The Joy of a Completed Page, 1988 Topps

Here is another page that has been filled for over six months that I am just posting. This one actually has some twenty-year old autographs in it.

Here is how it breaks down.

TTM: 3 (two in the late '80s and one semi-recently)
Game: 2 (one at Lewis and Clark Park (Sioux City, IA) and one at Rangers Ballpark)
Padrograph: 1
Collective Troll: 1
Contest: 1 ('88 Topps Blog)

2004 Bowman, Freddy Thon

#BDP13 Freddy Thon

Here is a card that I got signed at a Kansas City T-Bones game last year. Freddy was playing for the Joliet Jackhammers at the time and I was able to get this card signed while he was walking from the clubhouse to the field. The clubhouses at Community America Ballpark are beyond the right field fence, so the players have to walk down the grass berm to get to the field. It is a little unusual, to say the least, but it is great for the autograph seekers.

Freddy was drafted by the Rangers out of Villanova in the 18th round of the 2004 draft. He played that summer with the Rangers Arizona League team and hit .291 in 51 games. He moved up to the Northwest League the next season and he hit .279, but he only played in 54 games. Still, he was bumped up to the Midwest League the next season and he did good enough to earn a mid-season promotion to the California League. He repeated the California League in 2007 and he finished the year hitting .284 with 11 home runs.

Apparently, that wasn't good enough for the Rangers and Freddy found himself playing for the Jackhammers in 2008. He must have shown some potential there because the White Sox signed him mid-season and assigned him to the Carolina League's Winston-Salem Warthogs. He was hitting .264 through 27 games before the Sox moved him up to AA. In Freddy's only taste of AA action, he hit .107 in 28 at-bats. After that, he was sent back to Joliet, where he still plays. That could change though since the fate of the Northern League is now in limbo.

2004 Bowman, David Pauley

#300 David Pauley

Here is another Padrograph of I guy that I had never heard of. Because of that, I just assumed that he had never appeared in the Major Leagues. Well, you know what happens when you assume things.

It turns out that David made three starts in 2006 and had six appearances in 2008 for Boston. I wouldn't have felt bad about not knowing a pitcher that had less than ten appearances for the Red Sox, but it turns out that David pitched in the Major this past season for Seattle. This year, in nineteen appearances (fifteen starts), David went 4-9 with a 4.07 ERA. While that doesn't sound great, keep in mind that with Boston, David was 0-3 with a 9.53 ERA. So, while he is not battling King Felix for the number one spot, he has made some improvements since his Boston days and he may be in the running for the M's starting rotation next season. Of course, that is all just speculation since I really do not know anything about this guy.

I just noticed a half hour ago that this card is a "1st Edition". I had no idea that Bowman ever messed with the first edition stamp. But, being a Topps brand, it really doesn't surprise me.

2004 Bowman, Rob Tejeda

#290 Rob Tejeda

Rob, or Robinson as he goes by now, Tejeda is easily the most established player from which I have got a signed '04 Bowman card. He broke into the Majors in 2005 with the Phillies and has played at least 14 Major League games every year since. He currently is one of the set-up men in the Royals bullpen and I got this card signed by the Royals parking lot prior to a game in April of 2009.

Robinson was signed by the Phillies when he was 16-years old in 1998 and made his professional debut a year later. He played in rookie or A ball for the first five seasons of his career before making it to AA in 2004. He played in AAA in '05 for five games before getting called up to Philly in May. He would stay with the big club for the rest of the season before being shipped to Texas for David Dellucci.

Robinson's tenure with the Rangers must have included a bus pass, because he was constantly up and down I35 from Arlington to Oklahoma City. In his two plus years as a Ranger, he made 35 appearances in the Majors and 30 in the minors. He had been a starter for most of his career, but in '08, the Rangers moved him to the bullpen. After four appearances out of the pen in '08, Robinson was claimed off waivers by the Royals and, aside for three rehab appearances last year, has been a legitimate big leaguer ever since.

Working out of the pen with the Royals, with a handful of spot starts, Robinson has posted a 9-9 record with a 3.47 ERA and 184 strikeouts in 174 innings of work.

Robinson's signature has shortened a great deal since he signed his first contract with Topps.

2004 Bowman, Kevin Richardson

#252 Kevin Richardson

Here is a card that I got signed at an Oklahoma Redhawks game in 2008. I spent most of my autographing time at that game on the visiting team's side, but I was able to get to the Redhawk side in time to get a couple of cards signed prior to the start of the game. That was when I got this card signed.

Looking back on it now, I'm amazed that I even owned this card to get signed. That was back before I knew about checkoutmycards.com and I was only able to get cards signed that I actually owned or could find at the local card shop (or overpay for on Ebay). I have twelve cards signed from this set and four of them were given to me. I got this card out of a pack and the other seven cards were all purchased from checkoutmycards.com. That is how much I rely on their services.

Kevin was a non-drafted free agent out of Gonzaga in 2002. He played in the Appalachian League that summer and hit to the tune of .157. The Rangers brought him back the next season and he split it between the Northwest League and the Midwest League, hitting a combined .251 for the season. He spent 2004 in the Midwest League and repeated in again in '05 before getting moved up to the Texas League mid-season. He spent '06 and '07 in the Texas League before moving up to AAA in 2008. He spent all of '08, most of '09, and part of '10 playing for the Redhawks. But during that time-span, something great happened.

On August 17, 2009, Kevin made his Major League debut in Arlington against the Twins. And to add a little personal touch to this post, I was actually at that game (unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of Kevin from the game, but my ticket stub is at the bottom). Kevin went 2-4 in the game with a run and a strikeout. It was the only start in his brief Major League career. After that game, Kevin got into three more games and he got two more at-bats, finishing his stint 3-6. I know that he would have liked to have stayed up longer, but if he never gets another Major League at-bat, at least he can say he hit .500 in the big leagues.

2004 Donruss, Lee Gwaltney

#245 Lee Gwaltney

Here is a card that I got signed last year when I made a ballpark visit to Lincoln, Nebraska's Haymarket Field, home of the Lincoln Saltdog's. My main focus on the trip was to get autographs from the Ft. Worth Cats Aaron Crow and Wayne Terwilliger. But, I had a few cards of a couple other guys and obviously Lee was one of them. Since he wasn't pitching that day, Lee was one of the last guys out of the clubhouse. When I asked him where Terwilliger was, he told me that Wayne had a staff infection and didn't make the trip.

Lee was drafted by the Phillies in the 6th round of the 2002 draft out of Louisiana Tech. He reached as high as AA in the Phillies organization before making his way to the Cubs system in 2005. He played in three different levels that year and he must have injured himself at some point because in 2006, he only pitched in three games with the Arizona League Cubs.

He found himself pitching for Ft Worth in 2007 and, aside for a stint in the Mexican League and two starts for the San Antonio Missions, that was where Lee's career ended in 2009. At least I am assuming it has ended since I can't find any 2010 stats for him.

Lee was born in Germany and, yes, this card is a refractor.

2004 Bowman, Jon Knott

#222 Jon Knott

This is a rarity at Autographed Cards. This is an autographed Padres card that was not given to me by Rod, of Padrographs. This one was actually given to me by Matt of Heartbreaking Cards of Staggering Genius and A Pack to be Named Later fame. If I remember correctly, he got this card in a lot that he bought off of Ebay.

Jon has 31 Major League at-bats on his resume and they were spread over three seasons and two teams. Jon made his Major League debut with the Padres on May 30th, 2004 and he popped out to the catcher. He finished the season 3-14 with two doubles and an RBI. He spent all of 2005 in the minors, but he got another call up from the Padres in September of 2006. He only got three at-bats during that call up and he went 0-3. Following that season, Jon became a free agent and he took his skills to the Orioles organization.

It was with the Orioles that he got his final Major League stint and he probably had his biggest highlight with them. In his first game as an Oriole, Jon hit his lone Major League home run. It was a pinch hit three-run shot off of Brian Stokes of the Devil Rays in the eighth inning. It didn't win them the game or anything, but it certainly got the team back into it and gave them a chance to come back (which they didn't do). Jon ended up finishing the season 3-14 with 3 runs and 4 RBI.

