2001 Donruss
From BaseballCardPedia.com
Description
2001 Donruss is a 220-card set released in May, 2001. It was the first "Donruss" branded card set since their previous owner, Pinnacle Brands went bankrupt in the Summer of 1998, and the first product released by the newly rechristened "Donruss-Playoff" since acquiring an MLB/MLBPA license in February 2001.
In 1998 Pinnacle Brands, the owner of the Donruss and Leaf brand names, filed for bankruptcy protection and went out of business. It appeared that after an eighteen year run Donruss' flagship baseball set would come to an end. But then an unlikely savior appeared in the form of football card manufacturer Playoff, who purchased what was left of Pinnacle through a bankruptcy court.
Almost as soon as they bought Pinnacle, speculation immediately began as to Playoff's baseball card intentions. Although Playoff was given a temporary license in 1998 -- so that the 1998 Donruss Signature set could be released -- it appeared that Playoff's efforts to get into the baseball card business would never bear fruit.
Shortly after Pacific had its MLB Player's Association license revoked in November 2000 (partially due to the Manny Ramirez corked bat card incident) rumors of Playoff finally getting the licenses it had long coveted began to fly again. Those rumors came to fruition in February 2001 it was announced that Playoff -- now renamed "Donruss-Playoff" -- had at last received permission to produce Major League Baseball cards. They quickly announced that their first baseball card set (2001 Donruss) would be released that April.
With nearly three years of pent-up demand -- not the mention the novelty of it being the first completely original baseball card product from Playoff -- loyal Donruss collectors immediately began to place pre-sell orders with their local hobby dealers. (Many of those same dealers were disappointed to find out that they would be limited to only one six-box hobby case.) In April 2001 Donruss Baseball went live. The result: a big "thud."
In their haste to produce their first real baseball card product, Donruss-Playoff (D-P) essentially recycled the same formula that had successfully worked for them in football cards. In fact, the parallels between the 2001 Donruss Baseball and 2000 Donruss Football sets are uncanny to say the least. Both sets have roughly the same number of cards (220 in baseball versus 250 in football), and both had an MSRP of $1.99/pack. However, both products relied heavily on a gimmick that was becoming commonplace in football cards, but had never, ever, before appeared in a base level baseball brand.
2001 Donruss was the first entry level baseball trading card product to feature short-printed and serial-numbered rookie cards. While short-printing may have appealed to the football card audience, unfortunately, by limiting the production of each "Rated Rookie" to only 2001 copies (not including the Albert Pujols and Ben Sheets exchange cards -- each limited to 500), D-P made the decision, whether they knew it or not (and they probably didn't) to abandon the one segment of the market that traditionally purchases base level baseball card products. The segment that had been the cornerstone of the Donruss brand since 1981: Set builders.
In retrospect, D-P screwed up the comeback edition of Donruss baseball royally. As a result, many long-time Donruss baseball collectors, simply gave up after the fiasco that was 2001 Donruss Baseball. What D-P failed to realize, and never really quite understood, was that football card collectors and baseball card collectors are two completely different breeds of hobbyist. What works in football, may not (and usually does not) necessarily work in baseball.
Distribution
Hobby Wax: 5 cards, plus one individually wrapped "1999" Retroactive card per pack (MSRP $1.99).
24 packs plus a "Anniversary Originals" chiptopper per box.
The Anniversary Originals are prominent rookie cards from Donruss' past that were bought back, submitted to BGS for grading, and seeded into each hobby wax box. Each card was given a "20th Anniversary Originals" notation on the slab's label.
NOTE: Hobby dealers were limited to only one six-box case.
Retail Wax: 5 cards, plus one individually wrapped "2000" Retroactive card per pack (MSRP $1.99).
17 packs per Blaster box (MSRP $19.99).
Reviews
Insertion Ratio Matrix
| Cards | Total Cards | Numbered To | Hobby Odds | Retail Odds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Base | 220 | - | ? | ? |
