20 years later, some cards regarding a game i attended

a couple of months ago i noted that i should track down the twins' cards from 2004 fleer authentix because they reference opening day of the 2004 season, and i attended that game at the hubert h. humphrey metrodome. it was memorable because it was the big league debut of joe mauer, and i already have a few cards in my collection that focus on that event.

at any rate, i did pick up the three twin cards from the set. they feature shannon stewart

torii hunter

and jason bartlett

but not mauer. bartlett's card is a short print and serial numbered, by the way.

in the game, stewart was 2 for 5 with the walk-off three run home run in the 11th inning. hunter was 1 for 5 with an rbi, and bartlett wasn't on the roster. he made his big league debut about four months later on august 3.

my seat was closest to the one on hunter's card

as i was in section 222. as always, i enjoy having ways to commemorate these events that i've attended, and i enjoy them more now that paper tickets are a thing of the past.

super premium?

we are past opening day, but tomorrow is the 20th anniversary of opening day, 2004. it's a date noted on this 2004 fleer authentix eric gagne card

i wasn't there to see the dodgers lose to the padres at chavez ravine - instead, i was at the metrodome in minneapolis watching joe mauer make his big league debut. now that i have verbalized that, i realize that i should track down the twins' cards from this set to add to my "games i have attended" collection. although the cards don't relay any information from the game itself, referencing the date and opponent is good enough for me to add them to the collection.

what i noticed about this card to prompt the post is actually on the back

fleer added an advertisement for their showcase set, which they refer to as "the original super-premium brand". showcase debuted in 2000, beating topps tribute (the first set that came to my mind) by a year. here's gagne's 2000 fleer showcase short print card

that completed my team set. the cards sure are shiny, but the more i thought about it, the more i felt like flair was the first brand that i thought was super-premium. i remember paying $3.99 for a pack at a convenience store in newport beach in 1993 and being struck by how fancy it was. fleer refers to flair on the backs of some of the '04 authentix cards as "mlb's finest with a touch of class". seems a bit like a shot at topps, who were actually issuing cards as "finest" since 1993 as well.

what set do you consider to be the original super-premium release?