Heritage Comparison pt 5: The Runner Ups

As I have been doing these Heritage Comparisons I have to give Topps a lot of credit.  They have conciously matched up Cutch's Heritage numbering to Clemente's original card numbers very often.  They have done similar things with Koufax and Kershaw too.  Dodgers fans: Get On This!!!! It's a fun exercise!!!

Today I am only going to look at one card from the 2013 Heritage release.

2013 Topps Heritage is based on the 1964 design.

Looking at the National League Leaders card #7 we see Cutch finished second in the batting title race in 2012 and Clemente finished second in the 1963 batting title.

Before we get started let's take note that 14 players finished the 2012 season with a .300 or higher average.  Some surprising names on that list include Marco Scutaro, Jon Jay, and Allen Craig.  In 1963 only 11 players finished above .300 for the season.

It was ruled during the final month of the season that Melky Cabrera who was suspended for part of the season as a result of failed PED testing would not be eligible for the batting title per his request.  You can read the article here.

Normally what I do for the Topps Heritage Comparisons is look at many facets of the players previous seasons and compare them.  What I thought would be fun instead is to see how close both players came to actually winning the title and what months they made the most ground up in achieving that.

So we know that Buster Posey and Tommy Davis, two west coast players would win the 2012 and 1963 titles respectively.

How did they do on Opening Day compared to the Pittsburgh Pirates stars? 

2012
Posey: 2 for 4 batting .500 after day 1
McCutchen: 0 for 3 batting .000 after day 1

1963
Davis: 1 for 4 batting .250 after Day 1
Clemente: 0 for 3 batting .000 after Day 1

I know I've talked about how Topps matches Clemente and Cutch cards up regularly.  I was shocked to see they both had the same at bats to begin the season.

Let's move on to May 1st, shall we?
At this point teams have been able to get 20+ games in.

2012
Posey batting .353 on last day of April
McCutchen batting .302 on last day of April

1963
Davis batting .286 to close out April
Clemente batting .250 to close out April

Both Clemente and Cutch started out slow to begin their campaigns.

The weather is getting less cold and more of the spring temperatures.  Will that have an impact of the Pirates superstars as they chase down the eventual batting title winners?

2012
Posey is now batting only .294 for the year after a rough May

McCutchen kept getting hot and finished the month with a .331 average to finish the first two months of the season

1963
Davis stepped up and was now batting .317 for the season at the close of May

Clemente who missed the last few games of May after being replaced by Stargell in the 6th inning of a game vs Phillies on May 28th was batting .307 prior to injury.

June is here and Cutch is ready to take the NL by storm!!!

2012
Posey is still hovering around .300 (.296 to be exact)
McCutchen is now batting .346 and leading the league in hits.  He would go on to win Player of the Month for his June performance

1963
Davis was raking at the plate raising his season average to .335
Clemente in search of the title has raised his average to .324 and appeared to have recovered from his injuries.

Another hot month of baseball.  Another hot month of Cutch as he takes the 1st Place Pittsburgh Pirates into the All-Star break.

2012
Posey is back above .300 now hitting .317 and getting lots of reps at first base to keep his legs fresh while still keeping the bat in the lineup.

McCutchen won his second consecutive player of the month award and raised his average to .371!!!!

1963
Davis being extremely consistent kept his average at .321 to close out July with just two months left in the season

Clemente overtook the batting title with a .331 mark to close out July.

In the dog days of August both Pirates superstars take a slight step back as the West Coast hitters gain momentum.

2012
Posey with only a month left in the season has closed the gap and is batting .329 to finish out August as his Giants look to make another postseason run

McCutchen after two months of being the best player in the game is returning to just being a Superstar instead of Superman.  His average dropped to .344 and the Pirates who were once 15 games over .500 at end of July now remain only 9 games over .500 and are fighting for a Wild Card with, yup Buster Posey and the San Francisco Giants.

1963
Davis remains consistent as maintains his .322 average heading into the final month of the season.
Clemente with a slight dip in August production has now dropped to .320 for the year with only a month left.

As the final month of the season approaches teams are fighting for playoff opportunities and the 2012 Pirates are desperately trying to get to a winning record for the first time since 1992.  Rather than resting Cutch more and just giving him extra days and time off to clinch his batting title, Cutch will play everyday as the season winds down and the Pirates clinch their 20th straight losing season.  Thanks a lot Jerry Meals and your blown call in 2011.

2012
We already know that Posey wins the batting title, but with only 7 games of baseball left he was hitting .331 on September 26th.

McCutchen was batting .334 on September 26th.
It would be the last day Cutch would have control of the title with only 6 games left to play for the Bucs.

1963
Davis and Clemente would face off each other in LA as the final week of baseball approached they were at .323 (Davis) and .319 (Clemente) respectively.  Davis in anticipation of the postseason would only get another dozen at bats to finish out the year and win the title.

Heritage Comparisons pt4

If you haven't seen my Heritage Comparisons before, I encourage you check them out.

