Team Issue 2004...I Didn't Know!

In my most recent post on the team issued Cubs cards, I mentioned that the 2003 cards were the last from the Cubs. Well, I was wrong.

JayBee left a comment that pointed out that the Cubs had two team issued cards in 2004. I have no idea how I missed those. But when I checked the giveaway list in the 2004 media guide, there they were. Thanks, JayBee for pointing that out.

Luckily, one of my primary sources for Cubs team issued cards, AU Sports on the Beckett Market place had both cards. After a few clicks, the cards were headed my way.

As they had been doing for the past three years, the cards were made by Topps especially for the Cubs. Each card had the special Wrigley Field logo on the front and was numbered to 20,000 on the back. It's curious that the Cubs cut back to only two card giveaways in '04. I wonder what the reason was?

One of featured players was an active player, Mark Prior, and one was from the past, Shawon Dunston.



Prior's card is from 2003. What's a little unusual is the back of the card.



His card in the 2002 base set was #10. The back of this card says 2 of 2. This was the second of two that the Cubs gave away, but on every card over the past four years, the regular card number wasn't changed. Odd.



Dunston's card is from the Cubs division winning season of 1989. He's the fourth member from that team to get one of these cards. Dunston was popular, but not as popular as his first baseman, Mark Grace. But in 2004 Grace was still on the outs with the Cubs brass for trashing the team after the 2001 World Series.

NOW I believe I can say that this was the final year of Cubs team issued cards.

I am still on the hunt for three from the 2002 set: Lee Smith, Don Cardwell, and Dave Kingman. If anyone ever happens to find one at a shop somewhere, please let me know!