Random Topps Card of the Day: 1999 Topps #386 Jose Cruz, Jr.

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Friday, January 18, 2013:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1999 Topps #386.
• Player Name, position, team: Jose Cruz, Jr., outfielder, Toronto Blue Jays.
• Major League Debut: May 31, 1997.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1998 stats (Syracuse, AAA-International): 40 G, 174 AB, 29 R, 42 H, 14 2B, 1 3B, 7 HR, 23 RBI, 8 SB, .560 SLG, 32 BB, 32 SO, .298 AVG.
• Any special information about player: Drafted by the Mariners #1st, June 1995. Traded by the Mariners to the Blue Jays 07/31/1997. Bats: both. Throws: right.
• Number of regular Topps Cards (includes regular and traded cards only): 11. This is his second Topps card.
• Blurb on the back: "Batting .214 with 3 HRs on June 13, 1998, Jose recovered to hit .285 with 8 HRs after a minor league stint."
• Commentary: While the 1999 Topps design utilized gold colored borders and design elements, I am so glad that they limited the gold foil to the name of the player and the Topps logo.  The large pictures really makes the action shots pop, thus making the 1999 set one of my favorites.  Because Jose was sent to the minors, the last line of stats were from his 40 games at Syracuse.  In the majors, his stats were:  105 G, 352 AB, 55 R, 89 H, 14 2B, 3 3B, 11 HR, 42 RBI, 11 SB, .403 SLG, 57 BB, 99 SO, .253 AVG.  The son of longtime Astros' shortstop Jose Cruz, Jose, Jr. did eventually proved he belonged as a bonafide major leaguer.  In 1999, the Blue Jays' centerfielder hit a decent .241 with 14 home runs and 45 rbi's.  In six seasons in Toronto, he hit 122 home runs and 355 rbi's to go with OBP/SLG/OPS percentages of .331/.462/.793.  He signed with the Giants in 2003 and won Gold Glove for his play in rightfield (2 errors in 360 chances, 7 double plays, 18 assists).  His journeyman career began in 2004 with stints with the Devil Rays, then followed an injury-riddled 2005 with the Diamondbacks, Red Sox (for four games in 2005), and Dodgers.  In 2007, he joined the Padres, after being designated for assignment by LA.  After 91 games, however, the team released him.  One final run with the Astros in 1998 in which he hit .122 in 38 games resulted in him DFA'd.  He hasn't played in the majors since.  He has since worked as an analyst for MLB.com.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.07-$0.20.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 21.

Tomorrow's card will be: 1980 Topps #579. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Flash back with the blog tomorrow.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama