The Rest of 2008 Upper Deck, Part II

#407 Doug Davis
#427 Luis Hernandez
#446 Felix Pie
#518 Reggie Abercrombie
#526 Mark Teahen
#549 Delwyn Young
#670 Vincente Padilla
#712 Elliot Johnson
#98-JK Jason Kendall

Here are the last of the 2008 Upper Deck base set.

Doug Davis- Doug signed this card for me at an Oklahoma Redhawks game in 2012. He was playing for the visiting Omaha Storm Chasers.

Luis Hernandez- Luis signed this card for me after batting practice at The K in 2009 during his one season with the Royals. He would later go on to play for the Wichita Wingnuts. But, by the time he was in Wichita, all of my cards of him were already signed.

Felix Pie- I was able to get Felix by the Orioles dugout on my last visit to Camden Yards in 2009.

Reggie Abercrombie- Though he never played for the Wingnuts, he played in the American Association long enough for me to get multiple autographs from him throughout the years. This one was obtained in 2016 while he was with Winnipeg. He was still with the club this past season at the age of thirty-eight.

Mark Teahen- Mark was always a great signer while with the Royals. This is one of the cards that he signed for me by the Royals parking lot in 2008.

Delwyn Young- I got Delwyn to sign two years ago while he was a member of the second, and last, incarnation of the Kansas Stars.

Vincente Padilla- Vincente signed for me at a Royals game in 2008. His Rangers were taking batting practice at the time.

Elliot Johnson- Elliot signed for me at a Scranton-Wilkes/Barre Yankees game in 2009. He was playing for the visiting Durham Bulls at the time.

Jason Kendall- Jason worked as a special adviser for the Royals for a few seasons and I was able to get this card signed outside The K in 2013. That day, I had just this one card of him and it was on the same page as two Emilio Bonifacio cards. When I gave him my book to sign, he said "dude, that's not me". When I pointed out his card, he was like "oh, I was going to say I'm not black".

2005 Topps Total, Koyie Hill

#401 Koyie Hill

Here is the first of three cards that I got signed by Koyie Hill at the Kansas Stars game last summer. Koyie was on both editions of the Stars squad, but I struck out with him in 2016. It seems like I did better with the pitchers in 2016 and then did better with the hitters in 2017. I could be completely off base on that assessment, but that is the way it seems.

Koyie played in the big leagues for parts of eleven seasons with the Dodgers, Diamondbacks, Cubs, Marlins, and Phillies. The fourth round draft pick out of Wichita State made his Major League debut with the Dodgers in 2003. He played in just three games for them before being dealt to the D-Backs for Steve Finley.

With the D-Backs, Koyie got into 47 games over a two year span. During that time, he hit .228 with 12 RBI and 1 home run, the first of his career.

That home run was pretty clutch at the time. The D-Backs were trailing the Pirates 7-3 in the bottom of the ninth. Koyie came up with two on and one out. He hit the first pitch he saw off of Jose Mesa for a three-run homer that brought the score to 7-6. The D-Backs got one more run off of Mesa to tie it before losing in the tenth inning. Mesa was able to pick up the win despite blowing the save and surrendering four runs in one inning of work.

2005 Topps, Al Pedrique

#268 Al Pedrique

Here is a card that I got signed at a Spring Training game earlier this year. Al was the first base coach for the A's and they were the away team at the Angels Tempe Diablo Stadium. Prior to entering the park, my plan was to 'graph the Angels side and send my oldest boy over to grab some A's for me. Once I got inside, though, my plans changed. The Angles side was lined with people from dugout to foul pole while there wasn't a soul on the visiting side. So, I took the A's side and my kid took the day off and it worked out great. I think I got nearly twenty cards signed that day, along with a Marcus Semien batting glove.

Al managed in the Major Leagues for half a season. The Diamondbacks finished with a winning record in 2003, but they were a disaster come 2004. They started off the year 29-50 before Bob Brenly, the manager of their lone World Championship team, got the ax. Al took over and did just a bit worse than Bob did. He finished the year with a 22-61 record. The D-backs finished the year 51-111. So far, that is the only season that the D-Backs have lost 100 or more games.

Al was replaced with Bob Melvin the following year and has never been given another chance to manage a Major League team. But, he seemed to do alright in his first season as the A's first base coach as they grabbed a Wild Card spot this year.

