45 New Cards

Today's trade from TCDB contained 45 new Red Sox cards, and a lot of thoughts. 

1.  Roman Anthony.  Anthony finally made his return to the Red Sox lineup on Sunday and has returned to the form that he showed last season, rather than the slow start he was going through at the beginning of this season.  It will be massively helpful to have his bat back in the lineup, particularly if he is going to produce the way he has.

2.  Franklin Arias.  That didn't take long to add a relic of Arias.  It's not often I get a relic of a player before they even play in the Majors.

3.  Mickey Hall.  Hall was the Red Sox second round pick in the 2003 draft out of high school.  Unfortunately, he never made it to the Majors.

4.  Johnny Damon.  I was looking at 20/20 players recently.  Damon did it as a member of the Yankees, but not with the Red Sox.  The closest he came was in 2004 when he hit 20 home runs, but stole 19 bases.  

5.  Shea Hillenbrand.  Hillenbrand is one of the more random players to be an All Star twice.  He was an All Star with the Red Sox in 2002 when he hit .293/.330/.459 with 18 homers and 83 RBIs and then in 2005 with the Blue Jays.

6.  Keith Foulke.  Foulke had an argument to be the World Series MVP in 2004 when he appeared in all four games, saving one and winning one while striking out eight batters in five innings.  He had a 1.80 ERA.

7.  Roger Clemens.  Clemens was the second of five Red Sox to win the All Star Game MVP in 1986.  That game, he started and pitched three perfect innings, striking out two and getting the win.  There must have been different rules for determining the winning pitcher.

8.  Xander Bogaerts.  The closest Bogaerts came to MVP was fifth in voting in 2019.  That year, he hit .309/.384/.555 with 190 hits, 52 doubles, 33 home runs and 117 RBIs.  It was by far his greatest offensive season.  He won the Silver Slugger and was an All Star.  

9.  Roger Clemens.

10.  Jim Rice.  Rice was probably the first player I remember arguing passionately about for the Hall of Fame.  He took until his 15th year on the ballot to get elected.  He was the third player to wear a Red Sox cap on his plaque since I started watching baseball.  I just missed Carl Yazstrzemski, so the first one was Carlton Fisk in 2000 and then Wade Boggs in 2005.  

11.  Tony Perez.  Perez was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2000, the same year as Carlton Fisk, meaning we had a player from each side of the legendary 1975 World Series elected at the same time.  Which is really cool, but also not the first time that that specific thing happened.  In 1989, both Carl Yastrzemski and Johnny Bench were elected at the same time.

12.  Terry Francona.  One of these years Francona will get elected to the Hall of Fame.  But he has to retire first.  Since he's currently managing the Reds, it won't be real soon.

13.  Jim Rice.

14.  Franklin Arias.

15.  Terry Francona.

16.  Juan Valera.  With the trade of Anthony Eyanson and Kyson Witherspoon, Valera has become Boston's top pitching prospect.  He is still in A-ball though, so he is a ways away.

17.  Yordanny Monegro.  Monegro has had difficulty staying on the field.  He has been a top prospect in the past, but his stock has fallen greatly due to injuries.  Hopefully he can repair his position.

18.  Jedixson Paez.  Paez was taken by the White Sox in the Rule V Draft coming into this season.  I remember a White Sox fan getting pissed at me for speculating that it was likely he would be returned to Boston.  I was right as Paez was not close to ready for the Majors after appearing in three disastrous games.  Tonight, he made his debut in Boston, and showed he is still not close to ready.

19.  Lucas Giolito.  Giolito had a nice season for the Red Sox in 2025 after missing the entire 2024 season due to injury.  I thought he should have been given a chance to come back, but Boston went with Sonny Gray and Ranger Suarez instead, which has worked out fine.  Giolito has struggled this season.

20.  Roman Anthony.

21.  Roman Anthony.

22.  Kristian Campbell/Marcelo Mayer.  Here we have two players who were expected to be a big part of the next core for the Red Sox.  A lot has changed.  Campbell seems stuck in the minors, though he has been playing much better lately, and Mayer was traded away.  

23.  Aneudis Mateo.  I remember getting a bunch of cards of Mateo in 2003.  He never made the Majors.  I think he was one of the players who turned out to be older than he claimed at some point.  

24.  Richard Fitts.  Fitts was acquired in the trade with the Yankees that sent Alex Verdugo to New York.  He was then traded away in the deal that brought Sonny Gray to Boston.  In the middle, he had some decent performances, going 2-5 with a 3.97 ERA in 15 games.  He has yet to appear with the Cardinals.

25.  Zach Penrod.  Penrod pitched in just seven games with the Red Sox in 2024, but had a 2.25 ERA.  I am not really sure why he never made it back to the Majors.

26.  Alex Bregman.  I promise I still have a One-Year Wonder post coming for Bregman.  He is one of the better ones, but it won't be enough to unseat Adrian Beltre.

