Two years ago Topps tried to create an art project by getting 20 influencers to give their take on twenty of the most iconic cards Topps has produced over the years. The project was known as Project 2020 and it was very successful despite some people having absolutely zero interest in the project.
Part of the problem with that project was one of the most iconic cards (1952 Topps Mickey Mantle) Topps didn't have a license to use Mickey Mantle's likeness. Another part of the failing of the project is not all iconic baseball cards are Topps brands. When we think of iconic baseball cards there are a few others that likely come to mind like the Bo Jackson Score, Ken Griffey Jr 89 UD, and the 88 Fleer FF Billy Ripken.
Thanks to the greatest custom card creator in the western hemisphere, I have a unique opportunity to showcase the 1989 Upper Deck Ken Griffey Jr with a special Collecting Cutch take on the card. Tanner Jones, the former Jose Canseco supercollector, and known as mouschi on many sports card forums created the below masterpiece.
I had a duplicate Andrew McCutchen patch card that I had won as part of a lot of patch cards that I needed 3 of the 4 cards. Not having a need for the duplicate card and knowing I wouldn't get much value if I sold just that card by itself I reached out to Tanner to slaughter the Topps Tribute card and create the above masterpiece. The Star Rookie logo was replaced with the patch of the Topps Tribute card.
The Upper Deck logo was replaced with a Collecting Cutch logo.
The bat was positioned to be on Andrew's shoulder similar to Griffey's and the treeline in the background was added to mimic the Griffey as well. I asked Tanner to show an image of Cutch wearing a chain necklace on the back of the card (which you can see below).
Since Griffey is a lefty and Cutch is a righty, the bats were mirrored.
The back of the card discusses part of the inspiration for the card.
I think he nailed it.
Here is an image of the duplicate patch cards. I chose for the "better" patch to be cut up because the yellow matched up with the Star Rookie better.
If you've followed my blogs over the past decade you are probably aware that I have a deep nostalgia for all things 80s and the early 90s. Well, there is a sequel that came out this year that has been 32 years in the making. Well, not literally, but it sure felt like it.
In 1989, Ghostbusters 2 was released following the huge success of the first film.
A third movie was never released, but a few cartoon series were. Fans were left waiting...and waiting....and waiting.
Rumors of a third movie began to surface, but nothing ever came to be due to the real life falling apart with stars Bill Murray and the late Harold Ramis.
The franchise is one of my favorite 80s franchises behind Thundercats, Transformers, and Voltron.
What is so cool about the Ghostbusters mythos is that ANYONE can become a Ghostbuster.
I finally got around to watch Ghostbusters: Afterlife. I won't spoil anything, but I cried. Not seeping tears running down my eyes like I was 5 years old and Optimus Prime died cried, but 40 year old nerd man crying at the deeper meaning of what this long awaited sequel means.
Anyway, as stated this film (unlike the 2016 "female Ghostbusters" Answer The Call reboot) follows the canon of the first two films and picks up many years after the 1989 sequel.
Here are my cards with 1989 designs.
2019 Optic released an autograph MVP set to represent the 1989 Donruss MVP design. Cutch was one of the autograph subjects and there are multiple parallels to chase after.
I have the Pink Velocity, Gold Vinyl (Superfractor), Green, and base.
All cards are on card autos.
2014 Topps Chrome included a chrome version of a 1989 design of Cutch. It came in a refractor and superfractor format.
I have both.
There were also Topps Mini diecuts released in 2014 Topps. Cutch is one of the few who had multiple cards printed both in Series 1 and Series 2.
There was also a VERY thick patch relic die cut card using the 1989 design. These are numbered to 25 copies and it is one of my favorite relic cards in my collection.
Bowman is Back Refractors used the 1989 Bowman. Cutch's image is the same as his 2013 Topps Update All Star Card.
Were you a fan of the Ghostbusters franchise?
Do you plan to see the long awaited closure to the trilogy?
By now you all should know my appreciation for Gary Sheffield and how he was a favorite player of mine growing up. The bat speed, strong arm, and angry swagger made me really like him in my little league days and early teen years at high school. I only got to see him play a few times as a member of the Florida Marlins when the fish came to visit Philadelphia.
I took a long break from baseball and got back into the game in 2005 when the Pirates drafted a highschooler named Andrew McCutchen.
My all time favorite player is obviously Andrew McCutchen.
