Difference between revisions of "1997 Metal Universe"

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=Description=
 
=Description=
  
1997 Metal Universe set (produced by Fleer) is a 250-card, single-series set printed on 100 percent etched foil with UV-coating.  At the time, Fleer was owned by Marvel Entertainment, and many of the famed comic book publisher's artists were involved in the design of the set -- giving Metal its trademark "comic book" look.
+
1997 Metal Universe was a 250-card single-series set produced by by Fleer/Skybox.  Continuing from the [[1996 Metal Universe|previous year's]] design, all cards were printed on colored, etched foil with UV-coating that combined outer space and fantasy comic book elements to create a background that complimented or even "interacted" with the player photo - thus, almost all card backgrounds were unique with only a few being used multiple times for different playersOnce again, due to the etched foil finish, all base cards were highly susceptible to chipping along the edges and were marked as "condition sensitive" by Beckett.
 +
 
 +
Fleer/Skybox was owned by Marvel Entertainment at the time and many of the famed comic book publisher's artists were involved in the design of the set, giving Metal Universe its trademark look.
 +
 
 +
Curiously, there were no parallels in this year's set, in contrast to the previous and subsequent years.  The basketball edition of this product, ''1997-98 Metal Universe Basketball'' (which featured the same base set design), had the famous Precious Metal Gems (PMG) parallels, which were included in baseball for the first time the [[1998 Metal Universe|following year]].  The 1997-98 Metal Universe Basketball PMGs are some of the most valuable basketball cards of the era -- with Michael Jordan's Emerald PMG (serial-numbered to ten) selling in the high six figures.
 +
 
 +
Alex Rodriguez was the "face" of Fleer/Skybox at the time and was the featured frontman for this product and other Fleer/Skybox Brands (e.g., [[1997 Circa]]).
 +
 
 +
There were no notable Rookie Cards in this set.
  
 
=Distribution=
 
=Distribution=
  
24 packs per box, eight cards per pack (MSRP: $2.49).
+
Although Hobby boxes were wrapped in plastic marked "Hobby Exclusive", Retail boxes were also distributed.
 +
 
 +
Hobby: 24 packs per box, 8 cards per pack (MSRP: $2.49).
  
=Reviews=
+
Retail: 18 packs per box, 8 cards per pack.
  
 
=Insertion Ratios=
 
=Insertion Ratios=
Line 21: Line 31:
 
|-
 
|-
 
|[[#Base_Set|Base]]||250||-||?||?
 
|[[#Base_Set|Base]]||250||-||?||?
 +
|-
 +
|Mining for Gold||10||-||1:9||1:9
 
|-
 
|-
 
|Magnetic Field||10||-||1:12||1:12
 
|Magnetic Field||10||-||1:12||1:12
 
|-
 
|-
|Mining for Gold||10||-||1:9||1:9
+
|Titanium||10||-||N/A||1:24
 
|-
 
|-
|Titanium||10||-||1:24||1:24
+
|Platinum Portraits||10||-||1:36||1:36
 
|-
 
|-
 
|Blast Furnace||12||-||1:48||N/A
 
|Blast Furnace||12||-||1:48||N/A
|-
 
|Platinum Portraits||10||-||1:36||1:36
 
 
|-
 
|-
 
|Mother Lode||12||-||1:288||1:288
 
|Mother Lode||12||-||1:288||1:288
 
|-
 
|-
|Emerald Autographs||6||-||1:720||1:720
+
|Emerald Autographs||6||-||1:480||N/A
 
|}
 
|}
  
Line 41: Line 51:
 
==Promos==
 
==Promos==
  
P149 Alex Rodriguez
+
Alex Rodriguez promotional cards were distributed to dealers and the Hobby media several weeks prior to the product's release and had "PROMOTIONAL SAMPLE" printed diagonally across the front and back of the card.
  
 +
https://img.comc.com/i/Baseball/1997/Skybox-Metal-Universe---Base---Promotional-Samples/149/Alex-Rodriguez.jpg?id=83fd8369-4467-42c3-a83d-db19c685eb5e&size=original&side=front.jpg
 +
https://img.comc.com/i/Baseball/1997/Skybox-Metal-Universe---Base---Promotional-Samples/149/Alex-Rodriguez.jpg?id=83fd8369-4467-42c3-a83d-db19c685eb5e&size=original&side=back&.jpg
 +
 +
<sql2wiki database="carddb">
 +
SELECT num,player,info FROM cards WHERE (year = 1997) AND (setname = 'Metal Universe Promo');
 +
</sql2wiki>
 
==Base Set==
 
==Base Set==
  
1 Roberto Alomar
+
https://img.comc.com/i/Baseball/1997/Skybox-Metal-Universe---Base/158/Pedro-Martinez.jpg?id=dd44f1f7-f151-43ee-af98-7614f53b3bc2&size=original&side=front.jpg
 
+
https://img.comc.com/i/Baseball/1997/Skybox-Metal-Universe---Base/158/Pedro-Martinez.jpg?id=dd44f1f7-f151-43ee-af98-7614f53b3bc2&size=original&side=back&.jpg
2 Brady Anderson
 
 
 
3 Rocky Coppinger
 
 
 
4 Chris Hoiles
 
 
 
5 Eddie Murray
 
 
 
6 Mike Mussina
 
 
 
7 Rafael Palmeiro
 
 
 
