2014 trade package #5: Bengals Walk the Plank

2014 has been a fairly solid year of trading for me so far, and my fifth such deal came courtesy of Matt of newer blog Bob Walk the Plank.  Matt's a Pirates collector, and I was happy to dig up some stuff for him after he said the magic words:  "I have some Tigers for you."  I guess we were both a bit vague about what we had to offer, because I sent him a mix of base and inserts, and he sent me these:

Quintin Berry 2012 Panini Prizm Rookie Autographs auto

Berry had been part of four different organizations before joining the Tigers in 2011.  He then appeared in 94 games (and 11 playoff games) for the AL champs.  Though his batting average wasn't exactly gaudy, he had a decent .330 OBP and was successful on all 21 of his stolen base attempts.  A Royals waiver claim and late-season trade to Boston in 2013 meant Quintin was eligible for the 2013 playoffs, in which he pinch ran and stole a base in one game of each series for the World Champion Red Sox.  Finally, a couple months ago he signed with Baltimore, his EIGHTH team at just 29 years old!

This is my favorite of Panini's Prizm designs so far, possibly because the photo isn't subjected to some of the more questionable designs from their other sets.  Best of all, although the manufacturer can't use logos, everything else remains, including the jersey nameplate and numbers, plus the orange/black/white batting gloves.  My first Berry hit of any kind is in stark contrast to...

Austin Jackson 2011 Limited Hard Hats helmet (#70/93)

...this A-Jax helmet relic, which features a completely blank helmet AND jersey.  Why even bother with a picture?!  Regardless, the helmet piece is really cool since it's such a rarely-used game-used item, and the back even refers to it as "game-worn material," not "event-worn," so take that for what it's worth.  Ever since I've come around on the Granderson trade that brought Austin to the Tigers, I've been a big fan of his, and I'm hoping to see his bat out of the leadoff spot where it can be more effective this year, like it was late in last season's playoffs.  By the way, this is my third Jackson relic, with the others being a manupatch and jersey, so I've got a nice variety going thanks to Matt.

Hernan Perez 2011 Limited Prospects Signatures auto (#574/599)

And finally we get this card, which is a bit of a compromise between the two as it at least features the player's name on the back of his jersey.  2011 Limited combines a black and white photo with a simple but solid design, and in this case, a nice signature.  Perez, primarily a 2B, was a 2007 international free agent signee, and he's currently rated as the Tigers' 10th best prospect.  After a two-game cup of coffee in 2012, he had a fantastic 2013 between AA and AAA, earning playing time in 34 regular season games and a place on the postseason roster (two appearances).  Ian Kinsler is currently locked in at second, but Perez gives the Tigers a bit of solid depth at the position.  As with Berry, this is my first hit of any kind of Hernan.

Many thanks to Matt for a great first trade that added some nice pieces to my Tigers PC!  Now I know just how generous of a trader he is and can get him back accordingly as part of next month's COMC shopping spree.  Meanwhile, you readers should get to following him at Bob Walk the Plank if you aren't already, and get all your Pirates and WVU Mountaineers in the mail to him today!