1998 Leaf

Description

The 1998 Leaf was a 200-card, single-series set released in March, 1998. The set featured three subsets: Curtain Calls (148-157), Gold Leaf Stars (158-177), and Gold Leaf Rookies (178-197). All three subsets were short-printed compared to cards 1-147 and 201 and represented one of the early efforts by a manufacturer to incorporate short-printed subsets into a base set.

Card #42 does not exist as Leaf retired the number in honor of Jackie Robinson.

Distribution

24 packs per box, 10 cards per pack (MSRP: $2.99)

Insertion Ratios

Cards	Total Cards	Numbered To	Odds
Base	200	-	?
short set	150	-	?
Short Prints	50	-	1:3
Fractal Matrix	200	varies	?
Fractal Matrix Diamond Axis	200	50	?
State Representatives	30	5000	?
Heading for the Hall	20	3500	?
Statistical Standouts	24	2250	?
Statistical Standouts Die-Cut	24	250	?
Crusade	30	varies	?

Checklist

Base Set

• 1 Rusty Greer GZ
• 2 Tino Martinez GZ
• 3 Bobby Bonilla SY
• 4 Jason Giambi SY
• 5 Matt Morris SY
• 6 Craig Counsell BX
• 7 Reggie Jefferson BX
• 8 Brian Rose SY
• 9 Ruben Rivera BX
• 10 Shawn Estes SY
• 11 Tony Gwynn GZ
• 12 Jeff Abbott BY
• 13 Jose Cruz GZ
• 14 Francisco Cordova BX
• 15 Ryan Klesko BX
• 16 Tim Salmon GY
• 17 Brett Tomko BX
• 18 Matt Williams SY
• 19 Joe Carter BX
• 20 Harold Baines BX
• 21 Gary Sheffield SZ
• 22 Charles Johnson SX
• 23 Aaron Boone BX
• 24 Eddie Murray GY
• 25 Matt Stairs BX
• 26 David Cone BX
• 27 Jon Nunnally BX
• 28 Chris Stynes BX
• 29 Enrique Wilson BY
• 30 Randy Johnson SZ
• 31 Garret Anderson SY
• 32 Manny Ramirez GZ
• 33 Jeff Suppan SX
• 34 Rickey Henderson BX
• 35 Scott Spiezio BX
• 36 Rondell White SY
• 37 Todd Greene SZ
• 38 Delino DeShields BX
• 39 Kevin Brown (Pitcher) SX
• 40 Chili Davis BX
• 41 Jimmy Key BX
• 43 Mike Mussina GY
• 44 Joe Randa BX
• 45 Chan Ho Park SZ
• 46 Brad Radke BX
• 47 Geronimo Berroa BX
• 48 Wade Boggs SY
• 49 Kevin Appier BX
• 50 Moises Alou SY
• 51 Dave Justice GY
• 52 Ivan Rodriguez GZ
• 53 J.T. Snow BX
• 54 Brian Giles BX
• 55 Will Clark BY
• 56 Justin Thompson SY
• 57 Javy Lopez SX
• 58 Hideki Irabu BZ
• 59 Mark Grudzielanek BX
• 60 Abraham Nunez SX
• 61 Todd Hollandsworth BX
• 62 Jay Bell BX
• 63 Nomar Garciaparra GZ
• 64 Vinny Castilla BY
• 65 Lou Collier BY
• 66 Kevin Orie SX
• 67 John Valentin BX
• 68 Robin Ventura BX
• 69 Denny Neagle BX
• 70 Tony Womack SY
• 71 Dennis Reyes SY
• 72 Wally Joyner BX
• 73 Kevin Brown (Catcher) BY
• 74 Ray Durham BX
• 75 Mike Cameron SZ
• 76 Dante Bichette BX
• 77 Jose Guillen GY
• 78 Carlos Delgado BY
• 79 Paul Molitor GZ
• 80 Jason Kendall BX
• 81 Mark Bellhorn BX
• 82 Damian Jackson BX
• 83 Bill Mueller BX
• 84 Kevin Young BX
• 85 Curt Schilling BX
• 86 Jeffrey Hammonds BX
• 87 Sandy Alomar, Jr. SY
