Card of the Week: Luis Robert becomes a comic book hero
A couple of White Sox outfielders earned a comic strip in the latest Topps Heritage set.
Superman, Batman, Spider-Man and … Luis Robert?
The star White Sox center fielder soars through the sky to catch fly balls and his strength scares opposing pitchers whenever he steps into the batter’s box, so it’s fitting he’s become the latest comic book superhero, kind of.
In the latest Topps Heritage set, Robert is one of 25 players who owns a “1973 Topps Comic” card, along with Eloy Jiménez, Mike Trout, Shohei Ohtani, Roberto Clemente, Hank Aaron and others.
The card illustrates some of Robert’s career highlights, though it mostly shines a light on his enormous potential. It mentions Jiménez’s lofty prediction of Robert becoming the next Trout, as well as the 24-year-old center fielder wanting to become the first 30/30 player in franchise history. While Robert has hit a small slump at the plate, he has a league-high five stolen bases this season, showing it’s an attainable goal for him, given a green light on the base paths.
It takes note of his 487-foot postseason home run against the Oakland A’s in his debut playoffs, as well. And it’s never a bad time to watch him unleash a missile into the outfield bleachers.
This is one of many unique cards for Robert, who has been given short-prints (SPs) in nearly every set since his MLB debut. His five-tool ability made him a popular player among collectors, with him being the top rookie to collect in the 2020 Topps set. That said, while Robert has had some of the best SPs in the sport, they’ve mainly been close-up shots of him sitting in the dugout or running in from the outfield.
This comic card is unique, though, and while maybe not as expensive of a pull, it’s a nice mix-up from some of his past cards.
In case you were wondering what was featured on Jiménez’s comic strip, here’s a look.