1997 Donruss
Description
1997 Donruss was a 450-card set issued in two separate series of 270 and 180 cards respectively Series Two was marketed and issued as Donruss Update but with these cards being sequentially numbered as a continuation of Series One, Donruss Update is considered part of the overall 1997 base set. This was the first year the Donruss flagship brand was released under its new parent company, Pinnacle Brands. Each base card featured full-bleed color photos and a team-colored gradient sectional at the bottom of the card that housed the player nameplate and silver-foil stamped team logo.
Donruss again increased the total number of chase cards from the previous year, releasing 13 inserts plus two parallel sets, fully embracing the Insert Mania wave that was riding high at this time in the Hobby.
There were 4 subsets plus Checklists:
- Rookies (353-397)
- Hit List (398-422)
- King of the Hill (423-437)
- Interleague Showdown (438-447)
- Checklists (267-270/448-450)
Brian Giles, Hideki Irabu, and Jose Cruz, Jr. were the noteworthy Rookie Cards in the set.
Distribution
Series One Hobby: 18 packs per box, 10 cards per pack (MSRP: $1.99).
Update (Series Two) Hobby: 24 packs per box, 10 cards per pack (MSRP: $1.99).
Update (Series Two) Blister Pack: 14 cards per pack (MSRP: $2.99).
Insertion Ratios
Series One
| Cards | Total Cards | Numbered To | Hobby Odds | Retail Odds | Jumbo Odds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Base | 270 | - | ? | ? | ? |
| Silver Press Proof | 270 | 2000 | 1:8 | 1:8 | ? |
| Gold Press Proof | 270 | 500 | 1:32 | 1:32 | ? |
| Rated Rookies | 30 | - | 1:6 | 1:6 | 1:6 |
| Diamond Kings | 10 | 9500 | 1:45 | 1:45 | ? |
| Diamond Kings Canvas | 10 | 500 | 1:864 | 1:864 | ? |
| Elite Series | 12 | 2500 | 1:144 | 1:144 | ? |
| Armed and Dangerous | 15 | 5000 | 1:58 | N/A | N/A |
| Long Ball Leaders | 15 | 5000 | N/A | ? | N/A |
| Rocket Launchers | 15 | 5000 | N/A | N/A | ? |
Series Two
| Cards | Total Cards | Numbered To | Hobby Odds | Retail Odds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Base | 180 | - | ? | ? |
| Silver Press Proof | 180 | 2000 | 1:16 | 1:16 |
| Gold Press Proof | 180 | 500 | 1:64 | 1:64 |
| Dominators | 20 | - | ? | ? |
| Rookie Diamond Kings | 10 | 9500 | 1:24 | 1:24 |
| Rookie Diamond Kings Canvas | 10 | 500 | 1:480 | 1:480 |
| Cal Ripken: The Only Way I Know | 9 | 5000 | 1:24 | 1:24 |
| Power Alley | 24 | varies | ? | ? |
| Power Alley Die-Cuts | 24 | 250 | ? | ? |
| Franchise Features | 20 | 3000 | 1:48 | N/A |
Checklist
Base Set
Series One
- 1 Juan Gonzalez
- 2 Jim Edmonds
- 3 Tony Gwynn
- 4 Andres Galarraga
- 5 Joe Carter
- 6 Raul Mondesi
- 7 Greg Maddux
- 8 Travis Fryman
- 9 Brian Jordan
- 10 Henry Rodriguez
- 11 Manny Ramirez
- 12 Mark McGwire
- 13 Marc Newfield
- 14 Craig Biggio
- 15 Sammy Sosa
- 16 Brady Anderson
- 17 Wade Boggs
- 18 Charles Johnson
- 19 Matt Williams
- 20 Denny Neagle
- 21 Ken Griffey, Jr.
