2013 BA Benny Bonanza: Michigan stuff!

If you've been following my posts from the last few days over on TMV, you know that I got a ridiculous trade package from none other than BA Benny.  While most of it applies to that blog, I made sure to separate out the stuff that would be best displayed over here:

To start with, here's some nice football base and inserts, including five Braylons, a pair of Bradys, a Hart and a Henne.  The Co-Signers Brady/Breaston is #d 132/349 and the Hart is 51/99.

I separated this Leach out from the rest of the Tigers since I'm eventually going to work on a PC of the former QB-turned-1B.  This one hails from 1983, the year I was born, and was also Rick's last season with Detroit before being released, then picked up by the Jays.  Sadly, that means he missed out on the '84 title, but it's not likely he would have had a spot on that team anyway.  This card may motivate me to flip through my 80s sets to see if I have anything else of Leach.

Here's a couple football hits I already had, but no worries--I know they'll find good homes soon enough!  Fun fact:  Mike also gave me my first copy of that particular Runyan!

Adrian Arrington 2008 SPx Super Scripts auto

Next up is a hit I didn't already have, and it's my 38th of New Orleans WR Adrian Arrington.  When I first pulled it from the package I was sure I had it because I have tons of Arringtons (obviously) and I have a couple other players from this set.  Fortunately, it WAS new to me, and now I have another sweet signature to enjoy.  Arrington has a particularly interesting autograph, besides being a player I like, so he's fun to collect.  That makes this one a winner all-around.

Drew Henson 2002 EX Game Essentials bat

Drew Henson 2002 Fleer Geninue Tip of the Cap hat (#256/361)

Drew Henson 2003 Donruss Signature SP auto

And finally, we have a trio of Drew Henson hits.  Drew happens to have a dual role of being a former Yankee and Wolverine, which means he fits into both our PCs.  While his pro baseball and football careers obviously didn't pan out, he'll at least be able to bring the benefit of his experience to his new role as a hitting coach in the Yankees organization.

So this is a great trio of cards for my Henson baseball PC.  The EX card is cool because Fleer took the "game essentials" theme and ran with it, producing multiple relic versions including bat, cleat, and fielding glove.  The Geninue Tip of the Cap appears to be my first hat relic card, which is definitely a fun distinction.  Better yet, it has a bit of black in the lower-left corner, making it a multi-colored piece!  Finally, the Donruss Signature auto is my third version of his card from that set (the other two are this one and this one), but according to multiple sources, today's addition is the rarest of the trio so far, short-printed to just 28 (non-numbered) copies.  Thanks to Mike, my Henson baseball hits collection is now in double digits:  11 cards, including seven relics and four autos.

A big thanks again, Mike, for some fantastic stuff for all of my PCs, especially the Wolverine additions!