2018 trade package #3: Scribbled Ink

I'm keeping the trade post train rolling today with my second new trade partner in a row, meaning my collecting year got off to another nice start!  Fellow Michigander Paul from Scribbled Ink sent me a nice envelope filled with Tigers and PC guys, plus a few Wolverines that are showcased on TMM this evening.  Check out all this loot:

These Miggy cards are from Panini's 2017 Chronicles product, one that looked pretty cool to me because I enjoy offerings like Anthology (hockey) that incorporate multiple brands into one.  Topps Fusion is a good baseball example, though of course they dumped it like many of the better things they created.

Anyway, seen here are the base version as well as the Blue parallel (#d /399).  They have a kind of newspaper story feel to them, which is fun.

And just like that the non-PC portion is over and we dive right into my first alphabetical player collection:  Jim Abbott.  On the left is his 1992 Classic Game issue, and that's joined by Jim's Electric Diamond parallel from 1994 Upper Deck.  While the former's design isn't terribly exciting I think Classic nailed it with the photo selection.  And the '94 UD also includes a photo I've always enjoyed because, what's he pointing at?

Hey, it's former blog namesake Curtis Granderson!  I know I've mentioned a few times that I'm slowly collecting the Grandy-Man's cards from this 2007 Topps Generation Now insert, and it sure does help when people like Paul send them my way so I don't have to buy them.  As a reminder there's one card for each of Curtis's 31 doubles he collected in 2006.  The following year proved to be even better for the fan favorite as he joined the exclusive 20-20-20-20 club (doubles/triples/homers/steals) while putting up his career-high bWAR of 7.6.

I don't know how I managed to flip the order of just two cards of Mr. Padre Tony Gwynn in this scan, but I did, and by the time I realized it I just went with it.  On the left is the second instance of Classic's 1992 Game set, and again it comes with a very nice photo, this time starring a nice follow-through after Gwynn's sweet swing.  Then we go back a year for an oddball appearance via 1991 U.S. Playing Cards All-Stars.  "Ace of clubs" is a very appropriate title for the best hitter of his generation, no?

Here's a guy that doesn't appear in very many of my trade posts:  Drew Henson.  Maybe Paul remembered him as he starred for Brighton High School, about 45 minutes west of Scribbled Ink HQ, before heading to Ann Arbor, New York, and beyond.

This great trio starts with a 2002 Hot Prospects bat relic (#d /1000) made by Fleer, then moves on to 2003 with Donruss Champions and Upper Deck.  There's three of the best producers of cards in just one scan!  The UD design that year in particular was quite nice.

All-time great Reds SS Barry Larkin may be checking his swing here on our third example from 1992 Classic Game, but I didn't have to check to know that it was new to my collection.  I'm particularly glad that this set features blue borders as they go well with my guys who donned the maize and blue!

Hal Morris is another Cincy fan favorite (who also played a bit for the Royals) and I was happy to see three of his cards in this envelope.  Better yet, Paul continued to kill it with the product selection as once again we see three different manufacturers:  Upper Deck ('94 Electric Diamond), Fleer ('97 flagship), and Pinnacle ('98 Pinnacle Plus).  I'll just go ahead and continue to bang the drum for '97 Fleer as that product's best iteration.

Considering the airbrushing that went into this 2001 Royal Rookies Futures card of former pitcher J.J. Putz do you think they maybe could have 'shopped a smile on his face?  I'm at least happy to say that I have the Limited Edition version of this, as well as the autographed card, "limited" to 6,995 copies (which makes me wonder how many of the base and "Limited" version were made?).

Chris Sabo is our third example of a trio of different brands, and his hat trick is pretty cool in that it comprises a boxed set ('89 Fleer Exciting Stars), food issue oddball ('91 Post), and mainstream insert ('95 Topps Cyberstats).  That's a nice mix!

And as we close things out, this is my second straight trade post featuring a trio of blog namesake guy Justin Verlander.  Are you guys trying to tell me I should rename my blog to Three Many Verlanders?

Up top is a return to 2007 Topps Generation Now, and again I'm slowly tracking down Verlander's appearances, so this one is super helpful.  It represents his 9th of 17 wins during his AL ROY campaign of 2006.  In an interleague matchup against the Cardinals that ended up being a preview of that year's World Series (except, you know, with the Tigers winning this time), JV struck out 5 while allowing 4 runs in 6 innings.  He landed the win thanks to strong run support in a game the Tigers won 10-6.

Finally, the other two take us back to the beginning of this post and Panini Chronicles.  Once again Paul sent me a base version and a parallel, and this time the latter is the Gold version #d /999.  "More punchouts than a boxing champion" is a cool phrase to use on a card of a guy who was pitching in a town known for its boxing history.

Paul, thanks again for this super fun first package.  I hope to get to see you in-person at your local show this weekend or in the near future to pay you back!