- 22 Robin Ventura
- 23 Barry Larkin
- 24 Todd Zeile
- 25 Chuck Knoblauch
- 26 Todd Hundley
- 27 Roger Clemens
- 28 Michael Tucker
- 29 Rondell White
- 30 Osvaldo Fernandez
- 31 Ivan Rodriguez
- 32 Alex Fernandez
- 33 Jason Isringhausen
- 34 Chipper Jones
- 35 Paul O'Neill
- 36 Hideo Nomo
- 37 Roberto Alomar
- 38 Derek Bell
- 39 Paul Molitor
- 40 Andy Benes
- 41 Steve Trachsel
- 42 J.T. Snow
- 43 Jason Kendall
- 44 Alex Rodriguez
- 45 Joey Hamilton
- 46 Carlos Delgado
- 47 Jason Giambi
- 48 Larry Walker
- 49 Derek Jeter
- 50 Kenny Lofton
- 51 Devon White
- 52 Matt Mieske
- 53 Melvin Nieves
- 54 Jose Canseco
- 55 Tino Martinez
- 56 Rafael Palmeiro
- 57 Edgardo Alfonzo
- 58 Jay Buhner
- 59 Shane Reynolds
- 60 Steve Finley
- 61 Bob Higginson
- 62 Dean Palmer
- 63 Terry Pendleton
- 64 Marquis Grissom
- 65 Mike Stanley
- 66 Moises Alou
- 67 Ray Lankford
- 68 Marty Cordova
- 69 John Olerud
- 70 David Cone
- 71 Benito Santiago
- 72 Ryne Sandberg
- 73 Rickey Henderson
- 74 Roger Cedeno
- 75 Wilson Alvarez
- 76 Tim Salmon
- 77 Orlando Merced
- 78 Vinny Castilla
- 79 Ismael Valdes
- 80 Dante Bichette
- 81 Kevin Brown
- 82 Andy Pettitte
- 83 Scott Stahoviak
- 84 Mickey Tettleton
- 85 Jack McDowell
- 86 Tom Glavine
- 87 Gregg Jefferies
- 88 Chili Davis
- 89 Randy Johnson
- 90 John Mabry
- 91 Billy Wagner
- 92 Jeff Cirillo
- 93 Trevor Hoffman
- 94 Juan Guzman
- 95 Geronimo Berroa
- 96 Bernard Gilkey
- 97 Danny Tartabull
- 98 Johnny Damon
- 99 Charlie Hayes
- 100 Reggie Sanders
- 101 Robby Thompson
- 102 Bobby Bonilla
- 103 Reggie Jefferson
- 104 John Smoltz
- 105 Jim Thome
- 106 Ruben Rivera
- 107 Darren Oliver
- 108 Mo Vaughn
- 109 Roger Pavlik
- 110 Terry Steinbach
- 111 Jermaine Dye
- 112 Mark Grudzielanek
- 113 Rick Aguilera
- 114 Jamey Wright
- 115 Eddie Murray
- 116 Brian L. Hunter
- 117 Hal Morris
- 118 Tom Pagnozzi
- 119 Mike Mussina
- 120 Mark Grace
- 121 Cal Ripken, Jr.
- 122 Tom Goodwin
- 123 Paul Sorrento
- 124 Jay Bell
- 125 Todd Hollandsworth
- 126 Edgar Martinez
- 127 George Arias
- 128 Greg Vaughn
- 129 Roberto Hernandez
- 130 Delino DeShields
- 131 Bill Pulsipher
- 132 Joey Cora
- 133 Mariano Rivera
- 134 Mike Piazza
- 135 Carlos Baerga
- 136 Jose Mesa
- 137 Will Clark
- 138 Frank Thomas
- 139 John Wetteland
- 140 Shawn Estes
- 141 Garret Anderson
- 142 Andre Dawson
- 143 Eddie Taubensee
- 144 Ryan Klesko
- 145 Rocky Coppinger
- 146 Jeff Bagwell
- 147 Donovan Osborne
- 148 Greg Myers
- 149 Brant Brown
- 150 Kevin Elster
- 151 Bob Wells
- 152 Wally Joyner
- 153 Rico Brogna
- 154 Dwight Gooden
- 155 Jermaine Allensworth
- 156 Ray Durham
- 157 Cecil Fielder
- 158 John Burkett
- 159 Gary Sheffield
- 160 Albert Belle
- 161 Tomas Perez
- 162 David Doster
- 163 John Valentin
- 164 Danny Graves
- 165 Jose Paniagua
- 166 Brian Giles RC
- 167 Barry Bonds
- 168 Sterling Hitchcock
- 169 Bernie Williams
