1991 Classic Game

Now we get to the big release, Classic Game. This was the premier release for 1991 Classic. The Series sets were supposed to be add-ons for this set. You know, for those who actually played the game. I still have never found anyone who has done that.

The game release was beefed up to 200 cards. It was the same design as the Series sets, but the color was purple. I know, it gives my spine tingles too. I have no clue as to what was released first, but I would assume that the game was released first.

The White Sox had a grand total of 10 cards in the game release. Many of the same players here would season the series sets, but not all. When you put all the Classic releases together for a year, they represent variety and conformity. It's an odd combination, but it works for them.

• 51 - Carlton Fisk
• 52 - Robin Ventura
• 53 - Ozzie Guillen
• 60 - Sammy Sosa
• 140 - Bobby Thigpen
• 174 - Tim Raines
• 181 - Frank Thomas
• 184 - Alex Fernandez
• 186 - Bo Jackson
• 188 - Cory Snyder

Another solid release for Classic in 1991. Familiar, yet different. A good choice of player selection for the time of its release is the main reason this set flew off the shelves back then. The gimmick cards were always secondary.

1991 Classic Series Three: Green

Continuing on down the line for 191 Classic releases is Series 3. The exact same design as the first two releases. The only differences being the player selection and the color scheme. This choice of green is a bit underwhelming considering the pop of the blue and red from 1991.

All three series in 1991 had 100 cards each. I'll be honest with you, I never knew the third set existed until I started to track the information down. Any Classic release in 1991 never made it to a toy store near me, which is where they usually popped up.

The only cards I had really seen were from series two back then. By process of deduction, I assumed there must be a series one. Series three never made it onto my radar back then. But this was a time where the closest contact I had with a computer was the Apple II that I worked on in class, somewhere around 1987. There wasn't an Internet that I was aware of at that time. The computer was nothing more to me than an expensive typewriter, where it was easier to correct mistakes, and something that you could play Oregon Trail on.

Same type of photos, same varied player mix, same results as previous releases. Out of 100 cards, the White Sox had two cards in this set. The difference was that both players were skipped in the previous two series.

• 21 - Carlton Fisk
• 66 - Jack McDowell

Carlton look pissed off on this card. Could it be that he's not happy that only one of his teammates are with him in this set? Could be. At least the other card is of ace Jack McDowell. Jack's card shows him pitching. There's not much else you can really say about that. At least it's not an Upper Deck gimmick card showing Jack batting.

Overall, this is a nice set. It goes well with the other series. If you put the collection in an album, the transition from series to series would look nice. I'm a bit disappointed with the number of White Sox cards, but at least there are some. A few earlier Classic sets had no White Sox cards to speak of.

1991 Clasic Series Two: Red

I reviewed 1991 Series One a few posts ago. My stance still holds true. I like these cards. The set is pleasing to the eye. The color palette looks like raspberry sorbet. Like me, I'm sure the Prince song of a similar title just popped into your head. You're welcome.

Not much more can be said about these sets from Classic in 1991. They are the same basic design, just with different colors for each set. Simplicity works for me with these cards. There's not a lot of clutter around the cards. The player selection was probably the best out of any set that year.

Classic always had unique photos. You never saw something from the same play on another card. It always seemed fresh and exciting. I can't recall ever seeing Cory Snyder running in a White Sox uniform on a card, but here he is, a running fool. I know there are only so many ways you can shoot baseball and its players. When all you see of one player is either a close-up shot or a batting shot or a posed fielding shot, you appreciate a good action shot to break up the monotony.

There are four White Sox cards in this set.

• T7 - Alex Fernandez
• T8 - Cory Snyder
• T9 - Tim Raines
• T28 - Frank Thomas

Like I mentioned in an earlier post, Frank Thomas is a required component in almost every set of 1991. I'm sure if one of the companies would have thought of it, they would've invited Frank to a hockey game, gave him a jersey to wear and talked him into being photographed with Wayne Gretzky. He would've had a ten card subset in a hockey release.

Alex Fernandez was the young stud that everyone thought was going to be the next ace. He didn't disappoint for a few years, but never had that long successful career like experts were predicting when he was drafted. He was well above average for most of his career.

Tim Raines got lost in the wake of Strawberry signing with the Dodgers. It looks like Tim got the last laugh though. Tim is one of the top considerations for the upcoming Hall of Fame ballot and Darryl Strawberry is not. Tim Raines was a big catch for the White Sox that year. He was also a big reason why the Sox were in contention mostly during his tenure on the South Side.

What can I say about Cory Snyder that I haven't already said. Not much, but I've always liked Cory. I was really excited when I heard he was coming to the White Sox. I enjoyed watching him in Cleveland. It might have stemmed from his 1985 Topps Olympic card. I always liked that card for some reason.

