Extra Innings by Joe Boesch

From his first beginnings with the White Sox, then the Red Sox, and finally the Braves, Chris Sale has made his presence on the mound known with his precise pitching and longevity in the game. For Sale, he doesn’t seem to be slowing down or even aging and just hit a career milestone with his 2608th career strikeout, which places him 29th on the all-time strikeout list. For his achievement, Topps Now has created his own card. His story on the back of his card goes like this: Chris Sale, now in his 16th season, is making his mark in the MLB record books. The Atlanta Braves southpaw tossed seven innings of one-run ball, racking up seven strikeouts to guide his squad to a 3-1 win over Philadelphia. Sale’s punchout of Felix Reyes in the seventh inning was the 2,608th of his career, passing Hall-of-Famer Tom Glavine for 29th on the all-time list. Until then, see you at the park. — Joe Boesch

From his first beginnings with the White Sox, then the Red Sox, and finally the Braves, Chris Sale has made his presence on the mound known with his precise pitching and longevity in the game. For Sale, he doesn’t seem to be slowing down or even aging and just hit a career milestone with his 2608th career strikeout, which places him 29th on the all-time strikeout list. For his achievement, Topps Now has created his own card. His story on the back of his card goes like this: Chris Sale, now in his 16th season, is making his mark in the MLB record books. The Atlanta Braves southpaw tossed seven innings of one-run ball, racking up seven strikeouts to guide his squad to a 3-1 win over Philadelphia. Sale’s punchout of Felix Reyes in the seventh inning was the 2,608th of his career, passing Hall-of-Famer Tom Glavine for 29th on the all-time list. Until then, see you at the park. — Joe Boesch

Mike Trout is showing his MVP-caliber performance again after the previous season of being hurt and not playing up to his All-Star capabilities. He’s been a hitting machine, literally, showing no signs of slowing down. With his exploits, Topps Now has offered a card for his feats. Here are their words of greatness for him: Angels fans are ecstatic to see Mike Trout playing at an MVP-caliber level, slugging his way into the MLB record books in an 11-4 win. The outfielder crushed a 446-foot blast in the seventh inning, going yard for the fourth straight contest. Trout’s five homers during this four-game set are the most ever in a series by a visiting player against the New York Yankees. Until then, see you at the park. — Joe Boesch

One needs to look no further and know that two of the best MLB players come from Japan and go by the names of Ichiro and Ohtani. Watching them play is a motion picture in the making—from hitting, fielding, and even pitching, in Ohtani’s case. With that, they both are featured on a special Topps Now card, and it exemplifies their baseball greatness. The wording on their card: Working a walk to reach first base in the opening frame in a series finale against Toronto, Shohei Ohtani found himself in the same sentence as Baseball legend Ichiro. The Los Angeles Dodgers two-way star extended his on-base streak to 43 games with that effort, tying the Seattle Mariners icon’s 2009 record for the longest such span by a Japanese MLB player. It doesn’t get any better than that. Until then, see you at the park. — Joe Boesch

The Dodgers are the baseball team that all teams want to be—with one of the greatest lineups and a pitching rotation that is lights out, with Shohei Ohtani leading it. They are also the first team to start three Japanese pitchers in a row, and that has been recognized by a Topps Now card. Here's their story from the back of the card: The Los Angeles Dodgers are clearly embracing international Baseball culture, becoming the first MLB Club ever to start three straight pitchers to hail from Japan. Following Roki Sasaki and Shohei Ohtani to begin a three-game set against Cleveland, Yoshinobu Yamamoto completed the historic sequence. "These guys are three great men," Manager Dave Roberts said. Until then, see you at the park. — Joe Boesch