2003 Lancaster Jethawks Grandstand, Mike Aldrete

#25 Mike Aldrete

It took me two tries, but I finally got this card signed at Spring Training this year. I took it with me last year and I finally got Mike's attention right before the National Anthem. He was rushed and only signed two cards before tripping over the stairs to hit the field for the anthem. This was the one card he did not sign. But, I caught the A's in action this spring and I got Mike's attention with plenty of time to spare. He ended up signing this card and two more for me this go around.

I bought this team set ten years ago when I went to a Lancaster Jethawks game. They were having a clearance sale in the team store and I picked up three random team sets for cheap. Up to this point, I have only had one card from each set signed. But with this card, I now have two signed from the 2003 set. Lance Cormier is the other card from the set that I got signed.

Mike only managed the Jethawks for one season and the team did well under his leadership. They went 73-67. Despite the winning record, the team finished fourth in the five team California League South Division. They were two games out of second place and a trip to the postseason. That was the last time Mike managed a team.

1999 Topps, David Dellucci

#179 David Dellucci

Here is the first of three cards that David Dellucci signed for me when he played of the Kansas Stars last summer. The Stars were a group of former pro players that competed in the NBC World Series against predominantly college athletes.

David played in the Majors for thirteen seasons with the Orioles, Diamondbacks, Yankees, Rangers, Phillies, Indians, and Blue Jays. Out of all those teams, he spent the most time with the D-Backs, playing with them for parts of five and a half seasons. Over that time, he got into 503 games and he hit .272 with 25 home runs and 156 RBI. He was with the club when they won the World Series in 2001 and was mainly used as a defensive replacement during the playoffs. He got into six games and was 2-4 at the dish. Just prior to the 2003 trade deadline, David was traded to the Yankees. He would make his second and final World Series appearance with them and go 0-2 in four games.

The Kansas Stars are no more this year, which is pretty disappointing for me. I had quite a time 'graphing them the last two years. But, the team is still going to be playing together this summer at the Bluegrass World Series in Louisville as the Louisville Stars. I have no idea who they will be competing against, but it is sure to be a good time. So, if you are going to be in the Louisville area between July 30th and August 4th, it may be worth checking out.

2007 Topps '52. Jailen Peguero

#66 Jailen Peguero

Here is a card that I got signed by the former Diamondback, Jailen Peguero, this past summer. Jailen was playing for the Winnipeg Goldeyes and I was able to get him to sign this card during pregame at a Wingnuts game early in the season.

Jailen played for the D-Backs for parts of two seasons, 2007 and 2008. That was his only time in the Majors and he did not do too great. In 2007, he got into 18 games and pitched 14.2 innings. Over that time, he gave up 15 runs (9.21 ERA) on 17 hits with 13 walks to 9 strikeouts. That is a WHIP of 2.04. Yikes! It is going to be hard to limit runs with a WHIP like that. He did better, though, the following year. He only made 7 appearances, but he lasted 9.1 innings while only surrendering 5 earned runs. Plus, he struck out 5 and only walked 4. That performance was good for a 4.82 ERA. For his career, Jailen was 1-0 with a 7.50 ERA.

On a positive note, Jailen only faced one batter more than three times in the Majors. That batter was Matt Holliday and he was owned by Jailen. Holliday was 0-4 with two strikeouts. He was the only batter to strikeout more than once against Jailen.

After the 2008 season, Jailen bounced around the AAA circuit for a few years before ending up in Mexico in 2011. He played there until joining Winnipeg last year. With Winnipeg, he was 5-4 with 16 saves and a 3.76 ERA.

2007 Topps, Doug Davis

#489 Doug Davis

Somehow, I have neglected to post on here for two and a half weeks. I have no idea where the time has gone and have no excuse for the lack of posts. At this rate, and with the holiday season coming up and a child on the way, I do not see things getting any better in the near future. But, I have this weekend off and will try to get s couple of cards in before my crazy work month officially begins.

Here is the first of three cards that Doug Davis signed for me in 2012 while he was with the Omaha Storm Chasers. I got the cards signed at a game in Oklahoma City. Doug was not starting that day, but I was able to coax him out of the dugout to sign right before first pitch. Even though his Major League career was unofficially over at that point, it was still cool to add some signatures from a seasoned vet.

