1994 Collector's Choice #466 Gold Signature

Card Review: 7.5  Usually I like the gold variation of Collector's Choice cards best.  With this particular set though it's my least favorite of the three variations.  Unlike the regular base card, and the Silver Signature copy, this gold variation lacks the light brown pinstripes on the front.  I'm sure with a little effort they could have figured out a way to include them.  Their omission makes the card feel a little bland.

While this card is somewhat ordinary, it's acquisition is anything but.  This marks the last "regular" card I need on my "Most Wanted List" from Wallach's actual playing career.  There are some oddball items that are at best quasi cards and some modern serial numbered type stuff, but with the acquisition of this card, I feel the collection is more or less complete.  As far as unique cards go anyways.  I'm still a solid 8-12 million away from actually having them all. 

Number of this card in my collection: 1

2005 Topps Rookie Cup #45 Blue #/50

Card Review: 9.8  This card, for reasons I can't explain, has eluded me for a very long time.  It was somewhat satisfying to cross it off my most-wanted list (they all are at this point).  Granted, there were only 50 of them made, but I've picked up cards from this set #'d a lot lower than that.  In any event, I have one, and only need 49 more.

I find blue works well with the Expos uniform.  Like the rest of these color variations, the scan doesn't really begin to do this card justice.  It looks much better in person.

Number of this card in my collection: 1

2015 update: n/a

2016 update: n/a

2017 update: n/a

2018 update: 2

1996 Collector's Choice #486 Gold Signature

Card Review: 8.3 Of the three variations of this card, I like this one the best.  The red accents just look better with the gold border than they do with the silver or white borders.  The photo on the back of this card is interesting.  As far as I can remember, Tim Wallach never wore a batting helmet without an ear flap (just look at the front of the card).  However, the wikipedia page on batting helmets, list Wallach as one of the last players (along with Tim Raines, Gary Gaetti, and Ozzie Smith) to wear the flapless helmet.

In 1983, it was made mandatory for new players to use a helmet with at least one earflap. Players who were grandfathered in could choose to wear a helmet without ear flaps. Players can choose to wear double earflap helmets in the major leagues; however, this is not mandatory. Tim Raines was the last player to wear a helmet without earflaps, during the 2002 season. His flap-less Florida Marlins helmet is currently at the Baseball Hall of Fame. Gary Gaetti, who retired in the year 2000, plus Ozzie Smith and Tim Wallach, who both retired in 1996, also wore flapless helmets until they retired from the game.

The 1995 Pinnacle card also shows Wallach wearing a flapless helmet.  If I had to guess, I'd guess it was just something he did in Spring Training or batting practice.  I'm not well versed enough with the rule to know what the helmet policy is during batting practice.  I feel like I've seen guys take b.p. in just regular hats, but can't be certain.  In any event, there's photographic evidence that shows Wallach wearing the helmet, but none of him actually batting in it.  And I've never seen a photo showing him in a flapless Expos helmet

Number of this card in my collection: 1

1993 Topps Finest #118 Refractor

Card Review: 9.1  If your into price guides, this is probably the most valuable Wallach you'll find listed (a couple others aren't listed "due to scarcity").  20 years later these '93 Refractors still demand a premium.  Even I, a self professed hater of Topps Finest and the "premium" baseball card, can't deny that this is a pretty neat card.  The "refractor" element of it looks really cool.  The '94 and '95 Topps Finest refractors lacked this sort of shine.  Though the '03 and '05 refractors may be even more impressive than this one.  In any event, I only have one of this card and don't really anticipate having anymore in the near future.  Despite allegedly being extremely rare, I see this card show up for sale on a regular basis, but usually it's in the $50-$100 price range.  And for now, I'd much rather have the 500-1000 1987 Topps that that kind of money will buy than one of these.

Number of this card in my collection: 1

2014 update: n/a

2015 update: n/a

2016 update: n/a

2017 update: n/a

2018 update: n/a

2019 update: n/a

2020 update: n/a

2021 update: n/a

2022 update: n/a

2023 update: 2


BONUS POST

I've tempered my disdain for graded cards since their inception.  I can see their value as a safe guard against forgery when buying high dollar vintage cards online .  However, why anyone would pay to grade a card made in the last 30 years is beyond me.  This card came to me in a PSA case.  I only have a couple other cards that came in graded card cases, and I didn't bother to crack them.  But this Wallach needed to go into my binder where I keep one copy of all the different Wallach's.

So I took to youtube and watched a couple of instructional videos on how to open the case.  It looked very easy in the videos.  A couple of twist with a little screw driver and the case neatly popped into two pieces.  I didn't have that kind of luck, but I did free the card unscathed.

