All-time Top 100 cheap-azz keepers VII - (17-1)

I might be looking to continue towards showcasing the pages made for sequel all-time Top 100 cheap-azz keepers VIII - where I have pictures lined up for probable posts, but may post some other things, before getting into teasing more pages from a personalized all-time set.

17. 1996 Score Bip Roberts #38 - an all-time classic card with the odd image of Roberts donning a sombrero; does every serious baseball card collection need a copy of this card?

16. 1992 Cal League California League All-Stars Garret Anderson #46 - I was iffy on adding regional themed cards, where I have my own Angels [themed curated set], but as a nod to my regional interests, I wanted to tease some personal favorites.

When I added this card, I did not intend for it micro-mini tribute to his life in 2026 - where he passed away at the age of 53, R.I.P. G.A.

15. 1992 Cal League California League All-Stars Jim Edmonds #6 - I didn’t want to take a couple of probable adds from an Angels [themed curated set], though the Edmonds and the Anderson are minor league cards, kind of like pre-rookies where they technically are not listed as Angels cards.

14. 2023 Topps Chrome Pink Refractor Logan O’Hoppe #188 - when I added this card, I wanted to tease a future catching star for the Angels.

He has shown some pop in his bat and occasional promise - but he hasn’t quite been able to put it together, where he might not be a frontline catcher after all.

13. 2022 Topps Stadium Club Black Foil Alex Kirilloff #215

12. 1987 Star Fernando Valenzuela Dodger Phenom #11 - I like inking it up cards and picked out a Valenzuela card as a micro-mini tribute around the time he passed away.

11. 2008 Upper Deck Masterpieces Jim Thome #23 - I have made up these categories as far players to collect and Thome represents the all-American ideal, a classic old-school, retro player in the mold of guys from vintage years of the 1950s, 1960s and maybe early 1970s.

10. 2009 Upper Deck Signature Stars USA Future Watch Auto Patch Cory Hahn #UFWA-29 - I like the patch / auto combination with the Team USA themed; Hahn ends up being a player to look up, where an errant collision as a baserunner paralyzed him in college back in 2011.

9. 2013 Topps Archives 1972 Basketball Design Ted Williams #72B-TW - on occasion, I may have tried to save certain spots within my all-time keepers projects for the same players, like a unique Williams card at #9, that also corresponds to players’ uniform numbers as a micro-mini tribute.

8. 2000 Fleer 3000 Club Tony Gwynn #NNO - one of the great all-around guys from the early 1980s through the late 1990s, I have liked these die-cut inserts that were apparently a multi brand release.

These were a lot more common that I ever thought and while there were actually relic variations - I assumed the basic inserts were what modern collectors consider case hits [they were not].

7. 1995 BBM 1994 Leaders Ichiro #2 - one of the great all-around guys from the early 2000s through the mid 2010s, this one is a unique card from his playing days in Japan.

6. 1991 Topps Stadium Club Eric Show #138 - he looks pretty relaxed here, which may not have been the case at all, for much of his life.

5. 2023 Bowman Draft Paul Skenes #BD-14 - I wanted to add a card of baseball’s top pitching prospect a couple of years ago, where he was touted as a sure thing and at the time, his cards were still hard to come by.

4. 2015 BBM 25th Anniversary Great Records & Highlights - 2014.9.7 Shohei Ohtani #187 - I might have gotten this for $0.75 online and was able to get it in-hand; once in a while I have to check on and make sure Ohtani is pictured in front and not some other player.

I said to myself I am not collecting Ohtani where it is easy to detach myself from doing so after he left the Angels - but the player that exists now seems like a different guy that existed then, where his accomplishments are too hard to ignore post Angels years [even has his cards have gotten more expensive to collect casually].

3. 2023 Topps Stadium Club Babe Ruth #298 - as a cutesy wrinkle, I decided to pair a unique Ruth [base card] with the card of Ohtani back-to-back.

2. 2001 Fleer Greats of the Game Satchel Paige #42 - towards the top of my all-time set, I went with a legendary player with almost a mythical career, where it is important and symbolic not to forget about these larger than life characters from a different time and age.

1. 2006 Topps Bazooka Josh Gibson #1 - an instance where I grouped a pair of different cards under one listing; may do so for a parallel and a base card, but [if I have my loose rules straight], usually a pair of different cards [featuring same subject] end up counted as two separate entries within my all-time set.

1. 2024 Topps Update Series Josh Gibson #US191 - I had a pair of Gibson cards lined up to headline my all-time set, where he was an all-time great I had to look up, where I want to be more familiar with his story.

All-time Top 100 cheap-azz keepers VII - (34-18)

34. 2023 Panini Purple Ice Prizm Bill Mazeroski #181 - this was a TTM autograph, R.I.P.