8 Cal Ripken Jr.  
 
 
 
9 B.J. Surhoff
 
 
 
10 Brant Brown
 
 
 
11 Mark Grace
 
 
 
12 Brian McRae
 
 
 
13 Jaime Navarro
 
 
 
14 Ryne Sandberg
 
 
 
15 Sammy Sosa
 
 
 
16 Amaury Telemaco
 
 
 
17 Steve Trachsel
 
 
 
18 Darren Bragg
 
 
 
19 Jose Canseco
 
 
 
20 Roger Clemens
 
 
 
21 Nomar Garciaparra
 
 
 
22 Tom Gordon
 
 
 
23 Tim Naehring
 
 
 
24 Mike Stanley
 
 
 
25 John Valentin
 
 
 
26 Mo Vaughn
 
 
 
27 Jermaine Dye
 
 
 
28 Tom Glavine
 
 
 
29 Marquis Grissom
 
 
 
30 Andruw Jones
 
 
 
31 Chipper Jones
 
 
 
32 Ryan Klesko
 
 
 
33 Greg Maddux
 
 
 
34 Fred McGriff
 
 
 
35 John Smoltz
 
 
 
36 Garret Anderson
 
 
 
37 George Arias
 
 
 
38 Gary DiSarcina
 
 
 
39 Jim Edmonds
 
 
 
40 Darin Erstad
 
 
 
41 Chuck Finley
 
 
 
42 Troy Percival
 
 
 
43 Tim Salmon
 
 
 
44 Bret Boone
 
 
 
45 Jeff Brantley
 
 
 
46 Eric Davis
 
 
 
47 Barry Larkin
 
 
 
48 Hal Morris
 
 
 
49 Mark Portugal
 
 
 
50 Reggie Sanders
 
 
 
51 John Smiley
 
 
 
52 Wilson Alvarez
 
 
 
53 Harold Baines
 
 
 
54 James Baldwin
 
 
 
55 Albert Belle
 
 
 
56 Mike Cameron
 
 
 
57 Ray Durham
 
 
 
58 Alex Fernandez
 
 
 
59 Roberto Hernandez
 
 
 
60 Tony Phillips
 
 
 
61 Frank Thomas
 
 
 
62 Robin Ventura
 
 
 
63 Jeff Cirillo
 
 
 
64 Jeff D'Amico
 
 
 
65 John Jaha
 
 
 
66 Scott Karl
 
 
 
67 Ben McDonald
 
 
 
68 Marc Newfield
 
 
 
69 Dave Nilsson
 
 
 
70 Jose Valentin
 
 
 
71 Dante Bichette
 
 
 
72 Ellis Burks
 
 
 
73 Vinny Castilla
 
 
 
74 Andres Galarraga
 
 
 
75 Kevin Ritz
 
 
 
76 Larry Walker
 
 
 
77 Walt Weiss
 
 
 
78 Jamey Wright
 
 
 
79 Eric Young
 
 
 
80 Julio Franco
 
 
 
81 Orel Hershiser
 
 
 
82 Kenny Lofton
 
 
 
83 Jack McDowell
 
 
 
84 Jose Mesa
 
 
 
85 Charles Nagy
 
 
 
86 Manny Ramirez
 
 
 
87 Jim Thome
 
 
 
88 Omar Vizquel
 
 
 
89 Matt Williams
 
 
 
90 Kevin Appier
 
 
 
91 Johnny Damon
 
 
 
92 Chili Davis
 
 
 
93 Tom Goodwin
 
 
 
94 Keith Lockhart
 
 
 
95 Jeff Montgomery
 
 
 
96 Craig Paquette
 
 
 
97 Jose Rosado
 
 
 
98 Michael Tucker
 
 
 
99 Wilton Guerrero
 
 
 
100 Todd Hollandsworth
 
 
 
101 Eric Karros
 
 
 
102 Ramon Martinez
 
 
 
103 Raul Mondesi
 
 
 
104 Hideo Nomo
 
 
 
105 Mike Piazza
 
 
 
106 Ismael Valdes
 
 
 
107 Todd Worrell
 
 
 
108 Tony Clark
 
 
 
109 Travis Fryman
 
 
 
110 Bobby Higginson
 
 
 
111 Mark Lewis
 
 
 
112 Melvin Nieves
 
 
 
113 Justin Thompson
 
 
 
114 Wade Boggs
 
 
 
115 David Cone
 
 
 
116 Cecil Fielder
 
 
 
117 Dwight Gooden
 
 
 
118 Derek Jeter
 
 
 
119 Tino Martinez
 
 
 
120 Paul O'Neill
 
 
 
121 Andy Pettitte
 
 
 
122 Mariano Rivera
 
 
 
123 Darryl Strawberry
 
 
 
124 John Wetteland
 
 
 
125 Bernie Williams
 
 
 
126 Tony Batista
 
 
 
127 Geronimo Berroa
 
 
 
128 Scott Brosius
 
 
 
129 Jason Giambi
 
 
 
130 Jose Herrera
 
 
 
131 Mark McGwire
 
 
 
132 John Wasdin
 
 
 
133 Bobby Abreu
 
 
 
134 Jeff Bagwell
 
 
 
135 Derek Bell
 
 
 
136 Craig Biggio
 
 
 
137 Brian L. Hunter
 
 
 
138 Darryl Kile
 
 
 
139 Orlando Miller
 
 
 