• 88 Bartolo Colon BY
• 89 Wilton Guerrero BY
• 90 Bernie Williams GY
• 91 Deion Sanders SY
• 92 Mike Piazza GX
• 93 Butch Huskey BX
• 94 Edgardo Alfonzo SX
• 95 Alan Benes SY
• 96 Craig Biggio SY
• 97 Mark Grace SY
• 98 Shawn Green SY
• 99 Derrek Lee SY
• 100 Ken Griffey, Jr. GZ
• 101 Tim Raines BX
• 102 Pokey Reese SX
• 103 Lee Stevens BX
• 104 Shannon Stewart SY
• 105 John Smoltz SY
• 106 Frank Thomas GX
• 107 Jeff Fassero BX
• 108 Jay Buhner BY
• 109 Jose Canseco BX
• 110 Omar Vizquel BX
• 111 Travis Fryman BX
• 112 Dave Nilsson BX
• 113 John Olerud BX
• 114 Larry Walker GZ
• 115 Jim Edmonds SY
• 116 Bob Higginson SX
• 117 Todd Hundley SX
• 118 Paul O'Neill BX
• 119 Bip Roberts BX
• 120 Ismael Valdes BX
• 121 Pedro Martinez SY
• 122 Jeff Cirillo BX
• 123 Andy Benes BX
• 124 Bobby Jones BX
• 125 Brian Hunter BX
• 126 Darryl Kile BX
• 127 Pat Hentgen BX
• 128 Marquis Grissom BX
• 129 Eric Davis BX
• 130 Chipper Jones GZ
• 131 Edgar Martinez SZ
• 132 Andy Pettitte GZ
• 133 Cal Ripken, Jr. GX
• 134 Scott Rolen GZ
• 135 Ron Coomer BX
• 136 Luis Castillo BY
• 137 Fred McGriff BY
• 138 Neifi Perez SY
• 139 Eric Karros BX
• 140 Alex Fernandez BX
• 141 Jason Dickson BX
• 142 Lance Johnson BX
• 143 Ray Lankford BY
• 144 Sammy Sosa GY
• 145 Eric Young BY
• 146 Bubba Trammell SY
• 147 Todd Walker SY
• 148 Mo Vaughn CC SX
• 149 Jeff Bagwell CC SX
• 150 Kenny Lofton CC SX
• 151 Raul Mondesi CC SX
• 152 Mike Piazza CC SX
• 153 Chipper Jones CC SX
• 154 Larry Walker CC SX
• 155 Greg Maddux CC SX
• 156 Ken Griffey, Jr. CC SX
• 157 Frank Thomas CC SX
• 158 Darin Erstad GLS BZ
• 159 Roberto Alomar GLS BY
• 160 Albert Belle GLS GY
• 161 Jim Thome GLS GY
• 162 Tony Clark GLS GY
• 163 Chuck Knoblauch GLS BY
• 164 Derek Jeter GLS GZ
• 165 Alex Rodriguez GLS GZ
• 166 Tony Gwynn GLS BX
• 167 Roger Clemens GLS GZ
• 168 Barry Larkin GLS BY
• 169 Andres Galarraga GLS BY
• 170 Vladimir Guerrero GLS GZ
• 171 Mark McGwire GLS BZ
• 172 Barry Bonds GLS BZ
• 173 Juan Gonzalez GLS GZ
• 174 Andruw Jones GLS GZ
• 175 Paul Molitor GLS BX
• 176 Hideo Nomo GLS BZ
• 177 Cal Ripken, Jr. GLS BX
• 178 Brad Fullmer GLR SZ
• 179 Jaret Wright GLR GZ
• 180 Bobby Estalella GLR BY
• 181 Ben Grieve GLR GX
• 182 Paul Konerko GLR GZ
• 183 David Ortiz GLR GZ
• 184 Todd Helton GLR GX
• 185 Juan Encarnacion GLR GZ
• 186 Miguel Tejada GLR GZ
• 187 Jacob Cruz GLR BY
• 188 Mark Kotsay GLR GZ
• 189 Fernando Tatis GLR SZ
• 190 Ricky Ledee GLR SY
• 191 Richard Hidalgo GLR SY
• 192 Richie Sexson GLR SY
• 193 Luis Ordaz GLE BX
• 194 Eli Marrero GLR SZ
• 195 Livan Hernandez GLR SZ
• 196 Homer Bush GLR BX
• 197 Raul Ibanez GLR BX
• 198 Nomar Garciaparra CL BX
• 199 Scott Rolen CL BX
• 200 Jose Cruz CL BX
• 201 Al Martin BX