Speaking of vets, Happy Veterans Day to all that have served!

2007 Goudey, Alberto Callaspo

#GG-AC Alberto Callaspo

Mike Jacobs was looking lonely in my binder as the only 2007 Goudey card that I had signed. So, to make him feel a little better, and to add another signed card from this great looking set, I picked up this signed Alberto Callaspo card from COMC for about two bucks. An on-card autograph from this iconic looking set cannot be beat, especially for two dollars.

This is the fourth card of Alberto Callaspo that I have posted on here. The first three were all obtained in 2009 while Alberto was with the Royals. I posted the first two of those in 2010 and then it was a couple of years before I got around to the third one.

Since leaving the Royals, Alberto has played for the Angels, A's, Braves, and Dodgers. He spent three and a half seasons with the Halos before being dealt to the A's at the trade deadline in 2013. He played in Oakland through last season and then signed on with the Braves during the offseason. He played there for a couple of months before being dealt to the Dodgers in May. His stay in LA was barely longer than his tenure in Atlanta as the Dodgers released him three weeks ago.

It will be interesting to see if Alberto can catch on with another team next season. He will be thirty-three then and his offensive numbers have been on the decline since he maxed out as a Royal in 2009. That year, he hit .300 with 11 home runs and 73 RBI.

If he does call it a career, he will finish as a .265 hitter with 52 home runs and 369 RBI.

2007 Bowman Heritage, Cesar Nicolas

#BHP4 Cesar Nicolas

Here is a card that I got signed at a Wichita Winguts playoff game in 2011. Cesar was playing for the Grand Prairie Airhogs at the time. For a playoff game, there wasn't too many people there and Cesar wondered aloud where all the people were.

Cesar was drafted by the Diamondbacks in the fifth round of the 2004 draft out of Vanderbilt. He hit 21 home runs in his first pro season in the Midwest League and followed that up with 14 home runs in the California League the next season while hitting .302 both years. In 2007, he was promoted to AA and his numbers dropped dramatically. He hit just .245 with 9 home runs that year and was forced to repeat AA the following season. His numbers were similar in his second go-around and the D-Backs released Cesar after just four seasons.

Cesar made the jump to independent ball in 2009, spending most of the season with Grand Prairie. He did good enough there to get picked up by the Tigers for the 2010 season, which he spent with their AA team. He started 2011 with the Tigers AAA team before getting released and heading back to Grand Prairie.

He had a really good season with the 'Hogs in 2011, hitting .353 with 73 RBI in 84 games. But it wasn't enough to get back into affiliated ball. Cesar would play for two more seasons in the American Association, Atlantic League, and Mexico before calling it quits after the 2013 season.

2007 Bowman Heritage, Mark Reynolds

#224 Mark Reynolds

Here is a card that I got signed at a Royals game in 2013 while Mark was playing for the Indians. I got this card signed during batting practice and Mark was nice enough to sign all three cards for me.

When I got this card signed, Mark had just started playing with his third team. He started out with the Diamondbacks and then played for the Orioles before joining Cleveland. He has since played for three more teams since then. He got released by the Tribe later that season and was picked up by the Yankees a few days later. He was then with the Brewers last year before joining the Cardinals this season.

Despite having played for all of those teams, Mark's greatest success came while he was with the D-Backs. Even though he struck out 223 times in 2009, he still hit .260 with career highs in home runs and RBI, 44 and 102 respectively.

Mark has played in 82 games with the Cardinals this season and he is hitting .229 with 8 home runs and 33 RBI while filling in at the corner infield and outfield spots.

2007 Bowman, Jarrod Parker

#BDPP58 Jarrod Parker

This is a card that I got signed at the Future's game in 2009 while Jarrod was a farmhand for the Diamondbacks. This was the only card I had of him at the time and he signed it prior to the game. That Futures Game in St. Louis was pretty crazy by my 'graphing standards. There were a ton of people there early hoping to get some 'graphs of some up-and-comers. I got there at least a half hour before the gates opened and there had to have been at least forty people in line in front of me at the gate I entered. By the time I got in the park, the closest I could get to the field was the second row, and I still did pretty good from there. I surprisingly did a lot better in St. Louis than I did in Kansas City three years later.

