Custom Card of the Day: Fukudome Edition

This picture is every Chicago fan's worst nightmare. I admit that I'm sad that Fukudome has left the Cubs, mainly because Cubs fans have just lost their hero. With Soriano hurt, and Ramirez dwindling, they still had a hero in Kosuke. Now that he's left, all they can rely on is Starlin Castro. Now, the Indians can gain another hero, another big power hitter, and another guy kids will wear jerseys of. Plus, him and Shin-Soo Choo can bond, being from the same continent anyway, and the Cleveland outfield will grow stronger (If all of them are healthy, a Sizemore-Choo-Fukudome combination is deadly). But seriously, with the addition of Fukudome, the Indians have grown even stronger.

Coming Tomorrow- Arguably an oddball idea for a custom, since this guy just pitched his first game since 2009, and he got swatted around by the Mets of all people. But I've always admired the guy.

Custom Card of the Day: Rasmus Edition

I know Colby over here has been a little under the radar most of his career, but it seems that now that he's been traded to Toronto, people are finally paying attention to him. There was the bit of hype in the years it took him to progress through the minor leagues, and when he finally premiered in 2009, it took off. Despite not winning ROY, Rasmus still settled into the Cardinals, and kept a low profile, not being a huge star. Now that he's been traded, his star will rise, and people will look at him more.

Coming Tomorrow- He was a hit in Japan, and Chicago, then the Tribe came calling.

Custom Card of the Day: Pence Edition

Yeah, there was really no choice for me not to make a Pence custom a few days after the trade. Which is to say I'm happy about it. Sure, it'snot like we need all those outfielders, but Pence is still a great choice for a speedy power player, and I'm glad we have him. It's funny, because the last time the Astros made the playoffs Hunter was still in the minors, and Roger Clemens was still with the team. Of course, the last time the Phillies made the playoffs Vance Worley was still in the minors, and Jamie Moyer was still with the team. But times have changed, and now Pence is most likely headed to the playoffs...unless we completely bomb the next few months.

Coming Tomorrow- A young prospect traded to Toronto, hoping to find his swing.

Custom Card of the Day: Beltran Edition

I'm currently sitting in North Jersey, away from my home, on a brief trip. Thankfully, I have already prepared a bunch of customs that I made a few days ago, before the deadline ended. Sadly, this means no Bourn, Lee, Jiminez or the things done yesterday, but in the next few days I'll bring up some of the bigger guns. For instance, Carlos over here may give the Giants their 2nd Championship in a row...or, he could just squander it, and let them lose to Philadelphia. I'd personally like the 2nd option, but it'll be interesting to see how Beltran plays out in San Francisco.

Coming Tomorrow- The man who made one of the richer teams in the NL get even richer. All he had to do was leave Houston.

After the Deadline: Reviewing the trades

I was prepared to write about the next Yankees acquisition. I was hoping for some new pitching, maybe some more power for the lineup, and that would make my day right there. Here's what I got: Absolutely nothing. Nobody went to the Bronx...nobody left the Bronx. Brian Cashman ultimately had a slow Sunday, for the first July 31st in quite awhile. And I was hoping we'd get something...I would deal with Wandy Rodriguez. But we got nothing. Oh well...here's a look at some other deals made with luckier teams.

Top Ten Trade Deadline Deals:

10. Mike Adams to Texas. The Victor- Texas. How it helps Texas- Strengthens their bullpen, making it even stronger. How it helps San Diego: Just what the doctor ordered, EVEN MORE PROSPECTS!

9. Koji Uehara to Texas; Tommy Hunter and Chris Davis to Baltimore. The Victor: A Draw. How it helps Texas: Sending Uehara strengthens the bullpen further, and maybe the Arlington pitching staff can help Uehara regain his 2009 mojo. How it helps Baltimore: Tommy Hunter finally adds some good pitching to a club that needs some, and Chris Davis replaces the recently departed Derrek Lee at first.

8. Erik Bedard and Josh Fields to Boston. The Victor- Boston. How it helps Boston: A nice outfielder to add to the dozen they already have. Plus, the array of injured pitchers leaves a few holes in the rotation, one of them being filled by Bedard, who ironically has been injured for a year. How it helps Seattle: Gives them a few prospects, who they seriously need if they want to rebuild their team.

7. Derrek Lee to Pittsburgh. The Victor: Pittsburgh, for once. How it helps Pittsburgh: The one thing I noticed about the club when I went to a game this month was that it relied mostly on speedy young players, and not on bats like Lyle Overbay. This deal gives them the bat they need. And Derrek will be a good fit in a rebuilding team. How it helps Baltimore: Pittsburgh was willing to give up a few of its prospects to help the team, which is nice.

