2017 PENNANT BOX BREAK - PACK 18

266. Neil Walker

200. Brett Gardner

47. Ian Desmond

100. Billy Hamilton

125. Miguel Cabrera

102. Cameron Maybin

73. Joe Mauer

233. Corey Kluber

176. Wade Davis

TI24S. Kevin Quackenbush - The Incumbents (shimmer parallel)

The obvious card to discuss here is the Kevin Quackenbush insert. It’s basically the Pennant version of a Topps Chrome Refractor. It’s hard to show the difference between “chrome” and regular stock with just digital cards like this, but I figured the rainbow gif thing would do the trick.

2015 Spirit Home Grown

With all the player movement this season, I thought a good insert concept would be to focus on some guys who have risen all the way to the majors with the same team that drafted and developed them. Some people refer to them as "home grown" so that's the name I picked. 50 cards here featuring such players that have at least 5 MLB seasons in the ledger.

Playing off the "grown" part of the title, the design features a grassy background image fading into a subtle paper texture. The title is in an ornate typeface that looks similar to an immaculately tended hedge garden. There are also some green-ish vine-line flourishes adorning the edges of the card. A player cutout overlaps all the elements before softly fading to make room for the the text at the bottom. The cardboard here is uncoated in keeping with the earthy, organic feel of the concept. It also makes a great contrast for the foil-stamped player name and Spirit logo.

The motif carries over to the backs with the grass fade reversed to top-to-bottom. A small player portrait rest in the middle along the top, flanked by the "Home Grown" text and the team logo below. A brief write-up closes things out.

With the checklist here numbering 50, you'd get some of the less-marquee names like Perkins and Gardner here along with heavy hitters like McCutchen and Kershaw and Trout, so something for everyone.

2014 Spirit Base Series 1: 161-170

#161 - Jose Altuve
Altuve's probably my favorite that I don't collect. Maybe it's because of his stature. Or how much fun it is to say his name. Or the fact he's stuck on the Astros. Either way, I'm pulling for him to shine.

#162 - Aaron Crow
I used to have an Northwest Arkansas Naturals Aaron Crow shirsey, oddly enough. I went to a game at Arvest Ballpark and felt out of place without any gear so I grabbed a Crow shirt off the clearance rack. I don't think he had been called up to Kansas City yet but I guess it was obvious he was done with AA.

#163 - Howie Kendrick
I think Kendrick tried to go by Howard last year but I guess it didn't take. I keep seeing Howie everywhere online.

#164 - Andre Ethier
Boy, I bet he feels lucky Matt Kemp's been such a DL-hermit the last couple seasons. Ethier's been able to redeem himself enough to where his contract doesn't look like the absolute worst in the league anymore. Probably only top-10 now.

#165 - Jacob Turner
Going into 2013, Turner looked like he'd been the Marlins' #1 starter. Going into this season, he's probably #4 or #5, even though he had a decent season last year. Miami's rotation could be amazing in 2014.

#166 - Yovani Gallardo
I really don't like the lighting in Miller Park.

#167 - Brian Duensing
I really dig the depth of field in this shot.

#168 - Lucas Duda
Oy, those empty seats at Citi Field.

#169 - Brett Gardner
One of my biggest hopes this offseason was that after the Yankees signed Ellsbury, they'd be willing to move Gardner since he'd be a perfect fit for San Francisco. Unfortunately, the Yankees were smart enough to lock him up for a few more years. Meanwhile, the Giants signed noted clomper Michael Morse to clomp around left field...

#170 - Tommy Milone
If I were an Oakland fan, I'd try really hard to find a reason to call him Tommy "The Mailman" Milone.