Today I am going to be looking at the 2015 Heritage release which is based on the 1966 design.

Before we look at Cutch's solo card, let's first take note that he appeared on card #214 for being a League Leader in Batting Average.  It features Cutch as coming in 3rd place for the 2014 batting title. In 2014 former Pirate Justin Morneau won his 1st NL batting title ahead of Pirates All-Stars Josh Harrison and Andrew McCutchen.

Card #214 for the 1966 release shows the top three finishers of the 1965 batting title.  Pretty amazing card as it has three of the game's greatest National League outfielders of all time on the card.
In 1965 Roberto Clemente won his 3rd batting title ahead of Hank Aaron and Willie Mays.

The back of the card shows that 10 players hit above .300 in 1965 and only 7 hit above .300 in 2014.

Now to the breakdown for these Heritage Comparisons, the solo cards of Cutch.

The 2015 Heritage card for Cutch was #300, the same as (drumroll please......) Roberto Clemente in 1966 Topps.

Let's compare how Cutch's MVP followup season compared to Roberto Clemente's age 30 season when he won his 3rd Batting Title.

All stats provided by Baseball-Reference

As is the case for all the previous Heritage Comparisons I am not stating that Cutch is better or on the same path as the great Roberto Clemente.  I am merely comparing cardboard because Cutch's Heritage card appears with the same numbering as Roberto Clemente's original release.

Approach at the Plate:
In 1965 Clemente put up a triple slash line of .329/.378/.463 for an .842 OPS
Cutch's 2014 season slash line was .314/.410/.542 for a .952 OPS
Advantage Cutch
Despite the higher batting average and winning the batting title, I have to give the advantage to Cutch.  He drew more walks and hit for more power as you can see in the 45 Clemente XBH vs 69 Cutch XBH.

Baserunning
Never known as a burner or stolen base threat, Clemente swiped 7 bags compared to Cutch 18.
Advantage Cutch

Team Dependant Manufactured Runs
So much of Runs scored and Runs Batted In is based on who hits ahead and behind you.
Clemente had only 65 RBI with 91 Runs scored.
Cutch drove in 83 and scored 89 times.
Advantage Cutch


The winner of this Heritage Comparisons battle goes to Cutch.  His age 27 season was better than Clemente's age 30 season.

Here are my other parallels from 2015 Heritage

Color Swap, Gum Stain Back, Action Variant

Gold Refractor /5

Refractor, Chrome
Hot Pack Purple, Black Refractor

Heritage Comparisons pt3: Clemente v Cutch

Over the years, Topps has used Heritage to bring the current stars of the game on designs from the past.

Cutch has appeared using the same numbering as Pirates Legend Roberto Clemente a handful of times.

I want to preface these segments and state that I do not believe that a single season of Cutch can take away from the greatness of Roberto Clemente's life or his baseball career.

Each of these Heritage comparisons will take a look at a card of Cutch and compare it to the design's original numbered card.

The 2016 Heritage card release is based on the 1967 design.

Cutch's 2016 Heritage card is numbered 400 the same as Pirates Legend and Hall of Famer, Roberto Clemente.

The back of Cutch's card even mentions The Great One, Roberto Clemente.

As will be customary for these Heritage Comparisons I will take a look at the standard counting stats typically found on the back of a baseball card for the players previous year.

Slash Lines
Clemente in 1966 went .317/.360/.536 for an .896 OPS
Cutch in 2015 went .292/.401/.488 for an .889OPS
slight Advantage Clemente

Plate Discipline
Clemente had His worse K:BB rate 2.37 (109:46) during his MVP season in 1966
Cutch's fourth consecutive top 5 MVP finish season showed some regressionwhen he had 1.35 K:BB (133:98)
Advantage Cutch

Extra Base Hits (XBH)
Clemente had 31 doubles, 11 triples, and 29 HR in 1966
Cutch had 36 doubles, 3 triples, and 23 round trippers
71 v 62
Advantage Clemente

Runs Scored and Runs Batted In
Runs scored and RBI are based on who hits in front of you and who hits behind you.
Clemente scored 105 runs and drove in 119 in 1966.
Cutch scored 91 runs and knocked in 96
Advantage Clemente

Hardware and awards
Clemente won his only MVP, 6th straight Gold Glove, and was elected an All-Star
Cutch was a top 5 MVP, his 4th straight Silver Slugger, and was elected an All-Star
Advantage Clemente


I hope you enjoyed the comparisons made based on the Heritage card and original design numbering.  I will continue to do these segments if there is enough interest in them.

As I have done in my previous Heritage Comparisons I will show off all the other parallels I have of Cutch's Heritage card I am spotlighting.

Up first are the red back and gum stain back

Now for the chromes

I need the Superfractor 1/1, Gold /5, and Refractor

Heritage Comparisons: Clemente v Cutch pt2

Over the years, Topps has used Heritage to bring the current stars of the game on designs from the past.

