2001 Leaf Rookies & Stars
Description
By far one of the most popular releases of the 2001 season for Donruss Leaf Playoff in their first year back in production. The last Rookies and Stars set was one of the most popular releases in 1998 with a high number of short prints, fantastic rookie cards, and numerous insert sets. The 2001 set also did not disappoint with a strong rookie class (Albert Pujols, Ichiro Suzuki, Mark Prior, Mark Teixeira and Travis Hafner) and a large number and variety of game used and autographed inserts.
Distribution
Hobby boxes of 2001 Leaf Rookies and Stars contained 24 packs of 5 cards each. Overall the boxes contained 1 GU/AU per box along with 6 short printed rookies from cards 101-200 and 1 short printed rookie from 201-300. That means your chances are 1:100 to pull an Albert Pujols rookie card from a box. These boxes still sell for $75-$100 on EBay and even higher elsewhere.
Reviews
Insertion Ratios
| Cards | Total Cards | Numbered To | Hobby Odds | Retail Odds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Base | ? | - | ? | ? |
Checklist
Promos
Two different sample sets were also released by DLP to hobby shops as a preview to the set. These cards are relatively rare with the Gold version being much more difficult to locate. Note that only cards 1-100 are included in the sample sets, no Pujols to chase in this group. The card fronts are identical to the base card fronts. The word "Sample" is stamped on the card back.
Base Set
Cards 101-200 were inserted at 1:4 and cards 201-300 were inserted at 1:24 packs (1 per box). This means you literally have a 1:100 shot per box of pulling the Pujols rookie.
A number of these cards had uncorrected errors, where the statistical header on the back of the card was swapped between pitchers and hitters. Did you know that Greg Maddux hit 200 doubles in 2000? Neither did I!
1 Alex Rodriguez
2 Derek Jeter
3 Aramis Ramirez
4 Cliff Floyd
5 Nomar Garciaparra
6 Craig Biggio
7 Ivan Rodriguez
8 Cal Ripken
9 Fred McGriff
10 Chipper Jones
11 Roberto Alomar
12 Moises Alou
13 Freddy Garcia
14 Bobby Abreu
15 Shawn Green
16 Jason Giambi
17 Todd Helton
18 Robert Fick
19 Tony Gwynn
20 Luis Gonzalez
21 Sean Casey
22 Roger Clemens UER - Batting Stat Headers
23 Brian Giles
24 Manny Ramirez
25 Barry Bonds
26 Richard Hidalgo
27 Vladimir Guerrero
28 Kevin Brown
29 Mike Sweeney
30 Ken Griffey Jr.
31 Mike Piazza
32 Richie Sexson
33 Matt Morris
34 Jorge Posada
35 Eric Chavez
36 Mark Buehrle
37 Jeff Bagwell
38 Curt Schilling
39 Bartolo Colon
40 Mark Quinn
41 Tony Clark
42 Brad Radke
43 Gary Sheffield
44 Doug Mientkiewicz
45 Pedro Martinez
46 Carlos Lee
47 Troy Glaus
48 Preston Wilson
49 Phil Nevin
50 Chan Ho Park
51 Randy Johnson
52 Jermaine Dye