140 Shane Reynolds
 
 
 
141 Billy Wagner
 
 
 
142 Donne Wall
 
 
 
143 Jay Buhner
 
 
 
144 Jeff Fassero
 
 
 
145 Ken Griffey Jr.
 
 
 
146 Sterling Hitchcock
 
 
 
147 Randy Johnson
 
 
 
148 Edgar Martinez
 
 
 
149 Alex Rodriguez
 
 
 
150 Paul Sorrento
 
 
 
151 Dan Wilson
 
 
 
152 Moises Alou
 
 
 
153 Darrin Fletcher
 
 
 
154 Cliff Floyd
 
 
 
155 Mark Grudzielanek
 
 
 
156 Vladimir Guerrero
 
 
 
157 Mike Lansing
 
 
 
158 Pedro Martinez
 
 
 
159 Henry Rodriguez
 
 
 
160 Rondell White
 
 
 
161 Will Clark
 
 
 
162 Juan Gonzalez
 
 
 
163 Rusty Greer
 
 
 
164 Ken Hill
 
 
 
165 Mark McLemore
 
 
 
166 Dean Palmer
 
 
 
167 Roger Pavlik
 
 
 
168 Ivan Rodriguez
 
 
 
169 Mickey Tettleton
 
 
 
170 Bobby Bonilla
 
 
 
171 Kevin Brown
 
 
 
172 Greg Colbrunn
 
 
 
173 Jeff Conine
 
 
 
174 Jim Eisenreich
 
 
 
175 Charles Johnson
 
 
 
176 Al Leiter
 
 
 
177 Robb Nen
 
 
 
178 Edgar Renteria
 
 
 
179 Gary Sheffield
 
 
 
180 Devon White
 
 
 
181 Joe Carter
 
 
 
182 Carlos Delgado
 
 
 
183 Alex Gonzalez
 
 
 
184 Shawn Green
 
 
 
185 Juan Guzman
 
 
 
186 Pat Hentgen
 
 
 
187 Orlando Merced
 
 
 
188 John Olerud
 
 
 
189 Robert Perez
 
 
 
190 Ed Sprague
 
 
 
191 Mark Clark
 
 
 
192 John Franco
 
 
 
193 Bernard Gilkey
 
 
 
194 Todd Hundley
 
 
 
195 Lance Johnson
 
 
 
196 Bobby Jones
 
 
 
197 Alex Ochoa
 
 
 
198 Rey Ordonez
 
 
 
199 Paul Wilson
 
 
 
200 Ricky Bottalico
 
 
 
201 Gregg Jefferies
 
 
 
202 Wendell Magee
 
 
 
203 Mickey Morandini
 
 
 
204 Ricky Otero
 
 
 
205 Scott Rolen
 
 
 
206 Benito Santiago
 
 
 
207 Curt Schilling
 
 
 
208 Rich Becker
 
 
 
209 Marty Cordova
 
 
 
210 Chuck Knoblauch
 
 
 
211 Pat Meares
 
 
 
212 Paul Molitor
 
 
 
213 Frank Rodriguez
 
 
 
214 Terry Steinbach
 
 
 
215 Todd Walker
 
 
 
216 Andy Ashby
 
 
 
217 Ken Caminiti
 
 
 
218 Steve Finley
 
 
 
219 Tony Gwynn
 
 
 
220 Joey Hamilton
 
 
 
221 Rickey Henderson
 
 
 
222 Trevor Hoffman
 
 
 
223 Wally Joyner
 
 
 
224 Scott Sanders
 
 
 
225 Fernando Valenzuela
 
 
 
226 Greg Vaughn
 
 
 
227 Alan Benes
 
 
 
228 Andy Benes
 
 
 
229 Dennis Eckersley
 
 
 
230 Ron Gant
 
 
 
231 Brian Jordan
 
 
 
232 Ray Lankford
 
 
 
233 John Mabry
 
 
 
234 Tom Pagnozzi
 
 
 
235 Todd Stottlemyre
 
 
 
236 Jermaine Allensworth
 
 
 
237 Francisco Cordova
 
 
 
238 Jason Kendall
 
 
 
239 Jeff King
 
 
 
240 Al Martin
 
 
 
241 Rod Beck
 
 
 
242 Barry Bonds
 
 
 
243 Shawn Estes
 
 
 
244 Mark Gardner
 
 
 
245 Glenallen Hill
 
 
 
246 Bill Mueller
 
 
 
247 J.T. Snow
 
 
 
248 Checklist
 
 
 
249 Checklist
 
 
 
250 Checklist
 
  
 +
<sql2wiki database="carddb">
 +
SELECT num,player,info FROM cards WHERE (year = 1997) AND (setname = 'Metal Universe');
 +
</sql2wiki>
 
==Inserts==
 
==Inserts==
  
 
===Mining for Gold===
 
===Mining for Gold===
  
1 Bob Abreu
+
This 10-card set featured some of the top young players in the game that were expected to "pan out" as a gem find by his team.  Cards were die-cut to resemble a gold-bar and printed on gold foil.
 