After that, Jon played a couple more seasons at AAA for a couple of different teams. It looks like 2009 might have been his final season since I cannot find any 2010 stats for him anywhere. He spent last year split betwwen the Pacific Coast League, the Mexican League, and the Atlantic League (where he spent most of the season).

2004 Bowman, Jesse Roman

#214 Jesse Roman

Here is a card of a guy that had a very short professional career. He was originally drafted by the Cardinals out of Rice in the 11th round of the 2001 draft. He signed quickly enough to play in 71 New York-Penn League games, where he hit .271 and posted an OBP of .392. He was bumped up to the Midwest League the following season and he hit .280 with 14 home runs. He started out the next season in the Florida State League before getting a cup of coffee at the AA level. He hit .283 in the FSL, but could only muster a .167 average in 52 at-bats at the AA level. Following that season, Jesse was taken by the Padres in the minor league portion of the Rule V Draft.

With the Padres organization in 2004, Jesse split the season between high-A and AA. He hit .263 at high-A, but could only manage a .167 average at AA. That was the final season of his career.

In his four years of minor league ball, Jesse hit .260 with 36 home runs and 202 RBI.

This, of course, is another card from Rod of Padrographs.

2004 Bowman, Tim Hutting

#201 Tim Hutting

Here is a card that I got signed at a Wingnuts game earlier this year. Tim played for the Sioux Falls Pheasants this season and I was able to get this card signed in May.

Tim was a eighth round draft choice of the Giants in 2003 out of Long Beach State (that would make Tim a Dirtbag). He signed early enough to play in 64 games in the Northwest League that year. He played in the South Atlantic League in '04 and had made it up to AA in '05. He spent '06 split between high-A and AAA and that ended up being his last season playing affiliated ball.

In '07, he played for the Joliet Jackhammers of the Northern League before joining Sioux Falls in '08. He has played for them ever since. He finished up this last season hitting .307, the highest average he has had in the minors.

For those of you keeping score at home, this card is a refractor.

The Joy of a Completed Page, 2002 Topps

I had a ton of help completing this page. Thank you Paul and Rod.

Paul's Random Stuff: 3
Padrograph: 3
Game (Wichita Wingnuts): 2
Royals Fanfest: 1

Sure, three of the cards are from the traded set, but they all look the same to me.

2004 Bowman, Jared Wells

#195 Jared Wells

Just like yesterday, here is a card of a player that I thought never played in the Major Leagues. But, unlike most players that appear on a Bowman "First Year" card, Jared has pitched in eight big league games and all eight of them were in 2008. Come to find out, I was even at two of the games that he pitched in.

Jared was drafted by the Padres in the 31st round of the 2002 draft and he made his professional debut the following year. He moved up through the Padres system steadily and was in AAA by 2006. After a full season of AAA ball in 2007, Jared began '08 in AAA, as well. But, he got called up in May and made his Major League debut against the Reds on the 24th. He pitched a scoreless inning and he must have impressed Bud Black enough becuase he was brought into a tied game in the 11th inning the next night. He gave up a couple of runs in that game, but the Padres were able to rally and win it. That was the last time he pitched in the National League. Two days later, he was traded to the Mariners for Cha-Seung Baek.

The Mariners sent Jared back down to AAA only to recall him back up in September. He didn't do too well with them in the six games he appeared in, but it was with the Mariners that I saw him pitch. I saw him pitch first at Rangers Ballpark and then two weeks later in Kansas City.

For the season, Jared finished with a 0-0 record with a 8.64 ERA in 8.1 innings while striking out 5 and walking 7. I got to see 4 of his 7 base on balls.

Jared pitched in the Astros system this past season.

This card was given to me by Rod, from Padrographs.