53 Terrence Long
54 Joe Mays
55 Scott Rolen
56 Miguel Tejada
57 Jim Thome
58 Jose Vidro
59 Gabe Kapler
60 Darin Erstad
61 Jim Edmonds
62 Jarrod Washburn
63 Tom Glavine UER - Batting Stat Headers
64 Adrian Beltre
65 Sammy Sosa
66 Juan Gonzalez
67 Rafael Furcal
68 Mike Mussina
69 Mark McGwire
70 Ryan Klesko
71 Raul Mondesi
72 Trot Nixon
73 Barry Larkin
74 Rafael Palmeiro
75 Mark Mulder
76 Carlos Delgado
77 Mike Hampton
78 Carl Everett
79 Paul Konerko
80 Larry Walker
81 Kerry Wood
82 Frank Thomas
83 Andruw Jones
84 Eric Milton
85 Ben Grieve
86 Carlos Beltran
87 Tim Hudson
88 Hideo Nomo
89 Greg Maddux UER - Batting Stat Headers
90 Edgar Martinez
91 Lance Berkman
92 Pat Burrell
93 Jeff Kent
94 Magglio Ordonez
95 Cristian Guzman
96 Jose Canseco
97 J.D. Drew
98 Bernie Williams
99 Kazuhiro Sasaki
100 Rickey Henderson
Short-Printed Rookies (Tier 1)
101 Wilson Guzman RC
102 Nick Neugebauer
103 Lance Davis RC
104 Felipe Lopez
105 Toby Hall
106 Jack Cust
107 Jason Karnuth RC
108 Bart Miadich RC
109 Brian Roberts RC
110 Brandon Larson RC
111 Sean Douglass RC
112 Joe Crede
113 Tim Redding
114 Adam Johnson
115 Marcus Giles
116 Jose Ortiz
117 Jose Mieses RC
118 Nick Maness RC
119 Les Walrond RC
120 Travis Phelps RC
121 Troy Mattes RC
122 Carlos Garcia RC
123 Bill Ortega RC
124 Gene Altman RC
125 Nate Frese RC
126 Alfonso Soriano
127 Jose Nunez RC
128 Bob File RC
129 Dan Wright
130 Nick Johnson
131 Brent Abernathy
132 Steve Green RC
133 Billy Sylvester RC
134 Scott MacRae RC
135 Kris Keller RC
136 Scott Stewart RC
137 Henry Mateo RC
138 Timo Perez
139 Nate Teut RC
140 Jason Michaels RC
141 Junior Spivey RC
142 Carlos Pena
143 Wilmy Caceres RC
144 David Lundquist
145 Jack Wilson RC
146 Jeremy Fikac RC
147 Alex Escobar
148 Abraham Nunez
149 Xavier Nady
150 Michael Cuddyer
151 Greg Miller RC
152 Eric Munson
153 Aubrey Huff
154 Tim Christman RC
155 Erick Almonte RC
156 Mike Penney RC
157 Delvin James RC
158 Ben Sheets
159 Jason Hart
160 Jose Acevedo RC
161 Will Ohman RC
162 Erik Hiljus RC
163 Juan Moreno RC
164 Mike Koplove RC
165 Pedro Santana RC
166 Jimmy Rollins
167 Matt White RC
168 Cesar Crespo RC
169 Carlos Hernandez
170 Chris George
171 Brad Voyles RC
172 Luis Pineda RC
173 Carlos Zambrano
174 Nate Cornejo
175 Jason Smith RC
176 Craig Monroe RC
177 Cody Ransom RC
178 John Grabow RC
179 Pedro Feliz
180 Jeremy Owens RC
181 Kurt Ainsworth
182 Luis Lopez
183 Stubby Clapp RC
184 Ryan Freel RC
185 Duaner Sanchez RC
186 Jason Jennings
187 Kyle Lohse RC
188 Jerrod Riggan RC
189 Joe Beimel RC
190 Nick Punto RC
191 Willie Harris RC
192 Ryan Jensen RC
193 Adam Pettyjohn RC
194 Donaldo Mendez RC
195 Bret Prinz RC
196 Paul Phillips RC
197 Brian Lawrence RC
198 Cesar Izturis
199 Blaine Neal RC
200 Josh Fogg RC