 
2 Kevin Brown
 
 
 
3 Nomar Garciaparra
 
 
 
4 Vladimir Guerrero
 
 
 
5 Wilton Guerrero
 
 
 
6 Andruw Jones
 
 
 
7 Curt Lyons
 
 
 
8 Neifi Perez
 
  
9 Scott Rolen
+
https://img.comc.com/i/Baseball/1997/Skybox-Metal-Universe---Mining-for-Gold/9/Scott-Rolen.jpg?id=e42da4d2-90b0-40c7-92ca-6acc42788115&size=original&side=front.jpg
 
+
https://img.comc.com/i/Baseball/1997/Skybox-Metal-Universe---Mining-for-Gold/9/Scott-Rolen.jpg?id=e42da4d2-90b0-40c7-92ca-6acc42788115&size=original&side=back&.jpg
10 Todd Walker
 
  
 +
<sql2wiki database="carddb">
 +
SELECT num,player,info FROM cards WHERE (year = 1997) AND (setname = 'Metal Universe Mining For Gold');
 +
</sql2wiki>
 
===Magnetic Field===
 
===Magnetic Field===
  
1 Roberto Alomar
+
This 10-card set featured some of the top players in the game on a colored (purple, green, or orange), dot-holographic foil design that resembled radiant magnetic waves.
 
 
2 Jeff Bagwell
 
 
 
3 Barry Bonds
 
 
 
4 Ken Griffey Jr.
 
 
 
5 Derek Jeter
 
  
6 Kenny Lofton
+
https://img.comc.com/i/Baseball/1997/Skybox-Metal-Universe---Magnetic-Field/2/Jeff-Bagwell.jpg?id=832a53ad-530d-4871-83be-f941feb46f86&size=original&side=front.jpg
 
+
https://img.comc.com/i/Baseball/1997/Skybox-Metal-Universe---Magnetic-Field/2/Jeff-Bagwell.jpg?id=832a53ad-530d-4871-83be-f941feb46f86&size=original&side=back&.jpg
7 Edgar Renteria
 
 
 
8 Cal Ripken
 
 
 
9 Alex Rodriguez
 
 
 
10 Matt Williams
 
  
 +
<sql2wiki database="carddb">
 +
SELECT num,player,info FROM cards WHERE (year = 1997) AND (setname = 'Metal Universe Magnetic Field');
 +
</sql2wiki>
 
===Titanium===
 
===Titanium===
  
1 Jeff Bagwell
+
This 10-card set also featured some of the top players in the game on a die-cut foil design resembling two pieces of titanium metal sheets welded together.  Titanium cards were exclusive to retail packs.
  
2 Albert Belle
+
https://img.comc.com/i/Baseball/1997/Skybox-Metal-Universe---Titanium/5/Greg-Maddux.jpg?id=11098e59-80df-42d2-b3cd-9d0b4549bb4a&size=original&side=front.jpg
 +
https://img.comc.com/i/Baseball/1997/Skybox-Metal-Universe---Titanium/5/Greg-Maddux.jpg?id=11098e59-80df-42d2-b3cd-9d0b4549bb4a&size=original&side=back&.jpg
  
3 Ken Griffey Jr.
+
<sql2wiki database="carddb">
 
+
SELECT num,player,info FROM cards WHERE (year = 1997) AND (setname = 'Metal Universe Titanium');
4 Chipper Jones
+
</sql2wiki>
 
 
5 Greg Maddux
 
 
 
6 Mark McGwire
 
 
 
7 Mike Piazza
 
 
 
8 Cal Ripken
 
 
 
9 Alex Rodriguez
 
 
 
10 Frank Thomas
 
  
 
===Platinum Portraits===
 
===Platinum Portraits===
  
1 James Baldwin
+
https://img.comc.com/i/Baseball/1997/Skybox-Metal-Universe---Platinum-Portraits/2/Jermaine-Dye.jpg?id=d8ca2168-e86c-45c7-8f8d-342435376641&size=original&side=front.jpg
 
+
https://img.comc.com/i/Baseball/1997/Skybox-Metal-Universe---Platinum-Portraits/2/Jermaine-Dye.jpg?id=d8ca2168-e86c-45c7-8f8d-342435376641&size=original&side=back&.jpg
2 Jermaine Dye
 
 
 
3 Todd Hollandsworth
 
 
 
4 Derek Jeter
 
 
 
5 Chipper Jones
 
 
 
6 Jason Kendall
 
 
 
7 Rey Ordonez
 
 
 
8 Andy Pettitte
 
 
 
9 Edgar Renteria
 
  
10 Alex Rodriguez
+
This 10-card set also highlighted some of the top young players in the game and featured the player's headshot on a silver, etched foil background.
  
 +
<sql2wiki database="carddb">
 +
SELECT num,player,info FROM cards WHERE (year = 1997) AND (setname = 'Metal Universe Platinum Portraits');
 +
</sql2wiki>
 
===Blast Furnace===
 
===Blast Furnace===
  
1 Jeff Bagwell
+
This 12-card set featured some of the top power hitters in the game on a translucent, colored-flame acetate.  This set was exclusive to Hobby packs.
 