All in all, this is a solid set. Especially for being a "ahem" trivia game card.

1991 Classic Series One: Blue

Writing about and reading about Classic cards so much in the past couple of weeks, made me try and fill in on what I'm missing. So, I scoured eBay and found a few sets from 1991. That year I wasn't able to find any sets for sale. All the hype surrounding the 1990 sets, made this set fly off the shelves.

The only cards I have of the 1991 sets would be from the second series. I know I had a Frank Thomas and I'm pretty sure I had a Sandy Alomar Jr. or two hanging around. I wasn't sick of these cards yet because I barely saw them. They seem almost new and exciting.

Sets like this are hit and miss for White Sox fans. Some sets don't have a single White Sox player in them. This set has three.

• T30 - Matt Stark
• T31 - Bobby Thigpen
• T32 - Frank Thomas

Every set from this time had to have Frank Thomas in it. I think it was written into his contract. That was good and bad news for me. Good because there would be more cards for me to collect. Bad because there would be more cards for me to collect. Card collecting is a double edged sword. If there aren't enough of whatever it is you collect, you feel gypped. If there's too many choices, you feel overwhelmed and disappointed. I fell somewhere in the middle most of the time, but I've always liked a challenge.

This set reminds me of the 1990 Classic cards, only better. Gone are the bold stock colors of primary blue, deep pink and tweety bird yellow. Gone are the annoying squiggles that ran across the card that were less artistic than the 1990 Donruss paint dribbles. Replacing that design was a few steps above pastel with a streaky, distressed look. Very much improved and much easier on the eyes!

Every 1991 set also had to have Bobby Thigpen in one of the releases. He did set a single season save record. Say that five times fast. Bobby had his year in card history and dropped off the collecting radar back from where he came. 1991 was Thigpen's year to bask in his success. How do I know? I had a Thigpen shirt with a caricature of him on it that said "Savemaster" or something like that.

Matt Stark is also included. If you have no idea who he is, then you are probably in the majority. I remember who he was. He was supposed to unseat Fisk if he got injured. Back then the Sox had a penchant for carrying a third catcher, just in case. It definitely was an insurance policy on Fisk because I can't see Karkovice needing a backup at that point. I think this was the last memorable set that Classic turned out that was just focused on major league baseball. 1992 was the last I really heard about Classic. I was a bit underwhelmed with that set, but that's for another review.

I think Classic hit the right notes with their 1991 releases. The were familiar enough to their most popular sets, but vastly improved the contents of the recycled design. Whoever was in their art department for this release was a genius. Seriously. It reminded collectors enough of the 1990 set, while still pulling off a feeling of being a completely different set. That's hard to do. Topps does that all the time with usually bad results. That's what makes this a good set.

1987 Classic

I remember there being such a huge buzz over this release when it came out. It looked nothing like Topps, Donruss, or Fleer. It had trivia questions on the back and there was a game you could play! I never knew anyone who physically played the game. They were too interested in the cards.

I had only heard rumors of this set when it first came out, but again, I was 10 when this was released. The first one I actually found was the 1990 blue set. If my local card shop ever had these sets, they sold out early in the morning on the first day. Any stray singles that found their way into the display case were quickly snapped up for premium prices.

I remember people going nuts over the Bo Jackson green card. A kid in a football uniform pretending to swing a baseball bat. That was unheard of at the time. Now you see things like that all over the hobby, but back in 1987, it was new and exciting. There seemed to always be a gimmick card. The yellow update set had the Niekro "Who Me?" card.

I've always held a special place for this release. It's, well, a classic. The borders are simple and tasteful. There was a large photo, before that was the norm. It was also a middle finger to the licensed cards. Classic marketed this as a game, so they could get around the licensing.

There were 100 cards in the green Game set and 50 cards in the yellow Update set. The disappointing part for me is that there are only two White Sox cards between the two sets. Both of the cards appear in the green set. There was no reason to get the yellow set for me, but I have more yellow singles than green in my non-White Sox collection, for some odd reason.

• 41 - Carlton Fisk
• 42 - Harold Baines

It helps ease the sting of only two White Sox cards when those two cards are of Fisk and Baines. Those were easily my two favorite star players from that period. At that point in my life, Fisk and Baines could do no wrong, and they never did, in my opinion.

1987 was also the year of my biggest White Sox related regret. The Sox had a policy for every Sunday home game, that kids could go meet their favorite players and get autographs and ask questions. I got into line to meet Harold Baines, but ultimately chickened out. That missed opportunity doesn't change my opinion of Harold or of this great set.