DATA: 2008 Topps Opening Day (218)

ACQUIRED: Moeller Card Show, 2008

PING: See what I mean about repetitive? No biggie though, parallels like these are what keeps vottoTRON tickin’.

The best thing about Topps Opening Day this year? The cards are red. Nuge.

DATA: 2008 Topps (319)

ACQUIRED: Moeller Card Show, 2008

PING: Ah, the good ol’ Topps rookie base card. Can’t believe it’s taken me this long to come up with one. No problem though, I knew it would come. Nothing too special about this card. Topps used the same photo on all it’s paralells, so they kinda look cool when put all together in a binder. But, at the same time, it’s pretty repetitive (obviously) and you really enjoy seeing the new stuff. Now that all the highlights and update sets are coming out, we finally get to see Joey out of the spring training duds and into the nice, crisp Reds regular season unis.

DATA: 2002 Bowman Draft Picks (BDP44)

ACQUIRED: Moeller Card Show, 2008

PING: Ah, the actual Joey Votto rookie card. Finally have one. Probably overpaid a little bit at $4, but after a poke around eBay, I couldn’t have done too much better after shipping. It feels good to have the Votto card that started it all – even has Joey listed as a catcher on the back. Speaking of the back of the card, this may be the only photo of Joey on a baseball card Joey where he cracks a smile. Check the photo to the right to see what I am talking about. He’s dead serious in all the rest of his cards. I love it. Click here for a look at the full version of the back.

Also, why does this card have to be so damn ugly? For real, this is not a great design at all. Come to think of it though… it’s pretty Tron-like… maybe I will grow to like it. Either way, it’s in the collection now, where it will stay.

DATA: 2008 Topps Updates & Highlights Gold (UH185)

ACQUIRED: Gift from JayBee

PING: Another Joey Votto care from JayBee. Thanks, man! The base version of this Topps Updates and Highlights card was previously posted and now we have the Gold type embossed version of the card. Other than the gold emboss, I can tell no other difference between the cards. Hooray for parallels! Seriously, I do kinda dig them. I guess I enjoy endless repetition. Speaking of… there are still a few more parallels of this card I am still seeking. Just sayin’.

DATA: 2008 Topps Heritage T205 (TCP6)

ACQUIRED: Gift from JayBee

PING: vottoTRON has already seen posts about the Chrome and Mini version of the Joey Votto Topps T205. We finally round out the trifecta today with the base card. I’m pretty sure these cards were included exclusives in Topps packs/blasters purchased at Target. A big thanks to JayBee for the kind hookup! Check out his blog: bdj610’s Topps Baseball Card Blog.

DATA: 2008 Topps National Baseball Card Day (7)

ACQUIRED: At the Big Red Machine Reunion

PING: Coming soon…

DATA: 2006 Bowman Gold (FG8)

ACQUIRED: At the Big Red Machine Reunion

PING: Yet another Bowman parallel crossed of the list. The versions will never end will they?

DATA: 2008 Bowman Chrome (194)

PING: The 2008 Bowman Votto cards are starting to rack up. Here we have the base chrome – no refractor. Nice looking card, no complaints. One step close to “the rainbow,” right?

DATA: 2008 Upper Deck SP Authentic (137)

PING: I’m truly geeked about this card – it’s a beauty. Great modern design, well-done horizontal layout, jersey, autograph, silver foil embossing, great photo of Joey right right after he got sawed off, serial numbered… It’s a card geeks dream, right? Pretty much.

The two things I would change are the same things any other card geek would – 1) Autograph on the card and 2) Jersey color matching the photo. But, really… I don’t care all that much. I’m not going to be buying packs or boxes of SP anytime soon, so this will probably be the only one in my collection. Fine by me.

DATA: 2008 Topps Updates & Highlights (UH185)

ACQUIRED: From a pack of Topps Updates and Highlights

PING: Awesome card of an awesome day for Mr. Votto. I was unfortunately at work that day (it was a businessman’s special), where we can hear the fireworks that go off at the stadium after home runs. Needless to say, there were a lot of booms that afternoon. We kept checking in online to see what was going on and to notice a little history unfolding as the Reds hit seven homers against the Cubs that day, with Joey dropping three dingers himself.

DATA: 2008 Topps Finest Chrome Refractor (143)

PING: Topps Finest is a good looking set, but not one that I would seek out to collect. I like the nice balanced design, the subtle line-work in the background and squared off diamond shape that frames the photo. It definitely sets itself from other card designs, but I would get bored with it after cracking a few packs. Joey will probably be the lone representative of Topps Finest in my collection, but that’s fine by me.

What I cannot figure out about the photo is where the game is being played. Joey is wearing the Reds 3rd jersey, normally reserved for Sunday home games and special occasions, couple with away pants. It’s definitely not Great American Ballpark in the background. Some sort of exhibition possibly? I’m stumped.

I’m humbled and honored to get a big fat link from Mario over at Wax Heaven. Thank you, thank you.

Like Mario, I’m hoping that Joey is able to win the NL Rookie of the Year award, but my hopes are not up. The Cubs Geovany Soto will likely get the award, as he was a catcher on a pennant winning team that shall remain nameless around these parts. It’s tough to argue with Soto’s performance, even if Joey’s numbers are comparable, if not better. Maybe if the Reds would have put together a better season, things might be different. But hey, ya never know – we’ll see tomorrow.

So, about vottoTRON for all you new visitors out there. Nothing fancy, really, just Joey Votto cards. Not much commentary, we just like to get down to business and talk about the cards, card by card. A little more about the blog can be found here too.

We’ve got a new few cards in the hopper that will be posted over the next few days. Stick around!