Topps, Beckett reveal Cincinnati Reds legendary trading card lineup

Dave Clark | Cincinnati Enquirer

Beckett Media and The Topps Company made some tough calls in determining their Cincinnati Reds legendary trading card lineup announced Monday.

The lineup certainly includes some of the best Reds of all time, and only those with a Topps baseball card (produced since 1952) having spent most of their careers in Cincinnati were considered.

Two players whose numbers have been retired by the Reds - Dave Concepcion and Ted Kluszewski - didn't make the cut because of a shortstop (Hall of Famer Barry Larkin) and first baseman (All-Star Joey Votto) with better numbers. And Jim Maloney was chosen as starting pitcher over Jose Rijo, Don Gullett and others, with Aroldis Chapman over John Franco, Danny Graves, Pedro Borbon and Clay Carroll at relief pitcher.

The lineup:

SP Jim Maloney/ 1961 Topps #436 Jim Maloney SP RC

RP Aroldis Chapman/ 2011 Topps Heritage #199 Aroldis Chapman RC

C Johnny Bench/ 1968 Topps #247 Rookie Stars/Johnny Bench RC/Ron Tompkins

1B Joey Votto/ 2002 Bowman Chrome Draft #44 Joey Votto RC

2B Joe Morgan/ 1972 Topps #752 Joe Morgan TR

3B Pete Rose/ 1963 Topps #537 Rookie Stars/Pedro Gonzalez RC/Ken McMullen RC/Al Weis RC/Pete Rose RC

SS Barry Larkin/ 1987 Topps #648 Barry Larkin RC

LF George Foster/ 1977 Topps #347 George Foster

CF Vada Pinson/ 1958 Topps #420 Vada Pinson RC

RF Frank Robinson/ 1957 Topps #35 Frank Robinson RC

UTIL Tony Perez/ 1965 Topps #581 Rookie Stars/Tony Perez RC/Dave Ricketts RC/Kevin Collins RC SP

An explanation from 30teams30weeks.com:

The 1970s were undoubtedly the best times in the 100-plus year history of the Reds franchise. “The Big Red Machine” dominated the National League, with the “Hit King” Pete Rose and Hall of Famers Joe Morgan, Johnny Bench, and Tony Perez. They won four NL Pennants and two-straight World Series in 1975-76. Not everyone on the team made the Hall of Fame, but there were several players who played like Hall of Famers for some of those years, like slugger George Foster who crushed 52 home runs in 1977 and won the NL MVP. The Reds won another World Series in 1990, with Hall of Fame shortstop Barry Larkin leading the way. It’s the last World Series title for the franchise, but that doesn’t mean that they haven’t had some legendary players on the team in the 21st Century. Joey Votto is one of the best pure hitters in the league and Aroldis Chapman lit the league on fire as a Cuban defector throwing harder than anyone ever recorded. You can purchase any of these cards on the Beckett Marketplace: Jim Maloney, Johnny Bench, Joey Votto, Joe Morgan, Pete Rose, Barry Larkin, George Foster, Vada Pinson, Frank Robinson, Tony Perez, and Aroldis Chapman.

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