 
2 Albert Belle
 
  
3 Barry Bonds
+
https://img.comc.com/i/Baseball/1997/Skybox-Metal-Universe---Blast-Furnace/11/Frank-Thomas.jpg?id=29fce14f-108b-4a3e-9d0b-65166aea953a&size=original&side=front.jpg
 
+
https://img.comc.com/i/Baseball/1997/Skybox-Metal-Universe---Blast-Furnace/11/Frank-Thomas.jpg?id=29fce14f-108b-4a3e-9d0b-65166aea953a&size=original&side=back&.jpg
4 Andres Galarraga
 
 
 
5 Juan Gonzalez
 
 
 
6 Ken Griffey Jr.
 
 
 
7 Todd Hundley
 
 
 
8 Mark McGwire
 
 
 
9 Mike Piazza
 
 
 
10 Alex Rodriguez
 
 
 
11 Frank Thomas
 
 
 
12 Mo Vaughn
 
  
 +
<sql2wiki database="carddb">
 +
SELECT num,player,info FROM cards WHERE (year = 1997) AND (setname = 'Metal Universe Blast Furnace');
 +
</sql2wiki>
 
===Mother Lode===
 
===Mother Lode===
  
1 Roberto Alomar
+
https://img.comc.com/i/Baseball/1997/Skybox-Metal-Universe---Mother-Lode/4/Ken-Griffey-Jr.jpg?id=0875ce43-e145-416d-8e4e-773c06c33169&size=original&side=front.jpg
 
+
https://img.comc.com/i/Baseball/1997/Skybox-Metal-Universe---Mother-Lode/4/Ken-Griffey-Jr.jpg?id=0875ce43-e145-416d-8e4e-773c06c33169&size=original&side=back&.jpg
2 Jeff Bagwell
 
  
3 Barry Bonds
+
This 12-card set also featured some of the top players in the game.  Each card was die-cut to resemble an elaborately designed statue featuring the origin or "mother lode" of something valuable (i.e., the player featured on the card) and finished on silver etched foil.
  
4 Ken Griffey Jr.
+
<sql2wiki database="carddb">
 
+
SELECT num,player,info FROM cards WHERE (year = 1997) AND (setname = 'Metal Universe Mother Lode');
5 Andruw Jones
+
</sql2wiki>
 
 
6 Chipper Jones
 
 
 
7 Kenny Lofton
 
 
 
8 Mike Piazza
 
 
 
9 Cal Ripken
 
 
 
10 Alex Rodriguez
 
 
 
11 Frank Thomas
 
 
 
12 Matt Williams
 
  
 
==Autographs==
 
==Autographs==
Line 691: Line 135:
 
===Emerald Autographs===
 
===Emerald Autographs===
  
Randomly inserted into packs at the rate of one in 20 boxes were Emerald Autograph Exchange cards good for an on-card autograph of the player depicted. The autographed cards parallel the corresponding basic cards except of course for the signature on front, coupled with special emerald foil and an embossed Fleer/SkyBox stamp. In addition, the area used for the card number on back of the regular issue card is replaced by a logo stating "Certified Emerald Autograph."
+
Emerald Autograph Exchange cards were randomly inserted in packs at a rate of 1:20 boxes and were good for an on-card autograph of the player depicted. Each redeemed card was exactly the same as the base card but featured an autograph on the front and had unique markers:  The nameplate and "Metal Universe" logo were finished in emerald green foil and, there was an embossed "Fleer/Skybox" stamp on the front, and the area used for the card number on back was replaced by a logo stating "Certified Emerald Autograph Card."
 
 
(1) Darin Erstad
 
 
 
(2) Todd Hollandsworth
 
 
 
(3) Alex Ochoa
 
 
 
(4) Alex Rodriguez
 
 
 
(5) Scott Rolen
 
  
(6) Todd Walker
+
Each pack-inserted Emerald Autograph Exchange card expired February 1st, 1998.
  
 +
https://img.comc.com/i/Baseball/1997/Skybox-Metal-Universe---Emerald-Autograph/TOHO/Todd-Hollandsworth.jpg?id=ffe95312-8291-4eca-bc46-02dfd586cb37&size=original&side=back.jpg
 +
https://img.comc.com/i/Baseball/1997/Skybox-Metal-Universe---Emerald-Autograph/TOHO/Todd-Hollandsworth.jpg?id=ffe95312-8291-4eca-bc46-02dfd586cb37&size=original&side=back&.jpg
  
 +
<sql2wiki database="carddb">
 +
SELECT num,player,info FROM cards WHERE (year = 1997) AND (setname = 'Metal Universe Emerald Autographs')
 +
ORDER BY num +0 ASC;
 +
</sql2wiki>
 +
{{Metal}}
 
[[Category:1997]]
 
[[Category:1997]]
 
[[Category:Fleer]]
 
[[Category:Fleer]]

Revision as of 16:21, 3 September 2019


Description

1997 Metal Universe was a 250-card single-series set produced by by Fleer/Skybox. Continuing from the previous year's design, all cards were printed on colored, etched foil with UV-coating that combined outer space and fantasy comic book elements to create a background that complimented or even "interacted" with the player photo - thus, almost all card backgrounds were unique with only a few being used multiple times for different players. Once again, due to the etched foil finish, all base cards were highly susceptible to chipping along the edges and were marked as "condition sensitive" by Beckett.

Fleer/Skybox was owned by Marvel Entertainment at the time and many of the famed comic book publisher's artists were involved in the design of the set, giving Metal Universe its trademark look.

Curiously, there were no parallels in this year's set, in contrast to the previous and subsequent years. The basketball edition of this product, 1997-98 Metal Universe Basketball (which featured the same base set design), had the famous Precious Metal Gems (PMG) parallels, which were included in baseball for the first time the following year. The 1997-98 Metal Universe Basketball PMGs are some of the most valuable basketball cards of the era -- with Michael Jordan's Emerald PMG (serial-numbered to ten) selling in the high six figures.

