Bartolo Colon’s home run baseball card destroys Topps Now sales record.
New York Mets pitcher Bartolo Colon hit the first home run of his 17-year career against the San Diego Padres on Saturday, generating one of the most exciting and fun moments of the young baseball season. The 42-year-old Colon’s no-doubt blast to left field off James Shields was then immortalized in baseball card form by Topps Now, the card manufacturer’s new on-demand department that captures special moments throughout the season.
Topps Now ended production after just 24 hours and put the cards on sale at 11:30 a.m. ET on Sunday for $9.99 a piece. According to Darren Rovell of ESPN, 8,826 cards have already been sold, crushing the previous record held by Jake Arrieta’s no-hitter against the Cincinnati Reds by nearly 7,000 units.
@darrenrovell HERE IT IS! Bartolo Colon's #TOPPSNOW card https://t.co/tpN4j99mUZ pic.twitter.com/GYwPBZTnD8
— Topps (@Topps) May 8, 2016
Topps Director of product development, Jeff Heckman, called it the “perfect storm,” saying, “It was the right player in the right moment and it happened on a weekend.” Heckman added, “Colon just has a cult following. We could have never dreamed up something like this.”
More from MLB
- MLB Rumors: Insider names Braves’ most likely player to be traded
- MLB Trade Grades: Dodgers reunite with familiar face in Red Sox deal
- MLB Rumors: Cardinals budging on Arenado, Orioles-Ohtani package, Yankees backup plan
- MLB rumors: Nolan Arenado suitor, Tim Anderson landing spots, Mets reliever not enjoying trade talk
- MLB Rumors: Grading new trade fits for Shohei Ohtani, Braves, Willson Contreras
Colon, who took 31 seconds to trot around the bases after his moon-shot, also broke the record for the oldest player to hit a home run in MLB.
The lovable Bartolo, who shares the mound with young studs such as Matt Harvey, Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard, and Steven Matz, has seemingly surpassed these immense talents and is now the must-see attraction in Flushing. Big Bart consistently provides shocking highlight-reel moments that leave fans, teammates, and opponents alike smiling, shaking their heads in honest disbelief, and yearning for more.
Check out our MLB hub page for more.