My biggest pet peeve about St. Louis was the ushers. People were packed into the lower seating area by the dugouts hoping to get autographs two hours before gametime. But, if someone actually had tickets in that section, they would make the masses of people move so that two people with tickets that had zero interest in autographs could sit in their seat and eat a hot dog with a throng of people all around them. It was absolutely asinine. They could have waited thirty minutes and had their dog ten rows higher. It would have pissed less people off and the hot dog eaters would have been much more comfortable.

Jarrod has pitched two full seasons with the A's since they acquired him in a trade prior to the 2012 season. In those two seasons, Jarrod won at least 12 games while keeping his ERA under 4 and striking out at least 130 batters. Unfortunately though, he missed all of last season after having his second Tommy John surgery. He was rehabbing in the minors this year to make his comeback, but ended up fracturing a bone in his elbow. That required another surgery and Jarrod is still on the 60 day disabled list. As far as I can tell, there is no timetable for his return at this point.

On the college baseball front, all of the Super Regional teams are known. The Super Regionals are a single two out of three series with the winner advancing to Omaha. For all of the CWS contest entrants, here are the teams you still have that could possibly land you a point for the first phase.

Brandon- Missouri St, Miami, Florida, LSU, Texas A&M, Vandy, Louisville
BMan- Miami, FSU, LSU, TCU, Vandy, Fullerton
Lost Collector- Arkansas, Miami, LSU, Fullerton
Greg- VCU, FSU, Fullerton
PatP- Miami, LSU, TCU, Vandy
Wilson- Missouri St, Miami, FSU
Jeff- Florida, Vandy
Keith- Arkansas, Florida, TCU, Vandy
SuperDuper- Arkansas, Miami, Florida, LSU, TCU, Vandy

2005 Topps Total, Lance Cormier/Randy Choate

#607 Lance Cormier/Randy Choate

Back-to-back dual signed cards? I wish is was back-to-back-to-back-to-back since these two beauties are bookended by cards missing a signature.

This card pretty much has the same story as the last one I posted. Lance Cormier signed this card for me at a Royals game in 2009 while he was with the Rays. I posted the card with just his signature four years ago and it can be seen here.

After staring at this card with just Lance's signature on it for three years, I could not take it anymore. So, I sent the card to Randy to see if I could get him to finish it for me. When Lance signed the card, he was still a teammate of Randy's and he said that their lockers where side-by-side. When one of them got this card to sign in the mail, he would go ahead and have the other sign it too. I figured that was a pretty good indication that I would get the card back, so I sent it off. I am not sure why I waited three years to do it though. I sent this card to Randy when he was with the Dodgers and he had it back to me two and a half weeks later.

Randy has been pitching in the big leagues since 2000. He has played for the Yankess, Diamondbacks, Rays, Marlins, Dodgers, and Cardinals. He is beginning his third year as a Cardinal and will be forty years old at the end of the season. He had an off year last season, but put up some good numbers in 2013. That year, he was 2-1 with a 2.31 ERA in 35.1 innings of work. Randy is a left-handed specialist.

As of the end of the 2014 season, Randy has a career record of 15-14 with 6 saves and a 3.90 ERA.

Speaking of left-handed specialists, is LOOGY still used anymore? Ten or twelve years ago, I heard that term a lot. Now it seems like I have not heard it in years. It could be because I do not have cable, though.

LOOGY stands for Left-handed One Out GuY

2006 Topps 52, Alberto Callaspo

#223 Alberto Callaspo

Here is the third and final card that I got Alberto Callaspo to sign for me in 2009. Alberto was with the Royals at the time and I was lucky enough to get him by the Royals parking lot prior to a game. That was the only time that I ever got Bert to sign for me and I think I got lucky because I was the only person 'graphing the lot that day. Rumor had it that he didn't sign much because his English wasn't very good. But, since I was by myself, he might have been less intimidated than if there had been a crowd. Or maybe it was just my lucky day. Either way, you can check out the first Callaspo card I posted here and the second one here.

Last season was Bert's first full season with the Angels and he hit .288 as the Angles everyday third baseman. Most of his offensive numbers were down a bit, but he did get about a hundred less at-bats than he had the previous two seasons. He is off to a rocky start this year, though, as he is only hitting .232 through 19 games with no extra-base hits.

