From the Pedro Binder

2001 UD Vintage AL ERA Leaders

I love this card. Love it for one specific reason.

No, it’s not the floating heads. I understand the idea with the floating head. Sort of a retro look and feel. I actually don’t mind the heads at all if they look like the Mike Mussina, as opposed to the Roger Clemens. A floating head is one thing. A decapitated head is another thing entirely.

But, like I said, that’s not what I love about this card. What do I love? This card represents the five best ERAs in the American League during the 2000 season. Take a look at the floating heads in the yellow. Look at the ERAs. 3.70, 3.79, 3.79, 3.88. As you’d expect, they’re all tightly bunched. Not a lot of separation when you get to numbers that low. There’s only so low an ERA can be, right?

But, hold on. Look at that number in the green diamond. 1.74. My goodness. The league leader had an ERA less than half of the fifth lowest ERA. And the fourth lowest. And the third lowest. And the SECOND lowest. Pedro’s ERA was less than half of his next closest competitor. Sweet mother. In fact, just for fun, double Pedro’s ERA. You get 3.48. That would still be 0.22 runs better than Clemens. Clemens was only 0.18 runs better than Colon. So, there it is clear as day. The top pitchers in the league that year, and Pedro simply embarrassing them. I love it.

The card itself is fine. I’ve said before that UD putting out a “vintage” set just rubs me the wrong way. But, it’s a simple set with a simple design. I like the fact that it’s not all in my face. The information I need is there, without garbage all over the place to distract me. So, it’s a good card.

Especially since it shows Pedro’s dominance so clearly.