From the Pedro Binder

2000 UD Prime Performers

Once again I find myself not minding a card that I probably should hate.

In its never-ending pursuit of a way to get star cards into its set in as many ways as possible, Upper Deck came up with the Prime Performers insert set. Good idea. Pedro certainly qualified for that set based on the season he had in 1999. Like many insert sets of the period, the card is just cluttered with stuff. But, it all seems to have a reason, and works for me.

The action photo of Pedro, while being really small, pops off the card. It’s the only thing in full color, so it really magnifies its importance. The monochromatic headshot of Pedro adds quite a bit to the feel, without distracting the viewer. If that shot was is color, I would hate it. But, this way, it works. There are a bunch of statistics cluttering the bottom of the card too. But, they are Pedro’s stats. And, they’re completely relevant to his status as a “prime performer.” It’s also nice because every time I look at Pedro’s numbers from 1999-2000, I can’t help but smile.

So, while this card has a lot going on, it does it in an amazingly subtle way. It doesn’t add a lot of stuff that doesn’t need to be there. It highlights the important stuff, but still lets you clearly see everything you’d be looking for. I’m even willing to overlook the overall “dark” feel to the card.

That makes for a nice insert card.