Chopping Down the Wantlist

I took advantage of the Thanksgiving deal over at COMC to knock a few cards off my wantlist. Actually, because shipping was so cheap (instead of the pretty expensive and quick to add up that it usually is) I filled out some other wants & needs as well, but that's for another time.

For now, 36.36% of my wantlist has been trimmed down including:

#3 on my list, part of the Home Run Derby contest inserts that Topps used to run

2008 Topps Gary Sheffield Home Run Derby Contest (#/999)

#5: A fantastic Heritage SP

2009 Topps Heritage #461 Tigers Coaches

#8: The last base card I need from 2010 Topps (which may just happen to be the worst card in the whole set. I mean seriously, look at that picture.)

2010 Topps Update US-24 Miguel Cabrera/Vlad Guerrero

#10: The last base card I needed from 2010 Topps T-206

2010 Topps T-206 #165 Ty Cobb

And with that, I have some serious thinking to do about how to replace these on my list. Fortunately, I've been inundated with cards lately (since when was being inundated with something good?), which means that more holes have been filled and I'm sitting on a bunch of sets where I'm just a couple cards from completion. My guess is those will be making the list--I'm looking at you 2010 Topps Gold Ryan Perry.

As always, I tend to put cards on here that are low-end, easy to find types. Just in case somebody out there happens to be flipping through their piles of cards, trips upon something on the list and feels like sending a little care package my way...

Update: And the new members of the wantlist (in the sidebar) are...
7. 2010 Topps #44 of 45 Hank Greenberg Red Back Mini (Target)
8. 2010 Topps Chrome #182 Brennan Boesch Refractor
9. 2009 Topps Heritage Chrome #CHR171 Rick Porcello
10. 2008 Topps #634 Kenny Rogers Gold Foil
11. 2010 Topps #575 Ryan Perry Gold

May the search begin!

WOW. Sheffield out of Detroit

The Detroit Free Press is reporting that the Tigers have released Gary Sheffield, who currently stands at 499 career Home Runs. Sheffield has had an abysmal spring, but I held out hope that, when healthy, he can still be extremely dangerous. This comes on the heels of the Josh Anderson trade yesterday and creates the following situation, in my opinon:

Anderson and Thames will Platoon in Left Field
Carlos Guillen will move from the projected Left Field starter to DH.

Wow. This is a shocker, given the contract and track record of Sheffield, but I know there are many in Detroit who will be glad to see him go. I'm not necessarily a member of that group, as I feel as though he's always gotten a bum rap, and is incredible at getting on base and smart base running--something that many younger players lack. Still, this move instantly makes the Tigers younger, faster and more versatile and may very well be best in the long run.

Good luck to you Gary, I sincerely wish you well and hope you find a roster spot to hit that next Home Run.

UPDATE: The Free Press article has been updated to confirm that Thames will make the team, indicating that he will be an OF/DH option for the team. Considering that he is one of the nicest players that I've ever met, I'm glad to hear it.