Short-Printed Rookies (Tier 2)
201 Josh Towers RC
202 Tim Spooneybarger RC
203 Michael Rivera RC
204 Juan Cruz RC
205 Albert Pujols RC
206 Josh Beckett
207 Roy Oswalt
208 Elpidio Guzman RC
209 Horacio Ramirez RC
210 Corey Patterson
211 Geronimo Gil RC
212 Jay Gibbons RC
213 Orlando Woodards RC
214 David Espinosa
215 Angel Berroa RC
216 Brandon Duckworth RC
217 Brian Reith RC
218 David Brous RC
219 Bud Smith RC
220 Ramon Vazquez RC
221 Mark Teixeira RC
222 Justin Atchley RC
223 Tony Cogan RC
224 Grant Balfour RC
225 Ricardo Rodriguez RC
226 Brian Rogers RC
227 Adam Dunn
228 Wilson Betemit RC
229 Juan Diaz RC
230 Jackson Melian RC
231 Claudio Vargas RC
232 Wilkin Ruan RC
233 Justin Duchscherer RC
234 Kevin Olsen RC
235 Tony Fiore RC
236 Jeremy Affeldt RC
237 Mike Maroth RC
238 C.C. Sabathia
239 Cory Aldridge RC
240 Zach Day RC
241 Brett Jodie RC
242 Winston Abreu RC
243 Travis Hafner RC
244 Joe Kennedy RC
245 Rick Bauer RC
246 Mike Young
247 Ken Vining RC
248 Doug Nickle RC
249 Pablo Ozuna
250 Dustan Mohr RC
251 Ichiro Suzuki RC
252 Ryan Drese RC
253 Morgan Ensberg RC
254 George Perez RC
255 Roy Smith RC
256 Juan Uribe RC
257 Dewon Brazelton RC
258 Endy Chavez RC
259 Kris Foster RC
260 Eric Knott RC
261 Corky Miller RC
262 Larry Bigbie
263 Andres Torres RC
264 Adrian Hernandez RC
265 Johnny Estrada RC
266 David Williams RC
267 Steve Lomasney
268 Victor Zambrano RC
269 Keith Ginter
270 Casey Fossum RC
271 Josue Perez RC
272 Josh Phelps
273 Mark Prior RC
274 Brandon Berger RC
275 Scott Podsednik RC
276 Jorge Julio RC
277 Esix Snead RC
278 Brandon Knight RC
279 Saul Rivera RC
280 Benito Baez RC
281 Rob MacKowiak RC
282 Eric Hinske RC
283 Juan Rivera
284 Kevin Joseph RC
285 Juan A. Pena RC
286 Brandon Lyon RC
287 Adam Everett
288 Eric Valent
289 Ken Harvey
290 Bert Snow RC
291 Wily Mo Pena
292 Rafael Soriano RC
293 Carlos Valderrama RC
294 Christian Parker RC
295 Tsuyoshi Shinjo RC
296 Martin Vargas RC
297 Luke Hudson RC
298 Dee Brown
299 Alexis Gomez RC
300 Angel Santos RC
Parallels
A foil parallel set called the Longetivity set was also randomly inserted into packs. Cards 1-100 have 50 serial numbered sets and cards 101-300 have only 25 serial numbered sets.
Autographs & Game-Used
Autographs
A partial parallel set of 2001 Leaf Rookies and Stars. These cards feature sticker autographs of the player on the card. The cards are not serial numbered but have stated print runs between 50 - 250 copies per card. Most of the 76 players featured in the set had forgettable careers. The Pujols is far and away the most valuable card in the set. But the Travis Hafner, Mark Teixeira, Mark Prior and even to a lesser extent the Roy Oswalt cards also are sought after by collectors on the secondary market.
