BIRTHDAY BOOLSHEET BLASTAR - PART 18: CARDINALS

CARDINALS UP, AND THEY HAVE THE DISTINCTION OF BEING THE LAST SOLO TEAM. I'M DOUBLING UP TEAMS FROM NOW ON BECAUSE THIS IS TAKING TOO LONG AND I NEED TO PUT ALL THESE CARDS AWAY SO I CAN REPURPOSE THE BOX. SOME OF THE TEAMS HAVE INTERESTING PAIRINGS AND OTHERS ARE AS RANDOM AS YOU CAN GET. THERE WILL EVEN BE A TRIPLE TEAM POST! AWAY WE GO

THE CARDNALS HAD 69 CARDS IN THE BOX INCLUDING THREE CARDS ADDED TO THE TOPPS TRADED PILE. FEEL FREE TO SPAM THE COMMENTS WITH 'NICE' LIKE IT'S 2012 AGAIN. THESE CARDINALS (SPRING TRAINING?) JERSEYS ARE EXTREMELY RED AND SOMEWHAT SEE-THROUGH. JIM LINDEMAN DEFINITELY HAS SOMETHING PRINTED ON HIS T-SHIRT UNDERNEATH THE JERSEY BUT I CAN'T QUITE MAKE IT OUT. I'M ALSO PRETTY SURE THAT StL LOGO IS AN IRON ON PATCH. MAYBE FANATICS IS JUST LOOKING TO THE PAST FOR THIS YEAR'S UNIFORMS? 

1987 TOPPS TRADED COUNT: 27/132

NO COMPLETE TEAM SET FOR 2002 OBVIOUSLY AS THERE'S NO WAY ANY SECOND YEAR PUJOLS CARDS WERE GETTING DUMPED. ALSO MISSING FROM THE TEAM SET ARE MARK MCGWIRE, JIM EDMONDS AND THE TONY LARUSSA MANAGER CARD. THERE'S STILL PLENTY OF GOOD PLAYERS IN HERE INCLUDING EDGAR RENTERIA, TINO MARTINEZ AND A SO TAGUCHI ROOKIE CARD

2002 TOPPS COUNT: 191/718

WHILE THE ROOKIE CUP AND ROOKIE OF THE YEAR AWARD WINNER ALBERT PUJOLS CARDS WERE MISSING, THESE STEALTH PUJOLS CARDS REMAINED IN THE BOX. ALBERT GETS SOME HUG TIME FROM LARUSSA AS THEY WIN THE WILDCARD AND FROM BUD SMITH AFTER HIS PERFECT GAME. THIS IS THE DEFINITION OF HIDDEN GEMS RIGHT HERE

OZZIE IS A CLASSIC JUNK BOX HALL OF FAMER. BACK WHEN THERE WERE CHEAP JUNK GRAB BAGS SOLD AT TARGET AND DOLLAR TREE SOME OF THEM ADVERTISED 'A HALL OF FAMER IN EVERY PACK!' AND IT WAS ALWAYS EITHER ONE OF THOSE OLD CMC GRREN BORDER HALL OF FAMER CARD OR A JUNK WAX CARD OF A GUY LIKE OZZIE OR SANDBERG OR BOGGS. TONY GWYNN IF THEY WERE FEELING GENEROUS

MOARER METAL, HOORAY! ELI MARRERO GOT TRADED TO THE BRAVES IN THE JD DREW DEAL THAT SENT ADAM WAINWRIGHT TO THE CARDINALS. I KNOW I'VE PROBABLY SAID THIS THREE TIMES ALREADY BUT IT'S NUTS HOW MUCH WORK MUST'VE WENT INTO DESIGNING AND PRINTING THESE CARDS. THE ETCHING AND EMBOSSED STAMPING WAS ALREADY A LOT AND THEN YOU HAVE TO DEAL WITH THE PLAYER OUTLINE. I WANT A DOCUMENTARY ON JUST HOW THE HELL THEY MADE THESE CARDS

QUIZ AS A CARDINAL IS COOL EVEN IF HE DIDN'T HAVE THE GREATEST STAT LINE ON THE BACK. AND IS THAT VINCE COLEMAN PHOTOBOMBING THE SHOT?