27.  David Hamilton.  Hamilton started the year off hot for the Brewers after being involved in the deal that brought Caleb Durbin to Boston.  He has cooled off, but is still a valuable bench player, especially with his speed.  He stole 34 bases for the Red Sox in 2024.

28.  Cy Young.  The namesake of the pitching award, Young pitched the first no-hitter in Red Sox history, and still the only perfect game in Red Sox history.  

29.  David Ortiz.  This card actually celebrates the 2004 ALCS.  I thought this set was just for World Series victories, so I was a little surprised by this.  

30.  Alex Bregman.

31.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  It's always fun when a Rafaela card sneaks into a big trade package.

32.  Walker Buehler.  I really had high hopes for Buehler when he came to Boston.  After his 2024 World Series performance, I thought he would be a good mid-rotation starter.  He was terrible in Boston though.

33.  Jarren Duran.  Duran could become a 20/20 man this season.  He is currently one home run and two stolen bases away.  The stolen bases SHOULD be easy to get.

34.  Romy Gonzalez.  After his great season in 2025, Gonzalez has been slowed by injuries all season.  He came back briefly, but struggled and is in the minors currently.  Hopefully he rebounds next season.

35.  Payton Tolle.  Tolle has pitched really well this year.  I don't know why he is getting no hype as a potential Rookie of the Year candidate.  I don't think he should win, but he should be mentioned more.

36.  Roger Clemens.

37.  Payton Tolle.

38.  Franklin Arias.

39.  Andruw Monasterio.  This is my first Monasterio card.  He was acquired in the deal with the Brewers along with Caleb Durbin and Anthony Seigler that sent Kyle Harrison, David Hamilton and Shane Drohan to Milwaukee.  Monasterio has had some big clutch hits this season.  He has been much better offensively than I thought he would, though he is prone to errors in the field, particularly at shortstop.

40.  Ranger Suarez.  This is my first Suarez card.  Suarez has struggled lately, but he was an All Star this season after signing a big free agent contract.  Injuries have taken a toll.  Hopefully he can right the ship soon.

41.  Garrett Crochet.  Crochet has missed a huge chunk of the season due to injury after finishing second in the Cy Young vote last year.  

42.  Jhostynxon Garcia.  Garcia was a big prospect, but with a crowded outfield, he was sent to Pittsburgh before the season for Johan Oviedo and Tyler Samaniego.

43.  Aroldis Chapman.  Chapman could be a Hall of Famer when all is said and done.  I think he will wear a Reds cap on his plaque, but if he pitches a couple more years in Boston and keeps up the way he has been pitching, it could make things interesting.

44.  Antonio Anderson.  Anderson was a third-round pick in the 2023 draft and was paid overslot.  He is 21 and in High-A, but he has been playing reasonably well.  Tough to say where he may go at this point.  I don't think it is likely he will make the Majors, but things could change.

45.  Justin Riemer.  Riemer was a fourth-round pick in the 2023 draft and was traded in December for Ryan Watson.

I Got a New Scanner

Now, my pictures of cards will be much clearer.  I don't have to take pics on my phone anymore.  I had an Office Space moment with my previous printer/fax/scanner.  Those that know what I am talking about, know.  It kept jamming.  Much like the printer in Office Space.  It had it coming. 

Is Ceddanne Rafaela the team MVP this year?  I think there is a very good argument that he is.  He leads the team in WAR, though it's been a lot closer lately with Wilyer Abreu.  He leads the league in doubles, and is among the top ten in average and hits.  He is playing his typical elite defense.  If he finishes strong, there is no doubt he is right up there.  I have not been getting as many of his cards lately (though this post would seem to argue otherwise) just because his stuff is in higher demand.

1.  Kevin Youkilis.  I love it when Panini thinks outside the box a little bit for player selection.  Youkilis was a very good player for several years, but he's pretty far removed from Hall of Fame-worthy.  It's a lot of fun to see him make it into a recent set though.  He was certainly a fan favorite.  He won a Gold Glove and was an All Star a few times, and he was in the top ten in MVP voting twice.

2.  Franklin Arias.  It's safe to say Arias is going to be getting a lot of cards soon.  Boston's top prospect hasn't made his Major League debut yet, but if his minor league play translates in the Majors, he is going to be exciting. 

And here are a bunch more Ceddanne Rafaela cards to round out the post.  

A Bunch of Trades

Just putting a few trades together in one post here. 

1.  Eduardo Rodriguez.  E-Rod is having a great year this year.  Unfortunately, it's for Arizona.  He was always one of my favorites.  I thought after his 19-win, 200+ strikeout season in 2019, he was finally going to break out, but he missed the 2020 COVID season and was good but not great in 2021 and 2022 before leaving as a free agent.

2.  Jeter Downs.  Downs was a casualty of the lost 2020 season.  Losing an entire year of development was brutal for him.  He was supposed to be the top prospect in the Mookie Betts trade.

3.  Masataka Yoshida.  Yoshida is quietly having a nice season.  He has one more year on his contract, which has largely been a miss.

4.  Garrett Crochet.  Crochet has been injured most of the season, but the team has survived with the emergence of Payton Tolle in particular, as well as great seasons from Sonny Gray and Ranger Suarez.

