Scanning Nightmares - MLPD

Of all the cards I would dub a 'scanning nightmare', this is the most nightmarish of all. Perhaps I should have posted it on Halloween a few days ago, but I went for treats instead of tricks!

So, what makes this such a nightmare? Well, it's foil. Not only that, it's bronze foil (looks brown in most lights). It's quite an ugly card in hand as well. 

Card Number 460: Skybox Metal Universe, 1999; #283

There were actually three Tony Gwynn cards in this set as Tony featured in two themes within the set as well. MLPD stood for Major League Prominent and Dominant, apparently. 

This is how is scans

I've taken a photo so show what it looks like in unscanned form. 

And if that's not enough, there's a write-up on the back that is downright whacky.

Whoever wrote the cardback copy for Skybox has a bit of a bro-dude attitude going on. (Also in evidence on the Spring Training card). I'm going to add "pure-n-easy hitter" to my list of unique ways that Tony is described on the back of a baseball card. But the way it starts sets my teeth on edge.

This might seem mean, but when people list the card companies they would like to see make a return to the baseball hobby, they never seem to mention Skybox. Cards like this are part of the reason why.

Total: 460 cards 

Monday Millennium Mixer

Three random cards from the year 2000 for your enjoyment today.

Card Number 134: Upper Deck Hitter's Club, 2000; #33
This was part of a small set released by Upper Deck that focused on the best batting players.

You can just about make out the foil number just over half way up the card. It reads .339, which was Tony's 18-season average up to the end of 1999.

The career projection graph on the back is actually charting his career batting. You can see the plateau in the mid-90s where he earned four batting titles in a row. This is one of those graphs that bug me slightly because the y axis starts a lot lower than needed. Maybe it's a uniform axis for all the players in the set, but it looks off to me. Anyway, that's enough graph nerdery.

Card Number 135: Pacific Vanguard, 2000; #32
Another card from 2000. Pacific seemed to lose their way a bit at the turn of the Millennium and produced this Photoshop image.

The sign in the background give me an Electric 6 earworm. Unfortunately.

The cardback mentions Tony's five gold gloves. Fielding was something he really had to work hard at when he first signed with the Padres. His diligence and commitment to improve is referenced by quite a few people in the book of reminiscences He Left His Heart in San Diego. He really earned those gold gloves.

Card Number 136: Skybox Metal, 2000; #1
Another one of the #1 card collection. Metal-coated cards don't scan very well.

In hand, this is shiny and has a bit of heft to it.

Tony's watching the ball on the back. His name is printed on the card, but on the scan it looks like it's been imprinted. One of the rare occasions when the scan looks better than the original.

That's the end of the Monday Millennium Mixer fresh from the turn of the century!

Total: 136/394