Orioles Card "O" the Day

An intersection of two of my passions: baseball cards and the Baltimore Orioles. Updated daily?

Monday, December 9, 2013

Mike Mussina, 2013 Panini Hometown Heroes #234

Yesterday was Mike Mussina's 45th birthday, and he probably didn't spend it wondering whether he'd be selected for the Hall of Fame. However, he is on the ballot for the first time this year, and we'll find out next month whether he made the cut. I will say that he probably has a better chance than former O's teammate Armando Benitez, whose very name makes fans in Baltimore and New York twitch.

Speaking of making the cut, I can tell you that Panini's continued insistence on removing all accent colors from player uniforms on their cards is an idea that should have been left on the cutting room floor. Moose looks like he's pitching for the White Sox, not the Orioles. Are they so paranoid as to think that Topps and/or MLB would sic their armies of high-priced lawyers upon them if they dared to include orange on their Orioles (excuse me, "Baltimore") cards? Why not just go the extra mile and Photoshop Mike into a completely blank, white uniform? I realize that the lack of an MLB license puts Panini in a bind, but there has got to be a better, more creative way to do things.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm guessing that the fallout from 2010 Upper Deck has made Panini gun shy... or maybe they're just playing extra nice in the hopes that they'll get MLB licensing one day.

If they're going to modify the colors, I'd prefer that they change the accent color rather than removing it... Although I don't know if having Moose in black & red or black & yellow is better than just black & white...

Ryan H said...

I think Panini should just give up and stop wasting paper.