me up with this red parallel /5

His twitter is @JohnnXf

*********BONUS CONTENT*********

I received a PWE yesterday after I had already scanned the above 4 cards.

One of my favorite player super collectors is JT aka TripleCrown24.  He has a huge Miguel Cabrera supercollection (over 2500 unique Miggys).  His YouTube channel and good presence on Twitter @itstriplecrown make him a fun follow.

He sent me the above 2013 Bowman Platinum Sapphire parallel.

The back shows how ****ing good Cutch was in his prime.

So there's a few cards I got over the past few weeks all through Twitter.

Thank you to everyone involved.

Derby Day

The best event for All-Star games has to be either the slam dunk competition for basketball or the homerun derby for baseball.  The electricity caused by Bryce Harper's come from behind Derby victory last year at his home ballpark was just an absolute joy to watch. 

Hopefully some of that excitement happens tonight.  To bring more excitement and fan buzz to the event, MLB is offering a $250K prize to a fan that can correctly fill out the bracket. 

I set mine up yesterday and chose Joc Pederson to win it all beating Pirates slugger Josh Bell in the finals.

Cutch was a participant in the 2012 Home Run Derby. He hit four homers and lost in the first round to eventual champion, Prince Fielder.

I have shown off a few cards of Cutch from the Derby before, but for those that may forget here is my favorite image and card of the Derby.

I also have a program souvenir from the 2012 All-Star Game with Cutch on the cover.

The back cover can be seen below.

Here is a scan of the rosters from the AL and NL squads.  You may notice a short second baseman representing the Astros in the National League.  It feels like forever since the Astros were part of the NL. 

Missing 7 of 9: A Contest Response

Daniel is holding a contest for his 9th year blogging.  If you aren't already reading It's Like Having My own Card Shop you surely are missing out.  It is a fantastic read and he has so many different kinds of collections.

Originally I thought I could use my Triple Threads cards to show off cards numbered to 9 and highlight my favorite card from each  specific numbering.

The problem?

Well....you will see later.

1/9

Let's get this thing started, shall we?  Here we have a standard jumbo patch numbered 1/9.  No big deal, right?  The patch is from the 22 on the front of Cutch's jersey.

2/9

I had a few options for number two, but ultimately decided on this 2017 WBC Team USA triple relic.  I loved the WBC tournament so much and think I might try to see a game in person in 2021.

3/9

If there is one thing you should notice from all these cards I am going to be posting is that Cutch is a jovial fella and enjoys playing the game of baseball.  2015 Triple Threads was the last year Topps ran the patches in a straight horizontal line.  That means that the 2015 ASG would be represented on 2016 Triple Threads different as you can see above.  While the design isn't terrible I much rather see the patches line up.

4/9

The patches on this ASG workout jersey aren't the greatest as there is only one super unique patch (the star) in window 3.  I love the photo though as it is directly from Cutch's Home Run Derby appearance.  Cutch lost to eventual champion Prince Fielder in the first round.

5/9

This card is both awesome and bittersweet at the same time.  Following the 2013 season it looked like the Pirates were going to be set for success for a long time.  They had a perenial MVP in Andrew McCutchen, a budding star and constant Gold Glove caliber player in Starling Marte, and a top 10 prospect in Gregory Polanco.  #RunPMC never developed into the outfield the way Pirates fans had hoped and the Marlins, Red Sox, and Yankees outfields overcame them as the best outfields in baseball the past few seasons.  With Austin Meadows breaking out at the MLB level it looks like we will never see Cutch come back to the Steel City as a permanent fixture patrolling the outfield.

Another good 5/9 I have is a triple relic of Joey Bats, Cespedes, and Cutch.  The relics are meh and the saying is PURE GLOVE?  Huh?

6/9

I went all in on acquiring Cutch Triple Threads cards in 2015 for his 2014 ASG appearance.  The design for this year is my least favorite as it doesn't reflect much of the city the game was played in very well.

7/9
I don't have a 7 of 9

So I will just show this Unity relics from PNC Park that Matt from BobWalkThePlank traded me as our most epic trade we completed last year.  All three cards are numbered to 9.  It was part of 5 cards Matt sent me in exchange for these cards I sent him which you can see here, here, here, here, along with about half a dozen of "super rare" buyback Bob Walks I sent him to set the stage for the trade.

8/9

Boring jersey swatch, but at least it matches the subject's jersey color.  Oh and did you notice Cutch is wearing a Jackie Robinson jersey for the card? Can't go wrong with that.  The card also represents Cutch being selected to Topps All-Rookie team for the 2009 season.