| short-set | 150 | - | ? | ? |
| Rated Rookies | 48 | 2001 | 1:24 | 1:24 |
| Rated Rookies Redemptions | 2 | 500 | ? | ? |
| Fan Club | 20 | 5000 | 1:24 | 1:24 |
| Career Stat Lines | 220 | varies | ? | ? |
| Season Stat Lines | 220 | varies | ? | ? |
| "1999" Retro short-set | 80 | - | 1:1 | N/A |
| "1999" Retro Rookies | 20 | 1999 | 1:24 | N/A |
| "1999" Retro Career Stat Lines | 100 | varies | 1:24 | N/A |
| "1999" Retro Season Stat Lines | 100 | varies | 1:24 | N/A |
| "1999" Retro Diamond Kings | 5 | 2500 | 1:24 | N/A |
| "1999" Retro Diamond Kings Studio Series | 5 | 250 | 1:144 | N/A |
| "2000" Retro short-set | 80 | - | N/A | 1:1 |
| "2000" Retro Rookies | 20 | 2000 | N/A | 1:24 |
| "2000" Retro Career Stat Lines | 100 | varies | N/A | 1:24 |
| "2000" Retro Season Stat Lines | 100 | varies | N/A | 1:24 |
| "2000" Retro Diamond Kings | 5 | 2500 | N/A | 1:24 |
| "2000" Retro Diamond Kings Studio Series | 5 | 250 | N/A | 1:24 |
| All-Time Diamond Kings | 10 | 2500 | ? | ? |
| All-Time Diamond Kings Studio Series | 10 | 250 | ? | ? |
| Diamond Kings | 20 | 2500 | ? | ? |
| Diamond Kings Studio Series | 20 | 250 | ? | ? |
| Elite Series | 20 | 2500 | ? | ? |
| Elite Dominators | 20 | 25 | ? | ? |
| Longball Leaders | 20 | 1000 | ? | ? |
| Production Line | 60 | from 316 to 1061 | ? | ? |
| Production Line Die-Cut | 60 | 100 | ? | ? |
| Diamond Kings Reprints | 20 | from 1982 to 1989 | ? | ? |
| Rookie Reprints | 40 | from 1982 to 1992 | ? | ? |
| Bat Kings | 10 | 200 | ? | ? |
| Bat Kings Autographed | 10 | 50 | ? | ? |
| Jersey Kings | 10 | 250 | ? | ? |
| Jersey Kings Autographed | 10 | 50 | ? | ? |
| All-Time Diamond Kings Autographed | 10 | 50 | ? | ? |
| Diamond Kings Autographed | 11 | 50 | ? | ? |
| Diamond Kings Reprints Autographed | 20 | from 82 to 89 | ? | ? |
| Rookie Reprints Autographed | 26 | from 82 to 92 | ? | ? |
| Recollection Collection Autographs | 7 | from 10 to 50 | ? | ? |
| "2000" Alex Rodriguez Autographed Diamond King | 1 | 50 | N/A | ? |
Checklist
Base Set
Short Set
1 Alex Rodriguez
2 Barry Bonds
3 Cal Ripken, Jr.
4 Chipper Jones
5 Derek Jeter
6 Troy Glaus
7 Frank Thomas
8 Greg Maddux
9 Ivan Rodriguez
10 Jeff Bagwell
11 Jose Canseco
12 Todd Helton
13 Ken Griffey, Jr.
14 Manny Ramirez
15 Mark McGwire
16 Mike Piazza
17 Nomar Garciaparra
18 Pedro Martinez
19 Randy Johnson
20 Rick Ankiel
21 Rickey Henderson
22 Roger Clemens
23 Sammy Sosa
24 Tony Gwynn
25 Vladimir Guerrero
26 Eric Davis
27 Roberto Alomar
28 Mark Mulder
29 Pat Burrell
30 Harold Baines
31 Carlos Delgado
32 J.D. Drew
33 Jim Edmonds
34 Darin Erstad
35 Jason Giambi
36 Tom Glavine
37 Juan Gonzalez
38 Mark Grace
39 Shawn Green
40 Tim Hudson
41 Andruw Jones
42 Dave Justice
43 Jeff Kent
44 Barry Larkin
45 Pokey Reese
46 Mike Mussina
47 Hideo Nomo
48 Rafael Palmeiro
49 Adam Piatt
50 Scott Rolen
51 Gary Sheffield
52 Bernie Williams
53 Bob Abreu
54 Edgardo Alfonzo
55 Jermaine Clark
56 Albert Belle
57 Craig Biggio
58 Andres Galarraga
59 Edgar Martinez
60 Fred McGriff
61 Magglio Ordonez
62 Jim Thome
63 Matt Williams
64 Kerry Wood
65 Moises Alou
66 Brady Anderson
67 Garret Anderson
68 Tony Armas
69 Tony Batista
70 Jose Cruz
71 Carlos Beltran
72 Adrian Beltre
73 Kris Benson
74 Lance Berkman
75 Kevin Brown
76 Jay Buhner
77 Jeromy Burnitz
78 Ken Caminiti
79 Sean Casey
80 Luis Castillo
81 Eric Chavez
82 Jeff Cirillo
83 Bartolo Colon
84 David Cone
85 Freddy Garcia
86 Johnny Damon
87 Ray Durham
88 Jermaine Dye
89 Juan Encarnacion
90 Terrence Long
91 Carl Everett
92 Steve Finley
93 Cliff Floyd
94 Brad Fullmer
95 Brian Giles
96 Luis Gonzalez
97 Rusty Greer
98 Jeffrey Hammonds
99 Mike Hampton
100 Orlando Hernandez
101 Richard Hidalgo
102 Geoff Jenkins
103 Jacque Jones
104 Brian Jordan
105 Gabe Kapler
106 Eric Karros
107 Jason Kendall
108 Adam Kennedy
109 Byung-Hyun Kim
110 Ryan Klesko
111 Chuck Knoblauch
112 Paul Konerko
113 Carlos Lee
114 Kenny Lofton
115 Javy Lopez
116 Tino Martinez
117 Ruben Mateo
118 Kevin Millwood
119 Ben Molina
120 Raul Mondesi
121 Trot Nixon
122 John Olerud
123 Paul O'Neill
124 Chan Ho Park
125 Andy Pettitte
126 Jorge Posada
127 Mark Quinn
128 Aramis Ramirez
129 Mariano Rivera
130 Tim Salmon
131 Curt Schilling
132 Richie Sexson
133 John Smoltz
134 J.T. Snow
135 Jay Payton
136 Shannon Stewart
137 B.J. Surhoff
138 Mike Sweeney
139 Fernando Tatis
140 Miguel Tejada
141 Jason Varitek
142 Greg Vaughn
143 Mo Vaughn
144 Robin Ventura
145 Jose Vidro
146 Omar Vizquel
147 Larry Walker
148 David Wells
149 Rondell White
150 Preston Wilson
Rated Rookies
Note: All cards are serial numbered to 2001 copies, except cards #156 and #159. Card #156 was scheduled to be Brian Cole, but in early 2001 he was tragically killed in an automobile crash and Donruss pulled his card from production. It is unclear whose card #159 was supposed to be (probably C.C. Sabathia), but whoever he was, he was also pulled. Both Cole and mystery player #159 were replaced with exchange cards for Albert Pujols and Ben Sheets.
Although 500 copies of each redemption card were inserted into packs, and each Pujols and Sheets exchange card is serial numbered to 500, it is believed that only about half the Pujols cards were actually fulfilled. http://www.stalegum.com/2006/06/just-how-many-donruss-albert-pujols.html
151 Rated Rookie - Brent Abernathy
152 Rated Rookie - Cory Aldridge
153 Rated Rookie - Gene Altman
154 Rated Rookie - Josh Beckett
155 Rated Rookie - Wilson Betemit
156 Rated Rookie - Albert Pujols
157 Rated Rookie - Joe Crede
158 Rated Rookie - Jack Cust
159 Rated Rookie - Ben Sheets
160 Rated Rookie - Alex Escobar
161 Rated Rookie - Adrian Hernandez
162 Rated Rookie - Pedro Feliz
163 Rated Rookie - Nate Frese
164 Rated Rookie - Carlos Garcia
165 Rated Rookie - Marcus Giles
166 Rated Rookie - Alexis Gomez
167 Rated Rookie - Jason Hart
168 Rated Rookie - Eric Hinske
169 Rated Rookie - Cesar Izturis
170 Rated Rookie - Nick Johnson
171 Rated Rookie - Mike Young
172 Rated Rookie - Brian Lawrence
173 Rated Rookie - Steve Lomasney
174 Rated Rookie - Nick Maness
175 Rated Rookie - Jose Mieses
176 Rated Rookie - Greg Miller
177 Rated Rookie - Eric Munson
178 Rated Rookie - Xavier Nady
179 Rated Rookie - Blaine Neal
180 Rated Rookie - Abraham Nunez
181 Rated Rookie - Jose Ortiz
182 Rated Rookie - Jeremy Owens
183 Rated Rookie - Pablo Ozuna
184 Rated Rookie - Corey Patterson
185 Rated Rookie - Carlos Pena
186 Rated Rookie - Wily Mo Pena
187 Rated Rookie - Timo Perez
188 Rated Rookie - Adam Pettyjohn
189 Rated Rookie - Luis Rivas
190 Rated Rookie - Jackson Melian
191 Rated Rookie - Wilken Ruan
192 Rated Rookie - Duaner Sanchez
193 Rated Rookie - Alfonso Soriano
194 Rated Rookie - Rafael Soriano
195 Rated Rookie - Ichiro Suzuki
196 Rated Rookie - Billy Sylvester
197 Rated Rookie - Juan Uribe
198 Rated Rookie - Eric Valent
199 Rated Rookie - Carlos Valderrama
200 Rated Rookie - Matt White
Fan Club
Each Fan Club subset card was seeded into packs at the rate of 1:24. Although not serial-numbered, it is believed that 5000 copies of each were produced.
201 Alex Rodriguez
202 Barry Bonds
203 Cal Ripken, Jr.
204 Chipper Jones
205 Derek Jeter
206 Troy Glaus
207 Frank Thomas
208 Greg Maddux
209 Ivan Rodriguez
210 Jeff Bagwell
211 Todd Helton
212 Ken Griffey, Jr.
213 Manny Ramirez
214 Mark McGwire
215 Mike Piazza
216 Pedro Martinez
217 Sammy Sosa
218 Tony Gwynn
219 Vladimir Guerrero
220 Nomar Garciaparra
Parallels
Baseball's Best Factory Set
Similar to the Topps Tiffany sets of the 80s and 90s, Baseball's Best is a "high-end" factory set of the entire 220-card 2001 Donruss base set. In addition, the set also included the 105-card Donruss The Rookies set, and all five Rookie Diamond Kings.
Originally, the Baseball's Best set was only available through a redemption program that worked like this: Seeded into packs of 2001 Donruss baseball (at the rate of 1:720), were coupons that enabled the lucky collector to purchase one of 1000 Baseball's Best factory sets for $104.99. Unfortunately, Donruss printed more than the 1000 sets stated on the redemption card. Towards the end of 2001, Donruss solicited dealers to purchase the set without the redemption coupon. As a result, Donruss would up making 1597 sets (597 more than originally stated).
What's more, unbeknownst to collectors, Donruss made three different versions of the Baseball's Best set: Bronze (limited to 999 sets), Silver (499 sets), and Gold (99 sets). Because of this, some have deduced that those who purchased the set via the redemption card received a Bronze set, and dealers who bought direct got either a Silver or Gold. However, this conspiracy theory has never been proven.
All Baseball's Best cards are identical to their base set counterparts, with the addition of either a gold, silver, or bronze "Baseball's Best" stamp on each card's obverse.
Season Stat Line
Each card in this parallel is serial numbered to a specific season statistic.
Just like in the base set, the SSL's of cards #156 and #159 packed out as redemptions. Shortly after the product went live, Donruss publicly announced that only 17 copies of #156 and eight copies of #159 were to be produced. Unfortunately, Donruss wound up inserting more exchange cards than there were Season Stat Lines to go around.
To make it up to exchange card holders, Donruss printed up a special batch of SSL's and contracted with the two athletes in question to autograph these cards. The cards were Donruss' first to feature the now infamous "Sticker Autograph." Also, these autographed SSLs were not serial numbered.