6. Kosuke Fukudome to Cleveland. The Victor: Cleveland. How it helps Cleveland: The Indians are also in need of a bat, now that Grady's on the DL again. Fuku will gladly give some plate assistance, as well as some outfield help to fill the Sizemore-sized hole. How it helps Chicago: Once Soriano, Dempster and Zambrano leave, the prospects they recieved may aid them somehow.

5. Colby Rasmus to Toronto; Edwin Jackson, Mark Rzepcinski, Corey Patterson to St. Louis. The Victor: A Draw. How it helps Toronto: Rasmus has been a young prospect for the Cards for a while now, and this trade will hopefully help his performance a little bit. Also, they needed a good fielder that was also good at hitting. How it helps St. Louis: All three players fill gaping holes in the Cardinals' roster. Rzepcinski gives them a good reliever, Jackson gives them another decent strater, and Patterson loans more plate assistance.

4. Ubaldo Jiminez to Cleveland.The Victor: Cleveland. How it helps Cleveland: Between Carmona and Masterson, the Indians have a lot of "good" at the mound, but nothing spectacular. Jiminez gives some assurance to scare away batters and help the surprising Indians finally get back to October. How it helps Colorado: Helps a rebuilding, aging team rebuild.

3. Michael Bourn to Atlanta: Jordan Schafer to Houston. The Victor: Atlanta. How it helps Atlanta: The Braves always go for a speedy young outfielder around the trade deadline, and this year was no exception. Bourn will bolster the team not only in speed but in power at the plate. The Braves needed a guy like Bourn. How it helps Houston: Gives them some pitching help, and another batch of prospects.

2. Carlos Beltran to San Francisco. The Victor: San Francisco. How it helps San Francisco: Gives a needed bat to an already strong lineup. Even though the pitching rotation is good on its own, the batting needed improvements, and this certainly helps. With Beltran's power at the plate, there's no wonder why the Giants snapped him up so quickly. How it helps New York: Gives them a few new prospects, so they can rebuild a little more.

1. (Admit it, you saw this coming) Hunter Pence to Philadelphia. The Victor: Philadelphia. How it helps Philadelphia: Adds to the already growing list of outfielders. With Ibanez getting old, Victorino on and off the DL, and the others circling between the club and the minors, it's nice to know that now there'll be a constant, hitting well and playing the outfield consistantly too. It only buttresses one of the strongest teams in the league. How it helps Houston: Well...a few more prospects couldn't hurt.

So there you go. Pretty much every team besides the Yankees made some good deals, got some new blood on their 40-man. And hey...we're still going to do well. We're the Yankees.

Custom Card of the Day: Jennings Edition

I've been getting more and more comfortable putting new teams into old customs, and completely redesigning the card to fit the team. It was at first kinda hard, but now I've been having a lot of fun with the idea. For example, a few days ago Desmond Jennings, a huge prospect for Tampa whose name is not, nor ever was Tim Beckham, made his ML Debut. They're hyping this guy up to be a big hitter, future of the team and all that. So naturally, I decided to make a custom of him. Truth be told, it looks pretty damn good. The way I tooled with the design makes it look like a modern rendition, sorta like what Topps did with the 1977 design in Trading Card History for Chris Young.

So hopefully, you'll be seeing a lot more expansionist customs in the near future. And they'll be just as awesome.

Coming Tomorrow- I already made a card of this guy a month ago...but he was just traded to San Francisco. Tomorrow, he gets his 2nd card.

Custom Card of the Day: Ellsbury Edition

I may have gotten a lot of Red Sox fans against me for a few reasons this year. Mainly because of the Derek Jeter jersey hanging from my logo, and the fact that I'm a fan of their sworn enemy. But also, because Jacoby over here is only the second Red Sock I have posted all year. Now granted, a made an Adrian Gonzalez earlier this year, just because he was doing great at the plate.

But now that the Sox are in first, I need to start making cards of them again. I can't be biased in my card-making, because fans of the teams I don't make cards of will be mad at me. I realize I don't make too many cards of the Diamondbacks, or the Rockies, or the Marlins, but that's because it takes a lot more work to put them into an older design. I realize now that the Red Sox are a good team, and there are a few fans wondering where all the Boston customs are. So naturally, they're back in the mix. And with this Ellsbury up top, I think more is the only answer for Baaston fans.

Coming Tomorrow- A well-hyped rookie for Tampa who recently made his debut.