5.  Nomar Garciaparra.  I am very curious to see how Nomar does on an Eras Committee.  I think he is close to being eligible.  Maybe by the time the next Today's Game Era Committee meets again.  

1.  Triston Casas.  Casas hasn't played since early in 2025 and hasn't played a whole season since his rookie year in 2023.  It's a shame.  His power could really come in handy on this team.

2.  Pedro Martinez.  It's always fun to add another Martinez card.

3.  Cy Young.  I like it when card companies dip back into the turn of the 20th century for players.  I would love to see a company release a set with throwback designs and cover all players from this era.  Let's see Bill Dinneen, Buck Freeman, Chick Stahl, Jimmy Collins and other great Boston players from that era.

4.  Chris Sale.  I think it is safe to say that Sale is back on track for the Hall of Fame.  The question is which hat will he wear on his plaque?  He seems like a good one to have a blank cap because he has been great for three teams.  This card celebrates his strikeout of Manny Machado to win the 2018 World Series.

5.  Manny Ramirez.  Ramirez was the 2004 World Series MVP, the first Red Sox player to win the award.

6.  Kristian Campbell.  Campbell has been showing up a lot in my posts lately.

1.  John Valentin.  Valentin remains one of the most underrated players in Red Sox history.  He was never an All Star, though he did win a Silver Slugger.  He probably should have won a Gold Glove.  For Boston, he hit .281/.361/.460 with 121 home runs as an infielder.

2.  John Valentin.  Yep, two Valentin cards in one trade.

3.  Brian Rose.  Another reason to be skeptical of prospects.  There was a time when Brian Rose was Boston's top prospect.  He had a 5.86 ERA in his Major League career.

1.  Tanner Houck.  Houck is another player whose Major League career has been on hold for over a year.  He had Tommy John surgery last year.  He might be getting close to a return.  He was an All Star in 2024.

2.  Joe Wood.  Smoky Joe Wood has one of the greatest pitching seasons in Red Sox history in 1912 when he was 34-5 with a 1.91 ERA and 258 strikeouts in 344 innings pitched.  Unfortunately, arm injuries (most likely stemming from overuse) derailed his career.

3.  Josh Taylor.  Taylor was a great southpaw in the Red Sox bullpen in 2019 and 2021.  He was traded to the Royals for Adalberto Mondesi (Raul Mondesi's son), but the trade was a bust for both teams.  Taylor was terrible in Kansas City and Mondesi never played for the Red Sox due to injuries.

4.  Wade Boggs.  Boggs is obviously a first-ballot Hall of Famer, but he was actually kind of underrated.  Modern analytics would have identified him as one of the best players in the game, but because he played in the 1980's, his lack of power kept him out of that conversation.  He had an OPS of .890 during his time in Boston.

5.  David Ortiz.  An All Star card of Ortiz.  He was an All Star ten times.  All with the Red Sox.

6.  Payton Tolle.  I think I am going to be getting a lot of Tolle cards from now on.  I just really like him.  I'm definitely glad Boston kept him.  He has a lower floor, but a higher ceiling than Connelly Early.

7.  Jarren Duran.  I want Duran to succeed, but I do think it would be better for all parties if he is traded this offseason.  Boston could use the roster spot and Duran could use a fresh start.

Closing things out with a Ceddy mini.  

More Ceddannes and a Relic Trade

Time for another Ceddanne Rafaela update post. 

I grabbed these two off of Ebay.  I don't focus quite as much on Rafaela cards anymore, but every once in awhile, I will grab a bunch of lower-priced cards I need, just to pad the numbers.  I did seek out the team border parallel though after failing to land it in a trade.

Brayan Bello.  Here is a relic card I picked up in a trade.  It is my first relic of Brayan Bello.  Bello has had a strange year.  He has been horrible in the first inning in most of his starts.  So, Boston has been using him as a bulk reliever, and he has been terrific in that role.  It makes no sense, but here we are.

Topps put Rafaela in an insert set focused on great defensive players.  Rafaela of course won his first Gold Glove in 2025.  He looks to be well on his way to a second one this year.  

First New Cards of a Couple Major New Red Sox (and a Bunch of Rafaelas)

I procrastinated too long on the Road to Opening Day sets.  Usually I figure they are going to be available right up until Opening Day.  That was not the case with the Red Sox set this year which sold out by the time I was going to buy it.  Presumably people were wanting to get the Roman Anthony cards which could be valuable cards if he lives up to his potential.  Unfortunately, that meant I had to try to find the singles on my own, and come to grips with the likelihood that I would not get the Anthony card.  I grabbed three of the singles from separate sellers.  All three will be in this post.

Willson Contreras.  Going into the offseason last year, it was clear Boston needed a big bat in their lineup.  I was hoping for Pete Alonso and was disappointed when Boston didn't really seem to engage with him.  I firmly believe he could have hit 50 home runs in Boston.  Instead, Boston acquired former catcher Contreras from the Cardinals in exchange for Yankee killer Hunter Dobbins and pitching prospects Yhoiker Fajardo and Blake Aita.  Contreras has actually been even better than Alonso this year.  He's had a few on-field issues, but has a 161 OPS+ and 23 home runs to date.  He is the thumper the team needed.

