Tradin' with the Real DFG

Though it seems like I've traded with almost every card blogger out there, I still occasionally get emails or comments from new (to me) bloggers looking to wheel and deal. One such blogger is another Indiana resident named Tim, aka DogFacedGremlin, proprietor of The Real DFG blog. He messaged me professing a love for all Pittsburgh sports, and so we worked out a deal. He got some Penguins, Steelers, and tons of Pirates - I got some player collection stuff, including some excellent new McGriffs!

I'll start with the Freds, as they're both pretty cool. First is this 1993 Score Select NL HR Leader card. I actually have the 1993 Score Select NL RBI Leader card as well, and meant to post it with this, but didn't get around to taking the picture. The design is similar, though this picture is way cooler than the other one. Perfect pose for watching homeruns.

The other new McGriff I got was this sweet 1993 Leaf card. Usually with Fred cards you either get an epic swing or a fielding play at first, with the occasional wacky photo in the dugout. I don't know that I've ever seen a card with Fred running, making this card pretty unique. I like to think he's chugging home, and I hope he makes/made it.

DFG also sent along some ManRams for me, and my favorites are the two oldest ones. This 1992 Score ManRam is pretty crazy - it's always odd to think of Manny as a young guy out of college, especially now since it's 18 years later.

This card is from a year later, and is actually a Fleer Excel 92-93 Kinston Indians card. Manny is stylin' with his sweet shades and sweet swing, and I absolutely love the signage in the background. Dr. Pepper rules, and Dr. Pepper + Manny is the perfect recipe for one of my favorite cards. I'm also a fool for random unnecessary gold foil.

Speaking of unnecessary foil, check out this monstrosity of a Donruss card. It's the best 3B from 1994, Olympic style. Terry Pendleton gets the gold, Dave Hollins gets the silver, and Sheff gets the bronze. The card is actually based on production from 1992 and 1993, which makes it especially odd since Sheff has the best stats in those years of these three guys. I guess Donruss' judgment was clouded by Terry's surprise MVP in 1991.

Here are a few 1989 Sheff rookies, a sub group of my Sheff player collection that is quickly becoming a favorite. 1989 Topps is my favorite set, 1989 Sheff is my favorite card from that set, and so 1989 Sheffs have taken on a special spot in my collecting heart as well. I love the eye black on the 89 Fleer, and the "Bazooka Starter Set" card is something I've never seen before.

Now on to the weird looking Sheffs. First I have these two strange swing depictions. The swing on the left is completely ridiculous. The swing on the right is what my wiffleball swing is modeled after. Well maybe that and vintage Griffey Jr. combined.

Here are two reasons why Gary is still a free agent as I write this - the guy can't field. He came up as a SS but was moved to 3B, which is what you see on the left card. Sheff then moved to the OF where he still had some problems, evidenced by his awkward posture in the card on the right (I doubt he made that catch). Now Sheff's a full time DH, and a lot of teams don't need one of those. Which is a shame, because Sheff rules. I was really hoping the Mariners would sign him so that Sheff and Griffey could go off into the Sunset together, but now Milton Bradley is a Mariner and my hopes are dashed.

So I'll show you this last card, which shows Sheff....drying his hands? Studio cards are generally weird anyways, but this one is especially weird, as a towel can be a very disturbing prop when used weirdly. And it's definitely used weirdly here. I do like the nice shot of Sheff's trademark early 90's flat top, the hair style of champions!

Thanks for the cards DFG, they are greatly appreciated! Anyone reading this should check out his blog and offer a trade - he's more football/hockey focused, but there's obviously some baseball stuff for trade in his collection as well!