I am going to try to show off a card of Gary Sheffield that has also had the design used for an Andrew McCutchen card. You can view all items on the Sheff's Menu by clicking here. (Title for this subject to change)
My very first Gary Sheffield card was 1989 Topps. 1987 Topps was the first set I collected and my dad and I put together the set. My grandfather helped me build the 1989 set and one of my favorites was Gary Sheffield.
The gold chain, the "grill" with his initials, the Future Star logo, the pin stripe jersey
This card was cool!!!
The Sheffield has been used in several other releases over the years as both a reprint and buyback formats.
Here is the Sheff on top of a 2014 mini of Andrew McCutchen
As you can see by the size of the card, the mini is also a die cut format as the white border of the card has been completely removed.
The back of the minis are slightly different as well.
The pink is more pronounced on the mini back
The stats for the mini contain only the most recent season and major league totals while the original contains more in depth stat totals
The monthly scoreboard on the original is completely gone from the mini
There were two different minis produced of Cutch in 2014
The 1989 design was also used for a Chrome version in 2014
The backs as you can see feature the same problems as the mini
Interesting to see that MLB Network's Dan Duquette signed Gary Sheffield.
I also have the Superfractor of the Chrome version which I have shown off a few times.
I also have a stunning patch card of Cutch produced using the 1989 Topps design
It is limited to only 25 copies and is also a die cut
Do you have a favorite 1989 Topps card or any memories from the set?
To say I am excited for this movie is a huge understatement.
Bill & Ted debuted in 1989 in Bill & Ted: Excellent Adventure.
I have shown off some of these 1989 inspired Topps cards in the past.
In 2014, Bowman officially announced they were back (did they ever really go away?) With a "diamond refractor" card inspired by 1989 Bowman. The image used is from the 2013 All-Star game.
The insert set was officially dubbed Bowman is Back and featured a card back in a style similar to those oversized 1989 Bowman cards.
1987 Topps was the first set I ever put together with my dad, but 1989 is when I considered myself a kid who collected baseball cards. I loved that set and think that Topps should show it more love.
2014 Topps Chrome released a chrome version of Cutch using a 1989 design.
This is where things get fun.
Where there's Chrome, there's usually Superfractors.
As a kid who opened probably a case of 1989 Topps, I never thought there would be pieces of jersey or bats used by my favorite players embedded in the cards.
Look at how awesome that looks.
These rarely pop up for sale these days and are all numbered to only 25 copies or less.
And to wrap up my collecting adventure is a pair of 2014 Topps mini diecuts that were available in Series 1 and Series 2 packs.
I love these mini cards.
Kudos to Topps for actually doing a different writeup on the back.
Topps isn't the only manufacturer that recognizes that fans cling to nostalgia.
Panini released a 1989 Donruss MVP inspired subset in their 2019 Optic release. Some players had base versions and some players had autograph only versions.
Cutch got the autograph only treatment and all the different parallels feature on card signatures.
Many of these are numbered to 3 or less copies.
The set featured a pretty diverse group of signers from Keith Hernandez, Willie McGhee, Kevin Mitchell, and Jose Canseco to legendary players like Ken Griffey Jr, Brooks Robinson, Ryne Sandberg, Johnny Bench, Joe Morgan, and Frank Thomas. There are also fan favorites like Steve Garvey, Dale Murphy and Cutch. The hit king, Pete Rose, has an auto in it as well.
The sequel to Bill & Ted came in 1991 with the release of Bill & Ted: Bogus Journey.
I have a few 1991 cards featuring Cutch thanks to a 2016 Topps Archives release that used the 1991 design as one of the 3 designs that year.
The nice thing about Cutch appearing on the 1991 design for 2016 Archives is that there is an Operation Desert Shield SSP variant to go with the blue and red border parallels.
The black border 1/1 is stunning with the black alternate jersey
The back shows Cutch's impressive run as the leader in the National League in many offensive categories.
Topps began to really start pushing their 5x7 cards in 2016 and I was fortunate to grab a gold parallel numbered to 10 copies.
Panini got into the nostalgia throwback game as well when they released a 1991 Donruss Studio inspired card as part of their Father's Day release.
Above is the black and white test proof (/5 copies), Base, and Lava flow parallel.
The back discusses Cutch's enjoyment of the Discovery Chanel and dubstep music.