2003 Leaf, Carlos Rivera

#286 Carlos Rivera

Here is a card that I got signed at the final Wingnut game I attended this year. Carlos was one of the last 'Nuts to head to the dugout and when I asked him to sign, he pointed to the dugout. I went over to the dugout and waited for him while he put his bats in the rack and sat down his glove and got a drink. While I was waiting, I saw Butch Henry making his way to the visiting team dugout and I went over to try to get Butch's signature. Butch was running behind and told me that he would get me after the game. Luckily, by the time I made it back over to the 'Nuts dugout, Carlos was still there and was patiently waiting for me.

Prior to checking out Carlos' stats today, I had no idea that he actually played in the Majors. He got 95 at-bats in 2003 and 15 in 2004, both with the Pirates. During that span, he hit .218 with 3 home runs and 11 RBI.

Carlos has played in the Mexican League in three out of the previous four seasons. In fact, Carlos was brought to the Nuts late in the season after the Mexican League finished up with the hopes that he would help get them to the playoffs. The 'Nuts ended up falling one game short, but it wasn't Carlos' fault. In 28 games with the 'Nuts this year, Carlos hit .372 with 8 doubles, 6 home runs, and 16 RBI. He is still on the 'Nuts roster, so it will be interesting to see if he comes back next year.

Carlos has one of the more unique signatures that I have ever seen. When I was watching him sign my card, all I was thinking was "WTF is that?". His signature is just a "C" with a couple of very small scribbles at the end of it. The funny thing about it is that he took his time and made three very deliberate pen strokes when signing the scribble part.

Tomorrow, I will be starting my 2004 cards and they will begin with about two weeks worth of Bowman.

2003 Lancaster JetHawks Grandstand, Lance Cormier

#18 Lance Cormier

Here is a card that I got signed before the Royals final game of the season. Lance was pitching for Tampa Bay at the time and I was able to get him to sign all three cards that I own of him before the game.

Lance has pitched for the Rays for the past two seasons and he has had some of his best success with them. Last year, he posted a career-best ERA of 3.26 and even recorded a career-high 2 saves. He wasn't quite as sharp this year, but he still posted his second best ERA of 3.92. That's not too bad for a guy that has a career ERA of 4.93.

Unfortunately, Lance was not on the Rays postseason roster this year.

Lance might not have a readable signature, but it is a good-looking one in my opinion. His "L" looks nothing like an "L", but it is stylish nonetheless.

I got this card out of the 2003 JetHawk team set that I bought in Lancaster a couple of years ago. This is the first card that I have gotten signed from that set.

Edwards Air Force is right outside of Lancaster and that is the usual landing site for NASA's space shuttles. That is why Lance has the Columbia patch on his sleeve that looks similar to the one that the Astros wore that year. The JetHawks, however, were affiliated with the Diamondbacks at the time.

2003 Bowman, Lew Palmisano

#BDP40 Lew Palmisano

Here is another card that I got signed at the American Association All Star Game. Lew was the starting catcher on the South squad and I was able to get this card signed during the pre-game festivities.

Lew was a thrid round draft choice by the Milwaukee Brewers in 2003. He made his professional debut that season with the Helena Brewers and he hit .391 in 174 at-bats. But the next season, while playing in low-A, his batting average dropped almost 100 points. It dropped again the following year in high-A, but he still got moved up to AA in 2006. He spent two seasons at AA hitting around .250. Then, he must have got injured. In 2008, Lew only played in 27 games and they were spent in the Arizona League and the Florida State League.

In 2009, Lew joined the American Association and the Sioux City Explorers. He was hitting .257 for them before being dealt to the Pensacola Pelicans, the team he played for in 2010. Lew finished up his All Star year batting .347 for the Pelicans and he now is officially a free agent. Hopefully, his strong 2010 will get him back into affiliated ball.

I thought it was funny at the All Star game when Lew came out of the game. Instead of watching the rest of the game from the dugout, Lew got to go down to the bullpen and warm up pitchers for the rest of the game. Gotta love indy ball.

2002 Topps Gallery, David Espinosa

#170 David Espinosa

Here is the third and final David Espinosa card that I got signed at the American Association All Star Game. You can see the second by scrolling down a post and you can see the first one here.

