I'll take 1988 For the Win!

Jim, the author of The Phillies Room has a bit of a problem. (I was going to insert a crack about the 2012 Phillies here, but really I'm in no position.) Every year he creates his own set of custom cards, borrowing a previous design from Topps. (He does a great job at it, by the way.) It appears that the time has come for him to select the design for the 2013 set, and he can't decide. He wants help. Like any smart blog writer, he realized that the best way to get people to help is by offering them something in return. So, Jim's holding a contest. Head over to see the actual rules, but basically if you go and vote, you can be entered. Now, I'm not usually one to pimp a contest here. But, this one gave me a chance to talk about baseball cards. So, I'm making an exception. (Plus, it's Friday, and I have no other ideas!)

He has narrowed it down to four choices. 1971, 1973, 1985, and 1988. What do I think?

The 1971 has never excited me. I know there are plenty of people out there who love this "classic" set. Frankly, there's just too much black for me to get very excited about it. Bleh.

The same really goes for the 1973. I like the funky picture of the position in the corner. But, otherwise it's a white card with some text. It doesn't happen to do much for me.

The 1985 had a lot of detail to it. the team name is there at a funny artsy angle. It has the team logo to add some pop. It's really a great design for a card. Clearly the best option...

Except for the 1988. For some reason, I've always been a sucker for the floating details. I love that the player name looks like a ribbon wrapped around the photo. The team name floating on the top is just fabulous. It allows the picture to be as big as possible. All the design does is obscure some of the unneeded parts. If you see the four mock-ups on The Phillies Room, that's obvious. The size of the picture just jumps at you. Perfection. (As a side benefit, I'm real excited at making Jim have to get the player's head to obscure some of the team name. That can't be fun!)

The 1988 design is my clear choice. Do you agree? Head over to The Phillies Room and vote. (Jim also has a strange affinity for dinging noises, so go ahead and "like" his Facebook page too.)

(Only, of course, if you already like Section 36.)