1 Alex Rodriguez
2 Barry Bonds
3 Cal Ripken, Jr.
4 Chipper Jones
5 Derek Jeter
6 Troy Glaus
7 Frank Thomas
8 Greg Maddux
9 Ivan Rodriguez
10 Jeff Bagwell
11 Jose Canseco
12 Todd Helton
13 Ken Griffey, Jr.
14 Manny Ramirez
15 Mark McGwire
16 Mike Piazza
17 Nomar Garciaparra
18 Pedro Martinez
19 Randy Johnson
20 Rick Ankiel
21 Rickey Henderson
22 Roger Clemens
23 Sammy Sosa
24 Tony Gwynn
25 Vladimir Guerrero
26 Eric Davis
27 Roberto Alomar
28 Mark Mulder
29 Pat Burrell
30 Harold Baines
31 Carlos Delgado
32 J.D. Drew
33 Jim Edmonds
34 Darin Erstad
35 Jason Giambi
36 Tom Glavine
37 Juan Gonzalez
38 Mark Grace
39 Shawn Green
40 Tim Hudson
41 Andruw Jones
42 Dave Justice
43 Jeff Kent
44 Barry Larkin
45 Pokey Reese
46 Mike Mussina
47 Hideo Nomo
48 Rafael Palmeiro
49 Adam Piatt
50 Scott Rolen
51 Gary Sheffield
52 Bernie Williams
53 Bob Abreu
54 Edgardo Alfonzo
55 Jermaine Clark
56 Albert Belle
57 Craig Biggio
58 Andres Galarraga
59 Edgar Martinez
60 Fred McGriff
61 Magglio Ordonez
62 Jim Thome
63 Matt Williams
64 Kerry Wood
65 Moises Alou
66 Brady Anderson
67 Garret Anderson
68 Tony Armas
69 Tony Batista
70 Jose Cruz
71 Carlos Beltran
72 Adrian Beltre
73 Kris Benson
74 Lance Berkman
75 Kevin Brown
76 Jay Buhner
77 Jeromy Burnitz
78 Ken Caminiti
79 Sean Casey
80 Luis Castillo
81 Eric Chavez
82 Jeff Cirillo
83 Bartolo Colon
84 David Cone
85 Freddy Garcia
86 Johnny Damon
87 Ray Durham
88 Jermaine Dye
89 Juan Encarnacion
90 Terrence Long
91 Carl Everett
92 Steve Finley
93 Cliff Floyd
94 Brad Fullmer
95 Brian Giles
96 Luis Gonzalez
97 Rusty Greer
98 Jeffrey Hammonds
99 Mike Hampton
100 Orlando Hernandez
101 Richard Hidalgo
102 Geoff Jenkins
103 Jacque Jones
104 Brian Jordan
105 Gabe Kapler
106 Eric Karros
107 Jason Kendall
108 Adam Kennedy
109 Byung-Hyun Kim
110 Ryan Klesko
111 Chuck Knoblauch
112 Paul Konerko
113 Carlos Lee
114 Kenny Lofton
115 Javy Lopez
116 Tino Martinez
117 Ruben Mateo
118 Kevin Millwood
119 Ben Molina
120 Raul Mondesi
121 Trot Nixon
122 John Olerud
123 Paul O'Neill
124 Chan Ho Park
125 Andy Pettitte
126 Jorge Posada
127 Mark Quinn
128 Aramis Ramirez
129 Mariano Rivera
130 Tim Salmon
131 Curt Schilling
132 Richie Sexson
133 John Smoltz
134 J.T. Snow
135 Jay Payton
136 Shannon Stewart
137 B.J. Surhoff
138 Mike Sweeney
139 Fernando Tatis
140 Miguel Tejada
141 Jason Varitek
142 Greg Vaughn
143 Mo Vaughn
144 Robin Ventura
145 Jose Vidro
146 Omar Vizquel
147 Larry Walker
148 David Wells
149 Rondell White
150 Preston Wilson
151 Rated Rookie - Brent Abernathy
152 Rated Rookie - Cory Aldridge
153 Rated Rookie - Gene Altman
154 Rated Rookie - Josh Beckett
155 Rated Rookie - Wilson Betemit
156 Rated Rookie - Albert Pujols
156 Rated Rookie - Albert Pujols (Autographed)
157 Rated Rookie - Joe Crede
158 Rated Rookie - Jack Cust
159 Rated Rookie - Ben Sheets
159 Rated Rookie - Ben Sheets (Autographed)
160 Rated Rookie - Alex Escobar
161 Rated Rookie - Adrian Hernandez
162 Rated Rookie - Pedro Feliz
163 Rated Rookie - Nate Frese
164 Rated Rookie - Carlos Garcia
165 Rated Rookie - Marcus Giles
166 Rated Rookie - Alexis Gomez
167 Rated Rookie - Jason Hart
168 Rated Rookie - Eric Hinske
169 Rated Rookie - Cesar Izturis
170 Rated Rookie - Nick Johnson
171 Rated Rookie - Mike Young
172 Rated Rookie - Brian Lawrence
173 Rated Rookie - Steve Lomasney
174 Rated Rookie - Nick Maness
175 Rated Rookie - Jose Mieses
176 Rated Rookie - Greg Miller
177 Rated Rookie - Eric Munson
178 Rated Rookie - Xavier Nady
179 Rated Rookie - Blaine Neal
180 Rated Rookie - Abraham Nunez
181 Rated Rookie - Jose Ortiz
182 Rated Rookie - Jeremy Owens
183 Rated Rookie - Pablo Ozuna
184 Rated Rookie - Corey Patterson
185 Rated Rookie - Carlos Pena
186 Rated Rookie - Wily Mo Pena
187 Rated Rookie - Timo Perez
188 Rated Rookie - Adam Pettyjohn
189 Rated Rookie - Luis Rivas
190 Rated Rookie - Jackson Melian
191 Rated Rookie - Wilken Ruan
192 Rated Rookie - Duaner Sanchez
193 Rated Rookie - Alfonso Soriano
194 Rated Rookie - Rafael Soriano
195 Rated Rookie - Ichiro Suzuki
196 Rated Rookie - Billy Sylvester
197 Rated Rookie - Juan Uribe
198 Rated Rookie - Eric Valent
199 Rated Rookie - Carlos Valderrama
200 Rated Rookie - Matt White
201 Alex Rodriguez
202 Barry Bonds
203 Cal Ripken, Jr.
204 Chipper Jones
205 Derek Jeter
206 Troy Glaus
207 Frank Thomas
208 Greg Maddux
209 Ivan Rodriguez
210 Jeff Bagwell
211 Todd Helton
212 Ken Griffey, Jr.
213 Manny Ramirez
214 Mark McGwire
215 Mike Piazza
216 Pedro Martinez
217 Sammy Sosa
218 Tony Gwynn
219 Vladimir Guerrero
220 Nomar Garciaparra
Career Stat Line
Similar to the Season Stat Lines, this time each is serial numbered to a specific career statistic. In most (but not all) instances, there are more copies of a player's Career Stat Line(CSL) than his Season Stat Line (SSL).
Again, the CSL's of cards #156 and #159 packed out as redemptions, with Donruss stating that only 154 copies of #156 and 159 copies of #159 were to be produced. But just like the SSL's, Donruss made more exchange cards than there were cards with the excess card holders getting an un-numbered CSL with a sticker autograph in exchange.
1 Alex Rodriguez
2 Barry Bonds
3 Cal Ripken, Jr.
4 Chipper Jones
5 Derek Jeter
6 Troy Glaus
7 Frank Thomas
8 Greg Maddux
9 Ivan Rodriguez
10 Jeff Bagwell
11 Jose Canseco
12 Todd Helton
13 Ken Griffey, Jr.
14 Manny Ramirez
15 Mark McGwire
16 Mike Piazza
17 Nomar Garciaparra
18 Pedro Martinez
19 Randy Johnson
20 Rick Ankiel
21 Rickey Henderson
22 Roger Clemens
23 Sammy Sosa
24 Tony Gwynn
25 Vladimir Guerrero
26 Eric Davis
27 Roberto Alomar
28 Mark Mulder
29 Pat Burrell
30 Harold Baines
31 Carlos Delgado
32 J.D. Drew
33 Jim Edmonds
34 Darin Erstad
35 Jason Giambi
36 Tom Glavine
37 Juan Gonzalez
38 Mark Grace
39 Shawn Green
40 Tim Hudson
41 Andruw Jones
42 Dave Justice
43 Jeff Kent
44 Barry Larkin
45 Pokey Reese
46 Mike Mussina
47 Hideo Nomo
48 Rafael Palmeiro
49 Adam Piatt
50 Scott Rolen
51 Gary Sheffield
52 Bernie Williams
53 Bob Abreu
54 Edgardo Alfonzo
55 Jermaine Clark
56 Albert Belle
57 Craig Biggio
58 Andres Galarraga
59 Edgar Martinez
60 Fred McGriff
61 Magglio Ordonez
62 Jim Thome
63 Matt Williams
64 Kerry Wood
65 Moises Alou
66 Brady Anderson
67 Garret Anderson
68 Tony Armas
69 Tony Batista
70 Jose Cruz
71 Carlos Beltran
72 Adrian Beltre
73 Kris Benson
74 Lance Berkman
75 Kevin Brown
76 Jay Buhner
77 Jeromy Burnitz
78 Ken Caminiti
79 Sean Casey
80 Luis Castillo
81 Eric Chavez
82 Jeff Cirillo
83 Bartolo Colon
84 David Cone
85 Freddy Garcia
86 Johnny Damon
87 Ray Durham
88 Jermaine Dye
89 Juan Encarnacion
90 Terrence Long
91 Carl Everett
92 Steve Finley
93 Cliff Floyd
94 Brad Fullmer
95 Brian Giles
96 Luis Gonzalez
97 Rusty Greer
98 Jeffrey Hammonds
99 Mike Hampton
100 Orlando Hernandez
101 Richard Hidalgo
102 Geoff Jenkins
103 Jacque Jones
104 Brian Jordan
105 Gabe Kapler
106 Eric Karros
107 Jason Kendall
108 Adam Kennedy
109 Byung-Hyun Kim
110 Ryan Klesko
111 Chuck Knoblauch
112 Paul Konerko
113 Carlos Lee
114 Kenny Lofton
115 Javy Lopez
116 Tino Martinez
117 Ruben Mateo
118 Kevin Millwood
119 Ben Molina
120 Raul Mondesi
121 Trot Nixon
122 John Olerud
123 Paul O'Neill
124 Chan Ho Park
125 Andy Pettitte
126 Jorge Posada
127 Mark Quinn
128 Aramis Ramirez
129 Mariano Rivera
130 Tim Salmon
131 Curt Schilling
132 Richie Sexson
133 John Smoltz
134 J.T. Snow
135 Jay Payton
136 Shannon Stewart
137 B.J. Surhoff
138 Mike Sweeney
139 Fernando Tatis
140 Miguel Tejada
141 Jason Varitek
142 Greg Vaughn
143 Mo Vaughn
144 Robin Ventura
145 Jose Vidro
146 Omar Vizquel
147 Larry Walker
148 David Wells
149 Rondell White
150 Preston Wilson
151 Rated Rookie - Brent Abernathy
152 Rated Rookie - Cory Aldridge
153 Rated Rookie - Gene Altman
154 Rated Rookie - Josh Beckett
155 Rated Rookie - Wilson Betemit
156 Rated Rookie - Albert Pujols
156 Rated Rookie - Albert Pujols (Autographed)
157 Rated Rookie - Joe Crede
158 Rated Rookie - Jack Cust
159 Rated Rookie - Ben Sheets
159 Rated Rookie - Ben Sheets (Autographed)
160 Rated Rookie - Alex Escobar
161 Rated Rookie - Adrian Hernandez
162 Rated Rookie - Pedro Feliz
163 Rated Rookie - Nate Frese
164 Rated Rookie - Carlos Garcia
165 Rated Rookie - Marcus Giles
166 Rated Rookie - Alexis Gomez
167 Rated Rookie - Jason Hart
168 Rated Rookie - Eric Hinske
169 Rated Rookie - Cesar Izturis
170 Rated Rookie - Nick Johnson
171 Rated Rookie - Mike Young
172 Rated Rookie - Brian Lawrence
173 Rated Rookie - Steve Lomasney
174 Rated Rookie - Nick Maness
175 Rated Rookie - Jose Mieses
176 Rated Rookie - Greg Miller
177 Rated Rookie - Eric Munson
178 Rated Rookie - Xavier Nady
179 Rated Rookie - Blaine Neal
180 Rated Rookie - Abraham Nunez
181 Rated Rookie - Jose Ortiz
182 Rated Rookie - Jeremy Owens
183 Rated Rookie - Pablo Ozuna
184 Rated Rookie - Corey Patterson
185 Rated Rookie - Carlos Pena
186 Rated Rookie - Wily Mo Pena
187 Rated Rookie - Timo Perez
188 Rated Rookie - Adam Pettyjohn
189 Rated Rookie - Luis Rivas
190 Rated Rookie - Jackson Melian
191 Rated Rookie - Wilken Ruan
192 Rated Rookie - Duaner Sanchez
193 Rated Rookie - Alfonso Soriano
194 Rated Rookie - Rafael Soriano
195 Rated Rookie - Ichiro Suzuki
196 Rated Rookie - Billy Sylvester
197 Rated Rookie - Juan Uribe
198 Rated Rookie - Eric Valent
199 Rated Rookie - Carlos Valderrama
200 Rated Rookie - Matt White
201 Alex Rodriguez
202 Barry Bonds
203 Cal Ripken, Jr.
204 Chipper Jones
205 Derek Jeter
206 Troy Glaus
207 Frank Thomas
208 Greg Maddux
209 Ivan Rodriguez
210 Jeff Bagwell
211 Todd Helton
212 Ken Griffey, Jr.
213 Manny Ramirez
214 Mark McGwire
215 Mike Piazza
216 Pedro Martinez
217 Sammy Sosa
218 Tony Gwynn
219 Vladimir Guerrero
220 Nomar Garciaparra
Inserts
Expired Set Redemption Cards
Donruss inserted into packs two cards that allowed collectors the right to purchase one of two special factory sets. One card enabled the collector to purchase the 2001 Donruss The Rookies Baseball factory set for $24.99. The other card allowed the holder to buy of one 1000 "Baseball's Best" factory sets for $104.99. As previously mentioned, Donruss proceeded to print more than 1000 Baseball's Best sets.
The stated odds of finding the Donruss The Rookies redemption card was 1:72/packs, while the odds of pulling the Baseball's Best card: 1:720 and was exclusive to Hobby packs.
NNO BB Best Coupon
NNO The Rookies Coupon
Retroactive
These two sets were designed to simulate what a 1999 and 2000 Donruss set would have looked like, if they had been released. The design is based on the respective year's Donruss Football set, and the player's are shown in the uniforms of the team the played for in that particular year.
The "1999" Retroactives were inserted into hobby packs and the "2000s" in retail. Both sets are 100 cards with eighty veterans and 20 serial-numbered "Rated Rookies." In addition, there are a slew of Stat Line parallels, and five additional Diamond King Inserts. Unfortunately, rather than simply including it with the other 2001 cards, the Retroactive card was wrapped separately in it's own one-card "pack." These single-card packs were extremely difficult to open, and as a result, many of the Retroactives were damaged coming out of the pack.
"1999" Retroactive
Overall odds of finding a "1999" Retroactive short set card, Rated Rookie, Stat Line, or "1999" Diamond King: one-per hobby pack.
Short Set
1 Ken Griffey, Jr.
2 Nomar Garciaparra
3 Alex Rodriguez
4 Mark McGwire
5 Sammy Sosa
6 Chipper Jones
7 Mike Piazza
8 Barry Larkin
9 Andruw Jones
10 Albert Belle
11 Jeff Bagwell
12 Tony Gwynn
13 Manny Ramirez
14 Mo Vaughn
15 Barry Bonds
16 Frank Thomas
17 Vladimir Guerrero
18 Derek Jeter
19 Randy Johnson
20 Greg Maddux
21 Pedro Martinez
22 Cal Ripken, Jr.
23 Ivan Rodriguez
24 Matt Williams
25 Javy Lopez
26 Tim Salmon
27 Raul Mondesi
28 Todd Helton
29 Magglio Ordonez
30 Sean Casey
31 Jeromy Burnitz
32 Jeff Kent
33 Jim Edmonds
34 Jim Thome
35 Dante Bichette
36 Larry Walker
37 Will Clark
38 Omar Vizquel
39 Mike Mussina
40 Eric Karros
41 Kenny Lofton
42 Dave Justice
43 Craig Biggio
44 J.D. Drew
45 Rickey Henderson
46 Bernie Williams
47 Brian Giles
48 Paul O'Neill
49 Orlando Hernandez
50 Jason Giambi
51 Curt Schilling
52 Scott Rolen
53 Mark Grace
54 Moises Alou
55 Jason Kendall
56 Ray Lankford
57 Kerry Wood
58 Gary Sheffield
59 Ruben Mateo
60 Darin Erstad
61 Troy Glaus
62 Jose Canseco
63 Wade Boggs
64 Tom Glavine
65 Gabe Kapler
66 Juan Gonzalez
67 Rafael Palmeiro
68 Richie Sexson
69 Carl Everett
70 David Wells
71 Carlos Delgado
72 Eric Davis
73 Shawn Green
74 Andres Galarraga
75 Edgar Martinez
76 Roberto Alomar
77 John Olerud
78 Luis Gonzalez
79 Kevin Brown
80 Roger Clemens
Rated Rookies
Cards 81-100 make up a "Rated Rookies" subset and are numbered to 1999 copies. Although the exact insertion ratio was not listed, it is believed that the Rated Rookies were inserted at the rate of 1:24/hobby packs.
81 Josh Beckett
82 Alfonso Soriano
83 Alex Escobar
84 Pat Burrell
85 Eric Chavez
86 Erubiel Durazo
87 Abraham Nunez
88 Carlos Pena
89 Nick Johnson
90 Eric Munson
91 Corey Patterson
92 Wily Mo Pena
93 Rafael Furcal
94 Eric Valent
95 Mark Mulder
96 Chad Hutchinson
97 Freddy Garcia
98 Tim Hudson
99 Rick Ankiel
100 Kip Wells
"1999" Retroactive Career Stat Lines
The concept is similar to the Career Stat Line and Season Stat Line cards in the base set. It is believed that the odds of finding either a "1999" CSL or SSL was one in 1:24/hobby packs.
1 Ken Griffey, Jr.
2 Nomar Garciaparra
3 Alex Rodriguez
4 Mark McGwire
5 Sammy Sosa
6 Chipper Jones
7 Mike Piazza
8 Barry Larkin
9 Andruw Jones
10 Albert Belle
11 Jeff Bagwell
12 Tony Gwynn
13 Manny Ramirez
14 Mo Vaughn
15 Barry Bonds
16 Frank Thomas
17 Vladimir Guerrero
18 Derek Jeter
19 Randy Johnson
20 Greg Maddux
21 Pedro Martinez
22 Cal Ripken, Jr.
23 Ivan Rodriguez
24 Matt Williams
25 Javy Lopez
26 Tim Salmon
27 Raul Mondesi
28 Todd Helton
29 Magglio Ordonez
30 Sean Casey
31 Jeromy Burnitz
32 Jeff Kent
33 Jim Edmonds
34 Jim Thome
35 Dante Bichette
36 Larry Walker
37 Will Clark
38 Omar Vizquel
39 Mike Mussina
40 Eric Karros
41 Kenny Lofton
42 Dave Justice
43 Craig Biggio
44 J.D. Drew
45 Rickey Henderson
46 Bernie Williams
47 Brian Giles
48 Paul O'Neill
49 Orlando Hernandez
50 Jason Giambi
51 Curt Schilling
52 Scott Rolen
53 Mark Grace
54 Moises Alou
55 Jason Kendall
56 Ray Lankford
57 Kerry Wood
58 Gary Sheffield
59 Ruben Mateo
60 Darin Erstad
61 Troy Glaus
62 Jose Canseco
63 Wade Boggs
64 Tom Glavine
65 Gabe Kapler
66 Juan Gonzalez
67 Rafael Palmeiro
68 Richie Sexson
69 Carl Everett
70 David Wells
71 Carlos Delgado
72 Eric Davis
73 Shawn Green
74 Andres Galarraga
75 Edgar Martinez
76 Roberto Alomar
77 John Olerud
78 Luis Gonzalez
79 Kevin Brown
80 Roger Clemens
81 Josh Beckett
82 Alfonso Soriano
83 Alex Escobar
84 Pat Burrell
85 Eric Chavez
86 Erubiel Durazo
87 Abraham Nunez
88 Carlos Pena
89 Nick Johnson
90 Eric Munson
91 Corey Patterson
92 Wily Mo Pena
93 Rafael Furcal
94 Eric Valent
95 Mark Mulder
96 Chad Hutchinson
97 Freddy Garcia
98 Tim Hudson
99 Rick Ankiel
100 Kip Wells
"1999" Retroactive Season Stat Lines
1 Ken Griffey, Jr.
2 Nomar Garciaparra
3 Alex Rodriguez
4 Mark McGwire
5 Sammy Sosa
6 Chipper Jones
7 Mike Piazza
8 Barry Larkin
9 Andruw Jones
10 Albert Belle
11 Jeff Bagwell
12 Tony Gwynn
13 Manny Ramirez
14 Mo Vaughn
15 Barry Bonds
16 Frank Thomas
17 Vladimir Guerrero
18 Derek Jeter
19 Randy Johnson
20 Greg Maddux
21 Pedro Martinez
22 Cal Ripken, Jr.
23 Ivan Rodriguez
24 Matt Williams
25 Javy Lopez
26 Tim Salmon
27 Raul Mondesi
28 Todd Helton
29 Magglio Ordonez
30 Sean Casey
31 Jeromy Burnitz
32 Jeff Kent
33 Jim Edmonds
34 Jim Thome
35 Dante Bichette
36 Larry Walker
37 Will Clark
38 Omar Vizquel
39 Mike Mussina
40 Eric Karros
41 Kenny Lofton
42 Dave Justice
43 Craig Biggio
44 J.D. Drew
45 Rickey Henderson
46 Bernie Williams
47 Brian Giles
48 Paul O'Neill
49 Orlando Hernandez
50 Jason Giambi
51 Curt Schilling
52 Scott Rolen
53 Mark Grace
54 Moises Alou
55 Jason Kendall
56 Ray Lankford
57 Kerry Wood
58 Gary Sheffield
59 Ruben Mateo
60 Darin Erstad
61 Troy Glaus
62 Jose Canseco
63 Wade Boggs
64 Tom Glavine
65 Gabe Kapler
66 Juan Gonzalez
67 Rafael Palmeiro
68 Richie Sexson
69 Carl Everett
70 David Wells
71 Carlos Delgado
72 Eric Davis
73 Shawn Green
74 Andres Galarraga
75 Edgar Martinez
76 Roberto Alomar
77 John Olerud
78 Luis Gonzalez
79 Kevin Brown
80 Roger Clemens
81 Josh Beckett
82 Alfonso Soriano
83 Alex Escobar
84 Pat Burrell
85 Eric Chavez
86 Erubiel Durazo
87 Abraham Nunez
88 Carlos Pena
89 Nick Johnson
90 Eric Munson
91 Corey Patterson
92 Wily Mo Pena
93 Rafael Furcal
94 Eric Valent
95 Mark Mulder
96 Chad Hutchinson
97 Freddy Garcia
98 Tim Hudson
99 Rick Ankiel
100 Kip Wells
"1999" Retroactive Diamond Kings
This five-card set features Diamond King cards that Donruss would have produced had they been around 1999. The design is based on the "Gridiron Kings" insert from 1999 Donruss Football. Each card is serial numbered to 2500 copies, with a "Studio Series" version (complete with faux canvas fronts) numbered to 250.
The insertion ratio was not listed, but on average every fifth hobby box (1:120/hobby packs)yielded a DK.
1 Scott Rolen
2 Sammy Sosa
3 Juan Gonzalez
4 Ken Griffey, Jr.
5 Derek Jeter
"2000" Retroactive
Overall odds of finding a "2000" Retroactive short set card, Rated Rookie, Stat Line, or "2000" Diamond King: one-per retail pack.
Short Set
1 Vladimir Guerrero
2 Alex Rodriguez
3 Ken Griffey, Jr.
4 Nomar Garciaparra
5 Mike Piazza
6 Mark McGwire
7 Sammy Sosa
8 Chipper Jones
9 Jim Edmonds
10 Tony Gwynn
11 Andruw Jones
12 Albert Belle
13 Jeff Bagwell
14 Manny Ramirez
15 Mo Vaughn
16 Barry Bonds
17 Frank Thomas
18 Ivan Rodriguez
19 Derek Jeter
20 Randy Johnson
21 Greg Maddux
22 Pedro Martinez
23 Cal Ripken, Jr.
24 Mark Grace
25 Javy Lopez
26 Ray Durham
27 Todd Helton
28 Magglio Ordonez
29 Sean Casey
30 Darin Erstad
31 Barry Larkin
32 Will Clark
33 Jim Thome
34 Dante Bichette
35 Larry Walker
36 Ken Caminiti
37 Omar Vizquel
38 Miguel Tejada
39 Eric Karros
40 Gary Sheffield
41 Jeff Cirillo
42 Rondell White
43 Rickey Henderson
44 Bernie Williams
45 Brian Giles
46 Paul O'Neill
47 Orlando Hernandez
48 Ben Grieve
49 Jason Giambi
50 Curt Schilling
51 Scott Rolen
52 Bob Abreu
53 Jason Kendall
54 Fernando Tatis
55 Jeff Kent
56 Mike Mussina
57 Troy Glaus
58 Jose Canseco
59 Wade Boggs
60 Fred McGriff
61 Juan Gonzalez
62 Rafael Palmeiro
63 Rusty Greer
64 Carl Everett
65 David Wells
66 Carlos Delgado
67 Shawn Green
68 Dave Justice
69 Edgar Martinez
70 Andres Galarraga
71 Roberto Alomar
72 Jermaine Dye
73 John Olerud
74 Luis Gonzalez
75 Craig Biggio
76 Kevin Millwood
77 Kevin Brown
78 John Smoltz
79 Roger Clemens
80 Mike Hampton
Rated Rookies
Cards 81-100 make up a "Rated Rookies" subset and are numbered to 2000 copies. Although the exact insertion ratio was not listed, it is believed that the Rated Rookies were inserted at the rate of 1:24/retail packs.
Cards #82 and #95 -- originally scheduled to be Brian Cole and Ben Sheets -- packed out as redemptions. Cole was pulled from the set due to his untimely death during the 2000-2001 off-season, and Sheets was yanked as he had been dropped from the Brewers' 40-man roster. Originally Cole was to be replaced by C.C. Sabathia, and Sheets with Ichiro Suzuki. Sabathia had to be pulled for the same reason Sheets was: he was moved off of Cleveland's 40-man roster. The choice of replacing Sheets with Ichiro was curious to say the least, as he had played the 2000 season in Japan.
By the time the product went live, Sheets was put back on the 40-man roster and allowed to be included. So the redemption for card #82 (originally Cole, then Sabathia) was fulfilled with Sheets, and Sheets' original card (#95) was fulfilled by Suzuki. Confused yet? Well both the Sheets and Suzuki exchange cards -- the ones mailed back to collectors -- were numbered as "95." It is unknown exactly how many Ichiro and Sheets exchange cards were actually fulfilled.
In 2007, The Cardboard Junkie (http://cardjunk.blogspot.com/2007/11/2007-cy-young-award-winners.html) scanned a "2000" Retroactive Rated Rookie of C.C. Sabathia to his popular baseball card blog. When inquired about it, he claims that he received it from Donruss-Playoff as a bonus after sending an unrelated redemption card. Although the Junkie's "2000" Sabathia is serial numbered "247/500," it is unclear just how many Sabathia's are on the market.
81 Tomas De La Rosa
83 Ryan Christenson
84 Pedro Feliz
85 Jose Ortiz
86 Xavier Nady
87 Julio Zuleta
88 Jason Hart
89 Keith Ginter
90 Brent Abernathy
91 Timo Perez
92 Juan Pierre
93 Tike Redman
94 Mike Lamb
95 Ben Sheets (A)
95 Ichiro Suzuki (B)
96 Kazuhiro Sasaki
97 Barry Zito
98 Adam Bernero
99 Chad Durbin
100 Matt Ginter
"2000" Retroactive Career Stat Lines
It is believed that the odds of finding either a "2000" CSL or SSL was one in 1:24/retail packs. Again, cards #82 and #95 packed out as redemptions. But for some strange reason, C.C. Sabathia (who was pulled from the regular "2000" Retroactive set) was included in both the CSLs and SSLs as card #82 -- even though he should have been pulled. Card #95 was fulfilled with Ichiro Suzuki. Ben Sheets, who was one of the two card #95s in the base set, is not included in either the CSL or SSL parallel sets.
1 Vladimir Guerrero
2 Alex Rodriguez
3 Ken Griffey, Jr.
4 Nomar Garciaparra
5 Mike Piazza
6 Mark McGwire
7 Sammy Sosa
8 Chipper Jones
9 Jim Edmonds
10 Tony Gwynn
11 Andruw Jones
12 Albert Belle
13 Jeff Bagwell
14 Manny Ramirez
15 Mo Vaughn
16 Barry Bonds
17 Frank Thomas
18 Ivan Rodriguez
19 Derek Jeter
20 Randy Johnson
21 Greg Maddux
22 Pedro Martinez
23 Cal Ripken, Jr.
24 Mark Grace
25 Javy Lopez
26 Ray Durham
27 Todd Helton
28 Magglio Ordonez
29 Sean Casey
30 Darin Erstad
31 Barry Larkin
32 Will Clark
33 Jim Thome
34 Dante Bichette
35 Larry Walker
36 Ken Caminiti
37 Omar Vizquel
38 Miguel Tejada
39 Eric Karros
40 Gary Sheffield
41 Jeff Cirillo
42 Rondell White
43 Rickey Henderson
44 Bernie Williams
45 Brian Giles
46 Paul O'Neill
47 Orlando Hernandez
48 Ben Grieve
49 Jason Giambi
50 Curt Schilling
51 Scott Rolen
52 Bob Abreu
53 Jason Kendall
54 Fernando Tatis
55 Jeff Kent
56 Mike Mussina
57 Troy Glaus
58 Jose Canseco
59 Wade Boggs
60 Fred McGriff
61 Juan Gonzalez
62 Rafael Palmeiro
63 Rusty Greer
64 Carl Everett
65 David Wells
66 Carlos Delgado
67 Shawn Green
68 Dave Justice
69 Edgar Martinez
70 Andres Galarraga
71 Roberto Alomar
72 Jermaine Dye
73 John Olerud
74 Luis Gonzalez
75 Craig Biggio
76 Kevin Millwood
77 Kevin Brown
78 John Smoltz
79 Roger Clemens
80 Mike Hampton
81 Tomas De La Rosa
82 C.C. Sabathia
83 Ryan Christenson
84 Pedro Feliz
85 Jose Ortiz
86 Xavier Nady
87 Julio Zuleta
88 Jason Hart
89 Keith Ginter
90 Brent Abernathy
91 Timo Perez
92 Juan Pierre
93 Tike Redman
94 Mike Lamb
95 Ichiro Suzuki
96 Kazuhiro Sasaki
97 Barry Zito
98 Adam Bernero
99 Chad Durbin
100 Matt Ginter
"2000" Retroactive Season Stat Lines
1 Vladimir Guerrero
2 Alex Rodriguez
3 Ken Griffey, Jr.
4 Nomar Garciaparra
5 Mike Piazza
6 Mark McGwire
7 Sammy Sosa
8 Chipper Jones
9 Jim Edmonds
10 Tony Gwynn
11 Andruw Jones
12 Albert Belle
13 Jeff Bagwell
14 Manny Ramirez
15 Mo Vaughn
16 Barry Bonds
17 Frank Thomas
18 Ivan Rodriguez
19 Derek Jeter
20 Randy Johnson
21 Greg Maddux
22 Pedro Martinez
23 Cal Ripken, Jr.
24 Mark Grace
25 Javy Lopez
26 Ray Durham
27 Todd Helton
28 Magglio Ordonez
29 Sean Casey
30 Darin Erstad
31 Barry Larkin
32 Will Clark
33 Jim Thome
34 Dante Bichette
35 Larry Walker
36 Ken Caminiti
37 Omar Vizquel
38 Miguel Tejada
39 Eric Karros
40 Gary Sheffield
41 Jeff Cirillo
42 Rondell White
43 Rickey Henderson
44 Bernie Williams
45 Brian Giles
46 Paul O'Neill
47 Orlando Hernandez
48 Ben Grieve
49 Jason Giambi
50 Curt Schilling
51 Scott Rolen
52 Bob Abreu
53 Jason Kendall
54 Fernando Tatis
55 Jeff Kent
56 Mike Mussina
57 Troy Glaus
58 Jose Canseco
59 Wade Boggs
60 Fred McGriff
61 Juan Gonzalez
62 Rafael Palmeiro
63 Rusty Greer
64 Carl Everett
65 David Wells
66 Carlos Delgado
67 Shawn Green
68 Dave Justice
69 Edgar Martinez
70 Andres Galarraga
71 Roberto Alomar
72 Jermaine Dye
73 John Olerud
74 Luis Gonzalez
75 Craig Biggio
76 Kevin Millwood
77 Kevin Brown
78 John Smoltz
79 Roger Clemens
80 Mike Hampton
81 Tomas De La Rosa
82 C.C. Sabathia
83 Ryan Christenson
84 Pedro Feliz
85 Jose Ortiz
86 Xavier Nady
87 Julio Zuleta
88 Jason Hart
89 Keith Ginter
90 Brent Abernathy
91 Timo Perez
92 Juan Pierre
93 Tike Redman
94 Mike Lamb
95 Ichiro Suzuki
96 Kazuhiro Sasaki
97 Barry Zito
98 Adam Bernero
99 Chad Durbin
100 Matt Ginter
"2000" Retroactive Diamond Kings
This five-card set features Diamond King cards that Donruss would have produced had they been around in 2000. The design is based on the "Gridiron Kings" from 2000 Donruss Football. Each card is serial numbered to 2500 copies, with a "Studio Series" version (complete with faux canvas fronts) numbered to 250. The insertion ratio was not listed, but on average every seventh retail blaster box (1:119/retail packs) yielded a DK.
DK1 Frank Thomas
DK2 Greg Maddux
DK3 Alex Rodriguez
DK4 Jeff Bagwell
DK5 Manny Ramirez
All-Time Diamond Kings
A Diamond Kings set featuring ten Hall of Famers. What's not to like? Each card is serial numbered to 2500 copies, with a Studio Series parallel version numbered to 250, with the first fifty copies autographed.
Both Willie Mays and Hank Aaron's cards packed out as redemptions. On the provisional checklist, Mays was scheduled to be card #ATDK9. However the exchange card was numbered as ATDK1. Therefore, this set is skip-numbered.
ATDK1 Willie Mays / Frank Robinson
ATDK2 Harmon Killebrew
ATDK3 Mike Schmidt
ATDK4 Reggie Jackson
ATDK5 Nolan Ryan
ATDK6 George Brett
ATDK7 Tom Seaver
ATDK8 Hank Aaron
ATDK10 Stan Musial
Diamond Kings
The first new Diamond Kings in three years. All cards in this twenty-card set are numbered to 2500, with a Studio Series parallel numbered to 250. Donruss got some players to autograph the first fifty copies of their Studio Series DK, but not all. Therefore, there are some SSDK's that are limited to 200 copies, and other to 250. Those players who did not sign are designated with a caret (See Below).
DK1 Alex Rodriguez
DK2 Cal Ripken, Jr.
DK3 Mark McGwire
DK4 Ken Griffey, Jr.
DK5 Derek Jeter
DK6 Nomar Garciaparra
DK7 Mike Piazza
DK8 Roger Clemens
DK9 Greg Maddux
DK10 Chipper Jones
DK11 Tony Gwynn
DK12 Barry Bonds
DK13 Sammy Sosa
DK14 Vladimir Guerrero
DK15 Frank Thomas
DK16 Troy Glaus
DK17 Todd Helton
DK18 Ivan Rodriguez
DK19 Pedro Martinez
DK20 Carlos Delgado
Diamond King Reprints
This set reprints twenty Diamond Kings from previous Donruss sets. Each is serial numbered to the year in which the original Diamond King was produced.
In addition, all of the players -- except Griffey, Jr. -- signed for set. The Autographed Diamond King Reprints are discussed in the "Autograph and Game Used" section.
Griffey, Jr's. card is an uncorrected error. Since Griffey, Jr's. card is a reprint of his 1990 Donruss Diamond King, it should have been serial numbered to 1990 copies instead of 1989.
DKR1 Rod Carew
DKR2 Nolan Ryan
DKR3 Tom Seaver
DKR4 Carlton Fisk
DKR5 Reggie Jackson
DKR6 Steve Carlton
DKR7 Johnny Bench
DKR8 Joe Morgan
DKR9 Mike Schmidt
DKR10 Wade Boggs
DKR11 Cal Ripken, Jr.
DKR12 Tony Gwynn
DKR13 Andre Dawson
DKR14 Ozzie Smith
DKR15 George Brett
DKR16 Dave Winfield
DKR17 Paul Molitor
DKR18 Will Clark
DKR19 Robin Yount
DKR20 Ken Griffey, Jr.
Elite Series
The twenty most "l33t" players in the game. All the usual suspects are included. Each is numbered to 2500, with an Elite Dominators parallel numbered to 25.
ES1 Vladimir Guerrero
ES2 Cal Ripken, Jr.
ES3 Greg Maddux
ES4 Alex Rodriguez
ES5 Barry Bonds
ES6 Chipper Jones
ES7 Derek Jeter
ES8 Ivan Rodriguez
ES9 Ken Griffey, Jr.
ES10 Mark McGwire
ES11 Mike Piazza
ES12 Nomar Garciaparra
ES13 Pedro Martinez
ES14 Randy Johnson
ES15 Roger Clemens
ES16 Sammy Sosa
ES17 Tony Gwynn
ES18 Darin Erstad
ES19 Andruw Jones
ES20 Bernie Williams
Longball Leaders
Set features the twenty top home run hitters from the 2000 season. Each is numbered to 1000 copies, with a die-cut Season Production parallel numbered to the home runs hit (listed below in parenthesis) in the 2000 season.
LL1 Vladimir Guerrero
LL2 Alex Rodriguez
LL3 Barry Bonds
LL4 Troy Glaus
LL5 Frank Thomas
LL6 Jeff Bagwell
LL7 Todd Helton
LL8 Ken Griffey, Jr.
LL9 Manny Ramirez
LL10 Mike Piazza
LL11 Sammy Sosa
LL12 Carlos Delgado
LL13 Jim Edmonds
LL14 Jason Giambi
LL15 Dave Justice
LL16 Rafael Palmeiro
LL17 Gary Sheffield
LL18 Jim Thome
LL19 Tony Batista
LL20 Richard Hidalgo
Production Line
This massive sixty-card set features 2000's league leaders in three offensive statistics. Cards 1-20 are the leaders in on-base percentage, 21-40 in slugging percentage, and 41-60 in the power index -- a stat more commonly referred to as "on-base plus slugging," and even more commonly referred to as simply "OPS." Each card is serial numbered to the player's respective 2000 stat in that category multiplied by 1000.
For example, Todd Helton's on-base percentage in 2000 was .463; therefore, his Production Line insert (card #PL3) is numbered to 463 copies. In addition, the first 100 copies of each card are die-cut. So, using the Helton example, there are 100 die-cuts and the remaining 363 are not.
PL1 Jason Giambi
PL2 Carlos Delgado
PL3 Todd Helton
PL4 Manny Ramirez
PL5 Barry Bonds
PL6 Gary Sheffield
PL7 Frank Thomas
PL8 Nomar Garciaparra
PL9 Brian Giles
PL10 Edgardo Alfonzo
PL11 Jeff Kent
PL12 Jeff Bagwell
PL13 Edgar Martinez
PL14 Alex Rodriguez
PL15 Luis Castillo
PL16 Will Clark
PL17 Jorge Posada
PL18 Derek Jeter
PL19 Bob Abreu
PL20 Moises Alou
PL21 Todd Helton
PL22 Manny Ramirez
PL23 Barry Bonds
PL24 Carlos Delgado
PL25 Vladimir Guerrero
PL26 Jason Giambi
PL27 Gary Sheffield
PL28 Richard Hidalgo
PL29 Sammy Sosa
PL30 Frank Thomas
PL31 Moises Alou
PL32 Jeff Bagwell
PL33 Mike Piazza
PL34 Alex Rodriguez
PL35 Troy Glaus
PL36 Nomar Garciaparra
PL37 Jeff Kent
PL38 Brian Giles
PL39 Geoff Jenkins
PL40 Carl Everett
PL41 Todd Helton
PL42 Manny Ramirez
PL43 Carlos Delgado
PL44 Barry Bonds
PL45 Jason Giambi
PL46 Gary Sheffield
PL47 Vladimir Guerrero
PL48 Frank Thomas
PL49 Sammy Sosa
PL50 Moises Alou
PL51 Jeff Bagwell
PL52 Nomar Garciaparra
PL53 Richard Hidalgo
PL54 Alex Rodriguez
PL55 Brian Giles
PL56 Jeff Kent
PL57 Mike Piazza
PL58 Troy Glaus
PL59 Edgar Martinez
PL60 Jim Edmonds
Rookie Reprints
Similar in concept to the Diamond King Reprints, just subsitute "Rookie Cards" for "Diamond Kings" and you get the idea here. Please note as there are two cards numbered RR39, as Jeff Kent -- who is on the checklist as card #RR40 -- was erroneously printed as card #RR39.
RR1 Cal Ripken, Jr.
RR2 Wade Boggs
RR3 Tony Gwynn
RR4 Ryne Sandberg
RR5 Don Mattingly
RR6 Joe Carter
RR7 Roger Clemens
RR8 Kirby Puckett
RR9 Orel Hershiser
RR10 Andres Galarraga
RR11 Jose Canseco
RR12 Fred McGriff
RR13 Paul O'Neill
RR14 Mark McGwire
RR15 Barry Bonds
RR16 Kevin Brown
RR17 David Cone
RR18 Rafael Palmeiro
RR19 Barry Larkin
RR20 Bo Jackson
RR21 Greg Maddux
RR22 Roberto Alomar
RR23 Mark Grace
RR24 David Wells
RR25 Tom Glavine
RR26 Matt Williams
RR27 Ken Griffey, Jr.
RR28 Randy Johnson
RR29 Gary Sheffield
RR30 Craig Biggio
RR31 Curt Schilling
RR32 Larry Walker
RR33 Bernie Williams
RR34 Sammy Sosa
RR35 Juan Gonzalez
RR36 Dave Justice
RR37 Ivan Rodriguez
RR38 Jeff Bagwell
RR39 Jeff Kent / Manny Ramirez
Autographs and Game Used
Autographed "2000" Retroactive Studio Series Diamond Kings
Alex Rodriguez signed the first fifty copies of his "2000" SSDK for random insertion into 2001 Donruss retail packs.
Autographed Studio Series All-Time Diamond Kings
This is an autographed parallel of the Studio Series All-Time Diamond Kings, which itself is a parallel of the All-Time Diamond Kings. Each SSATDK was numbered to 250 copies, with the first 50 signed by the player. In other words, SSATDK's numbered 1 through 50 are autographed, 51 through 250 are not.
Cards numbered ATDK5, 8, and 9 packed out as redemptions. And just like in the regular ATDK set, Willie Mays' exchange card (originally #ATDK9) was numbered as #ATDK1.
ATDK1 Willie Mays / Frank Robinson
ATDK2 Harmon Killebrew
ATDK3 Mike Schmidt
ATDK4 Reggie Jackson
ATDK5 Nolan Ryan
ATDK6 George Brett
ATDK7 Tom Seaver
ATDK8 Hank Aaron
ATDK10 Stan Musial
Autographed Anniversary Originals
Each hobby box of 2001 Donruss came with a classic Donruss card that was re-purchased by Playoff and graded by BGS. In addition, twelve players agreed to autograph some of their cards before submission. Unfortunately, only three cards were available for packout, which led Donruss to include slabbed redemption cards for the other nine players. I'm not making that up. Donruss actually had BGS slab frickin' redemption cards!
82-405 Cal Ripken, Jr.
83-277 Ryne Sandberg
83-279 Cal Ripken, Jr.
83-586 Wade Boggs
83-598 Tony Gwynn
84-248 Don Mattingly
87-36 Greg Maddux
87-43 Rafael Palmeiro
87-361 Barry Bonds
88-34 Roberto Alomar
88-644 Tom Glavine
89-42 Randy Johnson
90-704 Dave Justice
Bat Kings/Autographed Bat Kings
This set features five players from the regular Diamond Kings and five from the All-Time Diamond Kings. The cards have a reprint of their Diamond King next to an oval shaped splinter of one of their game-used bats. Each is serial numbered to 250 copies.
The first fifty copies of each were due to have an autograph; however, four players did not submit their Autographed Bat Kings in time, and Donruss was forced to replace them with redemption cards. Three of the four players (I. Rodriguez, T. Helton, and T. Glaus) eventually did send in their autographs, but Donruss was unable to get Barry Bonds to send his in. To make it up to collectors, each Barry Bonds Autographed Bat King redemption was fulfilled with an un-autographed Bat King card and an autographed Barry Bonds Recollection Collection autograph (see below).
BK1 Ivan Rodriguez
BK2 Tony Gwynn
BK3 Barry Bonds
BK4 Todd Helton
BK5 Troy Glaus
BK6 Mike Schmidt
BK7 Reggie Jackson
BK8 Harmon Killebrew
BK9 Frank Robinson
BK10 Hank Aaron
Autographed Studio Series Diamond Kings
Same deal as the Autographed Studio Series All-Time Diamond Kings, except that only 11 of the 20 players agreed to sign. for all 20 players, each SSDK was numbered to 250 copies. For the eleven players who signed, the first fifty copies of each SSDK are autographed and the remaining 200 are un-signed. Nine of the twelve cards packed out as redemptions.
DK1 Alex Rodriguez
DK2 Cal Ripken, Jr.
DK8 Roger Clemens
DK9 Greg Maddux
DK10 Chipper Jones
DK11 Tony Gwynn
DK12 Barry Bonds
DK14 Vladimir Guerrero
DK16 Troy Glaus
DK17 Todd Helton
DK18 Ivan Rodriguez
Autographed Diamond Kings Reprints
This set is an autographed parallel of the Diamond Kings Reprints. Each card is serial numbered to the year the card made its appearance in the Donruss set, minus 1900. Eleven of the nineteen autographees packed out as redemptions.
Since Ken Griffey, Jr. was under an exclusive autograph contract to Upper Deck, Donruss was unable to have him autograph any of his DKR cards. Since he was the only player unable to sign, Donruss simply made a special un-autographed parallel numbered to only 89 copies, to round out the set. As mentioned in the listing for the regular DKR's, the Griffey, Jr. is an un-corrected error, as the card reprinted was in the 1990 Donruss set, not the '89 one. DKR1 Rod Carew
DKR2 Nolan Ryan
DKR3 Tom Seaver
DKR4 Carlton Fisk
DKR5 Reggie Jackson
DKR6 Steve Carlton
DKR7 Johnny Bench
DKR8 Joe Morgan
DKR9 Mike Schmidt
DKR10 Wade Boggs
DKR11 Cal Ripken, Jr.
DKR12 Tony Gwynn
DKR13 Andre Dawson
DKR14 Ozzie Smith
DKR15 George Brett
DKR16 Dave Winfield
DKR17 Paul Molitor
DKR18 Will Clark
DKR19 Robin Yount
DKR20 Ken Griffey, Jr.
Jersey Kings/Autographed Jersey Kings
Same concept as the Bat Kings, only with different players and a different piece of game used material. Each card is numbered to 250 copies, with the first 50 autographed.
Cards #JK4 and JK10 were listed on the checklist as "To Be Determined." Therefore all 250 copies (50 autographed and 200 unautographed) packed out as redemptions. Only later, months after 2001 Donruss went live, did Donruss reveal who those players were (Chipper Jones and Ozzie Smith respectively). In addition, the autographed cards of four players did not arrive in time for inclusion in the product, so Donruss went the redemption route.
JK1 Vladimir Guerrero
JK2 Cal Ripken, Jr.
JK3 Greg Maddux
JK4 Chipper Jones
JK5 Roger Clemens
JK6 George Brett
JK7 Tom Seaver
JK8 Nolan Ryan
JK9 Stan Musial
JK10 Ozzie Smith
Recollection Collection
Both Alex Rodriguez and Barry Bonds each signed 100 cards for random inclusion in the 2001 Donruss set. All of A-Rod's cards packed out as exchange cards, which makes sense since 70 of the 100 cards he signed were 2001 Donruss cards. (For the record, he signed 30 "2000" Retroactive inserts and 40 '01 base cards). 50 of the 100 cards Barry Bonds signed were sent to collectors who pulled a redemption card for an autographed Bat King. Since there were only 50 redemption cards, it is unclear what happened to the other 50 cards Donruss said Bonds signed.
BB1 Barry Bonds
BB2 Barry Bonds
BB3 Barry Bonds
RC1 Alex Rodriguez
RC2 Alex Rodriguez
RC3 Alex Rodriguez
RC4 Alex Rodriguez
Autographed Rookie Reprints
Much like the Autographed Diamond King Reprints, this 26-card set partially parallels the Rookie Reprint set. All cards are serial numbered to the year of the player's rookie card, minus 1900.
21 of the 26 cards packed out as redemptions, one of which was redeemable for an autograph of a player not represented in the Rookie Reprint set. Donruss was unable to get David Wells to sign, so redemption card #RR24 was fulfilled with an autographed reprint of Luis Gonzalez's 1991 Donruss card (numbered to 91 copies). Since there were only 88 redemption cards, it is unclear what happened to the three extra cards Gonzalez signed -- if he signed them at all.
RR1 Cal Ripken, Jr.
RR2 Wade Boggs
RR3 Tony Gwynn
RR4 Ryne Sandberg
RR5 Don Mattingly
RR6 Joe Carter
RR7 Roger Clemens
RR8 Kirby Puckett
RR9 Orel Hershiser
RR10 Andres Galarraga
RR15 Barry Bonds
RR16 Kevin Brown
RR17 David Cone
RR18 Rafael Palmeiro
RR20 Bo Jackson
RR21 Greg Maddux
RR22 Roberto Alomar
RR24 Luis Gonzalez
RR25 Tom Glavine
RR28 Randy Johnson
RR29 Gary Sheffield
RR31 Curt Schilling
RR35 Juan Gonzalez
RR36 Dave Justice
RR37 Ivan Rodriguez
RR39 Manny Ramirez