- 170 Fred McGriff
- 171 George Williams
- 172 Amaury Telemaco
- 173 Ken Caminiti
- 174 Ron Gant
- 175 Dave Justice
- 176 James Baldwin
- 177 Pat Hentgen
- 178 Ben McDonald
- 179 Tim Naehring
- 180 Jim Eisenreich
- 181 Ken Hill
- 182 Paul Wilson
- 183 Marvin Benard
- 184 Alan Benes
- 185 Ellis Burks
- 186 Scott Servais
- 187 David Segui
- 188 Scott Brosius
- 189 Jose Offerman
- 190 Eric Davis
- 191 Brett Butler
- 192 Curtis Pride
- 193 Yamil Benitez
- 194 Chan Ho Park
- 195 Bret Boone
- 196 Omar Vizquel
- 197 Orlando Miller
- 198 Ramon Martinez
- 199 Harold Baines
- 200 Eric Young
- 201 Fernando Vina
- 202 Alex Gonzalez
- 203 Fernando Valenzuela
- 204 Steve Avery
- 205 Ernie Young
- 206 Kevin Appier
- 207 Randy Myers
- 208 Jeff Suppan
- 209 James Mouton
- 210 Russ Davis
- 211 Al Martin
- 212 Troy Percival
- 213 Al Leiter
- 214 Dennis Eckersley
- 215 Mark Johnson
- 216 Eric Karros
- 217 Royce Clayton
- 218 Tony Phillips
- 219 Tim Wakefield
- 220 Alan Trammell
- 221 Eduardo Perez
- 222 Butch Huskey
- 223 Tim Belcher
- 224 Jamie Moyer
- 225 F.P. Santangelo
- 226 Rusty Greer
- 227 Jeff Brantley
- 228 Mark Langston
- 229 Ray Montgomery
- 230 Rich Becker
- 231 Ozzie Smith
- 232 Rey Ordonez
- 233 Ricky Otero
- 234 Mike Cameron
- 235 Mike Sweeney
- 236 Mark Lewis
- 237 Luis Gonzalez
- 238 Marcus Jensen
- 239 Ed Sprague
- 240 Jose Valentin
- 241 Jeff Frye
- 242 Charles Nagy
- 243 Carlos Garcia
- 244 Mike Hampton
- 245 B.J. Surhoff
- 246 Wilton Guerrero
- 247 Frank Rodriguez
- 248 Gary Gaetti
- 249 Lance Johnson
- 250 Darren Bragg
- 251 Darryl Hamilton
- 252 John Jaha
- 253 Craig Paquette
- 254 Jaime Navarro
- 255 Shawon Dunston
- 256 Mark Loretta
- 257 Tim Belk
- 258 Jeff Darwin
- 259 Ruben Sierra
- 260 Chuck Finley
- 261 Darryl Strawberry
- 262 Shannon Stewart
- 263 Pedro Martinez
- 264 Neifi Perez
- 265 Jeff Conine
- 266 Orel Hershiser
- 267 Eddie Murray CL
- 268 Paul Molitor CL
- 269 Barry Bonds CL
- 270 Mark McGwire CL
Update (Series Two)
- 271 Matt Williams
- 272 Todd Zeile
- 273 Roger Clemens
- 274 Michael Tucker
- 275 J.T. Snow
- 276 Kenny Lofton
- 277 Jose Canseco
- 278 Marquis Grissom
- 279 Moises Alou
- 280 Benito Santiago
- 281 Willie McGee
- 282 Chili Davis
- 283 Ron Coomer
- 284 Orlando Merced
- 285 Delino DeShields
- 286 John Wetteland
- 287 Darren Daulton
- 288 Lee Stevens
- 289 Albert Belle
- 290 Sterling Hitchcock
- 291 Dave Justice
- 292 Eric Davis
- 293 Brian Hunter
- 294 Darryl Hamilton
- 295 Steve Avery
- 296 Joe Vitiello
- 297 Jaime Navarro
- 298 Eddie Murray
- 299 Randy Myers
- 300 Francisco Cordova
- 301 Javy Lopez
- 302 Geronimo Berroa
- 303 Jeffrey Hammonds
- 304 Deion Sanders
- 305 Jeff Fassero
- 306 Curt Schilling
- 307 Robb Nen
- 308 Mark McLemore
- 309 Jimmy Key
- 310 Quilvio Veras
- 311 Bip Roberts
- 312 Esteban Loaiza
- 313 Andy Ashby
- 314 Sandy Alomar, Jr.
- 315 Shawn Green
- 316 Luis Castillo
- 317 Benji Gil
- 318 Otis Nixon
- 319 Aaron Sele
- 320 Brad Ausmus
- 321 Troy O'Leary
- 322 Terrell Wade
- 323 Jeff King
- 324 Kevin Seitzer
- 325 Mark Wohlers
- 326 Edgar Renteria
- 327 Dan Wilson
- 328 Brian McRae
- 329 Rod Beck
- 330 Julio Franco
- 331 Dave Nilsson
- 332 Glenallen Hill
- 333 Kevin Elster
- 334 Joe Girardi
- 335 David Wells
- 336 Jeff Blauser
- 337 Darryl Kile
- 338 Jeff Kent
- 339 Jim Leyritz
- 340 Todd Stottlemyre
- 341 Tony Clark
- 342 Chris Hoiles
- 343 Mike Lieberthal
- 344 Matt Lawton
- 345 Alex Ochoa
- 346 Chris Snopek
- 347 Rudy Pemberton
- 348 Eric Owens
- 349 Joe Randa
- 350 John Olerud
- 351 Steve Karsay
- 352 Mark Whiten
- 353 Bob Abreu
- 354 Bartolo Colon
- 355 Vladimir Guerrero
- 356 Darin Erstad
- 357 Scott Rolen
- 358 Andruw Jones
- 359 Scott Spiezio
- 360 Karim Garcia
- 361 Hideki Irabu RC
- 362 Nomar Garciaparra
- 363 Dmitri Young
- 364 Bubba Trammell RC
- 365 Kevin Orie
- 366 Jose Rosado
- 367 Jose Guillen
- 368 Brooks Kieschnick
- 369 Pokey Reese
- 370 Glendon Rusch
- 371 Jason Dickson
- 372 Todd Walker
- 373 Justin Thompson
- 374 Todd Greene
- 375 Jeff Suppan
- 376 Trey Beamon
- 377 Damon Mashore
- 378 Wendell Magee, Jr.
- 379 Shigetoshi Hasegawa RC
- 380 Bill Mueller RC
- 381 Chris Widger
- 382 Tony Graffanino
- 383 Derrek Lee
- 384 Brian Moehler RC
- 385 Quinton McCracken
- 386 Matt Morris
- 387 Marvin Benard
- 388 Deivi Cruz RC
- 389 Javier Valentin
- 390 Todd Dunwoody
- 391 Derrick Gibson
- 392 Raul Casanova
- 393 George Arias
- 394 Tony Womack RC
- 395 Antone Williamson
- 396 Jose Cruz, Jr. RC
- 397 Desi Relaford
Hit List
- 398 Frank Thomas
- 399 Ken Griffey, Jr.
- 400 Cal Ripken, Jr.
- 401 Chipper Jones
- 402 Mike Piazza
- 403 Gary Sheffield
- 404 Alex Rodriguez
- 405 Wade Boggs
- 406 Juan Gonzalez
- 407 Tony Gwynn
- 408 Edgar Martinez
- 409 Jeff Bagwell
- 410 Larry Walker
- 411 Kenny Lofton
- 412 Manny Ramirez
- 413 Mark McGwire
- 414 Roberto Alomar
- 415 Derek Jeter
- 416 Brady Anderson
- 417 Paul Molitor
- 418 Dante Bichette
- 419 Jim Edmonds
- 420 Mo Vaughn
- 421 Barry Bonds
- 422 Rusty Greer
King of the Hill
- 423 Greg Maddux
- 424 Andy Pettitte
- 425 John Smoltz
- 426 Randy Johnson
- 427 Hideo Nomo
- 428 Roger Clemens
- 429 Tom Glavine
- 430 Pat Hentgen
- 431 Kevin Brown
- 432 Mike Mussina
- 433 Alex Fernandez
- 434 Kevin Appier
- 435 David Cone
- 436 Jeff Fassero
- 437 John Wetteland
Interleague Showdown
- 438 Barry Bonds / Ivan Rodriguez
- 439 Ken Griffey, Jr. / Andres Gallaraga
- 440 Fred McGriff / Rafael Palmeiro
- 441 Barry Larkin / Jim Thome
- 442 Sammy Sosa / Albert Belle
- 443 Bernie Williams / Todd Hundley
- 444 Chuck Knoblauch / Brian Jordan
- 445 Mo Vaughn / Jeff Conine
- 446 Ken Caminiti / Jason Giambi
- 447 Raul Mondesi / Tim Salmon
Checklists
- 448 Cal Ripken, Jr.
- 449 Greg Maddux
- 450 Ken Griffey, Jr.
Parallels
All 450 cards were available in the following parallels:
- Silver Press Proof (print run 2000 copies; not serial-numbered)
- Gold Press Proof (limited to 500 copies; not serial-numbered)
Silver Press Proof
Silver Press Proofs maintained the same design as the base set but had a full silver-foil finish on the front and:
- For Series One Silver Press Proofs: featured an interlocking, inverse "P" pattern for distinction
- For Series Two Silver Press Proofs: featured a radiance foil pattern that emanated from the team logo
Unlike their Gold counterpart, Silver Press Proofs were not die-cut.
Gold Press Proof
Gold Press Proofs also maintained the same design as the base set but were die-cut and had a full silver-foil finish on the front with gold foil accents over the player nameplate, team logo, and Donruss logo. Additionally:
- For Series One Silver Press Proofs: featured an interlocking, inverse "P" pattern for distinction
- For Series Two Silver Press Proofs: featured a radiance foil pattern that emanated from the team logo
Inserts
Rated Rookies
This 30-card set recognized the top rookie prospects that were the most likely to succeed (as chosen by Donruss). Each card featured a color player photo with thick transparent gray borders, and a silver foil-stamped "RATED ROOKIE" text at the top of the card. Long utilized as a subset, Donruss elevated the Rated Rookie cards to an insert set as they did with the Diamond Kings set in 1992. This set was exclusive to all Series One packs
- 1 Jason Thompson
- 2 LaTroy Hawkins
- 3 Scott Rolen
- 4 Trey Beamon
- 5 Kimera Bartee
- 6 Nerio Rodriguez
- 7 Jeff D'Amico
- 8 Quinton McCracken
- 9 John Wasdin
- 10 Robin Jennings
- 11 Steve Gibralter
- 12 Tyler Houston
- 13 Tony Clark
- 14 Ugueth Urbina
- 15 Karim Garcia
- 16 Raul Casanova
- 17 Brooks Kieschnick
- 18 Luis Castillo
- 19 Edgar Renteria
- 20 Andruw Jones
- 21 Chad Mottola
- 22 Mac Suzuki
- 23 Justin Thompson
- 24 Darin Erstad
- 25 Todd Walker
- 26 Todd Greene
- 27 Vladimir Guerrero
- 28 Darren Dreifort
- 29 John Burke
- 30 Damon Mashore
Diamond Kings
This 10-card set continued as a notable set for the Donruss brand, again featuring the top players from MLB teams, using artistic renditions for the design. However, this year's set marked the first time longtime and famed sports artist Dick Perez was not involved with the design and also the first time that all MLB teams were not represented with a Diamond King card. Dan Gardener replaced Dick Perez as the design artist.
This Diamond Kings set commemorated the 15th Anniversary of the original Diamond King cards that first appeared in 1982. Each card was serial-numbered to 10,000 copies with the first 500 cards printed on canvas. Thus, only 9500 copies of the "base" Diamond King insert were made.
As part of a promotion, collectors that found their card serial-numbered "01982/10,000" could redeem their card for the original artwork piece.
- 1 Ken Griffey, Jr.
- 2 Cal Ripken, Jr.
- 3 Mo Vaughn
- 4 Chuck Knoblauch
- 5 Jeff Bagwell
- 6 Henry Rodriguez
- 7 Mike Piazza
- 8 Ivan Rodriguez
- 9 Frank Thomas
- 10 Chipper Jones
Diamond Kings Canvas
Diamond Kings Canvas cards paralleled the Diamond Kings base insert set and had the same design but were printed on a canvas card stock. There were 500 Diamond King Canvas cards as the first 500 of the 10,000 Diamond Kings cards were this canvas parallel.
Elite Series
The seventh edition of the staple Donruss set continued with a 10-card set that depicted a color player photo surrounded by large white marble borders, foil stamping over the nameplate, and a extra large caligraphic "E".
Each Elite Series insert was serial-numbered to 2500 copies, which was a large reduction from its traditional print run of 10,000 copies. Further, the set was sequentially-numbered as a distinct set, rather than a continuation of the previous year's Elite Series set (which was the numbering pattern used since its inaugural release in 1991.
- 1 Frank Thomas
- 2 Paul Molitor
- 3 Sammy Sosa
- 4 Barry Bonds
- 5 Chipper Jones
- 6 Alex Rodriguez
- 7 Ken Griffey, Jr.
- 8 Jeff Bagwell
- 9 Cal Ripken, Jr.
- 10 Mo Vaughn
- 11 Mike Piazza
- 12 Juan Gonzalez
Elite Series Promo
Additionally, each card in the set has a promo version that is marked, "SAMPLE CARD" on front and back and serial-numbered "PROMO/2500" on the back.
Armed and Dangerous
This 15-card set showcased players with the strongest arms in the game on a textured, military fatigue-colored design. All cards were serial-numbered to 5000 copies and exclusive to Series One Hobby packs.
- 1 Ken Griffey, Jr.
- 2 Raul Mondesi
- 3 Chipper Jones
- 4 Ivan Rodriguez
- 5 Randy Johnson
- 6 Alex Rodriguez
- 7 Larry Walker
- 8 Cal Ripken, Jr.
- 9 Kenny Lofton
- 10 Barry Bonds
- 11 Derek Jeter
- 12 Charles Johnson
- 13 Greg Maddux
- 14 Roberto Alomar
- 15 Barry Larkin
Long Ball Leaders
This 15-card set honored the players that hit the longest home runs in the 1996 season on a team-colored foil background with a yellow and silver-foil ruler design down the left side of the card. Each card was serial-numbered to 5000 copies and exclusive to Series One retail packs.
- 1 Frank Thomas
- 2 Albert Belle
- 3 Mo Vaughn
- 4 Brady Anderson
- 5 Greg Vaughn
- 6 Ken Griffey, Jr.
- 7 Jay Buhner
- 8 Juan Gonzalez
- 9 Mike Piazza
- 10 Jeff Bagwell
- 11 Sammy Sosa
- 12 Mark McGwire
- 13 Cecil Fielder
- 14 Ryan Klesko
- 15 Jose Canseco
Rocket Launchers
This 15-card set recognized the top home run hitters in the game at the time on a black background accented with silver holofoil electricity streams and silver prismatic foil columns down the sides of the card front. These were serial-numbered to 5000 copies and exclusive to Series One jumbo packs.
- 1 Frank Thomas
- 2 Albert Belle
- 3 Chipper Jones
- 4 Mike Piazza
- 5 Mo Vaughn
- 6 Juan Gonzalez
- 7 Fred McGriff
- 8 Jeff Bagwell
- 9 Matt Williams
- 10 Gary Sheffield
- 11 Barry Bonds
- 12 Manny Ramirez
- 13 Henry Rodriguez
- 14 Jason Giambi
- 15 Cal Ripken, Jr.
Dominators
This 20-card set identified some of the best players on a red and yellow patterned background. These were randomly inserted into all Update Series packs.
- 1 Frank Thomas
- 2 Ken Griffey, Jr.
- 3 Greg Maddux
- 4 Cal Ripken, Jr.
- 5 Alex Rodriguez
- 6 Albert Belle
- 7 Mark McGwire
- 8 Juan Gonzalez
- 9 Chipper Jones
- 10 Hideo Nomo
- 11 Roger Clemens
- 12 John Smoltz
- 13 Mike Piazza
- 14 Sammy Sosa
- 15 Matt Williams
- 16 Kenny Lofton
- 17 Barry Larkin
- 18 Rafael Palmeiro
- 19 Ken Caminiti
- 20 Gary Sheffield
Rookie Diamond Kings
This 10-card set highlighted some of the top young stars in the game at the time on an artistic rendition designed by Dan Gardener. Each card was serial-numbered to 10,000 copies with the first 500 printed on canvas and exclusive to all Update Series packs.
- 1 Andruw Jones
- 2 Vladimir Guerrero
- 3 Scott Rolen
- 4 Todd Walker
- 5 Bartolo Colon
- 6 Jose Guillen
- 7 Nomar Garciaparra
- 8 Darin Erstad
- 9 Dmitri Young
- 10 Wilton Guerrero
Rookie Diamond Kings Canvas
Rookie Diamond Kings Canvas cards paralleled the Rookie Diamond Kings base insert set and had the same design but were printed on a canvas card stock. There were 500 Rookie Diamond King Canvas cards as the first 500 of the 10,000 Rookie Diamond Kings cards were this canvas parallel.
Cal Ripken: The Only Way I Know
This special 10-card set was an autobiographical tribute to Cal Ripken, Jr. and delivered a one-of-a-kind inside look at the modern day "Iron Man" while also promoting his book of the same name. Each card in the set featured a silver foil finish over the cards which featured memorable moment, person, or memory from Ripken's career and a gold-foil facsimile of his autograph. A full color photo of Ripken was always featured in the foreground, contrasting with the silver-foil background.