107 Jason Karnuth 250
110 Brandon Larson 100
117 Jose Mieses 250
118 Nick Maness 250
119 Les Walrond 250
122 Carlos Garcia 250
123 Bill Ortega 250
124 Gene Altman 250
125 Nate Frese 250
130 Nick Johnson 100
133 Billy Sylvester 250
135 Kris Keller 250
139 Nate Teut 250
140 Jason Michaels 250
143 Wilmy Caceres 250
145 Jack Wilson 100
151 Greg Miller 250
155 Erick Almonte 250
156 Mike Penney 250
157 Delvin James 250
161 Will Ohman 250
167 Matt White 250
180 Jeremy Owens 250
184 Ryan Freel 250
185 Duaner Sanchez 250
193 Adam Pettyjohn 100
194 Donaldo Mendez 100
196 Paul Phillips 250
197 Brian Lawrence 100
199 Blaine Neal 250
201 Josh Towers 100
203 Michael Rivera 250
204 Juan Cruz 100
205 Albert Pujols 50
207 Roy Oswalt 50
208 Elpidio Guzman 100
209 Horacio Ramirez 250
210 Corey Patterson 50
211 Geronimo Gil 250
212 Jay Gibbons 100
213 Orlando Woodards 250
215 Angel Berroa 100
216 Brandon Duckworth 100
218 David Brous 250
219 Bud Smith 50
221 Mark Teixeira 100
223 Tony Cogan 250
225 Ricardo Rodriguez 250
226 Brian Rogers 250
227 Adam Dunn 50
228 Wilson Betemit 100
231 Claudio Vargas 250
232 Wilkin Ruan 250
234 Kevin Olsen 250
236 Jeremy Affeldt 250
237 Mike Maroth 250
238 C.C. Sabathia 50
239 Cory Aldridge 250
240 Zach Day 250
243 Travis Hafner 250
244 Joe Kennedy 100
254 George Perez 250
256 Juan Uribe 250
257 Dewon Brazelton 100
261 Corky Miller 100
263 Andres Torres 100
265 Johnny Estrada 100
266 David Williams 250
270 Casey Fossum 250
273 Mark Prior 100
274 Brandon Berger 250
277 Esix Snead 250
282 Eric Hinske 250
292 Rafael Soriano 250
293 Carlos Valderrama 250
299 Alexis Gomez 250
Dress for Success
This insert set featured a game used jersey swatch and bat chip from some of the games biggest stars in 2001. The base set was inserted 1:96 (overall game used/autograph rate of 1 per box). None of these cards will have prime jersey pieces unless they are part of the Prime Cuts parallel set.
A parallel set featuring prime jersey swatches along with the bat chips were also inserted into packs. These cards were serial numbered to 50 sets. They also feature the words "Prime Cuts" on the front of the card.
Additionally some of the Dress for Success cards were also autographed (sticker) by the player featured on the card. Note- if an autographed version of the card exists, it is noted in the checklist below.
DFS-01 Cal Ripken
DFS-02 Mike Piazza
DFS-03 Barry Bonds
DFS-04 Frank Thomas
DFS-05 Nomar Garciaparra
DFS-06 Richie Sexson AUTO
DFS-07 Brian Giles AUTO
DFS-08 Todd Helton AUTO
DFS-09 Ivan Rodriguez
DFS-10 Andruw Jones
DFS-11 Juan Gonzalez
DFS-12 Vladimir Guerrero AUTO
DFS-13 Greg Maddux AUTO
DFS-14 Tony Gwynn
DFS-15 Randy Johnson
DFS-16 Jeff Bagwell AUTO
DFS-17 Kerry Wood AUTO
DFS-18 Roberto Alomar
DFS-19 Chipper Jones AUTO
DFS-20 Pedro Martinez
DFS-21 Shawn Green AUTO
DFS-22 Magglio Ordonez
DFS-23 Darin Erstad
DFS-24 Rafael Palmeiro
DFS-25 Edgar Martinez AUTO
Freshman Orientation
These cards showcase young players who are getting oriented into the major leagues. The cards featured game used memorabilia from the players including bat chips as well as pant, jersey and cap swatches. The cards were inserted at a rate of 1:96 packs. The Dunn, Pujols and Gibbons cards were short printed. None of these the regular Freshmen Orientation cards have prime pieces of jersey - only the Officers parallel set had prime pieces.
Additionally a Class Officers set also paralleled the main set and were printed to 50 serial numbered copies per card. The Officers set featured prime pieces of jersey. You can see the words "Class Officers" just to the left of the players name in the bottom right of the front of the card.
Also a group (21 out of 25) of the Freshmen Orientation cards were also autographed by the player. These sticker autographed cards were serial numbered to 100. The short printed autos are very rare, the Pujols sells for over $1000.
