Random Topps Team Set of the Week: 2009 Topps Cleveland Indians

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Team Set of the Week:

• Team: 2009 Cleveland Indians
• Record: 65-97, fourth place, AL Central Division.
• Manager: Eric Wedge
• Card on the Top: Grady Sizemore

The checklist consists of the following players:

• CLE1 Grady Sizemore
• CLE2 Cliff Lee
• CLE3 Victor Martinez
• CLE4 Fausto Carmona (now known as Roberto Hernandez)
• CLE5 Jhonny Peralta
• CLE6 David Dellucci
• CLE7 Travis Hafner
• CLE8 Kelly Shoppach
• CLE9 Jake Westbrook
• CLE10 Ben Francisco
• CLE11 Mark DeRosa
• CLE12 Asdrubal Cabrera
• CLE13 Ryan Garko
• CLE14 Shin-Soo Choo
• CLE15 Kerry Wood (which was the bonus card in what was previously a 14-card set)

The cards in order from the set (the checklist at the end was cut from the back of the package. What, you don't do that?):

Key differences between the team set and 2009 Topps eponymous set:

• Grady Sizemore is seen stretching to catch a ball on a card that is set horizontally:
  
  

• Victor Martinez shows some love to the fans on his base card:
  
  

• We get a closer look at Roberto Hernandez, who at the time was calling himself Fausto Carmona:
  
  

• Jhonny Peralta is getting ready to make an infield catch on his base card:
  
  

• David Dellucci is on base on his eponymous card:
  
  

• And here is Travis Hafner's card from series 2:
  
  

• Jake Westbrook...another view:
  
  

• Ben Francisco at bat on his Topps base card:
  
  

• He appeared in the 2009 Topps base set as a Cub, and showed up in the 2009 Topps U & H set as a Cardinal, so if you want a 2009 Topps designed card of Mark DeRosa as an Indian, you'll only find it in the retail set:
  
  

• And finally, Kerry Wood was included in the set as the bonus 15th card. Many of the other team sets' bonus cards were of stadiums, of managers, and even Presidents. Topps thought enough of Wood to add him to this set:
  
  

So of the 15 players included in this set, ten feature pictures of players that you will only find in the retail set.  I think the 2009 retail sets contained a lot of variations between the eponymous base and traded sets and the retail ones.  This set is a clear example of the reasons why I love collecting these team sets.  You have many players with different pictures exclusively found in the retail set.  You have players (like DeRosa) pictured on three different teams using the same Topps design.  Now you don't have to be an insane collector like me to get all 30 sets.  If you collect a specific team, just get your team's set and compare the cards.  You will like what you see.  Speaking of 2009...

Next week's featured set will be the 2009 Minnesota Twins.  Hope you'll be here when we compare the cards from the retail set to their counterparts found in Topps and Topps Update and Highlights.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama