a late model '67 koufax

i missed it, but there were other things going on in the world in 2020. by "it", i mean the 2020 topps transcendent hall of fame edition release of cards featuring sandy koufax on topps designs from 1952 through 2020, numbered to 50 each. i should say selected topps designs, as they omitted a few, including, much to my chagrin, 1978.

they did put the left arm of god on a 1967 design, however, and i've added that card to my collection

koufax only appeared in the 1967 topps set on the league leader cards due to his retirement after the 1966 world series. there is a 1967 topps venezuelan "retirado" card that i would love to have but it is cost prohibitive. maybe someday topps will reprint it as an insert set in archives or something.

the '67 shown above doesn't have the facsimile autographs like the original cards from that year, but seeing koufax on an actual topps card using that design has been a long time coming. unfortunately, topps did not go for his full career stats on the back:

so i don't feel quite as badly for not knowing about these cards as i was not privy to the hall of fame vip party.

the photo topps used is a colorized one showing koufax with a bandage on his finger. that made the original easy to find on gettyimages. unfortunately, topps didn't color the dodger stadium seats properly. still, i am happy to have this card in my collection even as i hold out hope for a future archives release that gives us an honest to goodness 1967 design final tribute.

in other news, i'll add michael conforto to my "new team, who dis" theme of posting, as he signed a minor league deal with the cubs today. it's really just an excuse to show this team border card from 2025 topps

and get it out of my scanned/unposted folder. carry on.

two in the hand beats whatever is in the bush

i was excited to be included in rod's recent spate of mailings as he always sends some fun items. no poster this time, but he did include a couple of "twinographs" for me

that's twins lifer and two-time world series champion randy bush who signed a pair of cards for rod or some other person at some point in time.

there was another auto included, this one of a minnesota wild player on a 2008-09 o-pee-chee card

i must admit i wasn't paying much attention to the nhl at this point of stephane veilleux's career. i'm more engaged these days, making it to two or three games a year.

the cards rod sent gave me a chance to appreciate the three twins' multiplayer/checklist cards from 2025 topps

as well as byron buxton's indivicual card in base and holiday format

buck is not the only twin shown airborne in the 2025 topps set, as local kid matt wallner

is also catching some air. it's nice to see the flowers behind the outfield wall on a card.

buxton is still my favorite non-dodger, so it was cool to receive this relic card from 2025 topps holiday

of course, buxton flies because torii hunter also flew, and this 2004 topps clubhouse card of the latter

was equally appreciated!

2005 topps design has always looked good in black, and having brooks lee's 2025 topps archives card in black foil parallel fashion

makes me happy.

one more twin card that caught my eye was this 2025 bowman kyle debarge chrome prospects insert

i have to believe that, at some point, his walkup song has been or will be "rhythm of the night".

there was one dodger included in the mailing, and it was this 2025 bowman draft eduardo quintero card

quintero is a 6'-1" outfielder who hit 19 homers last year split between a and high-a ball. he's only 20 so plenty of time for him to progress.

finally, my favorite item in the package was this 1991 topps custom fernando valenzuela card

fernando as an angel is high on my list of cards i really want topps to produce in an archives release or even this year's flagship insert set. here's the back:

there aren't too many color photos of fernando as an angel, and i hadn't seen the one used here before. of course, i had taken my own shot at creating one of these cards a while back, but i don't recall doing a back, probably because it would look just like the back of his actual 1991 topps card, with a few slight changes.

thank you very much rod! always a pleasure to receive cards from you!

i sort of forgot about this update

with 2026 topps series 1 out, i should close the book on 2025 topps update. i had previously shared the non-dodger cards that i deemed post worthy and then forgot to get that dodger-centric post published. well, it's here now.

i found some of the dodger cards in the blasters i ordered from topps, including world series hero miguel rojas

the tyler glasnow/blake snell combo card

roki sasaki

dustin may

shohei ohtani

and a trio of dodger relievers - evan phillips, blake treinen, and jack dreyer

the treinen card is nice with the gold championship jerseys, but we all know that's still charlie hough's number.

i didn't find hyeseong kim's base card, but did find his holiday black & orange parallel

those cards always make me a bit jealous of tigers collectors.

i found two of the dodger all-star game inserts - yoshinobu yamamoto and ohtani

plus sasaki's 1990 35th anniversary insert

and the unavoidable stars of mlb inserts, of which two were dodgers: dalton rushing and kim

not a bad dodger haul from a couple of blasters, but not a complete team set. 