I mentioned yesterday that David had spent most of the past three years playing for the Grand Prairie AirHogs. He also played part of a season in the Atlantic League with the Camden Riversharks and, in 2009, he got a shot at affiliated ball again when the Mariners signed him. They assigned him to their AA team and in 60 games, he only hit .212. He was released and back to Grand Prairie he went. With them this past season, he hit .351 while driving in 59 and posting a OPS of .984.

Speaking of the American Association, the league announced earlier this week the addition of four new teams to the circuit. The Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks, Kansas City T-Bones, Winnipeg Goldeyes, and Gary SouthShore RailCats all jumped ship from the Northern League and will be playing in the American Association in 2011. I'm looking forward to the new teams and maybe even a Wichita/Kansas City rivalry.

2002 Topps, David Espinosa

#T118 David Espinosa

Here is the second card of David Espinosa that I was able to get signed at the American Association All Star Game this past summer (it is fall, right?).

David was the Reds first round pick in 2000. I don't know if he was a troublemaker or what, but the Reds decided to part ways with him after only two minor league seasons when they traded him to the Tigers for Brian Moehler. Who trades away their first round pick after only two seasons?

After that, David played in the Tigers system through 2007, reaching all the way up to AAA. But after hitting .204 in his second AAA season, he was released by the Tigers. Since then, he has mostly been playing independent ball with the Grand Prairie AirHogs. That was who he was playing for this summer when he was an All Star on the South squad.

2002 Topps, Bruce Chen

#519 Bruce Chen

Here is the second card that my buddy was able to get signed by Bruce at a Royals game last month. You can see the first one by scrolling down a bit.

In the last Bruce Chen post, I mentioned Bruce's rally cry of "C'mon Chen!". Apparently, Will Ferrell was at a Royals game during the summer on a day when Bruce was pitching. He and his gang were in one of the dugout suites and the Royals on-field commentator was in there with them. So, throughout the game, they would cut to the dugout suite and talk to Will and company. During one of the scenes, out of nowhere, Will yelled "C'mon Chen!" and a monster was born.

The rally cry grew quickly and the Royals almost gave out "C'mon Chen!" t-shirts (the design barely lost in a fan vote). But every start after that game, "C'mon Chen!" cries were to be heard and Bruce was ready to take charge. And take charge he did by winning a team high 12 games and pitching his first Major League shutout. For the first time in his career (the Royals are the tenth team he has been with), Bruce may have found a home with the Royals.

Somehow this card got rotated a bit while I was scanning it. Fortuntately, with Bruce being the crafty lefty that he is, I'm sure that he'll have straightened it out by the time you read this.

The Joy of a Completed Page, 1992 Donruss

Here is a page that has been completed for half a year now, so better late than never.

Here's the breakdown.

TTM, all from the '90s: 4
Padrograph: 2
Royals Fanfest: 1
Game (Royals): 1
Royals Caravan: 1?

It only took me eighteen years to get nine cards from this set signed.

2002 Fleer Tradition, Wilson Betemit

#444 Wilson Betemit

Here is a card that I got signed a week and a half ago after the Royals final game of the season. In that game, Wilson made an error in the 12th inning that cost the Royals the game. Because of that, I was a little surprised when Wilson left the Royals parking lot and pulled over and signed autographs from his car for five minutes. Most of the Royals were wanting to hit the road after the game and only one other player signed from his car (coincidentally, it was the pitcher that took the loss that day, Dusty Hughes). So, in a way, Wilson tried to make up for his error by stopping to sign before he left Kansas City.

Wilson was a minor league free agent signing for the Royals last season and he started the year in Omaha. But, his bat earned him a promotion to the big leagues right before interleague play started. In one of his first starts as a Royal, he had a home run from both sides of the plate in a game at Yankee Stadium. He was mainly used as a DH and pinch hitter early on, but once Alberto Callaspo was traded to the Angles, Wilson became the everyday third baseman to finish up the season.

