A blast from the past...2002 Topps Gallery

I've always been a sucker for what I call "art" cards.  You know, use an artist's portrait of a player or players instead of a photo.  I guess that's why I decided to pull this set out and take a look, because it was one of the first of this type that I collected.  The 2002 Topps Gallery set was only 200 cards total, which consisted of 150 current players, 40 prospects/first year players, and 10 retired greats.  The only significant RC in the set is Joe Mauer (card pictured below), but one thing I really liked about the set is the card back.

The year's stats are broken down by month, and in Carlos Delgado's case, he had a pretty solid month of August for the Jays in 01(.374 avg, 10 HR, 23 RBI).  The back also feature Gallery Notes about the player, and even a bio about the artist. 

The artwork on the cards for the most part was pretty spot on as well (although when looking through the set tonight, Albert Pujols' card left a little to be desired). 

This is also one of the many sets over the years never to be completed, but at least the want list is small.  Only 19 cards remain:  17,151,153,161,163,165,169,170,175,179,180,181,184,185,189,190,192,196,197.

If you have any of these, don't hesitate to send me an email at rmitchell6700ATyahooDOTcom

thanks...