2017 PENNANT BOX BREAK - PACK 14

156. Wilson Ramos

284. Lorenzo Cain

105. Ryan Buchter

18. Jesse Hahn

41. Gregory Polanco

21. Matt Moore

210. Johnny Cueto

230. Mark Trumbo

8. Kelvin Herrera

TB15R. Kolten Wong - Throwback Relic

I always like doing the Throwbacks relic cards with the throwback jerseys. They’re a little more unique than regular old relic cards using the odd colors like powder blue here.

2017 SPIRIT BOX BREAK - PACK 7

289. Hunter Pence

53. Adonis Garcia

5. Ian Kennedy

 

134. Tony Sipp

52. Shawn Kelley

164. Tony Cingrani

80. Robbie Ray

168. Starlin Castro

115. Bruce Maxwell (RC)

G230. Luis Cessa

TMVP25. Matt Carpenter Team MVP Relic

Well, since the base cards in this pack are kinda lackluster, I figured this would be a good place for our first hit. I’ve done Team MVP designs pretty much every year I’ve been doing cards and they always have a relic swatch. They’re a little nicer this year in that I’ve decided to make them patch relics instead of just regular old jersey swatches. It’s hard to judge the sizing here so the patch or whatever may not be proportional. Regardless, it gives you an idea what they’d look like. 

2016 Spirit Team MVP

One of the first inserts I created was the 2012 Spirit Team MVP set, featuring the best player from every club that included a relic swatch in every single card. Here's the 2016 version which follows the footsteps of the original entry 4 years ago. Design-wise, this is an extension of the 2016 Spirit base design, much like the 2012 version mirrored the base set as well.

The team color bars come in from opposite sides to house the player and team names with the logo tucked in the corner. Big block MVP letters on the left are filled with the relic swatch, leaving a big chunk of card real estate for the player image. The background fades from a tech-y looking texture to some background stadium action, both parts washed in a gradient from one team color to the other.

On the back, the elements shift a little bit as the logo moves from the right side to the left and the MVP letters take a hike to make room for a brief write up. The player photos are a little more candid/casual instead of action shots like the front.

I really like the balance of these cards, which are probably the best looking of all four Team MVP designs over the years. Let's see if I have any other ideas for the MVP-relic box next year.

2016 Pennant Throwbacks

Time to throw it back to an insert from my first year of blogging, Pennant Throwbacks. Being the "retro" product of the Spirit line makes it a no-brainer.

Like the 2016 Pennant base design, these are more "modern retro" and don't call back to the reeeeeally old eras like Allen & Ginter and Gypsy Queen do. The design is simple with just a grainy solid color background and player cutouts with them in their throwback duds. The team logos are of the era captured by the uniforms. The Choo is an example of the relic parallel, here featuring the Rangers' baby blues.

The back keeps the elements from the front with a brief write-up of the throwback game depicted. I tried to replicate the toothy feel that the printed cards would have, diluting the colors a bit and making them less vibrant than a modern glossy card would show.

2016 Pennant

I've posted the flagship and the "low-end" sets, so now it's time for the retro set. The Pennant designs of the past haven't necessarily tried to emulate a particular era. Basically what I try to do is keep them simple while incorporating design elements and trends that are decidedly un-modern. I think it's a good strategy for me so I don't run into a situation like Topps has with Allen & Ginter and Gypsy Queen designs that are hard to differentiate year after year.

The 2016 version harkens back to the late-'60s, with simple colors and a no-frills typeface (Franklin Gothic Condensed). As I tend to do, the color palette is dictated by the team logos instead of some arbitrary system like you would have found back then. The whites are dulled to represent the old uncoated stock and I added grain to the photos and the color boxes to imitate the look of cards from the era as well.

On the back, I went with a horizontal format for the first time with Pennant. All elements are black & white. The little corner tabs which housed the team and Pennant logos on the front are used for card number and a small player portrait on the back. These are definitely my favorite card backs I've designed for the Pennant brand.

Last year I had a "sepia" parallel but this year's design didn't really lend itself to it. If Spirit ever decided to go the "Chrome/Prizm" route, though, this would definitely be a candidate for it. The autograph parallels are still in existence, as well as the addition of a "jumbo" relic. There probably wouldn't be a parallel of each for every card in the set but the design changes so minimally that calling them parallels works for me.