33. 1996 Score Benito Santiago #126 - near Schottzie #02

32. 2023 Topps Stadium Club Austin Riley #5 - I like the behind the scenes shots on cards showing baseball players still at work on the craft the old school way, where Riley is trying to be a better third baseman with the help of a coach [presumably Ron Washington].

31. 2002 Topps T206 Joe Mauer RC #271 - I like having the basic rookie cards of players, especially as they’ve developed from prospect to stars, superstars and legends.

I just do not like being reminded when certain cards / years I’ve associated as fairly contemporary - are now 25 years old and counting.

30. 1992 Leaf Studio Heritage Series Kirby Puckett #BC-1 - I like the retro uniforms and the classiness of how these junk wax era inserts looked.

29. 1989 Grand Slam Light Blue Will Clark #NNO - I usually turn my nose at unlicensed Broder cards from the junk wax era, but maybe in 2026, no one really focuses on these cards where they are more of relic of baseball card collecting past, rather than diverting your attention from legitimate releases.

Sometimes they are fun, where I’ve seen countless Clark cards over my collecting life - but it’s rare to ever see a card with him teasing a mustache.

28. 2002 Topps Traded and Rookies Chrome Rickey Henderson #T74

28. 2002 Topps Traded and Rookies Rickey Henderson #T74 - if this the short printed base card, I'm glad to make it a keeper from the quarter box at a show.

27. 1997 Bowman Lance Berkman RC #438 - maybe I had his rookie to pair up with his sumo suit card.

I vaguely remember watching part of at-bat when he was in college on TV - maybe it was not surprising he would be destined to be in big leagues.

26. 2000 Just Lance Berkman #108 - Sumo suit classic

25. 2023 Topps 582 Montgomery Club Set Aaron Judge #3 - maybe one of the wrinkles in my all-time sets is to squirrel away unique cards of the here and now guys.

24. 2020 Topps Stadium Club Ken Griffey Jr. #270 - that is just Superman in action right there, can’t deny that.

23. 2013 Topps Tribute Adam Wainwright #73 - kind of a fancy [base] card that features the St. Louis Cardinals pitching great in a retro uniform.

22. 2023 Topps Heritage Bobby Witt Jr. #85 - maybe one of the wrinkles in my all-time sets is to squirrel away unique cards of the here and now guys.

I do not know how long I will still be collecting where I can save things for me to look at in 5-10 years - but I want to save cards from the current decade, rather than just try and go back 15, 20 years and counting.

21. 2024 Topps Series 1 1989 Topps Baseball Foil Vladimir Guerrero Jr. #89B-32 - had to pair up a unique card with a unique card of his father’s.

20. 1999 Topps Gold Label Class 1 Vladimir Guerrero #76 - Guerrero Sr. cards are fairly common in my book, where I’ve made it a mission to make keepers of his basic cards / inserts, so I may occasionally feature a unique card in my all-time set.

19. 2015 Topps Heritage Retail Chrome Foil Clayton Kershaw #THC-100 - my micro-mini tribute to a great pitcher is to save a space in my all-time set.

18. 2015 Topps Stadium Club Bip Roberts #54 - had to pair up thus unique card with a the OG Bip sombrero card from 1996 Score.

All-time Top 100 cheap-azz keepers VII - (52-35)

52. 1998 Upper Deck Barry Larkin #65 - giving a high five to a youngster on the field.

51. 2015 Topps Stadium Club Adam Jones #215 - pie to the face victim

50. 1997 New Pinnacle Cliff Floyd #11 - the [Florida] Marlins teal stands out as well as Floyd wearing face covering, where presumably he is pretty cold.

49. 1993 Upper Deck SP Joe Girardi #221 - the veteran catcher was one of the Rockies on the first year club in 1993, so he had a name tag, maybe a joke to get to know each other.

48. 1996 Pinnacle John Olerud #225 - maybe part of my all-time sets are trying to add mini-collection cards as highlights; one of the my mini-collections is cards that tease some signage somewhere on the image.

That USPS Express Mail signage is just too hard to avoid on this Olerud card - elevating it from mini-collection fodder to a part of an all-time set.

47. 2012 Topps Chrome C.C. Sabathia #44 - maybe I would like to build on a micro-mini pattern of [signage] cards within my larger all-time set, this time with the MLB Network logo behind Sabathia.

46. 2020 Topps Opening Day Spring Has Sprung Aaron Judge #STS-12 - more signage with Budweiser, Hess, Spectrum, Bank of America, etc.

45. 2016 Topps Update Series Brandon Moss #US199 - another theme I have is the home run trot card, where they picture players presumably rounding the bases after hitting a dinger.

44. 2018 Topps Stadium Club Ian Happ #218 - another home run trot card [I think].

43. 1996 Upper Deck SP Ken Caminiti #158 - multiple exposure image

42. 1995 Topps Stadium Club Turner Ward #495 - I collect awesome outfield action cards, sometimes the posed ones are fun.