9/9

The design for the 2014 Triple Threads celebrating the 2013 ASG is the best of all the ASG patch cards Cutch has appeared on.  The NY skyline in the background complete with a backwards capped dreaded Cutch and 3 unique patch windows make this card have more flav and swag than all the others.

So while i am missing a 7 of 9, how about if I show off another card numbered to 9 just to close thimgs out.

The above 2014 Triple Threads is numbered 8/9 and features patches of Cutch, Pedro Alvarez, and Gerrit Cole.  I miss these guys all being on the same team. 

So I tried to show off 9 cards numbered to 9, but failed.
Guess it is back to the drawing board tomorrow.

Jackie Robinson Day: Standing United

Today is an important day not just for baseball, but for remembering the history of our entire nation.  We all know that every April 15th, MLB celebrates Jackie Robinson day.  It helps to unite all players, coaching staff, umpires, etc and remember what Jackie did to help unite this country when he wore the famous #42 seventy one years ago.

Last year I showed a bunch of cards that were released by National Treasures in the special Jackie Robinson insert set.

This year, I thought I would show off a pair of Unity Relics from Topps Triple Threads that have Cutch wearing the 42 uniform.

The Topps Unity Relics are a pain in the ass to complete the three different versions.  They're even harder if you're trying to complete the different color parallels.

The two different Golds that I have celebrate different awards that Cutch won.
He was a member of the 2009 Topps All Rookie Team

He would also win the 2010 Heart and Hustle Award.

The missing gold /9 doesn't feature Cutch in a Jackie Robinson #42 jersey.  I currently only have the /36 version which you can see below.

Unity In Gold

Back when Triple Threads came out I feverishly sought out all the parallels of the Unity relics I could.  I've been hurt in the past by certain designs not reappearing on the secondary market.

It cost a good bit of money but I was able to snag all 3 versions of the Golds /9.  In addition to having the 3 Unity designs it also has some awesome looking patches.

Check them out.

The backs have different card "numbers"

I wish Topps would do something unique for each of the backs similar to those old All-star cards produced back in the 60s.  Have the backs form an image of the player.  Who knows, maybe the cost is too high to create something original for a high end set like Triple Threads.

150/150 Man

There are only 8 members of the 300HR 300 Stolen Base club.

Andrew McCutchen currently has played 9 MLB seasons.  Figuring that he will play a 15-20 year career, it is possible that one day he may join the elusive group.

Of the 8 members of the 300/300 club, only 2 are in the Hall of Fame (Willie Mays and Andre Dawson).  Two other players, Alex Rodriguez and Barry Bonds would be no doubt Hall of Famers if it were not for PED discussions.

There are 44 members in the 200/200 club.  Cutch is 2 homers and 30 swipes shy of joining that group.  It should be a safe bet that he will join that group before his career is done.

Regardless of what becomes of the rest of Cutch's career he currently is in pretty exclusive company with Pirates history.

I am still in search of the /18 Green version, but am happy I was able to grab the /27 version for under $10.  The other two (/9 and /36) I have had for awhile.

All-Star Patches

With the All-Star game voting now available, I wanted to take this opportunity and ask everyone to vote for Andrew McCutchen.  I know his stats might not be elite, but .....

I want more patch cards!!!!

Each year Triple Threads puts out a subset of All-Star patches from the previous year's All-Stars.

I have all 5 All-Star patch cards /9 from Cutch's All-Star seasons (2011-2015).

Here they are as individual cards with a quick note about how Cutch did during the game.

2011
Cutch had one at bat. He grounded out to the pitcher.

2012
Cutch was looking to be an early season MVP as he batted over .360 with 18 Home Runs.  He was a late selection for the Home Run derby, but was eliminated in the first round.

2013
This was Cutch's MVP season and he came in to the game as a pinch runner for Carlos Beltran.  He stole 2nd base as a Pinch Runner, but struck out in both his plate appearances.

2014
Cutch started his first All-Star game and in his first at bat lined a ball up the middle that Derek Jeter (in his final season) made a diving stop to almost throw out Cutch.  He would later steal second.

2015
Cutch was a starter again this year and blasted his first ASG HomeRun in his final at bat of the evening.

I have plenty more All-Star game cards of Cutch, but I will use the ASG FanFest weekend to show off those cards.

If you look at the standard counting stats, Cutch is having a terrible season, but if you look deeper into the numbers his BABIP (batting average balls in play) is almost 70 points below league average.  He has blistered a lot of balls that unfortunately have lead to outs.