i mentioned in my original update post that i had bought into a team break, and that's where i found the kim base card

plus the ohtani/sasaki combo card

i also netted a rainbow foil insert of the glasnow/snell combo card

plus all-star game inserts of freddie freeman and will smith

i did well with dalton rushing inserts, finding his night terrors, black gold, and 1990 35th anniversary cards

and then topped things off with cody bellinger's mvp insert

good stuff, but i had also ordered some cards from sportlots prior to winning that team set slot, so i wound up with too many cards of anthony banda, alex vesia, and dalton rushing

i did add some more inserts via sportlots, including ohtani's stars of mlb insert

snell's 1990 35th anniversary insert

clayton kershaw's all-star game insert

and kershaw's mvp insert

what a year he had in 2014.

i was also able to find some dodgers from this release at the december card show while looking through some of the regularly rewarding bargain boxes.

jack dreyer gold parallel

dustin may blue holofoil parallel

evan phillips holofoil parallel

and a pair of miguel rojas parallels - rainbow foil and holiday black & orange

there was one card that i knew i would have to acquire via ebay, and that was steve garvey's 1990 all-star design autograph card. i actually found his gold parallel first

and later added the base

i would like to tell topps that not everything needs a gold parallel, but if they must, make the border gold and not the name lettering. here's the back:

nothing special about it. so far with these topps inserts, garvey has only been featured in 2024 and 2025, and only on the all-star designs, and only in autograph form. it would be nice to have him on a base 35th anniversary insert someday.

well, that's the update. stay tuned for more late to the market posts!

new teams, who dis?

pitchers and catchers were to report to dodger camp last thursday. that is always a time to look forward to as baseball fans, as it is a sign that a new season is upon us. this year, there are some old faces in new places, like kenley jansen

who will go for 500 saves (he only needs 24 more) with the tigers. that's a 2021 topps green foil parallel, if you were wondering.

this is a 2022 topps update orange foil parallel of dustin may

which looks red when scanned and would be fitting, as he signed with the cardinals after finishing last season with the red sox.

kirby yates, shown on a 2025 topps series 2 holiday "base" parallel,

will now toil for the angels, and i hope their fan base is ready. seriously though, i hope yates is able to bounce back from what was a tough year for him.

he's not a pitcher, but old friend gavin lux (seen here on a 2020 topps choice black parallel insert numbered to 299)

was traded by the reds after one season to the rays

i recently added a 2016 topps update kenta maeda card

to my "name/number on the back" collection. the former dodger/twin/tiger has left major league baseball to return to japan in 2026, signing with npb's rakuten eagles.

in addition to those fellows, there are some free agents who have yet to sign....

walker buehler, seen here on a 2024 topps rainbow foil parallel

split last season between the red sox and the phillies. i've seen his name mentioned in rumors related to the phillies and padres. i'd like to see buehler back with the dodgers, but i don't think that will happen. 

[edit - shortly after this post went live, it was announced that buehler signed a minor league deal with the padres] 

another former dodger that i wouldn't mind to see return is max scherzer

i scanned his 2021 topps future stars club card with trea turner's and decided not to separate them even though turner has no place in this post. scherzer, on the other hand, is a free agent after pitching for the american league champion blue jays last year.

tony gonsolin, whose 2024 topps heritage white border parallel

i added to my collection a while back, hasn't signed anywhere, either. he was dfa'd by the dodgers and went unclaimed in november, resulting in him choosing free agency. he is going to miss most of 2026 as i understand it, so i wouldn't think he would be signed until later this year as his recovery from surgery continues.

michael kopech

with his 2024 topps chrome update refractor cards is also still a free agent. when healthy, he is a dominant bullpen arm so i figure he will sign somewhere soon, but most likely not with the dodgers.

the dodgers did re-sign evan phillips last week

but i'll go ahead and show his 2024 topps rainbow foil parallel anyway. he was moved to the 60-day injured list, which opened up a spot for the dodgers to re-sign kiké hernandez! the fan favorite returns, and i will mark the occasion by showing three of his 2025 topps parallels

those are the series 2 holiday "base", rainbow foil, and sandglitter parallels. the club also extended max muncy's contract, which allows me to show this 2021 panini mosaic blue camo prizm parallel

this post has gone off the rails from what i had initially intended it to be, so i will try to get back on track by noting that anthony banda (not pictured) is now a twin, and austin barnes (also not pictured) signed a minor league deal with the mets.

i was a bit surprised to read that chris taylor 

was re-signed by the angels (that's a 2023 topps orange foil parallel). he was injured for the latter half of last season, but hadn't done much with the halos prior to that. i'm happy for him, as i will always appreciate the big hits and catch that he had for the dodgers in the postseason.

cody bellinger returned to the yankees, so he's not in a new team situation either, but i have a bunch of his cards in my scanned/unposted folder, so here's a 2020 topps mini 1985 insert

of the 2019 national league mvp

as for the dodgers and new faces, they made a couple of big splashes in free agency over the winter, and are welcoming edwin diaz

and kyle tucker

to the fold. they've traded in their blue pinstripes for ice white jerseys. and, late last week, they inked keston hiura

to a minor league deal. zot! 

i'm looking forward to the new season and new cards.