Quality Over Quantity

Four cards that are great fits in my collection.

When I can afford to, I like to send out large volumes of cards to people. Usually, I'm a little too time-crunched to do it as I always underestimate how much time it takes to pull a bunch of little objects together into one large stack. Sometimes the recipient just does not have a broad section of needs from which to choose. I appreciate trade packages both great and small, however, and sometimes the best trades could fit inside a tiny envelope.

Scott Crawford recently sent me one of the best "bang for your buck" packages in recent memory. In just four cards, he covered a couple of huge needs in my collection and hit me with two, well, bona fide hits. The long forgotten 2009 Topps Propaganda insert set is two cards closer to completion (I would love to see this kind of artwork again, by the way) with the ghost of Grady Sizemore and an Upton brother joining the collection.

I also received this super crazy "Cracked Ice" version of a Matt Holliday card from some sort of Panini Father's Day promo set. It was released this year, and the Studio tribute is a throwback to the 1991 Studio design. This is about the only way Panini can get away with unlicensed cards, as the whole point of the original Studio set was to feature players out of their uniforms and in a Sears-style portrait.

To top things off, this is a Matt Carpenter Silver Slate wrapper redemption card that's numbered 3 out of 10. Wow! It's a framed card that is reminiscent of the Gypsy Queen parallels, only it uses the base design. Matt Carpenter became one of my favorite players in the league last season, and I'm hopeful that his transition back to third base goes as well as his season at second did.

Thanks for reading, and don't forget to sign up for the contest!