Alex Rodriguez was the "face" of Fleer/Skybox at the time and was the featured frontman for this product and other Fleer/Skybox Brands (e.g., 1997 Circa).

There were no notable Rookie Cards in this set.

Distribution

Although Hobby boxes were wrapped in plastic marked "Hobby Exclusive", Retail boxes were also distributed.

Hobby: 24 packs per box, 8 cards per pack (MSRP: $2.49).

Retail: 18 packs per box, 8 cards per pack.

Insertion Ratios

Cards Total Cards Numbered To Hobby Odds Retail Odds
Base 250 - ? ?
Mining for Gold 10 - 1:9 1:9
Magnetic Field 10 - 1:12 1:12
Titanium 10 - N/A 1:24
Platinum Portraits 10 - 1:36 1:36
Blast Furnace 12 - 1:48 N/A
Mother Lode 12 - 1:288 1:288
Emerald Autographs 6 - 1:480 N/A

Checklist

Promos

Alex Rodriguez promotional cards were distributed to dealers and the Hobby media several weeks prior to the product's release and had "PROMOTIONAL SAMPLE" printed diagonally across the front and back of the card.

Alex-Rodriguez.jpg?id=83fd8369-4467-42c3-a83d-db19c685eb5e&size=original&side=front.jpg Alex-Rodriguez.jpg?id=83fd8369-4467-42c3-a83d-db19c685eb5e&size=original&side=back&.jpg

  • 149 Alex Rodriguez

Base Set

Pedro-Martinez.jpg?id=dd44f1f7-f151-43ee-af98-7614f53b3bc2&size=original&side=front.jpg Pedro-Martinez.jpg?id=dd44f1f7-f151-43ee-af98-7614f53b3bc2&size=original&side=back&.jpg

