While gathering as many Allen & Ginter minis as I could last night, I discovered something. Even though I didn't have that many minis, all in all, there were still some instances where 1 spot would have 2 or even 3 options, forcing me to make some frankenset decisions very early on.
Like any frankenset, a major part of the A&G mini frankenset is going to be choosing between 2 or more cards. In these instances, I'd like to go with minis that aren't your standard mini card. I'd like variation backs, parallels, inserts, or even some non-baseball minis to make it into the set as a way to contrast all the base minis that will likely be taking up the majority of the pages.
For instance, it would be difficult for a card to replace the Elvis Andrus black and white mini parallel at the top of the page unless it was some intriguing insert card. Not only is this mini a stand-out in particular, but the black and white border helps its cause.
Early on in the process, I've already been forced to make 3 decisions regarding certain spots in the frankenset. Those spots are cards #2, #9, and #12. Here are the choices and the decisions I made, starting with spot #2.
#SS-2 2016 Allen & Ginter Subways and Streetcars insert
This is one of the coolest Allen & Ginter insert sets I've ever seen, and it's a mini insert set as well. Though I do believe these would work better as regular cards, the concept behind the Subways and Streetcars insert set is very cool. Upon further inspection, I found it includes public transportation from other cities such as New York and San Francisco.
#USM-2 2016 Allen & Ginter U.S. Mayors
Like the Subways and Streetcars insert, the U.S. Mayors mini set includes mayors from all different United States cities. From Cleveland to Boston, over 30 different mayors are represented in this set with a blub on the back of the card describing what they've done as mayor of their city.
#2 2017 Allen & Ginter Albert Pujols
Despite being a regular base card mini, this Pujols card is a prime example of fantastic base card designs that also work exceptionally well as mini cards. Though it is more difficult for a card like this to be chosen over an oddball insert, the Pujols card makes a very good case for why it should be included in the set.
My Pick; Subways and Streetcars Red Line insert
There was certainly some steep competition at the #2 spot with 3 different cards each appealing to me in a different way. However, the uniqueness of the Subways and Streetcars insert combined with the interesting description on the back makes for the best overall option. After all, it is the 2nd card which plays a big role in keeping the frankenset interesting after following whichever card I choose for #1.
Next, here were the 2 choices for spot #9.
#C-9 2017 Allen & Ginter Constellations
Another one of my favorite A&G inserts, the constellations set is an insert set of 10 different constellations such as Orion, Libra, and the Aquarius constellation shown above. The front of the card includes an outline of the star formation in white which is very challenging to see and, to my knowledge, is not glow-in-the-dark which I learned as soon as I pulled the card. I'm not entirely sure, however, but I do know that this would be an excellent fit at #9.
#9 2017 Allen & Ginter Ryan Schimpf A&G back
Despite being a slightly rare A&G back mini, there's not much to get excited about over this 2017 Allen & Ginter Ryan Schimpf card. For starters, it's rather difficult for me, or nearly any collector, to get excited over Padres cards. Additionally, it's not even like he's Wil Myers who happens to be relatively interesting. Nothing against Ryan Schimpf, but his card doesn't have the wow factor that the constellation mini has.
My Pick; Constellations Aquarius insert
I can't say this will always be true, but in this case; constellations are better than Padres cards. I believe these inserts are relatively rare because I haven't seen any pulled in all of the 2017 Topps Allen & Ginter box breaks that I've seen.
Finally, I had a closely-contested matchup between 2 cards for the #12 spot. Here they are.
#12 2016 Allen & Ginter Trevor Story
It's going to be pretty difficult to beat out this Trevor Story card from 2016 Allen & Ginter that features some of the best background art I've ever seen on an A&G card. Additionally, I also said that I wanted this card in the frankenset no matter what, but it does all depend on the other card #12.
#12 2017 Allen & Ginter Corey Bellemore black and white parallel
I showed this card of the famous beer mile runner Corey Bellemore last night while explaining my predicament regarding non-baseball minis making it into the set. The best thing this card has going for it is that it's a black and white parallel which happened to look fantastic in the 2017 Allen & Ginter set, a big improvement over the well-designed yet minimal black and white parallels from the 2016 set as shown above.
My Pick; 2016 Allen & Ginter Trevor Story
This was probably the closest decision I've had to make out of the 3, but the gorgeous background on the Trevor Story card cannot be ignored. Even though I did want to incorporate some non-baseball cards as well as mini parallels, I didn't want to pass up on some of the most amazing minis I've ever seen which is why I went with Story at #12.
Please let me know if you have A&G minis to trade. I'd gladly set up a trade with you over the next week or so before I eventually head to Cleveland to hopefully add to the frankenset there as well.
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