1995 Topps Finest #62 Refractor

Card Review 2.4  I find this card to be every bit as bland as it's '95 Finest base card counterpart.  I'd be lying if I said I didn't think some of the Topps Refractors were cool, some of them are very cool (though I'll never stop believing they're unnecessary gimmicks).  This just isn't one of the "cool" ones.  In '95 Topps covered all of these cards with a protective film, that consumers were to peel off once they bought the cards.  Pretty much nobody did, so everyone ended up with black lettering on the front of their cards.  You can see where the film on this one has started to bubble around Wallach's shoulder and neck.  I suspect if I peeled it off the card would look nicer, but I'm not inclined to do so.

*Update* It is believed that there were 550 copies printed of each refractor

Number of this card in my collection: 1

2014 update: n/a

2015 update: n/a

2016 update: n/a

2017 update: n/a

2018 update: n/a

2019 update: n/a

2020 update: n/a

2021 update: n/a

2022 update: n/a

2023 update: 8

1995 Pinnacle #384 Artist's Proof

Card Review: 8.1  I like the '95 Pinnacle set.  The baseball stitching gold stamping at the bottom of the card has always looked good to me, and the photo quality is well above average.  The Wallach photo is also unique.  It's the only card I can think of that (1) shows him in a Dodger windbreaker, and (2) shows him wearing a flap less helmet.  This is the 3rd variation of the Wallach Pinnacle put out in '95 and it's my least favorite of the three.  It's not just the scan that makes the gold stamping at the bottom of the card appear dark, it looks that way in person too.  Lined up side by side, this Artist Proof is much darker than the base card and museum collection variant.

Fun Facts:
*In 1983 MLB made it mandatory that batting helmets have at least one ear flap.  Current players were grandfathered in and could continue to use a flap less helmet.  Wallach is often listed as one of the last players to wear a flap less helmet along with Ozzie Smith, Gary Gaetti, and Tim Raines.  He's even listed in the wikipedia article on the subject.

I don't ever recall watching Wallach bat with a flap less helmet. This 1995 Pinnacle is the only card or picture I've ever seen of him wearing a flap less helmet.  I suspect that this picture is from batting practice and not a game.  It doesn't even look like Wallach is wearing a jersey under the windbreaker.  I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure Wallach was never a regular user of the flap less helmet, or that he ever used one in a game at all.

Number of this card in my collection: 1
2013 update: 2

1995 Stadium Club #127 Virtual Reality Member's Only

Card Review: 0.0  Somebody at Stadium Club was a real jerk.  Rather, some people at Stadium Club were some real jerks.  Some jerk said, I think we should do a lot variations of our cards so collector's will buy a ton a packs.  "We can't have collector's simply buying enough packs to compete the set, no small task in and of itself."  I'm guessing this was one the last of the seven variations for this card.  They had a bunch of variations per the demand of some jerk, then some other jerk said, "Hey, what if we started combing variations?" Then yet another jerk said; "That's a great idea."  Then a bunch of suckers went out and bought this crap by the case.  Today it's so worthless, and so unwanted, that when somebody like me actually wants a few of them, no one is willing to take the time to sort through it to sell it (assuming they haven't already thrown it out).

So we got this.  A "Virtual Reality Variation" merged with a "Member's Only Variation."  Bunch of jerks.

Number of this card in my collection: 1

1993 Stadium Club #686 Members Only

Card Review: 8.0 This is the 3rd and final variation put out by Stadium Club in 1993.  One would have been fine, but given the over-production of the era, they had to find some way into duping people into buying obscene amounts of product.

I find the "Members Only" stamp to be a little odd, but I guess odd is better than stupid.

Number of this card in my collection: 1
2014 update: 2

1994 Stadium Club #217 1st Day Issue

Card Review: 8.5  This is the 4th (and I believe final) variation of the '94 Stadium Club Wallach.  Of the three "fancy" ones I like this one the best.  But I prefer just the clean base card to all of them.  Way too many gimmicks for my taste.

Number of this card in my collection: 1

1995 Stadium Club #259 1st Day Issue

Card Review: 7.5  This is the 4th of what is currently 6 different variations of this card in my collection.  This one features a stamp that says "1st Day Issue."  Can't say I'm all that excited.  I don't have a problem with variations, but you shouldn't have to look so hard to figure out what makes them different.

Number of this card in my collection: 1

2014 update: n/a

2015 update: n/a

2016 update: n/a

2017 update: n/a

2018 update: n/a

2019 update: n/a

2020 update: n/a

2021 update: n/a

2022 update: 2

2023 update: n/a

2024 update: 3

1996 Collector's Choice #486 Silver Signature

Card Review: 6.9  While this isn't my favorite card ever, or anywhere close to being one, I do appreciate what Collector's Choice did during the mid-90's while the card industry was going completely off the rails on it's way to being an absolute dumpster fire.  While Topps didn't even include Wallach in it's '96 set, Collector's Choice included him twice, once with the Dodgers, then again with the Angels.  This is the silver version of his Angels card.  I slightly prefer the regular white one, but there both decent cards.