Of all the designs I've posted here, this is probably the one I'd be most tempted to actually print samples of, especially for in-person autograph purposes. If anybody feels so inclined to do the legwork, I'd be up for the designing.

2015 Spirit Team MVP

Time for the return of the Spirit Team MVP insert. This is the third iteration and just like the previous two, the basic design for these cards contain relic swatches.

The big 'MVP' letters runs across the bottom, cut out from a team-color bar to reveal the jersey swatch below. There are some gold foil embellishments with the player name and a frame around the edges. I managed to leave a lot more space for the player photos with this layout and having them stretch to the edges of the cards helps keep things from getting to claustrophobic. The team logos are also a bit more prominent than the previous design.

The backs are bright with team colors and white borders for each info compartment. I also included the relic codes where you could (hypothetically) enter the code online and see the actual jersey the featured swatch was pulled from.

Just for fun, lets look at the rest of the checklist:
MVP1: Mike Trout (Angels)
MVP2: Jose Altuve (Astros)
MVP3: Josh Reddick (A's)
MVP4: Jose Bautista (Blue Jays)
MVP5: Freddie Freeman (Braves)
MVP6: Carlos Gomez (Brewers)
MVP7: Yadier Molina (Cardinals)
MVP8: Anthony Rizzo (Cubs)
MVP9: Paul Goldschmidt (Diamondbacks)
MVP10: Clayton Kershaw (Dodgers)
MVP11: Madison Bumgarner (Giants)
MVP12: Corey Kluber (Indians)
MVP13: Felix Hernandex (Mariners)
MVP14: Giancarlo Stanton (Marlins)
MVP15: Matt Harvey (Mets)
MVP16: Jordan Zimmermann (Nationals)
MVP17: Chris Davis (Orioles)
MVP18: Andrew Cashner (Padres)
MVP19: Chase Utley (Phillies)
MVP20: Andrew McCutchen (Pirates)
MVP21: Adrian Beltre (Rangers)
MVP22: Evan Longoria (Rays)
MVP23: David Ortiz (Red Sox)
MVP24: Johnny Cueto (Reds)
MVP25: Troy Tulowitzki (Rockies)
MVP26: Eric Hosmer (Royals)
MVP27: Miguel Cabrera (Tigers)
MVP28: Joe Mauer (Twins)
MVP29: Chris Sale (White Sox)
MVP30: Jacoby Ellsbury (Yankees)

Boy, the A's slot was brutally hard to fill. Same with the Twins, though Mauer just keeps it by default on account of him still being around.

2014 Spirit Deluxe

Time to slow things down a bit on the Spirit base front since we're approaching the end of Series 1 and the season hasn't even started yet. Here's this year's "high-end" release, Spirit Deluxe.

The front features a full-bleed photo again, though this year the background is a shimmery, refractor-y, prismatic thing. I'm not sure I can replicate it digitally but I think this gives you an idea. It's a lot more prominent on the day game photos. At the bottom is a team-colored marble block with lots of silver foil accents. The thin rails on the left and right extend up into the photo space before softly fading out. It reminds me of a spotlight receding into the darkness of night.

On the back, the team-colored marble takes up about 2/3 of the bottom, leaving room for a brief write-up and some fine print along with the player name. The rail element from the front reappears, this time anchoring the bottom as well as separating the photo from the text block. The team logo sits inside a white circle centered where the 2 sections converge.

Here's a look at the standard auto and relic variations. The auto has a white glow for the player to sign. It covers up the light rails a bit but it's functionally necessary.

I think this is a nice evolution from the 2012 and 2013 versions. They aren't drastically different but hopefully you'll be able to distinguish from year to year. I just want to keep the full bleed, glossy thing going so there's consistency.

Thanks for checking this out.

2013 Spirit Team MVPs

Just like with Award Winners, every year will see a return of the Spirit Team MVP insert. To me, it's a no-brainer. A 30-card set with every team represented by their best player. Why Topps hasn't embraced this idea is beyond me. Maybe since it was Donruss' thing they want to keep their distance.

Let's start off with the checklist.