Getting multiple 1/1s of Cutch in 1989 and 1991 designs has been both a most excellent adventure and a totally bogus journey.
With a career heading towards a twilight and it looking more and more like there won't be a baseball season this year, it is time to Face The Music that new releases of Cutch will likely become less available.
I am running a contest which you can still enter here, but time is ticking away. I am gearing up for my 4th Annual Save Second Base Event where I show off only pink (with some hues of magenta, peach, and maybe a light purple or light red shade) baseball cards relating to my favorite baseball player for an entire month. Prior to each post about the card I give out some frightening information about a major disease that is effecting many woman in this country. I also show off some beautiful women for why we should be looking for a cure and to Save Second Base.
The prize is this very limited (only 25 copies produced) of two players who debuted in the 1980s, Barry Larkin and Gary Sheffield.
As someone who was born in the 1980s and because it is my birthday week, all week long I am showing off cards of Andrew McCutchen and how they relate to the 80s.
Cutch is my favorite player born in the 80s. Who is yours? Enter the contest here.
Each post so far this week I have been talking about different things from the 80s I like, but today I am going to talk about my favorite fictional characters to debut in the 80s and show off a card relating to their debut year.
Up first is Marty Mcfly, played by Michael J. Fox. If you haven't seen any of the Back to the Future trilogy I DEMAND you leave this blog and don't come back until you have. This Sci-Fi comedy takes a look at how one event can cause a ripple effect that can cause the entire universe to change paths. Had Lorraine, played by the very stunning Lea Thompson, not fallen in love with George McFly then Marty and his siblings would never have been born which causes more chains in the universe to be broken etc.
The character Marty Mcfly debuted in Back to the Future which premiered in 1985.
Here is a trio of parallels of Cutch screaming as he rounds the bases, likely trying to leg out a triple or coming home to celebrate a walk off homer. It is from 2013 Topps Archives.
Speaking of Homer, here is Homer Simpson, who made his animated debut in April of 1987.
The Simpsons is the longest running TV show ever. While early seasons had me liking Bart for his catch phrases like "Eat my shorts" or "Cowabunga", it wasn't until I was older that I realized Homer is the best character on the show.
There are multiple options I could have used showing off Cutch using the 1987 cardboard design, but ultimately I went with a more plain option from the 1987 5x7 card line produced in 2015 as an online exclusive.
Another animated favorite of mine was Bumblebee from the original Generation 1 Transformers. He has changed his appearance A LOT since his 1984 VW Beetle days to his mid 2000s Camaro car mode, but the heart of the character remains the same.
I wish I had the other parallels of this card (gold/50, blue/150, Orange/25, red/5) to pair up with the black and green, but for now these 1984 Topps Chrome style cards will have to do.
This next character is actually a pair because quite honestly you can't discuss William S Preston (Bill) without talking about his best friend Theodore Logan (Ted). Bill and Ted introduced a franchise that will see it's third installment finally get made this year, twenty years after the original. AND I AM PUMPED FOR IT!!! I jist got done doing a totally gnarly wicked air guitar solo to show my enthusiasm duuuuude.
Seriously. Tho. Bill and Ted!!!!
2 totally awesome characters that helped shape the end of the 80s in a most bodacious way.
I have a new segment revolving around the awesomeness of Keanu Reeves which I will debut next week. It will definitely be a fun one to show off.
The original Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventire came out in 1989.
I loved 1989 Topps. I think it gets a bad rap for being such an over produced set from the 80s. The design lends itself so well to today's color parallels though.
These die cut minis were from 2014 and are most excellent finds in a pack of cards.
1986 marked the first time I watched a movie and thought of a girl as being pretty and not having cooties or being some stupid girl. That girl was Sarah Williams, played by Jennifer Connely.
My parents got me into all things Jim Henson as a kid. I wasn't a super fan and couldn't recite much of the movie, but I was drawn in by the wonderfully created bizarre world that Jareth lived in and Sarah stumbled into. As I got older, I grew to appreciate the unique nature of this film even more. It didn't hurt that Jennifer Connely got more beautiful as she got older.
1986 Topps was a series I had only a few packs of. The following year my dad and I went full blown collector crazy.
The simple nature of this set is so fun. I wonder how many of today's stars will still be playing in 16 years so they can get a Heritage design similar to this 2014 Topps Archives release.