Number of this card in my collection: 1
2014 update: 5
2015 update: n/a
2016 update: 6
2017 update: n/a
2018 update: 7
2019 update: 8

2020 update: n/a

2021 update: n/a

2022 update: n/a

2023 update: n/a

2024 update: 9

2025 update: n/a

2026 update: 10

1996 Flair #45 Gold

Card Review: 3.1  This is another mid-90's parallel version of a card that no one asked for.  I guess I prefer this gold version to the standard silver, but they're both pretty terrible cards.  Flair was too thick and too shiny for my taste.  The photo used on the front is actually a pretty good action shot.  It would have looked great on a '96 Topps card, had Topps bothered to include Wallach in their '96 set.

Number of this card in my collection: 1
2013 update: 2
2014 update: 3
2015 update: n/a
2016 update: n/a
2017 update: n/a
2018 update: 5

1996 Fleer Ultra #329 Gold Medallion

Card Review: 3.2  It's not immediately obvious, but this card is "identical" to the '96 Fleer Ultra base card.  The background on the front has just been replaced with a lot of gold foil and a giant Ultra logo.  In 1995 the Gold Medallion parallel was just a penny sized gold stamp on the front.  I don't really like either, but I think I prefer the smaller stamp.

Number of this card in my collection: 1
2014 update: n/a
2015 update: n/a
2016 update: n/a
2017 update: n/a
2018 update: n/a
2019 update: 2

1995 Collector's Choice SE #94 Gold Signature

Card Review: 9.1 This is the gold variation of the '95 SE card.  This was actually sent to me by a reader, unsolicitated no less.  It's the first time I've picked up a card I didn't already have in that manner, hopefully it won't be the last.  In 1995 I would have gladly traded a finger for a gold variation.  Internet shopping didn't exist, and card shops weren't wasting shelf space of junk wax commons, not even the gold ones.  Today, it's a welcome addition and one less card I need to track down, though I'm keeping all my fingers.  I like the Silver, Blue and Gold variations all about the same.  The gold does have a sort of vintage look that I like, but they're all pretty nice cards.

Number of this card in my collection: 1  (feel free to send me more)

1994 Score Gold Rush #446

Card Review: 5.1  I like '94 score.  The design just doesn't lend itself well to these gold parallels well.  I don't believe there was a diamond set done in '94, that would probably have looked pretty good.

Number of this card in my collection: 1
2014 update: 2 
2015 update: 4 
2016 update: 5
2017 update: n/a
2018 update: n/a
2019 update: 8

2020 update: n/a

2021 update: n/a

2022 update: 10

2023 update: n/a

2024 update: 11

1995 Fleer Ultra #401 Gold Medallion

Card Review: 6.1  I slightly prefer this to the standard '95 Fleer Ultra.  There really isn't all that much difference.  It doesn't show, but in right light the center of the "Medallion" in the upper left gives off a sort of prism effect.

Number of this card in my collection: 1
2013 update: 5
2014 update: n/a
2015 update: n/a
2016 update: 6
2017 update: n/a

2018 update: n/a

2019 update: n/a

2020 update: n/a

2021 update: n/a

2022 update: n/a

2023 update: n/a

2024 update: 7

2005 Topps Rookie Cup #45 Green

Card Review: 9.8  The Green Variation of the '05 Rookie Cup card is very nice.  I'd put it on par with the yellow and just above the red and orange.  It's scarcer than both, numbered only to 199.  

Number of this card in my collection: 1

2013 update: 3

2014 update: 6

2015 update: 8

2016 update: 10 
2017 update: n/a
2018 update: 11

2019 update: n/a

2020 update: n/a

2021 update: n/a

2022 update: 13

  

1995 Score Platinum Diamond Silver Team

Card Review: 7.4  This is the 3rd variation of '95 Score I've come across.  One would have been enough.  I'm not sure if these were sold as team sets, complete sets, or randomly stuck in packs.  At first I assumed they were inserted into packs, but there are a lot of team sets for sale on ebay, so that gives me some pause.

Number of this card in my collection: 1
2013 update: n/a
2014 update: n/a
2015 update: n/a
2016 update: n/a
2017 update: n/a
2018 update: 2

1996 Collector's Choice #187 Gold Signature

Card Review: 8.8  While I'm against the concept of inserts, I like this gold/bronze bordered card a little better than the regular white and the silver versions of it.   It's not a bad card with a cool (or at least different) picture on the front, full stats on the back, and a nice heaping of praise for Wallach in the write-up.  It's a shame Tops couldn't find a way to get a card like this for Wallach into their 1996 set.

Number of this card in my collection: 1
2013 update: 2