ANOTHER REASON I'M GOING TO START DOUBLING UP TEAMS ON THESE POSTS. I AM RUNNING OUT OF THINGS TO SAY ABOUT STUFF LIKE 2002 UPPER DECK. IT'S A GOOD LOOKING CARD OF A GOOD PITCHER. OTHER THAN THAT I GOT NOTHIN

THERE'S PLENTY TO SAY ABOUT THIS CARD. ANOTHER WONDERFUL PACIFIC CARD, THIS TIME FROM THE 1993 SPANISH SET. THIS SET WAS THE SWAN SONG FOR PACIFIC'S DISTINCTIVE 'GRADIENTS EVERYWHERE' DESIGN PHILOSOPHY FROM THEIR EARLY 90S SETS AS THE 1993 FOOTBALL SET PIVOTED TO A COLORFUL MARBLED DESIGN. THOSE OLD FOOTBALL SETS REALLY HIT MY NOSTALGIA NERVE SO IT'S NICE TO SEE ON A PROPER BASEBALL CARD RELEASE

WHO REMEMBERS OZZIE CANSECO ON THE CARDINALS? HE PLAYED MORE GAMES WITH ST LOUIS THAN WITH OAKLAND BUT HE WASN'T GETTING BOOTLEG CARDS IN A CARDINALS UNI. AS YOU CAN SEE THIS IS A FULL SPANISH LANGUAGE PRODUCT SO PACIFIC COULD GET A LICENSE. NO O-PEE-CHEE DUAL LANGUAGE STUFF HERE! IT'S A NICE LOOKING SET AND I'M GLAD I GOT A SECOND SERIES CARD AS I RIPPED A BOX OF THE FIRST SERIES YEARS AGO AND GOT THE SET

I MISS COLLECTOR'S CHOICE. THERE, I SAID IT. I WISH THERE WAS SOME CHEAP-ASS WORTHLESS CARDS OUT THERE WHERE I COULD BUY A BUNCH OF PACKS AT WAL-MART FOR LIKE TEN BUCKS AND RIP AWAY AND HAVE A GOOD STACK OF JUNK AFTERWARDS. TEN BUCKS WON'T GET YOU A HANGER ANYMORE, SCREW THAT. GIMMIE JACKED UP RON GANT MASHING A BALL ON A LOW-RENT UPPER DECK CARD IN A PACK THAT COSTS A BUCK

LEAF ROOKIES AND STARS MEANS NOTHING TO ME BUT I GOTTA SHOW OFF A JD DREW CARD. YES, WE TRADED WAINWRIGHT FOR HIM, WHICH WASN'T GREAT, BUT DREW HAD AN ABSOLUTELY INSANE 2004 SEASON FOR THE BRAVES. THREE GUYS HAD 8 OR MORE WAR FOR THE BRAVES IN THE 00S AND FANGRAPHS DOESN'T AGREE ON ANDRUW JONES AND BASEBALL-REFERENCE DOESN'T AGREE ON BRIAN MCCANN. BOTH AGREE ON 04 DREW AND FOR A TEAM THAT WAS DESPERATELY TRYING TO MAKE NOISE IN THE PLAYOFFS IT WAS A GOOD MOVE AT THE TIME. WAINWRIGHT WILL EVENTUALLY BE ON THE 'VETERANS COMMITTEE TO RE-EVALUATE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY PITCHERS THAT DROPPED OFF THE BALLOT BECAUSE VOTERS DIDN'T REALIZE HOW GOOD THEY WERE' BALLOT BUT SOMETIMES PROSPECTS THAT GET TRADED HIT, THAT AIN'T JD'S FAULT

ANOTHER OZZIE! NO RESPECT FOR THE WIZARD. THAT GIGANTIC DINGED CORNER IN THE WORST POSSIBLE SPOT MIGHT'VE ALSO PLAYED INTO THE DECISION TO LEAVE THIS CARD IN TEH JUNK BOX, BUT OZZIE, MAN. THIS IS A GREAT PHOTO TOO

🚨🚨🚨VINTAGE IN THE JUNK BOX ALERT🚨🚨🚨

YEAAAAH THIS IS WHY I KEEP BUYING BOXES OF CRAP. EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS CARD IS FUCKIN AWESOME. THE PICTURE, THE BORDER, THE SIGNATURE, THE SWING, ALL THE BANGED UP CORNERS AND EDGES THAT GOT THIS CARD IN THE BOX IN THE FIRST PLACE. THE CASE HIT OF JUNK BOXES

THIS SORT OF LOOKS LIKE AN INSERT BUT IT'S ACTUALLY A SUBSET FROM 1999 UPPER DECK. I HAVE NO IDEA WHO THIS PLAYER IS BECAUSE I NEEDED THE CARD AND HAVE ALREADY PUT IT AWAY AND I'M NOT DIGGING THROUGH THE BOX TO FIND OUT. WHO WAS GOOD ON THE CARDINALS IN 1998? IT'S PROBABLY HIM

AND THE LEFTOVER JUNK IS JUST THAT, JUNK. IV'E GOT ALL THESE CARDS ALREADY AND NOW I HAVE TO DO SOMETHIGN WITH THEM. WORTH IT JUST FOR THAT PACIFIC CANSECO THOUGH