Cal Ripken, Jr., 2009 Upper Deck 20th Anniversary #810

After yesterday's spleen-venting against Topps and their anachronisms, I thought I'd post this card as proof that date-appropriate photos are just half the battle. Upper Deck made a card commemorating Cal Ripken, Jr.'s record-breaking 2,131st consecutive game played and actually used a photo from September 6, 1995. The photo they used...is a zoomed-out shot of the post-game ceremony. I can't even tell if Cal's in that blurry mass of people in the infield. All that I can see is the Palpatine-esque puss of Peter Angelos on the video board, with Frank Robinson probably choking down his own rage over the owner's shoulder. Oh, and in the foreground is a supremely ugly rock with "2,131" engraved in it. I'm sure that didn't end up in the Ripken garage under a pile of horse blankets.

On the plus side, Upper Deck edited out the Coca-Cola and Budweiser signs on the scoreboard, but left the Baltimore Sun, Legg Mason, and Maryland Lottery "Hit It Here" ads. Support local commerce, y'all.