Parallels

Fractal Matrix

Randomly inserted in packs, this 200-card set paralleled the Leaf base set. The breakdown was similar to the 1997 Leaf Fractal Matrix parallel set as each card in the set was designated a specific Fractal Matrix color (Bronze, Silver, Gold), and Axis/die-cut pattern (X-Axis, Y-Axis, Z-Axis). There were some changes for the 1998 set: each Fractal Matrix card featured a logo on the front that stated the axis it belonged to. Additionally, the X-, Y-, and Z-axis die-cuts featured a different surface finish and die-cutting pattern than the 1997 Fractal Matrix cards. The two types of Fractal Matrix parallels:

• Regular: Color player photos with either a bronze, silver, or gold etched-foil finish
• Die-cut: Color player photos with either a bronze, silver, or gold etched-foil finish and a "X-axis", "Y-axis", or "Z-axis" die-cut pattern

Given that there were three Fractal Matrix colors (Bronze, Gold and Silver) and three die-cut patterns (X, Y, and Z), there were 9 Fractal Matrix distinctions:

• Bronze X-axis: BX (die-cut version pictured)
• Bronze Y-axis: BY
• Bronze Z-axis: BZ

• Silver X-axis: SX
• Silver Y-axis: SY (die-cut version pictured)
• Silver Z-axis: SZ

• Gold X-axis: GX
• Gold Y-axis: GY
• Gold Z-axis: GZ (die-cut version pictured)

In each series, 100 cards were designated Bronze, 60 Silver, and 40 Gold; 125 cards were designated X-Axis, 50 Y-Axis, and 25 Z-Axis:

• For each card in the set that was designated as Bronze, there were 2000 total cards produced.
• For each card in the set that was designated as Silver, there were 1000 total cards produced.
• For each card in the set that was designated as Gold, there were 500 total cards produced.
• For the die-cuts, the first 400 copies (regardless of color) of each X-Axis card are die-cut, the first 200 Y-Axis were die-cut, and the first 100 Z-Axis were die-cut. However, these were stated print runs and these parallels were not serially numbered.

This chart shows exactly how many of each card were produced.

regular/die-cut	X-Axis	Y-Axis	Z-Axis
Bronze	1600/400	1800/200	1900/100
Silver	600/400	800/200	900/100
Gold	100/400	300/200	400/100

For the Regular Fractal Matrix parallels, no card was available in more than one color meaning that each card in the set was specifically assigned to have a bronze, silver, or gold parallel. For the Fractal Matrix Die-Cuts, no card was available in more than one die-cut finish, meaning that each card in the set was specifically assigned to have a bronze, silver, or gold parallel and a specific X-axis, Y-axis, or Z-axis die-cut pattern.

For the sake of brevity, each card's parallel color and axis is listed in the base set checklist above.