Wilson was a welcome addition to the Royals this year. While his glove was a little suspect, his bat helped out a lot. He finished the season hitting .297 with 13 home runs and 43 RBI in only 84 games. If he had been called up earlier and had hit like that, he would have easily led the Royals in home runs and possibly RBI.

I have no idea what the future holds for Wilson Betemit, but I am glad that he was a part of the Royals in 2010.

Wilson's signature is is completely unreadable, but he is consistent with it.

2001 Topps Fusion, Talmadge Nunnari

#234 Talmadge Nunnari

Here is the second and final Talmadge Nunnari card that I got signed at the American Association All Star Game.

This is the second off-beat 2001 Topps card that I got signed at an American Association game this year. The other one was a Topps Stars card of Reggie Abercrombie and I must say that the Topps Fusion is a much better looking set. It doesn't look as good in the scan as it does in person, but it is still a good looking set (based solely off of this card). The entire background above the red stripe has a shiny prism effect when rotated in the light. Plus, I like the two photos that overlap and the giant fading Expos logo. Throw in the red Expos hat and you have got yourself one good looking card. Now, if we could only do something about Talmadge's signature.

Talmadge is the manager of the Pensacola Pelicans and, like Butch Henry with the El Paso Diablos, he was born in Pensacola.

2001 Fleer Triple Crown, Talmadge Nunnari

#300 Talmadge Nunnari

Here is a card that I got signed at the American Association All Star Game earlier this summer. Talmadge was the manager of the South squad and I was able to get him to sign this card during the pregame festivities. While he was signing the cards, he made sure to grab a couple of players from his Pensacola Pelicans team to show them the card and he made sure to point out to each of them that the card listed him as a prospect. I thought that was pretty funny.

Until ten minutes ago, I had just assumed that Talmadge was just a career minor leaguer. But, that was not the case since the Expos made him a September call-up in 2000. In his short tenure with Montreal, he appeared in 18 games and went 1-5. While that does not seem all that impressive, keep in mind that he also had 6 walks and a sacrifice fly. So, he at least has some quality at-bats and he can tell everyone that he retired with a .583 Major League OBP.

I have one more card to post of Talmage and that should be coming up tomorrow.

2001 Bowman Heritage, Bruce Chen

#276 Bruce Chen

Here is a card that I got signed at a Royals game last month. Actually, I didn't get it signed, but a buddy of mine did. We were over by the Indians side while the pitchers were working out on the field and a couple of Royals pitchers hit the field to do the same thing. I asked my buddy if he would head over to that side and he said sure. The only problem was that he thought I was going with him. When I told him that I was staying put, he reluctantly headed over there anyway. Bruce Chen was the only autograph that he got that day.

Amazingly, as long as the Royals resign Chen, it is looking like he will be the Royals number three starter next season.

"C'mon Chen!"

That is Bruce's rally cry thanks to Will Farrell.

I bought this card off of checkoutmycards.com and I am pretty sure that it is the only '01 Bowman Heritage card that I own. I was pleasantly surprised how nice it turned out once signed.

2001 Bowman, David Espinosa

#BDP8 David Espinosa

Here is a card that I got signed at the American Association All Star Game in Wichita this summer. David was on the South squad and he was representing the Grand Prairie AirHogs.

I've been to two All Star games in Wichita (the other was the 2003 Texas League game) and both had a skills competition before the game. The weird part about it was that both games had the same strange competitions. They both had the home run derby (the one normal event), a relay throw race, and a blindfolded catchers throwing competition. Since the Wingnuts and Wranglers are in no way, shape, or form connected to each other, I thought that it was strange that both clubs had the same events. It must be a Wichita thing.

Anyway, David was a participant in the relay throw race and his team took first place and each was awarded a fifty dollar cash prize. I was able to get this card and a couple of others signed right after the competition was over and David looked pretty happy to have won the cash.

