2016 trade package #15: World Series Wolverines from My Sports Obsession

As mentioned on TMV tonight, I met up with Jeff this past Saturday as he was in Ann Arbor attending the Michigan-Illinois game.  I'm guessing he headed home happy after another resounding Wolverine win.

I loves me some in-person trading and this was no different.  This time the bulk of the goods was Tigers and non-Michigan baseball PC players, but Jeff and I are both Michigan collectors so naturally there was some Wolverines content as well.  And as it turns out, everything in this post is also baseball, fitting in nicely with the World Series theme from the TMV post.

Here's a gander at what I got:

• Jim Abbott 1993 Pinnacle:  Abbott never got to experience any round of the playoffs, but then again he played in the 90s for the Angels, Yankees (pre-dynasty), White Sox, and Brewers, so that's no surprise.  That's too bad--he would have been fun to watch in the playoffs.
• Chris Getz 2009 O-Pee-Chee and 2014 Topps Red Hot Foil:  Chris played for a relatively short seven years, mostly with White Sox and Royals teams that weren't all that great except for his 2008 rookie season, when Chicago left him off the roster.  He's at least relevant to the South-Siders once again having been hired as director of player development.  Hopefully that position leads to a fantastic front office career! 
• Steve Ontiveros 1986 Donruss:  Hmmm, nothing here either, though Steve at least spent time with the '88 Oakland team that won the NL pennant.  This theme isn't looking to good for the Wolverines today!
• Clayton Richard 2014 Topps:  HERE we go--Clayton was part of that '08 White Sox squad that Getz missed out on, and he appeared in 6 1/3 innings over two games as his team lost to the eventual AL pennant-winning Rays.  Seven years later he pitched in six games as the Cubs beat the Cards in the 2015 ALDS, then lost to the Mets.  It's conceivable Richard could have been part of the Cubbies' pen this year, but he was let go in August, and actually went on a decent run in a return to the Padres.
• Chris Sabo 1992 Topps Stadium Club:  Ah, here's our winner.  Spuds participated in only one season's worth of playoffs but made it count as his 1990 Reds team beat the Pirates and Athletics to win it all.  His NLCS was solid, including a game 4 homer that plated the eventual winning run, but he took things to the next level against Oakland, going off for a .563 average, two more taters (both in game 3), and five RBI.  If not for Jose Rijo's excellent pair of starts--both wins--Chris may have won MVP honors.

Jeff tossed in a nice hit as well:  this auto:

And it's a very timely Indians card as well.  Zach Putnam, here on a 2009 Bowman Prospects auto card, was drafted by Cleveland but pitched for them for just a year before being shipped to Colorado.  He then spent 2013 with the Cubs and then the last three seasons in Chicago for Jeff's favorite team, so he's never been part of a playoff-bound club, much less been left off a postseason roster.  Hopefully he's not bad luck!

Jeff, thanks for another fun in-person trade.  I'm guessing we'll have to wait until sometime next year to do it again, but at least that gives me some time to track down new stuff for you!