MVP1: Mike Trout (Angels)
MVP2: Jose Altuve (Astros)
MVP3: Yoennis Cespedes (A's)
MVP4: Jose Bautista (Blue Jays)
MVP5: Brian McCann (Braves)
MVP6: Ryan Braun (Brewers)
MVP7: Yadier Molina (Cardinals)
MVP8: Starlin Castro (Cubs)
MVP9: Paul Goldschmidt (Diamondbacks)
MVP10: Clayton Kershaw (Dodgers)
MVP11: Buster Posey (Giants)
MVP12: Asdrubal Cabrera (Indians)
MVP13: Felix Hernandex (Mariners)
MVP14: Giancarlo Stanton (Marlins)
MVP15: David Wright (Mets)
MVP16: Bryce Harper (Nationals)
MVP17: Chris Davis (Orioles)
MVP18: Chase Headley (Padres)
MVP19: Cliff Lee (Phillies)
MVP20: Andrew McCutchen (Pirates)
MVP21: Adrian Beltre (Rangers)
MVP22: Evan Longoria (Rays)
MVP23: David Ortiz (Red Sox)
MVP24: Joey Votto (Reds)
MVP25: Troy Tulowitzki (Rockies)
MVP26: Billy Butler (Royals)
MVP27: Miguel Cabrera (Tigers)
MVP28: Joe Mauer (Twins)
MVP29: Chris Sale (White Sox)
MVP30: Derek Jeter (Yankees)

Some of these selections were tough. The Braves have a handful of guys that are good but none that really rise above the rest. I went with McCann because he's been there the longest. Castro has had a down year so Anthony Rizzo could possibly replace him. The Rays' pick could've been David Price or even Ben Zobrist. Carlos Gonzalez has a good case for the Rockies since Tulo is always hurt. The Royals guy could easily be Alex Gordon or James Shields. And since Jeter has been out all year, it would probably make sense to put Cano in there, too.

Anyway, onto the design.

Like last year, the biggest feature here is the MVP relic windows. I figured the easiest way to differentiate from 2012 would be to make them vertical instead of horizontal. So the M-V-P letters are stacked on the right side leaving a vertical window for a player photo. To add some depth, I had part of the guys overlap into the team color section. Below is a the secondary team color section to house the player name along with the cap logo. The square-ish space for the logo helps balance things along with keeping it from looking to symmetrical (which I have a habit of doing.) There's some silver foil along the relic windows and all the text, minus the "Spirit Certified Game-Used Relic" small print below the P.

The elements make a 90° turn for the back side while the secondary bar moves to the top. Below a horizontal player photo is a brief bit of text. To the left is a block of copy about the relic authentication along with a code to enter online for more info about this particular swatch. And I'm looking out for everyone with having the numbers in the upper right corner so they're easy to see when stored in a cardboard box.

Keepin' It Clean

One of my personal favorite designs from Spirit in 2012 was the Clubhouse Moonshots insert. Homerun hitters, die-cut, big ol' moon. What's not to love? This time around, I kept the subject the same but changed the name to Clean-Up Crew. The die-cut is also back again though in a much different shape.

The arrows are a play on the 'up' part of 'clean-up' and helped me get the design rolling. The one on the right leaves a nice tidy space for the team logo or a memorabilia swatch. I wanted to make sure all arrows pointed up so the upper left corner was the natural choice for the other die-cut location. Having some part of the player cut into the arrow keeps things from getting stale.

As the arrows take care of the latter half of the insert name, the bright neon green/yellow color on the bottom handles the 'clean' half. Something about the color makes me think of a super-intense household cleaner that would almost scrub the skin off your finger. I imagine the ink would be almost plastic-like on the finished product.

On the back side, we have the reverse die-cut shape to deal with but luckily plenty of space is left for another big player portrait. The neon is turned down a bit with black being the most prominent color. Below a brief write-up is the 2012 stat line with categories relevant to clean-up hitters (HR, RBI, total bases, slugging % and OPS.)

All in all, the bright colors, special shape and big batters seem to fit right in with the Clubhouse line.

