For many, nostalgia remains the driving force behind the baseball card collection, and that’s how we came up with the idea of ​​single-leaf collections.

It’s a simple concept with endless possibilities.

Take a single sheet of nine sleeves and a reasonable budget of $ 100, and create a collection of nine cards with a unifying theme.

This time around, I’m doing something a little different with our theme and focusing on a specific position. The idea here was to create a “starter pack” of nine cards to serve as the basis for a position-specific collection.

We have already done the catchers. Now is the time for the first baseman. What nine cards focusing only on the first basic position would you buy on a budget of $ 100?

Here is what I chose:

1987 Donruss # 46 Mark McGwire ($ 12)

We’re starting things off with an ongoing debate about what the real Rookie card should be for legendary slugger Mark McGwire.

His 1985 Topps card where he is pictured as a member of the United States squad is considered his rookie card, but his 1987 Donruss and Topps are the first to have him in a track and field uniform. Who doesn’t love a “Rated Rookie” card?

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1990 Sheet # 300 Frank Thomas RC ($ 25)

It was one of the biggest cards of the 1990s thanks to a 1990 sheet set that wasn’t massively overprinted like almost everything else in the Junk Wax era. The set also includes Rookie cards from Sammy Sosa, Larry Walker, and David Justice as well as sophomore cards from Ken Griffey Jr. and Albert Belle.

However, there is no doubt that the Frank Thomas card is the headliner of the set and a must-have addition to any first baseman collection.

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1991 Stadium Club # 388 Jeff Bagwell RC ($ 3)

With 449 home runs, 1,529 RBI and a 149 OPS + ranking 40th on the all-time list, Jeff Bagwell was one of the most productive middle hitters of his time.

The 1991 NL Rookie of the Year has eight different Rookie Cards priced from $ 1.50 to $ 6.00 with his most expensive Ultra Update Rookie in the bunch. His 1991 Stadium Club is his best rookie of the peloton.

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2002 Topps # 160 Albert Pujols ($ 1)

The future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols offers a wide variety of high-priced Rookie cards in 2001 products, including his rookie Topps Traded 2001 which carries a high-priced $ 300 and a Rookie of the Year card with Ichiro Suzuki in the same. set that goes for $ 200.

For this exercise, his Topps 2002 second year card is a more economical alternative. The iconic Topps Rookie Cup was well deserved as it reached .329 / .403 / .610 with 37 home runs and 130 RBIs during one of the best rookie seasons in MLB history.

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2003 Topps traded # T126 Miguel Cabrera ($ 5)

Miguel Cabrera’s Rookie Card appears in the Topps Traded 2000 set ($ 150) and also has a Topps Traded Chrome version ($ 200), so similar to Pujols we’ll have to get creative to get it an entry in our collection. .

After making his MLB debut at the age of 20 in 2003 and eventually playing in the World Series that year for the Florida Marlins, Cabrera appeared on a Topps card for the second time as a “Prospect”. overall 2003 Topps Traded. This card has a much more economical alternative to fill its slot.

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2008 Topps # 319 Joey Votto ($ 15)

Joey Votto was included in the 2002 Bowman Draft ($ 40), Bowman Chrome Draft 2002 ($ 80) and Topps 206 ($ 60) 2002 sets after being selected in the second round of the 2002 Draft outside of Canada, and these are his three Rookie Cards.

After debuting as a Summoner in September 2007, he was included in the Topps 2008 flagship set and the “Rookie Card” logo is stuck on all of his 2008 cards. It may not be his real card. rookie, but it’s a good early representation of the base machine.

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2011 Topps Lineage # 146 Freddie Freeman RC ($ 15)

Freddie Freeman saw a nice increase in the prices of his Rookie Cards after the Atlanta Braves won the 2021 World Series, and his ongoing free agency was one of the biggest stories when the MLB lockdown was hit. implemented.

A second-round pick in the 2007 Draft, Freeman received a 20-game cup of coffee in September 2010 and that was enough for him to be included in a wide variety of 2011 products. In total, he has 13 different Rookie cards, and the Topps line is among the most affordable of the group.

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2011 Bowman Draft # 108 Paul Goldschmidt RC ($ 6)

An eighth-round pick in 2009 that never made it to the Baseball America Top 100 on the prospect list, Paul Goldschmidt reached .314 / .384 / .606 with 42 doubles, 35 homers and 108 RBIs at High-A in 2010, earning him a place in the Bowman Draft sets and Bowman Chrome Draft 2011.

He made his MLB debut on August 1, 2011 and Topps included him in the Topps Update 2011 set. This card is priced at $ 20, so for the sake of our spending limit of $ 100, the Bowman Card. Draft gets the green light.

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Topps 2019 Update # US1 Vladimir Guerrero Jr. RC ($ 15)

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is the new headliner at first base after reaching .311 / .401 / .601 with 48 home runs, 111 RBIs and 6.8 WAR during his season at the age of 22. while finishing second in the AL MVP vote.

He had a 106 OPS + with 43 extra hits and 2.1 WAR in 123 games as a rookie in 2019, and he was headlining this year’s Topps Update set which also includes Rookie cards for Austin. Riley, Mike Yastrzemski, Jared Walsh, Cavan Biggio and Keston Hiura.

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Total: $ 97