2005 Topps Rookie Cup #45 Yellow

Card Review: 9.8  I love this 2005 Topps Rookie Cup set.  I'd been actively collecting new cards in 2005 I almost certainly would have tried to complete it.  It's a decade later and I still play with the idea of buying a box of it and trying to piece one together.

I'm ranking this yellow variant just a little ahead of the red variant.  I'm sucker for primary color combinations.  These yellow variations were numbered individually out of a run of 299.  Which makes it easy to know how many more I need.

Number of this card in my collection: 1
2012 update: 2    297 to go.  (102 & 227)
2013 update: 6
2014 update: 9
2015 update: n/a
2016 update: n/a
2017 update: n/a
2018 update: 10
2019 update: 11

 

2005 Topps Rookie Cup Reprint Chrome #191

Card Review: 9.3  I find this card to be pretty cool.  It almost makes up for the 1982 set not having the rookie cup trophy on the front.  These chrome variations were individually numbered out of 25.  This one is #15 of 25.
Number of this card in my collection: 1 (only 24 more to go!)

2005 Topps Rookie Cup #45 Orange

Card Review: 9.7  I pretty much love everything about this 2005 Topps set, and also more or less hate everything about it.  It's added a ton of fresh excitement as far as tracking down new Wallach cards for the first time in over a decade, but also created a major annoyances at the extreme rarity of a few of the variations.  That said, I'm glad it exists.  These numbered cards also give a tangible goal and glimmer of hope to literally "collecting them all."

 These orange variants were numbered individually out of 399.  In person they look very "orange," but the scan came out very red.  But I assure you, it's very orange.  Like Syracuse Orangemen uniform orange.  But just like they look red on tv sometimes when playing at Georgetown or St. John's or some hillybilly ACC school now, these cards look red in the scans.

Number of this card in my collection: 1

2012 update: 3   
2013 update: 6 
2014 update: 11
2016 update: 13
2017 update: 14

2018 update: n/a

2019 update: n/a

2020 update: 15 

 
  

  

2005 Topps Rookie Cup reprint

Card Review: 9.3  I'm knocking the rating for this card down a little but from the original.  I have few reasons for doing so.  For one, it's glossy on both sides.  Also, the piping (hockey sticks) and lettering on the front of this card were purple and green on the original.  The blue and green just doesn't look as good.  That said, it's still pretty cool to see this card get the reprint treatment from Topps.

Number of this card in my collection: 12

2005 Topps Rookie Cup #45

Card Review: 8.8 nice unexpected surprise when Topps produced this set in '05.  At this point in time, any new Wallach is a welcomed event.
Fun Facts: *1982 Topps did not include the "Rookie Cup" trophy on the front of the card. Subsequently, none of my friends believed me that Wallach won one.
*Wallach was actually the Topps Rookie Cup winner for 1st base, though this card only list him as 3rd base
*Hubie Brooks was the 1981 Topps Rookie Cup 3rd baseman
* This picture appears to be from '82, not Wallach's '81 Rookie Cup season
Number of this card in my collection: 28

2011 update: 30
2012 update: 31
2013 update: 32
2014 update: 33 
2015 update: 34 
2016 update: 36

2017 update: n/a

2018 update: n/a

2019 update: n/a

2020 update: n/a

2021 update: 38

2022 update: n/a

2023 update: n/a

2024 update: 40