Saturday, January 1, 2011

Random Topps Card of the Day: 2009 Topps #344 J. R. Towles

It's a brand new year, and I finally got the infamous Topps Card Randomizer up and running again. Now adding 2010 Topps and Update Series cards (991 cards) to the spreadsheet.

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Saturday, January 1, 2011:


  • Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 2009 Topps #344.
  • Player Name, position, team: J. R. Towles, catcher, Houston Astros.
  • Major League Debut: September 5, 2007.
  • Last Line of Statistics: 2008 stats (Astros): 54 G, 146 AB, 10 R, 20 H, 5 2B, 0 3B, 4 HR, 16 RBI, 0 SB, 16 BB, 40 SO, .253 SLG, .503 OPS, .137 AVG.
  • Any special information about players: Drafted by the Astros, #20th, June 2004. Bats: right. Throws: right.
  • Number of regular Topps Cards (includes regular and traded cards only): 3. This is his second card.
  • Blurb on the back: "J. R. owns the lone 8-RBI game in history by a rookie catcher (09/20/2007). Also the only Astros player ever with that many in one contest."
  • Commentary: To celebrate the return of the Randomizer, it is only fitting that there be a few changes to the way the posts will be presented. This is the part where I talk about the player or make a comment on the back of the card. I love the 2009 Topps design. And here is a picture of the Astros' catcher, sans catching gear, playing long toss. But the one thing that stands out in his picture is that the jersey is way tucked in on the right, you can see this as the folds of his jersey seem to originate from the right as he makes his toss (the two belt loops on the right by his buckle. Just looks awkward. Above the name on the back of his card is a breakdown of his career batting average by classification (from Rookie League to Majors): Low Class A: .327; Double A: .324; Triple A: .299; Rookie: .243; High Class A: .200; Majors: .188. Injured for most of the 2010 season, he is looking to take the starting job for the Astros in 2011.
  • Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.40-$1.00.
  • How many cards of each player do I own?: 7 cards.
Tomorrow is Retro Sunday, the one day of the week that we feature a card from 1951-1975. The card we will feature tomorrow is: 1974 Topps #48. Come back at 1:00 PM CST to see who (or what) it is.

Happy New Year Everybody!!!

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

1 comment:

John Bateman said...

That 8 Rbi game was something