1 PWE. 2 new Tinos.

A few weeks back, Paul of Scribbled Ink was kind enough to shoot me a 4-card PWE.

The highlights for me were two Tino Martinez cards that were new to my collection. Cards like this show me while I'll always have Tino cards to collect. There were just so many of them made from 1996-1999. It's easy for ones to slip past without even knowing.

I would have definitely thought I had this Score Dugout Collection, and I'm right, I do. However, this is an Artist's Proof, which I definitely didn't have.

The next is from Donruss Collections, which is like a glossy, embossed version of regular Donruss/Pinnacle cards. But I needed this one too!

There were also two Aroldis Chapman cards, including this Panini that is numbered to 99. The refractor-like shine and pattern make it look great!

Thanks for thinking of me, Paul!

Chrome is pretty

It came out like a month ago, but I never stumbled to my LBBS (local big box store) to pick some up.

However, this is my first in-hand look at a 2017 Topps Chrome card.

It came as part of a prize package sent to me by Paul of Paul's TTM Autograph Blog. He sent a great package, and I'll have more to share in an upcoming post.

I think these look awesome. While I'm generally fine with 2017 Topps design overall, I think they look much better in Chrome, just as 2016 did.

In the refractor version, I love the diagonal rays of color in the back. It's a nice, subtle touch, but it helps the background jump quite a bit, and add a bit more depth to the card. It also helped me, personally, to quickly spot that the card was a refractor.

I don't always go out of my way to pick up Chrome, but I do always find myself enjoying it when it finds its way to me. Thanks for this one, Paul.

He has a Habit of sending me Yankees

One of my best trading buddies is Judson from My Cardboard Habit. He is extremely generous in thinking of me when he comes across Yankees.

He recently busted some Gypsy Queen, and found two Yanks he thought I would like. The first he tee'd on Twitter - a no backplate Masahiro Tanaka. These fall 1:9 in hobby and 1:12 in retail.

The second card was more of a surprise - a purple Aroldis Chapman #'d to 250. These fall 1:13 in hobby and 1:17 in retail.

This was my first in-person look at GQ, and I like it a lot, at least relative to the past few years. I'll definitely try to pick up some at some point.

Judson, thank you very much for thinking of me. I'll hit you back soon.

Champan hit 106?!

Holy crap! Aroldis Chapman hit 105 (on TV) and 106 MPH (in stadium). Wow. I'm not sure how accurate these speed guns are, but there's no mistaking he was throwing well over 100, which is mind boggling. I remember back in 2002, I was at an Astros game and Billy Wagner was hitting 100 and the crowd was going nuts. Literally hanging on to every pitch waiting to see what the stadium gun read. But this is on another level. I don't know if the dude knows where the ball is going once he lets it go, but he definitely has the fear factor going for him before the batter even steps in. It'll be interesting to see if he can keep it up (and if his arm can hold up). If so, the Reds have a pretty nice 1-2 punch with Chapman and Cordero.

I only own two Chapman cards, but this is by far my favorite: