Friday Five: Favorite Delmon Young Cards

I have been writing about the Durham Bulls a lot this past week, so I figured I would break out some Delmon Young cards, scan them, and write them into a post. Delmon was a top 5 prospect for several years in the early 2000s and was the star of the Durham Bulls when I moved to North Carolina.  

His most famous moment as a top prospect for the Durham Bulls was launching his bat at an umpire after striking out in a game against Jon Lester......

Delmon would later go on to disappoint Rays and Twins fans, before developing a reputation as a clutch Postseason player for the Tigers and Orioles. He was out of MLB in his early thirties, but continued to play baseball overseas in the Australian League.  

Sorry, no Australian baseball cards in this post, but these are my Top 5 Delmon Young cards......

5. 2007 Topps 52 Chrome Delmon Young 

Yes, it's a reprint or rehashed design from 1952 Topps, but it's a really good looking card.  This is also when we started getting the "official" rookie cards. This is an official rookie card, unlike the other cards on this list, which are all unofficial.  

4. 2007 Topps Finest Autographs Delmon Young 

Baseball cards do not usually reference too much on-field drama, but here we are with Delmon's 2007 Finest autograph. Notice the "Revenge is Sweet" footnote at the bottom of the card. The back has a short write-up about the "revenge", but they go a little soft. So, here is the story this card is supposed to tell:

The Rays called up Delmon Young at the end of August 2006. His first game is against the White Sox in Chicago. Ozzie Guillen thinks Delmon is an ass and has Freddy Garcia drill him in the back on the first pitch in his first career at-bat. A few innings later, Delmon hit a home run off of Freddy Garcia.  

Here is a snippet of the box score:

Here is a white card with a silver sticker. I cannot roll my eyes hard enough.  

3. 2006 TIAA-CREF Durham Bulls Delmon Young 

Yes, I do work in education and would love to hear about your TIAA-CREF retirement plans, provided I get a baseball card for listening to your sales pitch.......

TIAA-CREF guy: "Save some money or you'll be on food stamps when you retire"  

I enjoyed the sales pitch, but after actually getting the Delmon Young card in my hands and hearing about my future on food stamps, I remembered that there is a financial advisor guy who stops by my school. I am going to teach for 30 years, get a full pension and benefits from the State of North Carolina, and now I also have a TIAA-CREF Delmon Young card. 

You do not see this card very often. 

2. 2004 Bowman Sterling Delmon Young Bat/Autograph 

Delmon could always hit.  

Delmon could never catch the ball.  

This card used to be worth a bazillion dollars and it shows Delmon likely playing a routine fly ball into a double or triple, depending on the speed of the batter. When people who are getting into prospecting ask my strategy as a Minor League for getting good cards of big prospects, I think of this card and tell them to wait a decade. I am certain this card had a three digit value when he was on the Bulls in 2005 and 2006, but it was $10 when I bought it.  

1. 2003 Bowman Chrome Delmon Young Autograph 

One of the great "what could have been" cards from the early 2000s. If only Delmon had stayed on the field a little longer and treated the regular season with the same urgency he treated the Postseason. Maybe not thrown a bat at an umpire, or yelled a bunch of antisemitic stuff at some guy in New York.  

Dysfunctional and Talented

I spent a little bit of time last month working on my collection of 2006 Durham Bulls baseball cards.  That was the first full year that I lived in North Carolina.  It was easily one of the most talented Bulls team that I have seen.  High draft picks, Top 100 prospects, future Major League All-Stars, a World Series MVP, and plenty of other solid Major League players. 

The team was also easily one of the worst Bulls teams that I watched in terms of on-field play and their finish in the standings.  In the 15 years, I have been watching the Durham Bulls, it's the only one to finish in the bottom 5 teams in the International League.  

In spite of their lack of wins, the 2006 Durham Bulls is still a fun group of players to collect.  

You've probably seen a few of these guys.  

First up is a pair of B.J. Upton autographs.  Nothing too hard to find, not sure why I am only getting around to these two at this point.  

Above is a 2003 Topps autograph out of the base set.  The card below is from the 2005 Upper Deck Origins set.  Both on-card signatures.  These would have been pretty pricy back in the day.  Both cost me less than $5 combined.  

Next up is long-time Major League pitcher Jason Hammel.  He was a member of the 2016 World Series Championship team for the Cubs.  Hammel never appeared in a playoff game that season, but did win 15 during the regular season.  The 2016 Cubs actually had 3 former Durham Bulls players; Hammel, Mike Montgomery, and Ben Zobrist.  

Love this autograph.  

Next up is a pair of autographs from James Shields.  

Never a huge fan of Shields during his playing career, but I have grown to appreciate his time in Durham a little more since he retired.  He was a good player in Durham, just never understood the hype around him in the Majors.  Shields has a career Postseason ERA of almost 5.50.  Why is he nicknamed "Big Game"? 

 

Back to his time in Durham. Shields pitched the first home opener I ever attended for the Bulls in 2006.  He pitched 6 innings and did not give up an earned run.  The Rochester Red Wings did manage to score 3 unearned runs against Shields.  Upton hit a walk-off grand slam to win the game in the bottom of the 9th.  

I did not have a single Shields autograph in the collection.  At some point I owned one, but it appears I traded/gave it away at some point.  

Next up, Delmon Young.  

Only non-autograph in the post.  I don't really dig relic cards, but I liked the picture on this Bowman with Delmon standing in Comerica Park.  He never turned into the franchise player many thought he would be, but he had some great moments in his career, especially the Postseason, with the Tigers.  

Those green Devil Rays hats were terrible.    

Last Delmon autograph is a Topps Finest card.  I think I avoided all of the silver sticker autographs that I could back in the day.  Delmon has a ton of sticker autographs, so I usually stuck with the Upper Deck cards since the stickers were clear.  These are dirt cheap now.  

Last card.  

The 2006 International League MVP.  

Kevin Witt was a good prospect for the Blue Jays in the late 1990s.  They released him at some point and he bounced around between several teams before making his way to the Bulls in 2006.  He ended up hitting 36 home runs and driving in 99 runs in just 128 games.  Pretty good player, even if did not even amount to much in the Majors.  

I have several Witt autographs, but I never got around to adding this card.  He's not someone with a great signature, but this one is really weak.  The card only cost me $2 after shipping.  Not sure I can really complain at that price. 

These Are All Devil Rays Cards, But....

I am still working on some Durham Bulls sets.  The last two weeks, I have been working on putting together a group of cards from the 1975 Topps Mini set featuring the players who appeared for the Durham Bulls.  I am going to walk and chew gum at the same time, and work a little bit on another group of Durham Bulls cards from a little bit newer set.  

All the cards in this post come from the 2006 Topps 52 set.  I know, Topps overuses old card designs, but this set has a good group of players from the 2006 Bulls team, which was the first one that I got to watch after moving to Durham.  All of the players in this post are pictured in a Devil Rays uniform, but all of them played the majority of the season with the Bulls.  

I think Delmon Young was in Durham the shortest time in 2006, but that was mainly because he was suspended for a huge chunk of the season.  

Since this is a modern set, there are some different challenges from the 1975 Topps Mini set.  The base cards are easy to find, but several of the cards have a red and black backs, along with one card that has an action shot variation.  Each card also has three Chrome parallels with one numbered to 1952, another numbered to 552, and the final numbered to 52.  

There is also an insert card of Elijah Dukes and Delmon Young, along with an autograph of pitcher Brian Stokes, so I am adding those to my checklist, which I broken into pieces throughout the post.  There are roughly 30 cards here, but I am treating the base cards and parallels like they are smaller sets.  I have not really touched the 2007 Topps 52 product, outside of a few Cardinals autographs, so I am starting from 0.  