Cutch has appeared using the same numbering as Roberto Clemente a handful of times.

You can view the first Heritage Comparison of Cutch and Clemente here.

I want to preface these segments and state that I do not believe that a single season of Cutch can take away from the greatness of Roberto Clemente's life or his baseball career.

Each of these Heritage comparisons will take a look at a card of Cutch and compare it to the design's original numbered card.

The 2011 Heritage card release is based on the 1962 design.

Cutch's 2011 Heritage card is numbered 10 the same as Pirates Legend and Hall of Famer, Roberto Clemente.

Oddly enough, the card backs were printed flipped differently than the original 1962 backs.

As will be customary for these Heritage Comparisons I will take a look at the standard counting stats typically found on the back of a baseball card.

Slash Lines
Clemente in 1961 went .351/.390/.539 for a .949 OPS
Cutch in 2010 went .286/.365/.449 for an .814 OPS
Advantage Clemente

Plate Discipline
Clemente had a 1.68 K:BB rate (59:35) during his 1st batting title run in 1961
Cutch's 2010 season showed a 1.27K:BB (89:70)
Advantage Cutch

Extra Base Hits (XBH)
Clemente had 30 doubles, 10 triples, and 23 HR in 1961
Cutch had 35 doubles, 5 triples, and 16 round trippers
63 v 56
advantage Clemente

Runs Scored and Runs Batted In
Runs scored and RBI are based on who hits in front of you and who hits behind you.
Clemente scored 100 runs and drove in 89 in 1961
Cutch scored 94 runs and knocked in 56
Advantage Clemente

Stolen Bases
Cutch's main advantage over Clemente was in Stolen Bases 33 to 4
Advantage Cutch

Hardware and awards
Clemente won his 1st Batting Title, 1st Gold Glove, and was elected an All-Star
Cutch had no hardware victories in 2010
Advantage Clemente 

Winner
Clemente
4 to 2

I hope you enjoyed the comparisons made based on the Heritage and original design numbering.  I will continue to do these segments if there is enough interest in them.

To close out here are my 4 parallels of the 2011 Heritage card I own.

Chrome Refractor, Chrome
Retail Black border, Green border chrome

Clemente vs Cutch Heritage comparison Pt 1

Over the years, Topps has used Heritage to bring the current stars of the game on designs from the past.

Cutch has appeared using the same numbering as Pirates Legend Roberto Clemente a handful of times.

I want to preface these segments and state that I do not believe that a single season of Cutch can take away from the greatness of Roberto Clemente's life or his baseball career.

Each of these Heritage comparisons will take a look at a card of Cutch and compare it to the design's original numbered card.

I am going to start with the 2014 Heritage release because of all the parallels I have.
The 2014 Heritage card release is based on the 1965 design.

Cutch's 2014 Heritage card is numbered 160 the same as Pirates Legend and Hall of Famer, Roberto Clemente.

To pay homage to the original Clemente Topps even made a super short print error variant to recognize the misspelling of Pittsburgh (Pittsburfh) on the back.

As will be customary for these Heritage Comparisons I will take a look at the standard counting stats typically found on the back of a baseball card for the players previous year.

Slash Lines
Clemente in 1964 went .339/.388/.484 for an .872 OPS
Cutch in 2013 went .317/.404/.508 for .952 OPS
Advantage Cutch

Plate Discipline
Clemente had a 1.70 K:BB rate (87:51) during his 2nd batting title run in 1964
Cutch's MVP season showed one of his best career rates when he had 1.29 K:BB (101:78)
Advantage Cutch

Extra Base Hits (XBH)
Clemente had 40 doubles, 7 triples, and 12 HR in 1964
Cutch had 38 doubles, 5 triples, and 21 round trippers
59 v 64
Slight advantage Cutch

Runs Scored and Runs Batted In
Runs scored and RBI are based on who hits in front of you and who hits behind you.
Clemente scored 95 runs and drove in 87 in 1964.
Cutch scored 97 runs and knocked in 84.
It was almost a draw (182 v 181), but a
very slight Advantage goes to Clemente

Hardware and awards
Clemente won his 2nd Batting Title, 4th straight Gold Glove, and was elected an All-Star
Cutch won the MVP award, his 2nd straight Silver Slugger, and was elected an All-Star
Advantage Cutch


I hope you enjoyed the comparisons made based on the Heritage and original design numbering.  I will continue to do these segments if there is enough interest in them.

Now I will show off the parallels I have for all my 2014 Heritage cards.

First up are the black retail exclusive border with the black chrome /65 border below it.

Now from top row Base & Logo Variation
Middle Row Chrome & Purple Chrome
Bottom Row WalMart Blue & Pittsburfh back

The only variations I need are Superfractor 1/1, Gold Chrome /5, Refractor Chrome /565, and Topps Vault Blank Back 1/1,

Please let meknow what you think of these segments.  Are they are a cool and fun idea to look at cardboard?