Here's a couple new Ceddanne Rafaela cards, including a relic card.  I don't get as many relics as I used to, but I still grab them depending on the player.  And Rafaela is a player I definitely go out and get.

Sonny Gray.  Another need for the team going into the offseason was some starting pitching depth and the team made another trade with the Cardinals for Gray, who has been a valuable starter for years with the A's, Reds, Yankees, Twins and Cardinals.  Gray cost Richard Fitts and Brandon Clarke.  He has also been terrific, leading the team in wins and ERA and being dependable every time out.

Here are several more Rafaela cards, including in the middle of the scan, the third Road to Opening Day card I grabbed.  Obviously I had to grab the Rafaela card.

More Random Thoughts

A lot of the following cards are relevant to some things going on with the team.  So, I have some random thoughts.

Franklin Arias.  Boston traded several prospects for Adley Rutschmann, as well as trading Marcelo Mayer.  Some time last year, Arias became Boston's top prospect.  He is still that and looks like a potential star.  Unfortunately, Boston has had some difficulty with players taking the next step in the Majors lately.  I expect Arias will be given the opportunity to win the starting shortstop job next Spring Training, or possibly a bit later in the year.  Mayer is gone, but Trevor Story is still around.

1.  Hunter Dobbins.  Boston has traded a LOT of pitching away lately.  Dobbins was sent to the Cardinals in the Willson Contreras deal, but they also traded Richard Fitts, Brandon Clarke, Blake Aita, Yhoiker Fajardo, Kyle Harrison, Kyson Witherspoon and Anthony Eyanson.  They have been quite good at developing pitchers lately, but trading them all away is not the best way to handle those resources.  Their top prospect list is becoming a lot more hitter-heavy than it has been the last couple years.

2.  Marcelo Mayer.  I have already talked about him a great deal.  I don't have much to add right now.

1.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  He has been a lot of fun to watch lately.  He crushed the Dodgers almost single-handedly last weekend during the three-game sweep, including crushing two homers (and nearly a third) off the great Yoshinobu Yamamoto.

2.  Kristian Campbell.  Campbell remains in the minors, but has improved a lot in the last month.  He still has a chance to make it back to the Majors.  I hope he does.  Especially now.  

3.  Franklin Arias.  Yep, two Arias cards in this post.

4.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Yep, two Rafaela cards too.  That is significantly less surprising.

TCDB Mailday

I am still working my way through the backlog of cards to show off.  Today's post is a TCDB trade without any real common theme.  Just a bunch of random stuff, though the last two subjects of player collections are here. 

1.  Zach Penrod.  This is my first card of Penrod.  It took quite awhile to grab one of these even though he was in Topps Series 2 in 2025.  Penrod appeared in seven games for the Red Sox in 2024 and had 2.25 ERA.  And that has been the sum total of his Major League experience to date.  The fact he got a card is pretty surprising.

2.  Wilyer Abreu.  Abreu is rising in my collection finally.  He has become one of the more noteworthy hitters on the team.  

3.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  What a season he is having.  Rafaela has emerged as the best player on the team this year.  He could receive MVP consideration.  

4.  Connor Wong.  Wong has settled into a pretty stable role as he has bounced back in a big way from the rough season he had in 2025.  His role is a little more questionable after a major deadline trade that I will discuss in much greater detail soon.

5.  David Ortiz.  Probably the biggest player in this package.  I added three Big Papi cards in this trade.

6.  Joe Cronin.  Cronin is an interesting story because he went from player to manager to general manager to president of the American League.  Not many players can say that.

7.  David Ortiz.

8.  Carlton Fisk.  I swear I had this card before, but I can't find it.  I must not have had it after all.

9.  David Ortiz.

10.  Wade Boggs.  I'm sure I have mentioned that Boggs was my first favorite player.

11.  Koji Uehara.  Surprisingly this individual had a bunch of these Sega Card Gen cards from Japan, so I was able to add a few, including the great Koji Uehara who had one of the most dominant seasons I have ever seen from a reliever in 2013.

12.  Junichi Tazawa.  Tazawa had an underrated career as a very capable reliever.  He was one of my favorite under-the-radar players.

13.  Jarrod Saltalamacchia.  The first (and thus far only) Red Sox catcher to have 40 doubles in a season, Saltalamacchia also led the team in home runs in 2012 with 25.  Had he been a better defensive backstop, he might have had a lengthier career.

14.  Mike Aviles.  Aviles was traded to the Blue Jays in a deal made primarily for Boston to hire manager John Farrell away from Toronto.  

15.  Ryan Kalish.  I had big hopes for Kalish to be a prominent outfielder for the Red Sox.  He had a nice 2010 season, but injuries derailed his career.