2000 Bowman, Rico Washington

#261 Rico Washington

Here is a card that I got signed at the lone Kansas City T-Bones game I attended this season. I had got a few cards signed by Rico at the T-Bones/Wingnuts preseason game earlier in the year, but I didn't get a Pirates card signed. I had a Rico Washington Pirates card with me that day, but when Rico came over to sign, he would not sign the Pirates card because it wasn't him on it. It was Adrian Brown. So, I bought another Pirates card of him and it must not have been an error card since he signed it.

Rico was drafted out of high school by the Pirates in the 10th round of the 1997 draft. He made his minor league debut that summer and it was the first of many seasons spent in the minors. He didn't get a Major League call-up until 2008 when the Cardinals finally called him up.

Rico got into 14 games with the Cards that April. In his short Major League tenure, he went 3-19 with 2 runs, 3 RBI, and 2 doubles.

I can't find any stats for him for 2009, but Wikipedia suggest that he played in Taiwan last season.

1998 Pacific Online, Butch Henry

#116 Butch Henry

Here is the third and final card that Butch signed for me at a Wingnuts game two months ago. Scroll down a bit if you would like to see the other two.

I bought this card from checkoutmycards.com so I would have a card signed by Butch that wasn't an Expos card. This is now the second Pacific Online card that I have that is signed. The first one was given to me by Rod of Padrographs and I posted it on Christmas last year. At the time, I knew nothing about this set. I didn't know if they were online redemption cards or if they were distributed in packs. Luckily, someone found a pack of this stuff and busted it on A Pack to be Named Later. So now I know. These cards were issued in packs.

Butch was born in El Paso, Texas and he is the manager of the El Paso Diablos. I'll have another card to post this weekend of an American Association manager managing his hometown team.

1998 Pacific Omega, Tim Belcher

#111 Tim Belcher

Here is a card that I got signed at a Royals game last month. The Indians were in town and Tim is their pitching coach. The game was a Sunday day game, so there wasn't any batting practice. But, the pitchers were on the field and I was able to get this card signed while Tim was leaving the field. He only signed one card and I am glad it was this one. But, I'll get into that later.

Tim pitched in the Majors for fourteen seasons with seven different clubs- the Dodgers, Reds, White Sox, Tigers, Mariners, Royals, and Angels. He was a 15 game winner three times, but he never made an All Star team. He finished his career 146-140 and he even picked up 5 saves early in his career.

2010 was Tim's first season as the Indians pitching coach.

I found this card in a stack of Royals cards that I have accumulated since joining the blogosphere. It was the only Belcher Royals card that I could find and I love it. This is a fantastic looking card. I know the late '90s cards take a lot of crap for being overly shiney and foiled up, but not this card. This card actually looks really nice.

I have no idea how long I have had this card (less than two years) and I never noticed it until the day I pulled it out of its stack. But, once I re-found it and actually looked at it, I couldn't believe that I have had this beauty and never realized it.

It kind of looks like a '90s version of Upper Deck Sweet Spot. I love how they have the seams on the card and how they break up the three images. Even though about a fifth of the card is covered in foil, the foil is used in a way that I have never noticed before. It has a picture etched in it and it actually looks good. Even the scan looks good.

All in all, this is a great looking card and I am glad that I was able to get it signed. It certainly looks better than the '89 Donruss card of Tim that didn't get signed.

1995 Pacific, Hector Carrasco

#34 Hector Carrasco

Here is the second of three cards that Hector signed for me at the American Association All Star Game this summer. Luckily, I have more than 300 cards to post between this one and the next Carrasco card. So, this might seem like the final card of Carrasco, for now.

This past season, Hector pitched for the American Association champions, the Shreveport-Bossier Captains. He finished the season with a 2-4 record with 22 saves and an ERA of 3.83. His 22 saves was good for second in the league. In the playoffs, he pitched 9 scoreless innings while picking up 3 more saves.

I was looking forward to seeing Hector pitch in the All Star Game, but it was not to be. Apparently, Hector had better things to do that night and he ended up heading to the clubhouse after the first inning, never to be seen again. It's not like the South squad needed him as they rolled the North 12-3. They could have avoided pitching their starting shortstop for the final two outs if he would have stayed, though.