First Class

With the 2012 season winding down, we continue looking ahead to 2013. On top of having a triple crown winner, 3 perfect games thrown and 4 other no-hitters, 2012 will probably be remembered for one of the best class of rookies. We all know Mike Trout had an MVP-caliber season and Bryce Harper took some of the steps to justify all the hype. But moving even further down, there were lots of guys that put up good-to-great rookie campaigns. So how about an insert to commemorate this class?

The design is horizontal with the most prominent feature probably being the box on the right with a big 1 cut out to display a relic. Just to add some variety, the position players have bat swatches while the pitchers have jersey swatches. The rest of the design is bathed in team colors with the player cutout overlapping a colored wood background. The 'FIRST CLASS' text has a 1 hiding in 'first' to really play up the number aspect of the design. There's also some silver foil to add a bit of flash.

Onto the backside where we have team colors filling the majority of space with plenty of room for a summary of each player's rookie season. On the right side, we have another 1 cut out but this time housing another action shot. To the left we have the team logo along with the authenticity statement for each relic. It's less vague than what you see on Topps relic cards these days and there's even a unique code for each card that you could enter to find out specifically when each memorabilia relic was used in-game.

Along with these 3 here and Trout and Harper that were mentioned above, this set would have guys like Todd Frazier, Jesus Montero, pretty much any of the A's starting pitchers, Will Middlebrooks, Yu Darvish, Anthony Rizzo and more.

Gint-A-Cuffs IV: Packs 19-24

Alright, here's the conclusion. Carrying over +167 from the last post.

PACK 19
WIN54 Juan Pierre +2
Mini39 Brad Peacock A&G +2
57 Michael Pineda (NYY) -1
153 Robinson Cano (NYY) - 1

18 Kevin Youkilis
30 Carlos Zambrano
204 Adam Dunn
216 Corey Hart
PACK TOTAL: +2
RUNNING TOTAL: +169

PACK 20
MIWC Trudy Givens +3
Mini123 Adam Lind Black +3
340 Marty Hogan SP +2

49 Jeremy Hellickson
74 Johnny Cueto
79 Yoenis Cespedes
154 Bobby Hurley, Sr.
213 Joe Nathan
PACK TOTAL: +8
RUNNING TOTAL: +177

PACK 21
WIN31 Andrew McCutchen +2
CC1 Nutria +3

28 Dustin Ackley
102 Huston Street
168 Jason Kipnis
197 Ty Cobb
264 Brian McCann
295 Drew Pomeranz
PACK TOTAL: +5
RUNNING TOTAL: +182

Mmm, nutria. Also known as rat meat. I'm not very culinarily adventurous, but this gives me yet another good reason to never eat anything in New Orleans.

PACK 22
HTP19 Sputnik +3
181 Joe Dimaggio (NYY) -1
212 Ken Griffey, Jr. (FP) +2
217 Brian Wilson (Giants) +1
301 Adron Chambers SP +2

76 Michael Bourn
108 Martin Prado
Mini89 Edwin Jackson
PACK TOTAL: +7
RUNNING TOTAL: +189

PACK 23
WIN79 Mickey Mantle (NYY) -1
ABR-BK Bobby Knight Relic  +9
200 Matt Kemp (FP) +2

9 Yonder Alonso
147 Tsuyoshi Nishioka
222 Yovani Gallardo
Mini111 Wandy Rodriguez
PACK TOTAL: +10
RUNNING TOTAL: +199

Oh boy, what a vomit-enducing pack here. If the Yankee and Dodger weren't gross enough, my final hit comes in the form of a Bobby Knight relic. What a turd.

PACK 24
BH6 Frank Thomas +3
PB11 Adam & Eve +3
311 Bob Gibson SP +2

43 Josh Johnson
69 Kurt Suzuki
149 Wilson Ramos
157 Roger Federer
234 Carlos Lee
PACK TOTAL: +8
FINAL TOTAL: +207

I guess this is a good palate cleanser. I think these Highlight Sketches are may favorite cards of the set. Other than Jesus, Adam & Eve are probably the big hitters of the Bible minis. Extra thankful Adam wasn't slapped with the non-baseball Yankee tag, though he probably should be.

So 207 is my final tally. From what I've seen of the other scores, that's nothing to be ashamed of. I had a lot of fun tallying all of these up. This was my first box of A&G and I really enjoyed it. Already looking forward to Gint-A-Cuffs V next year.