16.  Victor Martinez.  I thought a lot about V-Mart yesterday as the Red Sox made that one big trade of the deadline.  He was acquired under similar circumstances back in 2009 and immediately brought a lethal bat to Boston.  We will see if the new guy does the same.

17.  John Lackey.  Lackey looked like a horrible free agent signing after he had a terrible 2010 and 2011 season, then missed the entirety of 2012 with Tommy John surgery, but he bounced back in a big way in 2013 and was a bulldog in the postseason.  He won the clinching World Series game in 2013 and is now a Red Sox legend.  That's what winning does.

18.  Roger Clemens.  I still want to see The Rocket in the Hall of Fame.  His career was worthy well before the steroid allegations.  He and Bonds should both be in with Manny Ramirez coming later.

19.  Wade Boggs.  And closing things out with the Chicken Man.

Maildays with a Bunch of Rafaelas

A lot of the following scans are trades from TCDB, along with some Ebay buys.  These all came in around the same period of time, and most of them include cards of Ceddanne Rafaela.  I am not sure of the status of my focus on him.  He is becoming one of the bigger stars on the team, and his stuff is becoming more expensive.  I will keep going for now, but we will see what happens.

Up first is a trade: 

1.  Bronson Arroyo.  It is so cool when companies include cards of retired players like this.  Arroyo was not a big star and he is certainly not as well-known for his time with the Red Sox.  He was pretty good for the Red Sox in 2004 and 2005.  He was then traded to the Reds for Wily Mo Pena, which is a trade that worked out much better for Cincinnati than Boston.

2.  Wilyer Abreu.  Abreu is finally starting to do a bit better in my collection lately.  He is still somewhat underrepresented for as big of a player as he is for this team.

3.  Aroldis Chapman.  I didn't love it when Boston signed Chapman, but he has won me over with his great performance since joining the Red Sox.

4.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Rafaela has been breaking out this season, making the All Star team for the first time and carrying a batting average around .280 and an OPS over .750.  He is also playing his usual great defense, hitting for some pop and stealing bases.  

5.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card number two.

6.  Corey Kluber.  The Klubot was a disaster in Boston.  The two-time Cy Young winner started on Opening Day in 2023, but had a 7.04 ERA in 15 games with the Red Sox.  About the best thing that could be said about his stint in Boston was that he notched the first (and only) save of his career.

Here is card number three of Rafaela in this post.  Several more to come.

The next two scans are from the same trade:

1.  Hanley Ramirez.  Ramirez was the first real player I followed from his time as a minor leaguer.  I grabbed a bunch of his cards during his rise through the minor leagues.  Then he made it to the Major Leagues in 2005, playing in just two games, then he was traded to the Marlins in the deal for Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell.  And that's why I don't invest heavily in prospects anymore.  He did come back to Boston and had a bad year in 2015, a great year in 2016, an okay year in 2017 and was released partway through 2018.  There's some concerning rumors about what happened that led to that.

2.  J.D. Martinez.  I still get offered a ton of Martinez cards all the time in trades on TCDB.

3.  Connor Seabold.  He looks like a right-handed, slightly more svelte Payton Tolle here.  Seabold seemed like the big get when Boston traded Brandon Workman and Heath Hembree to the Phillies in 2020, but it ended up being Nick Pivetta.  Seabold was not good in Boston.

4.  J.D. Martinez.  See?

5.  Masataka Yoshida.  Yoshida has played well limited opportunities with the Red Sox this season.  I don't know how much longer he will be in Boston though.  

6.  David Hamilton.  I liked Hamilton, particularly in 2024 when he stole 33 bases.  He was part of the package sent to the Brewers along with Kyle Harrison for Caleb Durbin, Andruw Monasterio and Anthony Seigler, each of whom has been producing for Boston lately.

7.  Rafael Devers.  I expect that he will be offered a lot in upcoming TCDB trades.  I remember turning one down that featured 15 Devers cards.  I don't mind getting more cards of him, but that one seemed excessive.

8.  Garrett Crochet.  The amazing thing about the Red Sox recent success is that they are doing it without Crochet.  He has been on the shelf since May.  

9.  Garrett Crochet.  

10.  Dustin May.  The acquisition of May was not a good trade by the Red Sox.  Most of their trades since have been fairly decent, but this one was bad.

11.  Marcelo Mayer.  Mayer has not played well in his opportunities at the big league level.  That being said, he was the fourth overall pick in the 2021 draft and he is still just 23.  I think he deserves more time before deciding he is a bust.  I also do not want to see him get traded yet.

12.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card number four.

1.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card number five.

2.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card number six.

1.  Justin Slaten.  Slaten has been another remarkable discovery through the Rule 5 Draft.  He was drafted by the Mets in the 2023 Rule 5 Draft, but immediately traded to the Red Sox and has been very impressive, becoming a weapon at the back end of the bullpen.

2.  Dick Gernert.  Unfortunately vintage cards are hard to come by in TCDB trades.  Gernert was a good-hitting first-baseman for the Red Sox in the 1950's.  He hit 101 home runs with the Red Sox and had a .788 OPS.