Here is my first group of cards, starting with the base cards with red backs.  These are the most common cards in the set.  

There are seven total red backs, so this groups gets me about half way through this checklist. 

Base Set Cards - Red Card Backs

#53 - Shawn Riggans 

#65 - Elijah Dukes 

#70 - Delmon Young 

#80 - Andy Sonnanstine 

#81 - Brian Stokes 

#95 - Elijah Dukes 

#114 - Juan Salas 

The black backs are the most common parallel.  There are a bunch of these that are cheap on COMC, but I am a little reluctant to buy them at the moment.  I love cheap, but I have heard from several people that waiting times on COMC orders are currently several months.  

I will find them somewhere else.  In the meantime, I found Elijah Dukes.  

Only 5 cards in the black back parallels.  

Base Set Cards - Black Card Backs

#53 - Shawn Riggans 

#70 - Delmon Young 

#73 - Andy Sonnanstine 

#81 - Brian Stokes 

#95 - Elijah Dukes 

Last up are the Chrome parallels.  I feel like I actually got off to a good start with these. Of the 30 cards mentioned at the top of the post to finish all of the 2006 Durham Bulls players, half are Chrome parallels.  I picked up a pair of cards serial numbered to 1952 a pair to 552, and one card numbered to 52.  

The 1952 serial numbers first.  

The cards numbered to 552.  

Finally, one last card that is numbered to 52.  

These five cards get me roughly through one-third of the Chrome cards.  I was most worried about finding the Delmon Young serial numbered to 52, but that is one card that I have on the way.  He was high on the prospect list when this set was released, and I was worried they may all have disappeared into people's collections.  

Chrome Parallels 

#47 - Delmon Young - 1952

#47 - Delmon Young - 552 

#47 - Delmon Young - 52

#59 - Shawn Riggans - 1952

#59 - Shawn Riggans - 552 

#59 - Shawn Riggans - 52

#65 - Elijah Dukes - 1952

#65 - Elijah Dukes - 552 

#65 - Elijah Dukes - 52

#80 - Andy Sonnanstine - 1952

#80 - Andy Sonnanstine - 552 

#80 - Andy Sonnanstine - 52

#86 - Brian Stokes - 1952

#86 - Brian Stokes - 552 

#86 - Brian Stokes - 52

I also picked up one of the two insert cards from the set.   The other being an autograph, more on that in a minute.   

Dynamic Duos 

DD5 - Delmon Young/Elijah Dukes 

Base Set Cards - Action Variations

#70 - Delmon Young 

Topps 52 Signatures 

#BS - Brian Stokes 

After one post, I am at 10 out of 30 cards.  I do not think this is going to be very difficult to put together, but I am worried about whether the Brian Stokes autograph exists.  It's why I said there were roughly 30 cards in the set.  The Stokes was an exchange card, but it's not clear that he ever actually signed them.  I cannot find a single copy of the card anywhere on the internet.  However, Stokes was generally a really good signer during the mid 2000s.  He appeared in tons of different baseball card sets.  It's also hard for me to imagine he didn't sign them, since he autographed everything else around this time.  

Cards I Love Part 12 - 2003 Bowman Chrome Delmon Young

Thanksgiving weekend of 2005, I packed up my Toyota Camry, and moved myself to Durham, North Carolina.  I was in my late 20s, was in need of a change of scenery, and had a chance to take on a new teaching job in a new place.  The move also gave me a new baseball team to watch.

The first few months living in North Carolina were filled with basketball season, which is serious business in these parts.  It was rather eventful too, but luckily I was just a neutral observer at this point. 

Baseball season started in April, and my first Durham Bulls game ended in a walk-off grand slam by shortstop prospect B.J. Upton.  It was an incredible game, and I was immediately a fan of the Rays Triple A team. 