41. 2003 Topps Stadium Club Stadium Shots Shawn Green #SS4 - I like the view from the most expensive seats in the house or something like it, where you are just about at field level with the players.

40. 1996 Pinnacle Brian McRae #109 - but I like the pictures where players are shown relaxed on the field, probably as they stretch, before taking batting practice.

39. 2023 Topps Stadium Club Bryson Stott #208 - maybe this isn’t a recent card anymore, but something I am thinking about is setting aside newer or recent cards, so for as long as I continue collecting, I’m not just talking about unique cards that came out 30-35 years ago.

38. 1998 Topps Kenny Lofton #175 - a personality shot of a guy who liked to…steal a lot of bases.

37. 1997 Upper Deck Collector’s Choice Alex Rodriguez #332 - this was never a high brow card but reminds me A-Rod was young baseball royalty, where any cards were worth making keepers of.

36. 2003 Upper Deck MVP Mark Grace #13 - I want to find more oddities like this nearly 25 year old card, where it’s a position player being called on to pitch by a losing team after the game has long been decided.

35. 2020 Topps Stadium Club Frank Thomas #257 - he’s known more for his Nugenix supplement commercials, “and she’ll like it too,” than being a great baseball player that was neck-and-neck in popularity with Ken Griffey Jr. through the early 1990s.

All-time Top 100 cheap-azz keepers VII - (70-53)

70. 1994 Pinnacle Museum Collection David Hulse #162 - at times, a regular card probably illustrates the action [a seemingly odd exchange where a baserunner hand a ball to a fielder to say “here you do something with this”] better than a parallel, but obviously a parallel is a little jazzier, even one over 30 years old.

69. 2015 Topps Gypsy Queen Curtis Granderson #241 - maybe a stationary image of Granderson posing, but the Bartolo Colon cameo on the Jumbotron amuses me.

68. 2000 Upper Deck David Wells #256 - I like the random cards with players making odd expressions, where Wells might rolling his eyes, calling BS.

67. 1994 Leaf Manny Manny Lee #372 - a more dated common than timeless classic from the UV era, it looks like Lee loses the handle and maybe it’s a fun card.

66. 1993 Upper Deck Mark Leiter #95 - I like to say I feel the way Leiter looks on this card more often than not.

How unique is it for a pair of brothers who pitched in the big leagues as the case for Mark and Al - to have their own sons [Mark Jr. and Jack] who have followed their footsteps.

65. 2012 Leaf Pete Rose #22 - I like the image used of The Hit King in a suit, probably at a banquet somewhere trying to show what he does best.

64. 1995 Upper Deck Collector’s Choice Curt Leskanic #442 - Name tag 371426300, maybe a more dated common than timeless classic from the UV era, I wonder what it says when I make such a card a part of an all-time set.

63. 1992 Pinnacle Dwight Smith #293 - a classic junk wax era favorite, Smith is pictured singing the National Anthem, R.I.P.

62. 2003 Fleer Platinum Ryan Klesko #76 - a unique shot of Klesko looking over broken bat, didn’t realize I have this here already, when I saved another copy for a future all-time set build.

Come to think of it, Klesko was probably one of my favorite junk wax era prospects - didn’t quite turn into superstar slugger for the 1990s era Atlanta Braves teams, he had a fine career.

61. 2002 Fleer Ultra Luis Gonzalez #167 - cards with a kid pictured are undeniably unique.

60. 2004 Upper Deck Shigetoshi Hasegawa #447 - cards with a kid pictured are undeniably unique.

59. 1990 Upper Deck Rob Murphy #461 - a classic junk wax era favorite, now that I am working on one ore more JWE themed curated set (s), I might be on the look out for another copy.

58. 1994 Topps Stadium Club Orel Hershiser #400 - trying to find context for this card, I assume maybe a farm themed cow milking contest at the ballpark.

57. 1995 Pinnacle Bo Jackson #208 - one of the countless perks of being a notable pro athlete is getting to hang out and presumably fly with The Blue Angels.

56. 2014 Topps Stadium Club Roy Halladay #21 - he passed away under tragic circumstances and reading about the supposed behind the scenes of his addictions made this metronomic ace pitcher's life story a little more real.

55. 2001 BBM Prime Time Player Hideki Matsui #PT13 - on a short list of Japanese big leaguers who was an impact big league bat, it was a novelty to pick up a Japanese era card during a card show rummage.

54. 2022 Topps Chrome Heart of the City Miguel Cabrera #HOC-2 - I cannot be bothered to keep up with the countless inserts that end up more filler material, but may cling onto a few that catches my eye through a particular year.

53. 1998 Fleer Tradition Jermaine Allensworth #424 - I liked when card pictures of rank-and-file guys actually had personality, rather than your normal hitting, pitching, fielding, baserunning cards.