  • 1 Roberto Alomar
  • 2 Brady Anderson
  • 3 Rocky Coppinger
  • 4 Chris Hoiles
  • 5 Eddie Murray
  • 6 Mike Mussina
  • 7 Rafael Palmeiro
  • 8 Cal Ripken, Jr.
  • 9 B.J. Surhoff
  • 10 Brant Brown
  • 11 Mark Grace
  • 12 Brian McRae
  • 13 Jaime Navarro
  • 14 Ryne Sandberg
  • 15 Sammy Sosa
  • 16 Amaury Telemaco
  • 17 Steve Trachsel
  • 18 Darren Bragg
  • 19 Jose Canseco
  • 20 Roger Clemens
  • 21 Nomar Garciaparra
  • 22 Tom Gordon
  • 23 Tim Naehring
  • 24 Mike Stanley
  • 25 John Valentin
  • 26 Mo Vaughn
  • 27 Jermaine Dye
  • 28 Tom Glavine
  • 29 Marquis Grissom
  • 30 Andruw Jones
  • 31 Chipper Jones
  • 32 Ryan Klesko
  • 33 Greg Maddux
  • 34 Fred McGriff
  • 35 John Smoltz
  • 36 Garret Anderson
  • 37 George Arias
  • 38 Gary DiSarcina
  • 39 Jim Edmonds
  • 40 Darin Erstad
  • 41 Chuck Finley
  • 42 Troy Percival
  • 43 Tim Salmon
  • 44 Bret Boone
  • 45 Jeff Brantley
  • 46 Eric Davis
  • 47 Barry Larkin
  • 48 Hal Morris
  • 49 Mark Portugal
  • 50 Reggie Sanders
  • 51 John Smiley
  • 52 Wilson Alvarez
  • 53 Harold Baines
  • 54 James Baldwin
  • 55 Albert Belle
  • 56 Mike Cameron
  • 57 Ray Durham
  • 58 Alex Fernandez
  • 59 Roberto Hernandez
  • 60 Tony Phillips
  • 61 Frank Thomas
  • 62 Robin Ventura
  • 63 Jeff Cirillo
  • 64 Jeff D'Amico
  • 65 John Jaha
  • 66 Scott Karl
  • 67 Ben McDonald
  • 68 Marc Newfield
  • 69 Dave Nilsson
  • 70 Jose Valentin
  • 71 Dante Bichette
  • 72 Ellis Burks
  • 73 Vinny Castilla
  • 74 Andres Galarraga
  • 75 Kevin Ritz
  • 76 Larry Walker
  • 77 Walt Weiss
  • 78 Jamey Wright
  • 79 Eric Young
  • 80 Julio Franco
  • 81 Orel Hershiser
  • 82 Kenny Lofton
  • 83 Jack McDowell
  • 84 Jose Mesa
  • 85 Charles Nagy
  • 86 Manny Ramirez
  • 87 Jim Thome
  • 88 Omar Vizquel
  • 89 Matt Williams
  • 90 Kevin Appier
  • 91 Johnny Damon
  • 92 Chili Davis
  • 93 Tom Goodwin
  • 94 Keith Lockhart
  • 95 Jeff Montgomery
  • 96 Craig Paquette
  • 97 Jose Rosado
  • 98 Michael Tucker
  • 99 Wilton Guerrero
  • 100 Todd Hollandsworth
  • 101 Eric Karros
  • 102 Ramon Martinez
  • 103 Raul Mondesi
  • 104 Hideo Nomo
  • 105 Mike Piazza
  • 106 Ismael Valdes
  • 107 Todd Worrell
  • 108 Tony Clark
  • 109 Travis Fryman
  • 110 Bob Higginson
  • 111 Mark Lewis
  • 112 Melvin Nieves
  • 113 Justin Thompson
  • 114 Wade Boggs
  • 115 David Cone
  • 116 Cecil Fielder
  • 117 Dwight Gooden
  • 118 Derek Jeter
  • 119 Tino Martinez
  • 120 Paul O'Neill
  • 121 Andy Pettitte
  • 122 Mariano Rivera
  • 123 Darryl Strawberry
  • 124 John Wetteland
  • 125 Bernie Williams
  • 126 Tony Batista
  • 127 Geronimo Berroa
  • 128 Scott Brosius
  • 129 Jason Giambi
  • 130 Jose Herrera
  • 131 Mark McGwire
  • 132 John Wasdin
  • 133 Bob Abreu
  • 134 Jeff Bagwell
  • 135 Derek Bell
  • 136 Craig Biggio
  • 137 Brian Hunter
  • 138 Darryl Kile
  • 139 Orlando Miller
  • 140 Shane Reynolds
  • 141 Billy Wagner
  • 142 Donne Wall
  • 143 Jay Buhner
  • 144 Jeff Fassero
  • 145 Ken Griffey, Jr.
  • 146 Sterling Hitchcock
  • 147 Randy Johnson
  • 148 Edgar Martinez
  • 149 Alex Rodriguez
  • 150 Paul Sorrento
  • 151 Dan Wilson
  • 152 Moises Alou
  • 153 Darrin Fletcher
  • 154 Cliff Floyd
  • 155 Mark Grudzielanek
  • 156 Vladimir Guerrero
  • 157 Mike Lansing
  • 158 Pedro Martinez
  • 159 Henry Rodriguez
  • 160 Rondell White
  • 161 Will Clark
  • 162 Juan Gonzalez
  • 163 Rusty Greer
  • 164 Ken Hill
  • 165 Mark McLemore
  • 166 Dean Palmer
  • 167 Roger Pavlik
  • 168 Ivan Rodriguez
  • 169 Mickey Tettleton
  • 170 Bobby Bonilla
  • 171 Kevin Brown
  • 172 Greg Colbrunn
  • 173 Jeff Conine
  • 174 Jim Eisenreich
  • 175 Charles Johnson
  • 176 Al Leiter
  • 177 Robb Nen
  • 178 Edgar Renteria
  • 179 Gary Sheffield
  • 180 Devon White
  • 181 Joe Carter
  • 182 Carlos Delgado
  • 183 Alex Gonzalez
  • 184 Shawn Green
  • 185 Juan Guzman
  • 186 Pat Hentgen
  • 187 Orlando Merced
  • 188 John Olerud
  • 189 Robert Perez
  • 190 Ed Sprague
  • 191 Mark Clark
  • 192 John Franco
  • 193 Bernard Gilkey
  • 194 Todd Hundley
  • 195 Lance Johnson
  • 196 Bobby Jones
  • 197 Alex Ochoa
  • 198 Rey Ordonez
  • 199 Paul Wilson
  • 200 Ricky Bottalico
  • 201 Gregg Jefferies
  • 202 Wendell Magee, Jr.
  • 203 Mickey Morandini
  • 204 Ricky Otero
  • 205 Scott Rolen
  • 206 Benito Santiago
  • 207 Curt Schilling
  • 208 Rich Becker
  • 209 Marty Cordova
  • 210 Chuck Knoblauch
  • 211 Pat Meares
  • 212 Paul Molitor
  • 213 Frank Rodriguez
  • 214 Terry Steinbach
  • 215 Todd Walker
  • 216 Andy Ashby
  • 217 Ken Caminiti
  • 218 Steve Finley
  • 219 Tony Gwynn
  • 220 Joey Hamilton
  • 221 Rickey Henderson
  • 222 Trevor Hoffman
  • 223 Wally Joyner
  • 224 Scott Sanders
  • 225 Fernando Valenzuela
  • 226 Greg Vaughn
  • 227 Alan Benes
  • 228 Andy Benes
  • 229 Dennis Eckersley
  • 230 Ron Gant
  • 231 Brian Jordan
  • 232 Ray Lankford
  • 233 John Mabry
  • 234 Tom Pagnozzi
  • 235 Todd Stottlemyre
  • 236 Jermaine Allensworth
  • 237 Francisco Cordova
  • 238 Jason Kendall
  • 239 Jeff King
  • 240 Al Martin
  • 241 Rod Beck
  • 242 Barry Bonds
  • 243 Shawn Estes
  • 244 Mark Gardner
  • 245 Glenallen Hill
  • 246 Bill Mueller RC
  • 247 J.T. Snow
  • 248 Checklist CL 1-107
  • 249 Checklist CL 108-207
  • 250 Checklist CL 208-250

Inserts

Mining for Gold

This 10-card set featured some of the top young players in the game that were expected to "pan out" as a gem find by his team. Cards were die-cut to resemble a gold-bar and printed on gold foil.