The Bulls were loaded with talent, and the games were fun to watch. B.J. Upton, Delmon Young, Elijah Dukes, Darnell McDonald, Sean Burroughs, Ben Zobrist, Jason Hammel, Edwin Jackson, J.P. Howell, and James Shields all played for the Bulls the first year I followed the team.  There were at least another dozen players who appeared in the Majors beyond my list of names above.  Kevin Witt, the team's first baseman, added to the season by winning the International League MVP with 36 home runs and 99 RBIs in just 128 games. 

Somehow that much talent ended the season 14 games under .500.  The Bulls were one of the worst teams in the league.  Beyond all the talent, the Bulls were filled with all sorts of characters and disfunction.  B.J. Upton got a DUI hanging out in Chapel Hill, Elijah Dukes was Elijah Dukes, and Delmon Young threw a bat at an umpire after striking out and arguing the call. 

'

As a baseball card collector, I was determined to collect a few of these players.  They were not really that bad, right?  Surely, they would figure it out at some point.  I decided that I was going to collect Delmon Young cards.  He was the top rated prospect in all of baseball, and he looked the part while watching him.  Delmon was not going to let me down, so I picked up a copy of his 2003 Bowman Chrome autograph.  

It was my first great Durham Bulls card in my collection.  I loved this card, and was determined to make it work out.  Delmon Young was going to be a great player.  He was called up to the Majors at the end of the 2006 season, and made his Major League debut against the White Sox.  

Freddy Garcia promptly drilled him in the ribs during his first at-bat, but that was fine since Delmon took him yard later in the game.  Delmon Young was going to be a great player, it was going to work out.  

Delmon spent a decade in the Majors shuffling from team to team.  He said a lot of stupid stuff, burned a lot of bridges, and he hit like he was a Hall of Famer during the playoffs.  Delmon won the 2012 ALCS MVP Award, and had several other playoffs series with video game like numbers.  He was clutch.  

That was Delmon's career.  Every October he hit, but between April and September a lot of other stuff happened that was cringe worthy.  

I do love my 2003 Bowman Chrome Delmon Young autograph, but I think of the card as the beginning of my Durham Bulls card collection, rather than a card I own because of the player pictured on the front.  After all, even after he retired Delmon is still doing a lot of interesting stuff.

I should also point out that while the Bulls teams I have watched since the first year have not always had the same caliber, nor quantity of talent as that first team I watched, the nine division titles, four International League titles, and two Triple A Championships have more than made up for the disfunction.  Good thing I got this Delmon Young card, and started my Bulls collection.  

Infamous With The Leather

When I first moved to central North Carolina more than ten years ago, the baseball star of the moment in these parts was Delmon Young.  He had been the first overall pick in the 2003 draft and had made his way all to the Triple A Durham Bulls by the time he was a 19 year old.  He hit .322 in A Ball, .336 in Double A, and .285 in his first stint in Triple A.  Sure, the Triple A numbers were a bit of a step back, but he was 19.

His star faded a bit.....

but eventually he made it to the Majors and played ten years for the Rays, Twins, Tigers, Phillies, and Orioles.  Delmon was probably best known was his clutch hitting in the Postseason.  He played in playoff games in all his Major League stops minus the Phillies, still appeared in the Postseason that season though.  

Delmon won an American League Championship Series MVP and had several other October performances that were spectacular.  

It's a loaded statement. I know there are a lot of people who do not really like Delmon.  Ready for it...

There were many things that Delmon Young did not do well.  

The most notable was his inability to field.  I said most notable.  

I would like to share some of the results from a Google search of the words "Delmon Young fielding"    

There is video of this too.  I like this still shot, but the play is as bad as you can imagine.  

Didn't catch it.  

Still hurts my brain to think that Delmon was ever on a National League team.  He led all Phillies outfielders in errors, and was in the top five regular players in that stat the year he played there.  Delmon played 64 games as a Phillie.  

The ball is not even in the picture here, but Delmon clearly was hoping the ball would be hit elsewhere.  

