Thursday, February 11, 2021

Stop, Stare, and Appreciate

A while back I started to clean up my saved eBay searches by deleting things I already purchased and items I no longer wanted.  One of the sets on the list that was spared from the chopping block is the 2010 Topps Chicle baseball card set.

According to BaseballCardPedia, the set is based on the 1935 National Chicle football set... which is one of the most famous and popular sets among football card collectors.  The Bronko Nagurski in that set has been called the gridiron version of the famous T206 Honus Wagner.

This set could also have been inspired by the 1934-36 National Chicle Diamond Stars cards too though.  All three of these sets utilize paintings instead of photographs... which might turn off some collectors.  Personally... if they're done in a certain way... I actually really enjoy painted sets.  This is one of them.

I've been targeting this set for years.  I'm not exactly sure when I created the saved search for the 329 card set... but I'm guessing it was sometime in 2013.  That's the year I finally added the regular version Jackie Robinson card to my collection:

2010 Chicle #235

Just stare at that card for five seconds and soak in its beauty.  If this card looks familiar, then you probably remember seeing it on Night Owl's blog header back in the day:


Eight years later, this Jackie Robinson is still one of my favorites in the collection.  Here's scan of the card back:


As much as I enjoy looking at career statistics, I'm okay with Topps using short biographies in the spirit of the original 1935 National Chicle cards.  Outside of the company logos at the bottom and trademark information, the main difference between the two sets in regards to design is the inclusion of information about the artist.

As you'll see by the end of this post...  Brian Kong is one of my favorite artists involved with this set.  However before I begin showcasing my favorite cards in the set, let me wrap up my thoughts on why it took so long to acquire the set.

There's really only one reason I didn't grab this set years ago.  Price.  I've seen this set listed numerous times over the years, but either the BIN price was too high or my last second bids weren't high enough.

Then a few weeks ago, someone listed a complete set and I ended up being the only bidderThe final price?  $37.23 ($30 + $4.45 shipping + $2.78 tax). 

As I mentioned earlier, the complete set consists of 329 cards.  The first 275 cards make up the short set, however Topps decided to make the final 54 cards short prints (1:4 packs) which were broken down into three subsetsRetired Stars Revisited, Vintage Veterans, and Rookie Renditions.

The Retired Stars Revisited cards featured retired players wearing modern era uniforms.  This did not go over well with some collectors.  Here... see for yourself:

2010 Topps Chicle #276

I'm not a fan of seeing Babe Ruth wearing eye black and batting gloves, but not all of the cards in this subset were bad (in my opinion).  I actually like Jackie's other card in the set:

2010 Topps Chicle #285

The Vintage Veterans took current players (at the time) and placed them in throwback uniforms:

2010 Topps Chicle #302

These days it's not uncommon for MLB teams to wear throwbacks on special occasions, so I think these were a little more accepted.

The final short printed subset is the Rookie Renditions:

2010 Topps Chicle #324

This is where they paired up a rookie with an iconic rookie card featuring someone within the same franchiseMatt Carson's rookie card is made to look like Rickey Henderson's 1980 Topps card.

Honestly... the short prints are the icing on the cake.  The heart and soul of this set are the regular cards.  Today I wanted to showcase my personal favorites.  In fact... since I've taken the time to scan so many cards... I might as well rank my Top 5, but before I do... here are some of the honorable mentions:


These first three were painted by Brian Kong, the same artist who painted the Jackie Robinson that kicked off this post.

Monty Sheldon is another artist whose work I really enjoyed in this set:


In fact my five favorite cards from this set feature the artwork of one of these two guys.  But that's not to say I didn't like the other artists.  Here are some of their highlights:

Painted by Jeff Zachowski

Painted by Chris Henderson

Painted by Jason Davies

Painted by Ken Branch

This Jonathan Sanchez with the Golden Gate Bridge in the background came close to making the Top 5, but you know the saying... "close only counts for horseshoes and hand grenades".  Here are my favorite five...


#5Warren Spahn by Monty Sheldon

2010 Topps Chicle #214

Normally... seeing only half of Spahn's left leg would bug me... but Sheldon shifts the focus on the rest of his body and makes it work.


#4Ichiro Suzuki by Brian Kong

2010 Topps Chicle #3

The horizontal lines in the background help give the illusion that Ichiro is running across this card.  Combine that with Kong's ability to nail down faces and this card is a beaut.


#3Curtis Granderson by Monty Sheldon

2010 Topps Chicle #110

As much as I dislike the New York Yankees... I just couldn't keep this card off of my list of favoritesSheldon hit a home run with the New York City skyline in the background.

In fact he actually went back to back with this card...


#2Roy Campanella by Monty Sheldon

2010 Topps Chicle #232

If this card doesn't deserve to be hung up in a museum... I honestly don't know what does.


#1Jackie Robinson by Brian Kong

2010 Topps Chicle #235

This was the obvious pick.  It's the card that made me fall in love with this set.

Overall... I'd recommend this set to any baseball fan who enjoys baseball cards featuring paintings.  Sure the subsets might not be your cup of tea, but that's just means you can save a few bucks by picking up a short set instead.

Now I'm not saying this set is perfect.  That Babe Ruth from earlier is definitely a head-scratcher.  Plus you're likely to find a some art styles you don't like.  For example I'm not a fan of the winking Wakefield:

2010 Topps Chicle #22

Plus... I can't look at the Tom Seaver card without seeing Beavis:

 
2010 Topps Chicle #248

But for every one of these cards there are ten to fifteen cards that I can stop, stare, and appreciate.  And that's my definition of a set worth waiting for.

That wraps up another Throwback Thursday.  Here are your questions of the day:

Are you a fan of baseball card sets that feature paintings?

Do you have a favorite all-painted baseball card set?

Personally... I prefer photographs over paintings, but don't mind an all-painted set every now and then.  My favorites would be the UD Masterpieces sets... and of course the 1956 Topps baseball card set.

Okay.  Enough of me blabbering.  This post has gone on long enough.  Happy Thursday and sayonara!

18 comments:

hiflew said...

1) Not usually. I have always been a fan of layout and design of cards and usually painted sets ignore the design in favor of the painting. Like with National Chicle, there really is no real card design, it's just a painting on cardboard. I understand why some love it, but I don't particularly like it much.

2) Not so much a set as a subset. The original Donruss Diamond Kings subset when they were part of the set have always been one of my favorites. Once they change into an insert set that was way too uncommon, I didn't like them at all. But some of the DKs from the 80s and early 90s are among the most iconic cards of all time. The 86 Gooden, the 88 McGwire, the 90 Griffey and 90 Bo Jackson, several others. Of course there were others that were plain ugly as well, but for the most part they were pretty cool.

night owl said...

This set was big news on the blogs when it came out. It's weird how long ago that is now.

As we bloggers said then, the set is very uneven. Some cards are great (I liked this set more than most) and some are brutal. I ended up buying enough that I have probably two-thirds of the set. I didn't bother with most of the short-prints, many are too weird for me. But the Jackie Robinson cards are great.

I'm interested in sets that feature paintings, but most are too "off" for me to collect them (look at what Topps is doing to Gallery). 1953 Topps is a tough standard to match.

Bo said...

Never seen that Granderson before - what a fantastic card. I'm not 100% sure but it looks like the artist was trying to use a 1930s-era skyline. That might be the case for Brooklyn on the Campanella too.

Big Tone said...

I've always liked painted player cards and I think Donruss Diamond Kings and Fleer Pro Visions have alot to do with it.

My fave would have to be Turkey Red. It's what got me back into an actual brick and mortar card shop and collecting again in 2006.

Johnnys Trading Spot said...

No, not a fan. But I do LOVE that Babe! I'm going to go find one here shortly.

Johnnys Trading Spot said...

go figure I checked my Braves team needs, missing the Babe 276, 295, 306, 308 (yes, I know pedroia wasn't a Brave but they have him in a Braves uniform I do have the dunn though, lol).

Sean said...

That is a beautiful set. The 1935 Diamond Stars is one of my all time favorite vintage sets out there, the paintings on it are amazing.

Japanese cards from the 1930s-1950s mostly featured drawings rather than photos and I love them too!

The Lost Collector said...

I missed this set by a year (started collecting again in 2010) but I always like getting the cards in trade packages.

Kirk said...

That is a sweet Campanella card. Your right ruth not so much. A lot more hits then misses

Matt said...

Maybe I wouldn't feel the same way if he wasn't a Red Sox, but I absolutely love the Wakefield card BECAUSE it's so weird. The wink is nothing when you think about why is he licking the ball?

gcrl said...

well, i would rather collaborate and listen, but i can stare and appreciate this set. i have an open mind towards painted sets, and when done well (e.g. masterpieces) it is fantastic. gallery, on the other hand...

GCA said...

Yadier is epic

Jongudmund said...

I think a painted card can either get it really right or get it really wrong to a level photos rarely reach.

Adam Kaningher said...

That Babe Ruth card - yikes.

As far as painted sets, UD Masterpieces is my top choice, and some of the Project 2020 cards are certainly worth talking about. 1953 Topps comes to mind for one of the early pre-photography Topps sets.

Nick Vossbrink said...

I generally don't like painted sets. 1956 Topps and 1952 Bowman are exceptions from the modern era of cards. Now when we get into pre-war it's a different story. Bring on the T205s.

sg488 said...

I like photographs better than painted sets, but I did buy this base set back when it came out,the Jim Palmer makes me laugh.

Fuji said...

hiflew - i understand where you're coming from. and i love the diamond kings from the 80's too.

night owl - while flipping through the set, i definitely found a few that were not my thing. but certain artist stood out to me. and i probably wouldn't have been nearly as passionate about this set had i not seen that jackie in your blog banner on a regular basis

bo - when it comes to history, i'd never argue with you. thanks for the insight

big tone - i like turkey red too, but i'm hoping they shelve it for at least five years, so it doesn't get boring

johnnys trading spot - glad you like the babe. personally... it's one of my least favorite cards, but it's part of the set (otherwise i'd send it to you).
you're on quite the sportslot run. i'm sure you'll be able to find a few over there.

sean - the japanese paintings are beautiful. love the bright reds and yellows they always seem to include

the lost collector - yeah... don't get these as much in care packages as i used to. i'd love to open a box one day. then i could spread them around to different bloggers

kirk - yeah, the campy trumps the ruth every day of the week

matt - i tried to find out if there's a famous photo of wakefield winking and licking a ball, but my search came up empty

gcrl - yeah, not the biggest fan of "modern" topps gallery. i liked the 90's stuff though

gca - he's like looking into your soul

jongudmund - good call. this set is filled with cards that look really "right", but there are a few that look really "wrong".

adam kaningher - lol. that card cracks me up. and i agree the 1953 set is gorgeous

nick vossbrink - awesome call on the 1952 bowman set. there are some really nice paintings in that set.

sg488 - had to look it up. nice hair. blowing in the wind and peaking out of his jersey

Nachos Grande said...

You are correct in that this set is hit or miss (but the good cards are actually quite great)! I, too, like the cards with the city skylines in the background. Thanks for sharing this post, I must have missed it when you originally posted it!