But, it not like I never saw Hector pitch. I got to see him pitch two times in the early 2000s with the Twins in Kansas City.

1995 Topps, Butch Henry

#498 Butch Henry

Here is the second of three cards that Butch Henry signed for me at a Wingnuts game in August while he was managing the El Paso Diablos.

Butch pitched in the Majors for seven seasons with four different clubs. He pitched one year with the Astros, half of one with the Rockies, two and a half with the Expos, two with the Red Sox, and one with the Mariners. When he was all said and done, Butch finished his career with a 33-33 record with 7 saves and a 3.83 ERA. That is not too bad for a guy that bounced around as much as he did.

I'll have one more Butch Henry card to post later this week and I will have one more card up later tonight.

1995 Donruss, Butch Henry

#455 Butch Henry

Here is a card that I got signed at the last Wichita Wingnut game I attended this year. Butch was the manager of the visiting El Paso Diablos and he was nice enough to sign all three cards after the game.

I asked him to sign before the game, but he was running a little behind and the umpires were already congregated around the plate. He told me that he couldn't sign then, but he would get me after the game. So, as soon as the ballgame was over, I went down by El Paso's dugout to get the cards signed. Before he signed for me, he asked if I was the guy that asked him for his autograph by the 'Nuts dugout just prior to the game. I told him that I was and he told me that he was going to look for me on his way back to the clubhouse. I thought that was pretty cool. When asking for autographs, you get rejected in more ways than one, but one of the most used is "I'll get you later" and then later never happens. So, it was nice to see a player/coach actually follow up on what they said.

I attended my last baseball game of the season yesterday. For the first time ever, I got to see a meaningful game in October in Kansas City. Sure the Rays clinched the AL East while they were down 2-0, but they were able to pull it off in extras to gain an actual lead in the standings. Plus, I got a game-used bat card signed by Evan Longoria. So, yeah, I had a pretty good day.

How long until Royals Fanfest? I need some more autographs!!

1994 Upper Deck, Hector Carrasco

#511 Hector Carrasco

Here is a card that I got signed at the American Association All Star game in July. Hector was representing the eventual league champions, the Shreveprt-Bossier Capatains, at the game and he was nice enough to sign all three cards for me. I will post the second card on Monday, but it might be another year before I post the third card. It's from 2007.

Hector pitched in the Majors for parts of twelve seasons. During that time, he played with the Reds, Royals, Twins, Red Sox, Orioles, Nationals, and Angels. He played in 647 Major League games and posted a record of 44-50 with 19 saves while compiling a 3.99 ERA and 662 strikeouts.

He last pitched in the Majors in 2007, but he is obviously still playing ball. He pitched for the Iowa Cubs in 2008 before moving on to the Atlantic League in 2009. He played for three different teams last year before heading to the American Association this season.

1994 Clollector's Choice, Scott Radinsky

#235 Scott Radinsky

Here is the third and final Scott Radinsky card that I got signed last month. Just scroll down a bit to see the other two.

Unfortunately, I could only find cards of Scott as a White Sock. He played for the Dodgers, Indians, and Cardinals, too, but I only have White Sox cards of him. It looks like there wasn't any cards of him as a Cardinal or Indian, but there are a couple of cards out there of him as a Dodger. But, those cards came out when I wasn't collecting, so I obviously have none of them.

According to Wikipedia, Scott is one of the best Jewish pitchers in the history of the game, he is in a punk band, and he owns a skate park and skateboard museum. That is quite a resume.

1992 Topps, Ced Landrum

#81 Ced Landrum

Here is the second and final Ced Landrum card that I have to post on here. If you missed the first one, scroll down one post.

When Ced was leaving the field the day he signed my cards, he had his daughter with him. She was probably in middle school and was carrying around a softball. I've seen a few players/coaches at the park with their boys before, but that was the first time I've noticed a daughter. I thought it was pretty cool that she was with him and was obviously into baseball/softball and was even on a road trip. You don't see that too often at games.

I'll get one more post up later tonight and then it will be back to one post a day for a a couple of days.