Which brings me to my latest Delmon Young card.  I found one of those cards that would have been a small fortune back at the height of his uber prospect status.  Since Delmon is not even playing at the moment, he's still just 34, this card was considerably less expensive.  

From the later years of the Upper Deck Sweet Spot sets when they used materials other than baseballs for their signing surface.  The 2007 set used the traditional ball cards, which faded terribly, these leather cards, and a lumber/bat card.  I cannot remember if the signers had cards made out of all three materials, or if it was just selected materials.  I kind of lean towards players only appearing in parts of the autograph sets.  

Making a card with any sort of illusion that Delmon did anything with a glove during his career is probably a bit far for some of us who took the time to watch him play a few games.  Perhaps the background material on his autographed cards for Sweet Spot could have been a little bit better.  

The main attraction to this card is the fact that is serial numbered to just 10 cards.  I am not sure how much this might have cost back in 2007, but I probably would have just shrugged and moved on with my day if I had seen this on EBay.  As someone who just dabbles in collecting Delmon Young cards, mainly because he was a really good Durham Bulls prospect, this feels like an exceptional find.  

Back of the card....

is the usual standard Upper Deck back.  I like the Devil Rays markings on the cards.  Both here on the back and the front with Delmon's hat and jersey.  Overall, a really hard card to find at a great price of one of the more hyped players I have ever seen roll through Durham,  Even if they do not "make it", they are still fun to collect. 

Hello Old Friend

I have almost lived in the Raleigh-Durham area for ten years.  Just a little short.  I have had the chance to see some really good baseball talent pass through the area during that time, but one of the real standouts was Rays outfield prospect Delmon Young.  You heard me right, Delmon Young.  

Most collectors and baseball fans do not associate Delmon with being quality, but he was the number one overall pick in the 2003 amateur draft and was consistently at or near the top of the Baseball America rankings for much of his minor league career which concluded in Durham with the Bulls.  Delmon played two half seasons in Durham and showed good pop with the bat, but he had some trouble taking pitches.  There was also this episode......

Delmon made it to the Bigs and spent time with the Rays, Twins, Tigers, Phillies, and returned to the Rays last year.  He asked to skip a minor league stop in Durham.  Hmmm.  Despite all that has happened to Delmon over the years I still kind of pull for him.  It's hard to be a really high draft pick and then turn out to be just a serviceable Major League player.  What would have been a good performance out of Delmon?  I am not sure, but sadly I see the same thing happening to Tim Beckham. 

Delmon did make it back to Tampa last summer and still had a few good swings in his bat. 

This spring Delmon is auditioning with the Orioles, but still shows signs of being the same old Delmon.  So far in 42 at-bats Delmon has 0 walks and 10 strikeouts.  Classic Delmon.  I would really love to see Delmon continue his baseball career, but have a feeling we are nearing the end.  Seriously, I am not sure how he can make the team.  

One of the positives that can result from a player not living up to their potential is the inevitable fall in the price of their baseball cards.  Delmon was a high dollar player/prospect from the time he was drafted until 2007ish.  Rookie autographs were often north of $100 and were highly desired and popular.  I did not buy any because it's a $100 card of Delmon Young.  If I had an extra $100 back then perhaps I would have taken the plunge, but I am glad I did not.  

Now, it's fun to sit back some days and pick up Delmon cards from his high end era for a fraction of their value at their peak.  I actually managed to pick up two cheap Delmon cards this months.  One of the cards was purchased for less than $10 and the other was a throw-in to finish a trade.  Ten years ago this would have been $200 most likely.  

I especially like the bottom Bowman Xfractor which is numbered out of just 250.  Really cool card back in the day and I would like to think it's still a pretty cool card.  With the way the hobby works there are plenty of other players whose cards are in the same boat as Delmon.  Brien Taylor and Mark Prior are two names that pop up quickly in my mind, but I am sure every card collector could name a few.  Anybody remember the Joe McEwing craze in 1999?