time for 206

12 years in the making, i have finally compiled my want list for the 2002 topps 206 set.  any help is greatly appreciated, and you will be rewarded.

following the release of the inaugural topps heritage set in 2001 (a set which i still am trying to complete - want list coming someday), i was intrigued by the idea of another retro set, and topps hit the right buttons with this one.  first, they made the base cards the standard card size, which i appreciated.  i don't think i would have been interested in an all-mini set.  next, they mixed in current players, prospects (a james loney card in 2002? nice!), first year players, retired stars, and 1909 t206 reprints all in for this next retro set.  finally, there were different variations of some of the cards which i thought was great.  i have since come around to being somewhat annoyed by variations, but in 2002 i was more than tolerant of them.

anyway, let's have a look at some of the cards from this set that i hope to complete, variations and all, someday.

here's gary sheffield

remember that pose

darren dreifort

shawn green

hideo nomo

now, here's sheffield again from one of the later series

painted sets make it easy to change teams.

here's a sheffield variation, too

the set was released in three series, with the third coming out in early 2003.

roberto alomar

something is off with his eyes.

moises alou

this is the 'a' version of alou's card.  there is a varation which shows him in the cubbie pinstripes, but it's not a short print.  not all variations were short prints back then which helped fuel my lack of frustration with them.  the set does have some short prints, however, but that was such a novelty back then that i didn't mind.

craig biggio

bob gibson

duke snider is in the set as one of the retired stars, but he is only featured as a dodger.  nolan ryan has cards of him as an angel and an astro, plus a variation of him as a ranger.  i'm glad duke doesn't have a card of him as a giant.

juan gonzalez

ken griffey jr

vladimir guerrero

that is card number 1 in the set

todd helton

todd hollandsworth

holly as a rockie, holding the bat as if he were right-handed

brian jordan

just like the sheffield card, there is a card of jordan in a later series that uses this same image, but with him in a dodger uniform.  then, there's a variation of that card, too.

mark mulder

chan ho park

eddie plank

here's one of the reprints of the original t206 cards.  not a true reprint like the dover reprints because the size is different, but you get the idea.

jimmy rollins

john smoltz

alfonso soriano

kerry wood

there were the minis, as i mentioned earlier, with different backs of course.  here's a honus wagner

the t206 wagner is reprinted in the set three times as well - each with a different colored background.

here's a larry walker mini

with the base card, too

those are both the purple jersey variation, by the way.

i'll finish up with ichiro.  a mini version

of a variant of this card

of which there is a third version as well.

what seemed fun 12 years ago has become a bit tedious, but i still plan to finish this set.  can you help a blogger out?