FO-1 Adam Dunn Bat AU SP
FO-2 Josh Towers Pants AU SP
FO-3 Vernon Wells Jsy
FO-4 Corey Patterson Pants AU SP
FO-5 Albert Pujols Bat AU SP
FO-6 Ben Sheets Jsy AU SP
FO-7 Pedro Feliz Bat AU
FO-8 Keith Ginter Bat AU
FO-9 Luis Rivas Bat AU
FO-10 Andres Torres Bat AU
FO-11 Carlos Valderrama Jsy AU
FO-12 Brandon Inge Jsy
FO-13 Jay Gibbons Cap AU
FO-14 Cesar Izturis Bat AU
FO-15 Marcus Giles Jsy AU
FO-16 Tsuyoshi Shinjo Jsy AU
FO-17 Eric Valent Bat AU
FO-18 David Espinosa Bat AU
FO-19 Aubrey Huff Jsy AU
FO-20 Wilmy Caceres Jsy AU
FO-21 Bud Smith Jsy AU SP
FO-22 Ricardo Rodriguez Pants AU
FO-23 Wes Helms Jsy AU
FO-24 Jason Hart Bat AU
FO-25 Dee Brown Jsy AU
Great American Treasures
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GT18 Wade Boggs
These cards were some of the controversial from 2001. DLP took the next step, not just any game used memorabilia, but specific game used memorabilia. Collectors were a little shocked, it was one thing to cut up a Greg Maddux Jersey or a Frank Thomas bat, but another thing altogether to cut up a ball from the game Roger Maris hit his 61st home run. These cards are highly sought after by player collectors and game used collectors as the cards feature memorabilia from important moments in each of the players' careers.
These cards were inserted at a stated odds of 1:1,120 hobby and 1:1,152 retail. Cards are not serial numbered but have a stated print run from Donruss.
GT1 Barry Bonds Giants 517 HR Jsy 50
GT2 Magglio Ordonez White Sox HR Bat 200
GT3 Derek Jeter Yankees 1st Game Ball 25
GT4 Nolan Ryan Rangers 7th No-Hit Ball 25
GT5 Sammy Sosa Cubs June HR Ball 25
GT6 Tom Glavine Braves 96 WS Jsy 100
GT7 Ivan Rodriguez Rangers 99 MVP Bat 200
GT8 Pedro Martinez Red Sox 300 K Ball 25
GT9 Mark McGwire Cardinals 60 HR Ball 25
GT10 Ted Williams Red Sox 517 HR Ball 25
GT11 Ryne Sandberg Cubs 91 AS Bat 200
GT12 Barry Bonds Giants 500 HR Ball 25
GT13 Hideo Nomo Red Sox No-Hit Ball 25
GT14 Roger Maris Yankees 61 HR Ball 25
GT15 Ty Cobb Tigers 09 WS Ball 25
GT16 Harmon Killebrew Senators 570 HR Bat 50
GT17 Magglio Ordonez White Sox 00 AS Cap 100
GT18 Wade Boggs Red Sox WS Bat 200
GT19 Hank Aaron Braves 755 HR Cap 25
GT20 David Cone Yankees Perfect Game Ball 25
Players Collection
CalRipken, TonyGwynn and BarryBonds were the featured players in this set, with 5 game used cards per player. Each player had a bat, shoe, pant and jersey card each serial numbered to 100 copies. Also a quad card featuring all four game used pieces that was serial numbered to 25 copies per card.
PC-1 (Gwynn Bat), PC-6 (Ripken Jersey) and PC-7 (Ripken Bat) also had an autographed version that is extremely rare.
Slideshow
A revival of the Slideshow inserts from the mid-1990s, these cards feature game used jersey pieces of some of the games top players. The cards were randomly inserted into packs at 1:96 packs for the base level Slideshow cards. A number of the Slideshow are recorded as short prints in the Beckett Price Guide and are stated to have 100 copies per card.
View Master
The View Master Slideshow parallels are one of the more innovative sets in 2001, the first jumbo swatch cards ever produced. The jersey piece could be pulled out of the card revealing a much larger swatch than just what was framed in the card. This set paralleled all 30 cards in the Slideshow insert set.
Slideshow Autographs
Additionally some of the Slideshow cards also had autographed stickers placed on the cards. These cards are extremely rare and are not priced in the price guide, but generally sell for $100 for the low end players and $500-$700 (or more!) for the Pujols. Only 12 of the 30 cards have an autographed version and are noted in the checklist below. Below is a picture of the Sean Casey from this set.
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Slideshow View Master
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Slideshow Autograph
| Number | Name | Team | SP? | Auto? |
| S-1 | Cal Ripken | Orioles | No | No |
| S-2 | Chipper Jones | Braves | Yes | Yes |
| S-3 | Jeff Bagwell | Astros | No | No |
| S-4 | Larry Walker | Rockies | No | No |
| S-5 | Greg Maddux | Braves | Yes | Yes |
| S-6 | Ivan Rodriguez | Rangers | No | No |
| S-7 | Andruw Jones | Braves | Yes | Yes |
| S-8 | Lance Berkman | Astros | Yes | Yes |
| S-9 | Luis Gonzalez | Diamondbacks | Yes | Yes |
| S-10 | Tony Gwynn | Padres | No | No |
| S-11 | Troy Glaus | Angels | Yes | Yes |
| S-12 | Todd Helton | Rockies | No | No |
| S-13 | Roberto Alomar | White Sox | No | No |
| S-14 | Barry Bonds | Giants | No | No |
| S-15 | Vladimir Guerrero | Expos | Yes | Yes |
| S-16 | Sean Casey | Reds | Yes | Yes |
| S-17 | Curt Schilling | Diamondbacks | Yes | Yes |
| S-18 | Frank Thomas | White Sox | No | No |
| S-19 | Pedro Martinez | Red Sox | No | No |
| S-20 | Juan Gonzalez | Indians | No | No |
| S-21 | Randy Johnson | Diamondbacks | No | No |
| S-22 | Kerry Wood | Cubs | Yes | Yes |
| S-23 | Mike Sweeney | Royals | No | No |
| S-24 | Magglio Ordonez | White Sox | No | No |
| S-25 | Kazuhiro Sasaki | Mariners | No | No |
| S-26 | Manny Ramirez | Red Sox | No | No |
| S-27 | Roger Clemens | Yankees | No | No |
| S-28 | Albert Pujols | Cardinals | Yes | Yes |
| S-29 | Hideo Nomo | Red Sox | No | No |
| S-30 | Miguel Tejada | A's | Yes | Yes |
Statistical Standouts
Triple Threads
The most highly sought after inserts in the 2001 Rookies and Stars set (after the Pujols autographs) are the Triple Thread inserts. These cards feature three game used jersey pieces from three different players who played together on the same team, either at the same time or at different points in the history of the franchise. Each card is serial numbered to 100 copies.
TT3 is a triple of Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig and Yogi Berra and is highly sought after by collectors on the secondary market.
| Number | Player 1 | Player 2 | Player 3 | Team |
| TT-01 | Pedro Martinez | Manny Ramirez | Nomar | Red Sox |
| TT-02 | Frank Robinson | Cal Ripken | Brooks Robinson | Orioles |
| TT-03 | Yogi Berra | Lou Gehrig | Babe Ruth | Yankees |
| TT-04 | Andre Dawson | Ryne Sandberg | Ernie Banks | Cubs |
| TT-05 | Warren Spahn | Hank Aaron | Eddie Mathews | Braves |
| TT-06 | Greg Maddux | Chipper Jones | Andruw Jones | Braves |
| TT-07 | Nolan Ryan | Ivan Rodriguez | Juan Gonzalez | Rangers |
| TT-08 | Lance Berkman | Jeff Bagwell | Craig Biggio | Astros |
| TT-09 | Rod Carew | Harmon Killebrew | Kirby Puckett | Twins |
| TT-10 | Luis Gonzalez | Curt Schilling | Randy Johnson | D-Backs |