2012 Allen & Ginter

I have let the annual Allen & Ginter mania die down. Now it's time to take a look at the 2012 Allen & Ginter White Sox team set.

65 - Alex Rios

Alex is having a phenomenal year! This card is the least animated I have seen him.

96 - Gavin Floyd

My first thought when I saw this card of Gavin was this...

I know the card is artistic and it's just a shadow on Gavin's face, but Two Face immediately jumped to mind. If this was a decade ago, I would have thought of this...

Poor, poor one-armed Gavin.

OK. I think I'm done with that card... for now.

190 - Addison Reed

I'm seeing a lot of Addison Reed cards from Topps this year. It's like Topps is the only company produ- Oh yeah. They are. It still doesn't explain the immense stack of Addison Reed cards in Topps product in 2012. Especially the FOUR different Addison Reed cards in 2012 Topps Heritage. Just sayin'.

204 - Adam Dunn

Oh, Adam. Who knew that you needed the body of Brent Morel to recover from the most horrible season ever?

Attention Topps Quality Control personnel: Adam Dunn's number is 32. Brent Morel's number is 22. That is all.

218 - John Danks

Danks looks a bit surprised to be holding a ball this late in 2012. Frankly, I'm a bit surprised too. Hopefully, John comes back strong in 2013.

255 - Dayan Viciedo

The White Sox have no use for Carlos Lee, so don't even try to pawn him off Miami. You traded for him, he's your problem now. The White Sox are full up at left field with "Tank". No, I'm not crazy about his Hawk-ish nickname either.

308 - Paul Konerko

A classic shot of Paulie. This is the most I've seen him smile. Ever. Konerko doesn't need to smile when he can play like he does.

335 - Alexei Ramirez

The requisite fielding shot belongs to the Cuban Missile.  He always gets robbed of Gold Gloves by old fogies.

Eight cards hardly represents the White Sox team, but it's not a bad start. What can be said about the design that hasn't already been said before. Yes, it's different, but it feels similar to other years. This is a set that always screams quality and this year is no exception. There's a few legitimate beefs with picture artistic design, but no qualms about the card design.

Even though Allen & Ginter retreads much of the same formula year after year, it's still a winner. If it ain't broke why fix it?