3.  Ryan Weber.  Weber was a journeyman pitcher who played with the Braves, Mariners, Rays, Brewers and Yankees, but who had his most success with the Red Sox, though that's not really saying a lot.

Card number seven.

1.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card number eight.

2.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card number nine.

3.  Wilyer Abreu.  My second Abreu in this post.

4.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card number ten.

5.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card number eleven.  Yes, this counts as a Rafaela card.  That's him coming to the plate after a walkoff.

6.  Aroldis Chapman.  My second card of him in this post.  This is naming him as the reliever on the All Topps Team.

1.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card number 12.  This card was supposed to part of the trade made up by the below two cards, but the wrong one was sent and I bought this one.

2.  Carl Yastrzemski.  I like this card a lot, plus it has Yaz in the mid- to late-70's uniforms with the red hats.

3.  Jhostynxon Garcia.  I was disappointed when Garcia was traded, but understood why it happened.  The outfield was full.  Unfortunately, the Major League pitchers acquired in the deal have been injured for most of the season.  Tyler Samaniego has been very good while Johan Oviedo has struggled.

And closing things off with a very garish-looking card number 13.

Two More TCDB Trades

A lot of the cards to come are going to be through TCDB trades.  I will try to catch up as soon as I can, but it will take awhile.

The first one is a bunch of blue parallels from this year's Heritage set.

1.  Carlos Narvaez.  Narvaez had a great season in 2025 as a rookie catcher, hitting 15 home runs.  He was acquired in a deal with the Yankees prior to the season for pitching prospect Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz, and that trade looks like a decent deal for both sides.  He has struggled this season.  Something is going on with him, possibly something off the field.  

2.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Yes, Rafaela is still my favorite player and there will be a lot of cards of him coming in future posts.  He is having a big year so far and appeared in the All Star Game for the first time.  

3.  Marcelo Mayer.  Mayer has not been great at the Majors so far.  As the fourth overall pick, he is going to be given a longer leash, but it would be nice to start seeing better results.  He's just 23, so there is time.

1.  Tyler O'Neill.  O'Neill had a huge season in his only year in Boston.  That One-Year Wonder post is coming some time.  He hit 31 home runs.  Will it be enough to unseat Hunter Renfroe as the top One-Year Wonder Right Fielder?  I guess we will find out.

2.  David Ortiz.  What is there more to say about Ortiz?  I love getting cards of him still.

3.  Tyler McDonough.  McDonough was selected in the third round of the same draft that produced Marcelo Mayer.  He has made it to Worcester this year, so he could eventually make it to the Majors, but he's 27 now, so he doesn't look like he will have a lengthy career.

Huge Catch-Up Post

I am way behind.  Maybe I will throw everything together at once.  Let's do something a bit different and do a count for how many of each player are in this huge post.  It probably will not be a surprise who wins.

1.  Brayan Bello.  Card #1.  Bello imploded in his postseason start last year and was the subject of trade rumors all winter.  He had a good year last year and remains a break-out candidate, but it is becoming increasingly likely that this is just who he is.

2.  Nick Pivetta.  Card #1.  Pivetta had a nice season for San Diego last year.  I always thought he was capable of that.

3.  Marcelo Mayer.  Card #1.  Mayer could win either the second base or third base spot with a strong spring.

4.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #1 (of likely many).  I went through a brief phase recently of trying to get each of the animal patterns for 2023 Leaf Exotic.  This is the clown fish pattern.  You know, Nemo.

5.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #2.  This was a quick one-for-one trade on the TCDB forum.

6.  Xander Bogaerts.  Card #1.  Bogaerts looks like one of the worst contracts going right now.  He still has an outside shot at building to a Hall of Fame career though.  He should have never been allowed to leave Boston.

7.  Dustin Pedroia.  Card #1.  Speaking of outside shots at the Hall of Fame.  I was pleasantly surprised by Pedroia's gains this year.  It's going to take awhile, but he could get in some day.

8.  Pedro Martinez.  Card #1.  Pedro is of course, already in.

9.  Tris Speaker.  Card #1.  So is Speaker.

10.  Triston Casas.  Card #1.  I have no idea what Boston is going to do with Casas this year.  They never traded an outfielder, so they still have Jarren Duran, Wilyer Abreu, Roman Anthony and Ceddanne Rafaela in the outfield and DH, plus Masataka Yoshida.  And now Willson Contreras at first base.

11.  Walker Buehler.  Card #1.  Man, what a disaster Buehler was in Boston.  That was just frustrating.  I like the guy, but he did very little in Boston.  A 5.45 ERA is just not getting it done.

12.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #3.  Still the only guy with multiple cards.  So far.

13.  John Schreiber.  Card #1.  I was disappointed when Boston traded Schreiber.  At least he finally has a card with the Red Sox.

14.  Dom DiMaggio.  Card #1.  At one point, there was some talk about him getting elected to the Hall via the Veterans Committee.  Unfortunately, they never seemed to have the right mix of voting members to do so, not like the all the Giants players elected in the 60's and 70's.

