King Kang, Playing Detective and Furniss'd

It is always fun to sort through a trade package that you know someone put a ton of thought in.  Such was the case of a recent mailing from frequent trade partner Ptown Tom.

This was the first card that caught my attention for obvious reasons.  Jung Ho Kang is one of the harder Pirates to find good deals on. This is extra special since it is such a high end set.  Thank a ton Tom. I will not say anything bad about the Cubs for a least 24 hours.

Tom has sent me a ton of ip autos over the last couple of years. Since Bay is one of my all time favorites he wanted me to compare some certified autos to this 2005 Donruss.

Time for some detective work.

When examining the autos closely Bay's signature changed a little over the years. The UD Premier signature is really close to the IP auto you sent my way.  I think it is close enough to call it a winner.

Humberto Cota was part of the long line of catchers that had trouble producing like Jason Kendall. It really wasn't until Russell Martin came through until the position became more stable.

Jose Guillen had one of the best arms I have ever seen.

 E-XL!!!!! I love mid 90's cards. The Kendall "Pouncing" is my favorite.

 Flair was so classy when it came out.

 Troy Glaus was good......JJ Davis not so much.

SPx was one of the sets I remember being around, but only dreamed about buying. I remember seeing it at mall card shows thinking how great they would be to own. Tom makes dreams come true.

In case you don't remember Tom made a significant purchase at an estate sale. Like any bulk purchase you are bound to get duplicates.  May I introduce Eddie Furniss.

Furniss flamed out (see what I did there) in AA. The cool thing is he ended up going back to medical school and now practices family medicine in his hometown. Furniss'd

Thanks for all the great cards Tom.  Looks like it is my turn to hit you back really hard since you also won the contest!

Thanks for reading.