Scott-Rolen.jpg?id=e42da4d2-90b0-40c7-92ca-6acc42788115&size=original&side=front.jpg Scott-Rolen.jpg?id=e42da4d2-90b0-40c7-92ca-6acc42788115&size=original&side=back&.jpg

  • 1 Bob Abreu
  • 2 Kevin Brown C
  • 3 Nomar Garciaparra
  • 4 Vladimir Guerrero
  • 5 Wilton Guerrero
  • 6 Andruw Jones
  • 7 Curt Lyons
  • 8 Neifi Perez
  • 9 Scott Rolen
  • 10 Todd Walker

Magnetic Field

This 10-card set featured some of the top players in the game on a colored (purple, green, or orange), dot-holographic foil design that resembled radiant magnetic waves.

Jeff-Bagwell.jpg?id=832a53ad-530d-4871-83be-f941feb46f86&size=original&side=front.jpg Jeff-Bagwell.jpg?id=832a53ad-530d-4871-83be-f941feb46f86&size=original&side=back&.jpg

  • 1 Roberto Alomar
  • 2 Jeff Bagwell
  • 3 Barry Bonds
  • 4 Ken Griffey, Jr.
  • 5 Derek Jeter
  • 6 Kenny Lofton
  • 7 Edgar Renteria
  • 8 Cal Ripken, Jr.
  • 9 Alex Rodriguez
  • 10 Matt Williams

Titanium

This 10-card set also featured some of the top players in the game on a die-cut foil design resembling two pieces of titanium metal sheets welded together. Titanium cards were exclusive to retail packs.

Greg-Maddux.jpg?id=11098e59-80df-42d2-b3cd-9d0b4549bb4a&size=original&side=front.jpg Greg-Maddux.jpg?id=11098e59-80df-42d2-b3cd-9d0b4549bb4a&size=original&side=back&.jpg

  • 1 Jeff Bagwell
  • 2 Albert Belle
  • 3 Ken Griffey, Jr.
  • 4 Chipper Jones
  • 5 Greg Maddux
  • 6 Mark McGwire
  • 7 Mike Piazza
  • 8 Cal Ripken, Jr.
  • 9 Alex Rodriguez
  • 10 Frank Thomas

Platinum Portraits

Jermaine-Dye.jpg?id=d8ca2168-e86c-45c7-8f8d-342435376641&size=original&side=front.jpg Jermaine-Dye.jpg?id=d8ca2168-e86c-45c7-8f8d-342435376641&size=original&side=back&.jpg

This 10-card set also highlighted some of the top young players in the game and featured the player's headshot on a silver, etched foil background.

  • 1 James Baldwin
  • 2 Jermaine Dye
  • 3 Todd Hollandsworth
  • 4 Derek Jeter
  • 5 Chipper Jones
  • 6 Jason Kendall
  • 7 Rey Ordonez
  • 8 Andy Pettitte
  • 9 Edgar Renteria
  • 10 Alex Rodriguez

Blast Furnace

This 12-card set featured some of the top power hitters in the game on a translucent, colored-flame acetate. This set was exclusive to Hobby packs.

Frank-Thomas.jpg?id=29fce14f-108b-4a3e-9d0b-65166aea953a&size=original&side=front.jpg Frank-Thomas.jpg?id=29fce14f-108b-4a3e-9d0b-65166aea953a&size=original&side=back&.jpg

  • 1 Jeff Bagwell
  • 2 Albert Belle
  • 3 Barry Bonds
  • 4 Andres Galarraga
  • 5 Juan Gonzalez
  • 6 Ken Griffey, Jr.
  • 7 Todd Hundley
  • 8 Mark McGwire
  • 9 Mike Piazza
  • 10 Alex Rodriguez
  • 11 Frank Thomas
  • 12 Mo Vaughn

Mother Lode

Ken-Griffey-Jr.jpg?id=0875ce43-e145-416d-8e4e-773c06c33169&size=original&side=front.jpg Ken-Griffey-Jr.jpg?id=0875ce43-e145-416d-8e4e-773c06c33169&size=original&side=back&.jpg

This 12-card set also featured some of the top players in the game. Each card was die-cut to resemble an elaborately designed statue featuring the origin or "mother lode" of something valuable (i.e., the player featured on the card) and finished on silver etched foil.

  • 1 Roberto Alomar
  • 2 Jeff Bagwell
  • 3 Barry Bonds
  • 4 Ken Griffey, Jr.
  • 5 Andruw Jones
  • 6 Chipper Jones
  • 7 Kenny Lofton
  • 8 Mike Piazza
  • 9 Cal Ripken, Jr.
  • 10 Alex Rodriguez
  • 11 Frank Thomas
  • 12 Matt Williams

Autographs

Emerald Autographs

Emerald Autograph Exchange cards were randomly inserted in packs at a rate of 1:20 boxes and were good for an on-card autograph of the player depicted. Each redeemed card was exactly the same as the base card but featured an autograph on the front and had unique markers: The nameplate and "Metal Universe" logo were finished in emerald green foil and, there was an embossed "Fleer/Skybox" stamp on the front, and the area used for the card number on back was replaced by a logo stating "Certified Emerald Autograph Card."

Each pack-inserted Emerald Autograph Exchange card expired February 1st, 1998.

Todd-Hollandsworth.jpg?id=ffe95312-8291-4eca-bc46-02dfd586cb37&size=original&side=back.jpg Todd-Hollandsworth.jpg?id=ffe95312-8291-4eca-bc46-02dfd586cb37&size=original&side=back&.jpg

  • 40 Darin Erstad
  • 100 Todd Hollandsworth
  • 149 Alex Rodriguez
  • 197 Alex Ochoa
  • 205 Scott Rolen
  • 215 Todd Walker