15.  Jose Peraza.  Card #1.  Like Buehler, Peraza was a one-year wonder for a reason, he was very bad in Boston.  He had a 64 OPS+.  That is simply awful.

16.  Connor Wong.  Card #1.  I still get Wong cards on occasion, but his year was so bad last year that I have lost a lot of enthusiasm for it.  It came out that he was dealing with injuries all year long, so let's see if he rebounds this year before I decide whether to move on entirely, not that I would ever get rid of my cards of him.

17.  Mookie Betts.  Card #1.  These cards came from a Topps Update blaster.  Mookie is, to date, the last Red Sox player to win MVP.  He had a phenomenal 2018 season in which he won the batting title and became Boston's second 30/30 man.

18.  Kristian Campbell.  Card #1.  Another player seemingly left out in the cold.  He was so good early last season that he was rewarded with a big contract, then he struggled and was sent back to the minors.  I have no idea where he starts this season.

19.  Walker Buehler.  Card #2.  Finally, a player besides Ceddanne Rafaela gets a second card.

20.  Marcelo Mayer.  Card #2.  

21.  Kristian Campbell and Marcelo Mayer.  Card #2 for Campbell, Card #3 for Mayer.  Mayer has tied Rafaela.  For now.

22.  Kristian Campbell.  Card #3.  And now there is a three-man race.  For now.

23.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #4.  Just when there was a bit of a race, it looks like here is where Rafaela pulls way ahead.  I considered focusing on Prizm parallels for a bit too.

24.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #5.

25.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #6.  This is the Zebra Prizm card.  I love this one.

26.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #7.

27.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #8.  I love the red, white and blue of this card.

28.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #9.

29.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #10.  I squeezed the A&G mini in here.

30.  Kristian Campbell.  Card #4.  He's not giving in yet.

31.  Franklin Arias.  Card #1.  Arias is really high on some top prospect lists.  Keith Law has him at #12.  He's still pretty low in the minors for me to get that excited about him yet, but he looks pretty good.

32.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #11.  Another Prizm parallel.

33.  David Price.  Card #1.  I still think he should have been the World Series MVP in 2018.

34.  J.D. Martinez.  Card #1.  This trade was great because it contained four of these cards that were only available in National Trading Card Day packs at Fenway.  I like in Nebraska so I couldn't exactly run over and get them.

35.  Willy Mota.  Card #1.  It also included this card which was only available in special complete sets from Topps along with four other rookie cards.  Mota never made the Majors.

36.  Steve Pearce.  Card #1.  I don't mean to disparage what Pearce did in the World Series when I say Price should have won it, Pearce was awesome.  

37.  David Price.  Card #2.

38.  Chris Sale.  Card #1.  Man, that Chris Sale trade looks awful.  Boston never got anything out of Vaughn Grissom and then traded him to the Angels for a prospect over the winter.  

39.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #12.  Will anyone even come close?

40.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #13.

41.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #14.

42.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #15.

43.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #16.

44.  Danny Janzen.  Card #1.  Yet another card celebrating his unique achievement of playing in the same game with both teams.

45.  Kutter Crawford.  Card #1.  Crawford is another player seemingly left behind.  He was decent in 2024, but missed all of 2025 with injuries, and now has to find playing time.

46.  Tris Speaker.  Card #2.

47.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #17.  He's running away with it.

48.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #18.

49.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #19.

50.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #20.

51.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #21.

52.  Masataka Yoshida.  Card #1.  I like Yoshida.  I hope he finds a way to get some playing time.  When he was finally healthy last season, he hit really well.  

53.  Caleb Hamilton.  Card #1.  Hamilton played four games with Boston, without a hit.

54.  Bobby Doerr.  Card #1.  A Hall of Famer who got in via the Veterans Committee for the Red Sox.

55.  Chris Sale.  Card #2.

56.  Trevor Story.  Card #1.  Story had a weird issue on defense late in the season that took him out of the running for Gold Glove.  It seemed more mental than anything, almost like the yips.

57.  Brayan Bello.  Card #2.

58.  Marcus Wilson.  Card #1.  Wilson never played for the Red Sox.  He was the return they got when Blake Swihart was traded to Arizona.  He appeared in a handful of games for the Mariners.

59.  Alex Verdugo.  Card #1.

60.  Alex Verdugo.  Card #2.

61.  Alex Verdugo.  Card #3.  Verdugo is making a push..

62.  Jeter Downs.  Card #1.  I think this trader was making fun of me sending Verdugo and Downs.  I just needed Connor Wong to complete the trifecta of the Mookie Betts trade.

63.  Luis Tiant.  Card #1.  A player that should be elected to the Hall of Fame.

64.  Nomar Garciaparra.  Card #1.  I am curious to see how he would do if he was on an Eras Committee ballot.

65.  J.D. Martinez.  Card #2.

66.  Connor Seabold.  Card #1.  Wrong Connor.

67.  Masataka Yoshida.  Card #2.

68.  Bobby Doerr.  Card #2.

69.  Bobby Doerr.  Card #3.  I have no idea what these cards are, they are kind of ugly.

70.  Cy Young.  Card #1.

71.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #22.  At this point, the interesting race is for second place.