Diamond Axis

Randomly inserted into packs, the Diamond Axis set also paralleled the 200-card base set. Similar to the Fractal Matrix cards, these were printed on colored, 100% etched foil (except for the subset Diamond Axis cards, which were printed on colored, plain foil). However, they differed in many aspects as all Diamond Axis parallels were die-cut an a uniquely different pattern, printed on royal blue foil, and serially numbered to 50. Additionally, all cards in this set featured a small image of a diamond on the front, indicating the "Axis" it belonged to.

Inserts

State Representatives

This 30-card set was printed on etched-foil and for each player, the card paid homage to the State that housed the team they played for. For the two Canadian teams, the cards are titled "Provincial Powers" and paid homage to the respective Provinces that housed the team they played for. Each card is serial-numbered to 5000 copies.

• 1 Ken Griffey, Jr.
• 2 Frank Thomas
• 3 Alex Rodriguez
• 4 Cal Ripken, Jr.
• 5 Chipper Jones
• 6 Andruw Jones
• 7 Scott Rolen
• 8 Nomar Garciaparra
• 9 Tim Salmon
• 10 Manny Ramirez
• 11 Jose Cruz, Jr.
• 12 Vladimir Guerrero
• 13 Tino Martinez
• 14 Larry Walker
• 15 Mo Vaughn
• 16 Jim Thome
• 17 Tony Clark
• 18 Derek Jeter
• 19 Juan Gonzalez
• 20 Jeff Bagwell
• 21 Ivan Rodriguez
• 22 Mark McGwire
• 23 Dave Justice
• 24 Chuck Knoblauch
• 25 Andy Pettitte
• 26 Raul Mondesi
• 27 Randy Johnson
• 28 Greg Maddux
• 29 Bernie Williams
• 30 Rusty Greer

Heading for the Hall

This 20-card set was printed on holographic foil and featured players that were on track to Hall of Fame enshrinement. Each card is serial-numbered to 3500 copies. Additionally, a promo edition of this set was also produced - to preview the 1998 Leaf product, all dealer wholesale order forms contained one of 20 Heading for the Hall samples. The promos feature "SAMPLE" diagonal text on the front and back and are marked "PROMO/5000" on the back.

• 1 Roberto Alomar
• 2 Jeff Bagwell
• 3 Albert Belle
• 4 Wade Boggs
• 5 Barry Bonds
• 6 Roger Clemens
• 7 Juan Gonzalez
• 8 Ken Griffey, Jr.
• 9 Tony Gwynn
• 10 Barry Larkin
• 11 Kenny Lofton
• 12 Greg Maddux
• 13 Mark McGwire
• 14 Paul Molitor
• 15 Eddie Murray
• 16 Mike Piazza
• 17 Cal Ripken, Jr.
• 18 Ivan Rodriguez
• 19 Ryne Sandberg
• 20 Frank Thomas

Statistical Standouts

Leaf continued with its annual flagship insert in 1998, Statistical Standouts, by featuring 24 cards that were printed on a synthetic plastic that mimicked the feel of leather. Each card is serial-numbered to 2500 copies and the first 250 copies of each player are die-cut.

• Regular

• Die-Cut

• 1 Frank Thomas
• 2 Ken Griffey, Jr.
• 3 Alex Rodriguez
• 4 Mike Piazza
• 5 Greg Maddux
• 6 Cal Ripken, Jr.
• 7 Chipper Jones
• 8 Juan Gonzalez
• 9 Jeff Bagwell
• 10 Mark McGwire
• 11 Tony Gwynn
• 12 Mo Vaughn
• 13 Nomar Garciaparra
• 14 Jose Cruz, Jr.
• 15 Vladimir Guerrero
• 16 Scott Rolen
• 17 Andy Pettitte
• 18 Randy Johnson
• 19 Larry Walker
• 20 Kenny Lofton
• 21 Tony Clark
• 22 Dave Justice
• 23 Derek Jeter
• 24 Barry Bonds

Crusade

See 1998 Donruss Crusade