It started innocently enough:
Then today, we're hit with this:
For those of you not in the know, these are the two most recent releases from Topps. Sure, they already had Curtis Granderson as a Yankee in Topps Series 1--but it was in Short-Printed, stealth form. These cards are the regular cards from the set. Curtis Granderson is now officially a Yankee in cardboard.
And I, for one, don't have a problem with that. He is a Yankee after all. The big question is, is this the end of Granderson as a Tiger in baseball cards? I'd like to think that the answer is Yes. Now, don't get me wrong. I love Curtis as a player and more 2010 cards of him as a Tiger would be fine, but I feel like once you've started a path--e.g. including him as a Yankee in each of your first three releases--that you should stick with it. I'm not on board with the back and forth that, say, Thorzul has experienced in trying to chase down CC Sabathia-as-Brewer cards. A chase that has spanned releases over two full years, despite a mere couple of months of playing time. From here on out, if I see a checklist and I see Granderson, I want to know "Yankee." That's just the way it is.
But is this the end? Is it upon us? Or am I bound to see Curtis in the Old English D once more this year. I'd imagine that I will, but given the card companies' love of the Yankees, and the much, much bigger market that they can tap into by slapping him with the ol' NY, I wouldn't be surprised if those chances are few and far between from here on out.