72.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #23.

73.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #24.

74.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #25.

75.  Ted Williams.  Card #1.  Williams was an advocate for Dom DiMaggio getting in to the Hall, but he never had the right votes to do so.

76.  David Ortiz.  Card #1.  This is seriously the first Big Papi in this post?

77.  Wade Boggs.  Card #1.

78.  Jarren Duran.  Card #1.  A lot of weird players appearing for the first time finally.

79.  Masataka Yoshida.  Card #3.  Puts him in a big tie for third.

80.  Alex Bregman.  Card #1.  I have a lot of thoughts about what happened with Bregman, most of them not good.  I might get into that at some point in the future.  Boston screwed up, but I was never a huge fan of Bregman in the first place.

81.  Tanner Houck.  Card #1.  He was just an All Star in 2024, now his future looks really murky.

82.  Marcelo Mayer.  Card #4.  Moving into a tie for second with Kristian Campbell.

83.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #26.  A rare appearance in a trade.

84.  Garrett Crochet.  Card #1.  Crochet is kind of weirdly underrepresented in my collection right now.  I expect that to change very soon.

85.  Dwight Evans.  Card #1.  Another guy I would like to see get in to the Hall of Fame, and he should be in.

86.  Nomar Garciaparra.  Card #2.

87.  Kristian Campbell.  Card #5.  He moves back into sole possession of second place.

88.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #27.  I kept trying to trade for this card and finally gave up and bought it.

89.  Alex Bregman.  Card #2.

90.  Marcelo Mayer.  Card #5.  Moving back into a tie for second place.

91.  Mickey Gasper.  Card #1.  My first Gasper card, he played in a handful of games without a hit for Boston in 2024, played a bit more with the Twins last year, was released and is back in the Red Sox organization this year.

92.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card #28.

93.  Chase Shugart.  Card #1.  Also, my first Shugart card.  He had a 4.15 ERA in six games for Boston in 2024 and had a nice year for the Pirates last year.

94.  Hirokazu Sawamura.  Card #1.  I always like Sawamura.  I wish he had stuck around longer.

95.  Alex Verdugo.  Card #4.  Still hanging in the race.

96.  Ted Williams.  Card #2.

97.  Trevor Story.  Card #2.

98.  J.D. Martinez.  Card #3.  Little surprised he's not higher given how often he appears in my trade packages.

99.  Chris Sale.  Card #3.  Same here.

100.  Luis Guerrero.  Card #1.  He was traded to Tampa Bay this offseason for a utility player.  Watch him become their closer.

101.  Kristian Campbell.  Card #6.  Back in sole possession of second place.

102.  Masataka Yoshida.  Card #4.  Don't sleep on him yet.

103.  Blake Loubier.  Card #1.  I don't even know who this is.

104.  Bobby Dalbec.  Card #1.

105.  Pedro Martinez.  Card #2.  

106.  Brandon Walter.  Card #1.

107.  Rafael Devers.  Card #1.  Weird that this is his first appearance, but I definitely started limiting his cards after he was traded away.  I hate that trade more and more now.  I will get into that later.

108.  Nick Pivetta.  Card #2.

109.  Bobby Dalbec.  Card #2.

110.  Rafael Devers.  Card #2.  Making a late push.

111.  Rafael Devers.  Card #3.

112.   Masataka Yoshida.  Card #5.

113.  Rafael Devers/Wade Boggs.  Card #4 for Devers, #2 for Boggs.  Yes, Boggs is on the back.

114.  Triston Casas.  Card #2.

115.  Masataka Yoshida.  Card #6.  Tied with Campbell for second place.

116.  J.D. Martinez.  Card #4.

117.  Jose Iglesias.  Card #2.

118.  Enrique Hernandez.  Card #1.  One of the heroes of the 2021 season.

119.  Ryan Weber.  Card #1.  I'm going to have to remember Weber for the Immaculate Grid.  Braves, Mariners, Rays, Red Sox, Brewers and Yankees.

120.  Alex Verdugo.  Card #5.

121.  Masataka Yoshida.  Card #7.  Taking the lead.  This is a blaster of 2026 Topps, my first.

122.  Garrett Crochet.  Card #2.

123.  David Ortiz.  Card #2.  Pulled an insert.  I love the 1991 design because those were my first packs.

124.  Kristian Campbell.  Card #7.  Tied again.

125.  Lucas Giolito.  Card #1.  

And that's it.

So, in first place was obviously Ceddanne Rafaela, who didn't appear in the last five scans, but had such a commanding lead no one was coming close.  He finished at 28.  Masataka Yoshida and Kristian Campbell tied for second place with seven, and neither of them is assured a spot on the roster coming into the season.  Marcelo Mayer and Alex Verdugo, of all people, tied for third at five cards each.  That was not as exciting as I had hoped it would be.  

But at least I am now caught up.