Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Random Topps Card of the Day: 2002 Topps #93 Esteban Loaiza

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Tuesday, January 25, 2011:


  • Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 2002 Topps #93.
  • Player Name, position, team: Esteban Loaiza, pitcher, Toronto Blue Jays.
  • Major League Debut: April 29, 1995.
  • Last Line of Statistics: 2001 stats (Blue Jays): 36 G, 190 IP, 11-11, 113 R, 105 ER, 110 SO, 40 BB, 30 GS, 1 CG, 1 SHO, 0 SV, 5.02 ERA.
  • Any special information about player: Signed with the Pirates as a Free Agent 03/21/1991. Traded by the Rangers to the Blue Jays 07/19/2000. Bats: right. Throws: right.
  • Number of regular Topps Cards (includes regular and traded cards only): 10. This is his fifth card.
  • Blurb on the back: "On Opening Day '01 Esteban defeated the world champ Yankees, yielding one run in seven innings."
  • Commentary: Readers of this humble little blog already know what I feel about the 2002 Topps design, so I will spare all the details about it. I have a hard time spelling this guy's last name. I know it's LoAIza, but because of how I heard it pronounced when he was with the White Sox, I always believed it was LoIAza. Speaking of which, his best year happened to come after signing with the White Sox in 2003. With a 21-9 record, a 2.90 ERA, and a league leading 207 K's, there wasn't a better pitcher in the American League. He even started the ASG that year...at the newly named US Cellular Field. With the Blue Jays, Esteban went 25-28, striking out 259 batters (this is a three year season total boys and girls), and really needed that change of scenery. Everything fell together in 2003. His run of success didn't last long, though, and by the middle of 2004, Loaiza was traded to the Yankees in the middle of their run for the playoffs.
  • Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.07-$0.20.
  • How many cards of each player do I own?: 21 cards.
Tomorrow's card will be: 1983 Topps #618. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. We're looking back at a card from 1983 here on the blog tomorrow.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

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