The first 9 cards in the set were randomly seeded into all Update Series packs while the 10th card was available exclusively in his book, The Only Way I Know. Ripken autographed 2131 of these cards and they were randomly inserted into the books (see below). Because of its separate distribution design, card #10 is not commonly included in complete sets - thus the set is considered complete with cards 1-9.
Only 5000 serial-numbered copies of each of the first 9 cards were produced. Card #10 was not serial-numbered.
- 1 Cal Ripken, Jr.
- 2 Cal Ripken, Jr.
- 3 Cal Ripken, Jr.
- 4 Cal Ripken, Jr. / Little League Team
- 5 Cal Ripken / Eddie Murray
- 6 Cal Ripken, Jr. / Cal Ripken, Sr. / Billy Ripken
- 7 Ripken Family
- 8 Cal Ripken, Jr.
- 9 Cal Ripken, Jr.
- 10 Cal Ripken, Jr.
Power Alley
A new but immediately popular 24-card set featured the top power hitters in the game on a micro-etched, colored, all-foil card stock with a holographic foil finish. Using a "fractured" sequencing structure, there were three color finishes that also differed in rarity:
- Green (GR): 12 players, serial-numbered to 4000
- Blue (B): 8 players, serial-numbered to 2000
- Gold (G): 4 players, serial-numbered to 1000
Power Alley Die-Cut
Power Alley Die-Cut cards paralleled the Power Alley base insert set and had the same design but were intricately die-cut. There were 250 Power Alley Die-Cuts as the first 250 copies of each card, regardless of color, were die-cut.
- 1 Frank Thomas G
- 2 Ken Griffey, Jr. G
- 3 Cal Ripken, Jr. G
- 4 Jeff Bagwell B
- 5 Mike Piazza B
- 6 Andruw Jones GR
- 7 Alex Rodriguez G
- 8 Albert Belle GR
- 9 Mo Vaughn GR
- 10 Chipper Jones B
- 11 Juan Gonzalez B
- 12 Ken Caminiti GR
- 13 Manny Ramirez GR
- 14 Mark McGwire GR
- 15 Kenny Lofton B
- 16 Barry Bonds GR
- 17 Gary Sheffield GR
- 18 Tony Gwynn GR
- 19 Vladimir Guerrero B
- 20 Ivan Rodriguez B
- 21 Paul Molitor B
- 22 Sammy Sosa GR
- 23 Matt Williams GR
- 24 Derek Jeter GR
Franchise Features
This 15-card set featured player on a team-colored, holographic foil and dual-fronted, movie-poster design - each card highlighted a superstar veteran on one side displaying a "Now Playing" banner, while the other side featured a rookie prospect with a "Coming Attraction" banner. Each card was serial numbered to 3000 copies and exclusive to Update Series Hobby packs.
- 1 Ken Griffey, Jr. / Andruw Jones
- 2 Frank Thomas / Darin Erstad
- 3 Alex Rodriguez / Nomar Garciaparra
- 4 Chuck Knoblauch / Wilton Guerrero
- 5 Juan Gonzalez / Bubba Trammell
- 6 Chipper Jones / Todd Walker
- 7 Barry Bonds / Vladimir Guerrero
- 8 Mark McGwire / Dmitri Young
- 9 Mike Piazza / Mike Sweeney
- 10 Mo Vaughn / Tony Clark
- 11 Gary Sheffield / Jose Guillen
- 12 Kenny Lofton / Shannon Stewart
- 13 Cal Ripken, Jr. / Scott Rolen
- 14 Derek Jeter / Pokey Reese
- 15 Tony Gwynn / Bob Abreu
Update Series Ripken Info Card
This card of Cal Ripken, Jr. was inserted as the top card in each Update Series 14-card blister pack. The front featured a reproduction of Ripken's Update Series checklist card (#448) but was not foil-stamped. The back displayed information about Donruss Update's base and insert sets.
- 1 Cal Ripken, Jr.
Autographs & Game-Used
Cal Ripken: The Only Way I Know Autograph
Card #10 in the Cal Ripken: The Only Way I Know insert set was available exclusively in his of the same name. Ripken autographed 2131 of these cards and were randomly inserted into the books.
- 10AU Cal Ripken, Jr. 2131
Donruss
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