I received some good feedback the last time I posted a Power Rankings article, and I figure it’s about time for another one. Last week, I wrote a little introduction to the Carolina Brights subset, and as a fun companion piece, here are the top ten poses available with Carolina Brights backs.
It was a little tough to decide how to rank these cards. My main objective was to rank them according to level of stardom of the players, but I also wanted to take into consideration that some of these poses are available with less backs than others. For example, I ended up ranking Speaker above Mathewson because Speaker, a 350 Only Subject, was printed with fewer rare backs (only Carolina Brights, Broad Leaf 350, and Drum) than Mathewson Dark Cap (a Super Print).
The one thing I couldn’t figure out how to incorporate was individual scarcity. For example, Chase Blue Portrait with a Carolina Brights back is very scarce. If a nice one came to auction right now, it would likely sell for more than many of the players above Chase on this list. But because I couldn’t figure out a good way to quantify that, I have just stuck with a mix of stardom and desirability. I’m sure many of you would rank these slightly differently, but I feel like it’s a pretty good list. Let me know what you think in the comments section!
1. Ty Cobb (Red Background Portrait)
2. Tris Speaker
3. Christy Mathewson (Dark Cap)
4. Eddie Collins
5. Frank Chance (Yellow Background Portrait)
6. Johnny Evers (Chicago on Shirt)
7. Jimmy Collins
8. Chief Bender (Trees in Background)
9. Hal Chase (Blue Background Portrait)
10. John Titus
Honorable Mentions:
Roger Bresnahan (Batting)
Hal Chase (Dark Cap)
Joe Kelley
Joe McGinnity
Luther Taylor