1997 Pinnacle X-Press

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1997 Pinnacle X-Press "Home Plate" box

Description

The 1997 Pinnacle X-Press set was issued in one series totaling 150 cards and is probably best remembered for its unique packaging.

X-Press was available in the standard 24-pack waxbox, but it also came in special home plate-shaped plastic boxes. Each Hobby-exclusive "Home Plate Box" contained one standard eight-card wax pack, an eight-card "master deck" (exclusive to the Home Plate boxes), and one of 20 Bronze Metal Works ingots.

Notable rookies include Jose Cruz, Jr. and Brian Giles.

Distribution

Wax: 24 packs per box, eight cards per pack (MSRP: $1.99)

Home Plate Box: One, eight-card wax pack; one, eight-card "Master Deck;" and one Metal Works ingot. (MSRP: $14.99)

Insertion Ratios

Cards	Total Cards	Numbered To	Wax Odds	Master Deck Odds
Base	150	-	?	?
Men of Summer	150	-	1:7	one-per-pack
Swing for the Fences	60	-	1:2	1:2
Far & Away	18	-	1:19	1:5
Melting Pot	20	500	1:288	1:189
Bronze Metal Works	20	-	N/A	one-per-box
Silver Metal Works	20	400	1:470	1:54
Gold Metal Works	20	200	1:950	1:108

Checklist

Base Set

1 Larry Walker

2 Andy Pettitte

3 Matt Williams

4 Juan Gonzalez

5 Frank Thomas

6 Kenny Lofton

7 Ken Griffey Jr.

8 Andres Galarraga

9 Greg Maddux

10 Hideo Nomo

11 Cecil Fielder

12 Jose Canseco

13 Tony Gwynn

14 Eddie Murray

15 Alex Rodriguez

16 Mike Piazza

17 Ken Hill

18 Chuck Knoblauch

19 Ellis Burks

20 Rafael Palmeiro

21 Vinny Castilla

22 Rusty Greer

23 Chipper Jones

24 Rey Ordonez

25 Mariano Rivera

26 Garret Anderson

27 Edgar Martinez

28 Dante Bichette

29 Todd Hundley

30 Barry Bonds

31 Barry Larkin

32 Derek Jeter

33 Marquis Grissom

34 Dave Justice

35 Ivan Rodriguez

36 Jay Buhner

37 Fred McGriff

38 Brady Anderson

39 Tony Clark

40 Eric Young

41 Charles Nagy

42 Mark McGwire

43 Paul O'Neill

44 Tino Martinez

45 Ryne Sandberg

46 Bernie Williams

47 Albert Belle

48 Jeff Cirillo

49 Tim Salmon

50 Steve Finley

51 Lance Johnson

52 John Smoltz

53 Javier Lopez

54 Roger Clemens

55 Kevin Appier

56 Ken Caminiti

57 Cal Ripken

58 Moises Alou

59 Marty Cordova

60 David Cone

61 Manny Ramirez

62 Ray Durham

63 Jermaine Dye

64 Craig Biggio

65 Will Clark

66 Omar Vizquel

67 Bernard Gilkey

68 Greg Vaughn

69 Wade Boggs

70 Dave Nilsson

71 Mark Grace

72 Dean Palmer

73 Sammy Sosa

74 Mike Mussina

75 Alex Fernandez

76 Henry Rodriguez

77 Travis Fryman

78 Jeff Bagwell

79 Pat Hentgen

80 Gary Sheffield

81 Jim Edmonds

82 Darin Erstad

83 Mark Grudzielanek

84 Jim Thome

85 Bobby Higginson

86 Al Martin

87 Jason Giambi

88 Mo Vaughn

89 Jeff Conine

90 Edgar Renteria

91 Andy Ashby

92 Ryan Klesko

93 John Jaha

94 Paul Molitor

95 Brian Hunter

96 Randy Johnson

97 Joey Hamilton

98 Billy Wagner

99 John Wetteland

100 Jeff Fassero

101 Rondell White

102 Kevin Brown

103 Andy Benes

104 Raul Mondesi

105 Todd Hollandsworth

106 Alex Ochoa

107 Bobby Bonilla

108 Brian Jordan

109 Tom Glavine

110 Ron Gant

111 Jason Kendall

112 Roberto Alomar

113 Troy Percival

114 Michael Tucker

115 Joe Carter

Rookie Subset

116 Andruw Jones

117 Nomar Garciaparra

118 Todd Walker

119 Jose Guillen

120 Bubba Trammell (RC)

121 Wilton Guerrero

122 Bob Abreu

123 Vladimir Guerrero

124 Dmitri Young

125 Kevin Orie

126 Jose Cruz Jr. (RC)

127 Brooks Kieschnick

128 Scott Spiezio

129 Brian Giles (RC)

130 Jason Dickson

131 Damon Mashore

132 Wendell Magee

133 Matt Morris

134 Scott Rolen

135 Shannon Stewart

136 Deivi Cruz (RC)

137 Hideki Irabu (RC)

Peak Performers

138 Larry Walker

139 Ken Griffey Jr.

140 Frank Thomas

141 Ivan Rodriguez

142 Randy Johnson

143 Mark McGwire

144 Tino Martinez

145 Tony Clark

146 Mike Piazza

147 Alex Rodriguez

Checklists

148 Roger Clemens

149 Greg Maddux

150 Hideo Nomo

Parallels

Men of Summer

Men of Summer is the sole parallel in X-Press. The fronts of each card are printed on foil-board, while the letters "MEN OF SUMMER" are printed on the back.

