Squeeze Play Trade: Merricks For Danks

I'm usually not one to pass up on a trade, if I can complete it. I am currently working on a few trades. I will be contacting a few people in the next few days about trades that they have requested. I just don't have enough time in the day to constantly track down cards. I wish I did though!

When multiple cards are involved, it can be a lengthy process. There have been a handful of requests in the past week or so that involved the e-mailing of massive lists to me. For those of you waiting, I apoligize for the delay. I haven't forgotten, real life unfortunately intrudes on massive cards trades. The huge lot trades can be worth the extra work though!

The most instantly gratifying trade is the one or two cards for one or two cards. Usually, it doesn't take a lot of time and it can be completed in less than five minutes. It usually goes like this.

"I have such and such card to trade. I'm looking for this card for it. If not, any of these cards will do in its place."

Those trades are so simple, I can usually do them in my sleep. Sometimes, they can be tricky. Take the latest trade with Joey from Squeeze Play Cards. He had gotten an autographed redemption card of John Danks, a former Rangers prospect and Austin, Texas native, who is now in the starting rotation for the White Sox. At the bottom of his post about it, Joey mentioned that it was up for trade if I wanted it. Um, yeah, I want it!

Joey's trading request was very loose and open to a wide array of possibilities. All he wanted was an autograph or relic card of anyone in a Rangers uniform or some Ivan Rodriguez insert cards. That seemed simple enough, right? It should've been, but it wasn't.

I thought I had the perfect card to trade. It stuck out in my mind. Autographed or relic Rangers cards are a rare commodity in my house. I tend not to get too many. The card I had in mind was a 2007 Bowman Signs Of The Future autographed card of Matt Merricks. He was in a Texas Rangers uniform, so I thought that would be perfect! Then the drama happened.

There isn't any team indication on the front of the card. On the back of the card in teeny tiny printing is his team name. The Los Angeles Dodgers. Huh? I never looked past the uniform on Matt. I did a little research and I could not find any information about Matt Merricks being on the Rangers. I saw info on being in the Braves, the Dodgers and the Rockies organizations, but nothing on the Rangers.

Well, this time Joey came to the rescue. I e-mailed my findings to Joey. It turns out that Matt Merricks was signed as a free agent by the Rangers in 2006. OK, that makes sense. So the trade was almost completed. I scoured through my boxes and came up with an Ivan Rodriguez 1998 Zenith card to throw in. It's not an insert card, but it's a different kind of card. It reminds me of a thicker Stadium Club card. Nice crisp photography and a very minimal front design.

I received the John Danks 2007 Ultra SE auto in the mail on Saturday. I am happy with the card. I hope Joey will be happy with his two cards.