The other day, Andy announced that mailers were heading out to collector's across the country and I saw my zip code listed among the lucky bloggers. So, at least I had time to mentally prepare myself for the impending assault on my want-lists.
Said package ended up on my doorstep yesterday afternoon and it was just as varied and helpful as his previous mailings. We'll start of with the Cubs portion of this haul, since this is a Cubs-themed blog and all:
This is, by far, the nicest Dexter Fowler card in my collection - these blue-framed parallels from Gypsy Queen are absolutely wonderful when paired with the Cubs portion of the checklist. Thus, it easily works it's way into my CATRC binder as the Cubs catalyst's representation.
You go, we go!
These horizontal heroes are my very first taste of this year's edition of Stadium Club... I'm so far behind. While the images chosen for these particular singles are not quite sensational like others found in the photography-centered set, they do feature angles not often seen on baseball cards. Furthermore, obligatory mention that this set is quite reminiscent of 1997 Fleer.
Oh - and I must admit that Topps chose a picture of Jon lobbing a ball to first base, what with his well-documented case of the yipps and all.
Another new Bunt card for my team set, "Jake the Snake" puts me at three (along with Zobrist and Heyward) after my initial dabble with a blaster from yesterday. Meanwhile, that's also a new 100 Years of Wrigley insert for me, this one featuring another animalistic nickname in Andre "The Hawk" Dawson. Bricks and Ivy never look bad on a baseball card - that's an indisputable fact.
That about covers the baseball portion of Andy's generous offering. However, like I mentioned, Mr. Stetson wasn't content to boost just one aspect of my collection. Also included in the bubble mailer were a few new Bulls cards for my burgeoning Bulls binder (say that three times fast).
Both Benjamin and Harper are entirely new names to be added into my Bulls All-Time Roster Collection. Additionally, while I already had a Jamal Crawford card, it depicted him in an Atlanta Hawks uniform... obviously, the Bulls card takes precedence.
Now, here is where the real damage to my want-lists was done. After flipping through the Cubs and the Bulls portions of the package, I found that the true meat and potatoes of this delivery was the Bears content. Football season is dawning and it seems as though Andy has been ripping packs of gridiron product in anticipation:
Okay - so the sight of 1990 Donruss baseball cards will make many a card collector gag involuntarily, myself included. However, I must admit that seeing that same design (more or less) transferred over to another sport with team color-coded backgrounds and design elements is rather cool. Maybe it's just the novelty factor, but I think I love this idea.
Not to mention the fact that this is my first card of the recently-drafted DT Jonathan Bullard and my first Bears card of WR Kevin White. Thus, these will look great in my Bears All-Time Roster Binder.
Here we have another first ever card of a recent draft pick in Jordan Howard and another first card in a Bears uniform with Antrel Rolle. It's like some kind of pattern or something.
With the departure of Matt Forte for the greener pastures (?) of New York, Howard is going to get some chances; however, Jeremy Langford figures to get most of the playing time. Meanwhile, Antrel Rolle signed a three-year deal going into last season, yet his Bears career lasted all of 7 games - he was injured and subsequently released in May.
I could have sworn I had a card of Pernell McPhee already, but it turns out that Andy knows my needs better than I do. Pernell is an effective weapon when healthy and a steady veteran presence on a young team. Unfortunately, it looks like his knee is going to necessitate him starting the season on the PUP list.
C'est la vie.
Too close things out, Mr. Stetson also included this pair of 2002 Topps singles (RIP Topps football) which feature another pair of Bears my collection previously did not contain. I don't remember too much about these guys, but the Bears of this time period were quite forgettable. That said, Matthews was the starting QB for a time, but Chicago is pretty much a field general graveyard.
With that, I've finally reached the end of Andy's exceptionally helpful envelope. I'll make sure to generate some appropriate return fire ASAP.
Cubs, Bears, Bulls... oh my! This trade certainly had a little bit of everything. Ain't nobody got time for lackluster trade packages, especially Andy, apparently.
Pretty awesome that you needed all those Bears, since I didn't even consult your lists before firing them your way! Happy that I could replace binder cards too!
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