Inserts

Far & Away

Far & Away is an 18-card set featuring all the usual top long-ball hitting suspects. The cards are printed on etched-foil.

1 Albert Belle

2 Mark McGwire

3 Frank Thomas

4 Mo Vaughn

5 Jeff Bagwell

6 Juan Gonzalez

7 Mike Piazza

8 Andruw Jones

9 Chipper Jones

10 Gary Sheffield

11 Sammy Sosa

12 Darin Erstad

13 Jay Buhner

14 Ken Griffey Jr.

15 Ken Caminiti

16 Brady Anderson

17 Manny Ramirez

18 Alex Rodriguez

Melting Pot

This 20-card set tracks the players' national origin on foil board with heliogram raised ink printing. Each card is serial-numbered to 500 copies. Samples of each Melting Pot card were sent out to dealers to promote the product. The word "SAMPLE" is printed in large black ink on both the front and the back. In addition, all the cards are serial-numbered "000/500."

1 Jose Guillen

2 Vladimir Guerrero

3 Andruw Jones

4 Larry Walker

5 Manny Ramirez

6 Ken Griffey Jr.

7 Alex Rodriguez

8 Frank Thomas

9 Juan Gonzalez

10 Ivan Rodriguez

11 Hideo Nomo

12 Rafael Palmeiro

13 Dave Nilsson

14 Nomar Garciaparra

15 Wilton Guerrero

16 Sammy Sosa

17 Edgar Renteria

18 Cal Ripken

19 Derek Jeter

20 Rey Ordonez

Metal Works

This 20-"card" set of solid metal ingots were available two ways. 1) Each Home Plate box contained one solid bronze ingot. 2) Redemption cards for silver-plated and gold-plated ingots were randomly inserted into packs and Master Decks. Only 400 Silver and 200 Gold Metal Works ingots were produced and each is serial-numbered.

Although the exchange cards indicate the color of the ingot, there is no mention of which player the bearer would receive. (You basically got whomever Pinnacle Brands sent you.)

1 Ken Griffey Jr.

2 Frank Thomas

3 Andruw Jones

4 Alex Rodriguez

5 Derek Jeter

6 Cal Ripken

7 Mike Piazza

8 Chipper Jones

9 Juan Gonzalez

10 Greg Maddux

11 Tony Gwynn

12 Jeff Bagwell

13 Albert Belle

14 Mark McGwire

15 Nomar Garciaparra

16 Mo Vaughn

17 Andy Pettitte

18 Manny Ramirez

19 Kenny Lofton

20 Roger Clemens

Swing for the Fences

Swing for the Fences is a game featuring 60 of baseball's top long-distance hitters. The object was to find the 1997 Home Run Champion from either the National or American League and match it with the exact number of home runs hit during the 1997 season by using a combination of Booster Number Point cards and one Base Number Home Run card.

Each eight-card wax pack contained either a Swing for the Fences Player card or a Booster Point card that carried a plus or minus point total that allowed collectors to add or subtract points to get the winning homer total.

The Base Number Home Run Cards were exclusive to Master Deck packs and carried a predetermined number of Home Runs -- anywhere between 20 and 42.

Collectors who turned in the card of either the AL or NL the Home Run King, along with a Base Number Home Run card and enough Booster Points to match the exact number of HRs that player hit in the 1997 season would win a number of prizes.

The first 1000 winners received a special autographed card of Andruw Jones. The next 3000 winners received random 10-card packs of Upgraded Swing For the Fences cards produced on thicker card stock and printed with a special foil prize-winner stamp. Strangely enough, the backs of the Upgraded cards contain the same information (i.e. the guidelines explaining the contest and how to mail in winning cards) as the cards inserted into packs.

All valid entries would then be entered in a drawing for the grand prize: A trip for two to the 1998 All-Star Game in Denver. Five runner-up winners would receive one waxbox of all Pinnacle Trading Cards baseball products released in 1998.

Ken Griffey, Jr. and Larry Walker wound up as the AL and NL Home Run Kings. However, since Mark McGwire (who was traded in mid-season from Oakland to St. Louis) led the Majors in homers, his card was also deemed to be a winner as well.

Sandy Alomar Jr.

Moises Alou

Brady Anderson

Jeff Bagwell

Derek Bell

Jay Bell

Albert Belle

Geronimo Berroa

Dante Bichette

Barry Bonds

Bobby Bonilla

Jay Buhner

Ellis Burks

Ken Caminiti

Jose Canseco

Joe Carter

Vinny Castilla

Tony Clark

Carlos Delgado

Jim Edmonds

Cecil Fielder

Andres Galarraga

Ron Gant

Bernard Gilkey

Juan Gonzalez

Ken Griffey Jr.

Vladimir Guerrero

Todd Hundley

John Jaha

Andruw Jones

Chipper Jones

David Justice

Jeff Kent

Ryan Klesko

Barry Larkin

Mike Lieberthal

Javier Lopez

Edgar Martinez

Tino Martinez

Fred McGriff

Mark McGwire

Raul Mondesi

Tim Naehring

Dave Nilsson

Rafael Palmeiro

Dean Palmer

Mike Piazza

Cal Ripken

Henry Rodriguez

Tim Salmon

Gary Sheffield

Sammy Sosa

Terry Steinbach

Frank Thomas

Jim Thome

Mo Vaughn

Larry Walker

Rondell White

Matt Williams

Todd Zeile