On a side note, I got my first TTMs of the year back today. I got a little side-tracked with my Topps Diamond giveaway project with the move and all. But, I finally got most of them out and I got two of them back today. I'm looking forward to wrapping up my drawn out 2006 collection and start posting some older cards.

2006 Bowman, Cyle Hankerd

#BP16 Clye Hankerd

Here is a card that my buddy got signed for me while we were down in Amarillo. I graphed the visiting team and I had Adam graph the home team side. This was the first time Adam had ever graphed before and it was basically a warm up for the AAA game the next day. Now that I think of it, this is the only card that he Adam got signed in Amarillo. Luckily, he picked up his game the next day.

Cyle (it feels weird spelling his name that way) was drafted in the third round by the Diamondbacks in 2006. He moved steadily up through their system and reached AA in 2008. He then repeated AA in 2009 and then again in 2010. He saw a little action in AAA in 2010 and did well in limited action. But, his .245 average over 192 AA at-bats must have done him in and the D-Backs released him. He could have been injured, too, since he only played in 85 games that season.

No affiliated team was interested in Cyle and he ended up with the Amarillo Sox to start off last season. He then proceeded to tear up the American Association to the tune of a .355 average with 10 homers and 74 RBI in just 70 games. The Phillies took notice and they bought him from the Sox and assigned Cyle to their high-A team in Clearwater, Florida. In his one month with them, he hit just .248. But he did club 6 home runs and drive in 23 in just 31 games.

2005 Topps Total, Lance Cormier

#607 Lance Cormier

Here is the second of three cards that Lance signed for me last year on the final day of the regular season. It was a Sunday day game and Lance was out on the field early getting his work in. He was mainly just playing catch, but the guy that he was playing catch with was the other pitcher featured on this card, Randy Choate. When Lance came over to sign and he saw this card, he turned around to see if Randy was still on the field. When he saw that he wasn't, Lance told me that Randy had some stuff to do in the clubhouse, but that their lockers were next to each other and whenever one of them got this card to sign in the mail, they would have the other guy sign it too. I thought that was pretty cool. It's too bad that those two aren't on the same team this year.

This year, Lance was pitching for the Dodgers and he was having a rough start to the season. He pitched 13.2 innings and he gave up 15 earned runs and 4 home runs. Three days ago, the Dodgers designated him for assignment. Who knows where he will end up now.

I still can't get over how nice and stylish Lance's signature is.

The first Lance Cormier post can be viewed here.

2005 Bowman, Kyle Nichols

#267 Kyle Nichols

Here is a card that I got signed at a Wichita Wingnuts game last season. Kyle was playing for the El Paso Diablos at the time and I was able to get him to sign this card just prior to gametime. I had actually bought this card the previous year to get signed at a KC T-Bones game. But, Kyle was released by the Joliet Jackhammers before the team got to Kansas City. Lucky for me, he found his way to the American Association for 2010.

Kyle was an undrafted free agent that was signed by the Diamondbacks out of college in 2001. He did well in the D-Backs system and by 2004, he was hitting .293 at the AAA level. That must not have been good enough for the D-Backs, though, as Kyle spent 2005 playing AA ball for the Reds and high-A for the Phillies. That was his last season in affiliated ball.

Since then, Kyle has been making the rounds in the independent circuits. He has played in the Northern League, the Atlantic League, the Golden league, and the American Association. Maybe he might find his way to the Can-Am League or the North American League this season, just to try something new.

Kyle has the distinction of having played with El Paso Diablos in both the Texas League and the American Association. There cannot be too many guys that can make that claim.

There will not be a post tomorrow. But, starting Wednesday, I will have five straight posts of Padrographs from this set. Just to break it up a bit, I may have a quick contest on Thursday or Friday. So, stayed tuned for that.

2004 Topps Total, Scott Hairston

#659 Scott Hairston

Here is a card that I got in a random package about fifty weeks ago. The package was from Paul, of Paul's Random Stuff, and in it included about twenty new autographs for my collection, as well as a few Royals cards.

Scott is the brother of Jerry, Jr. and they are the sons of former big leaguer, Jerry Hairston, Sr. For some reason, though, I can never remember which brother is which. And to make things more complicated for myself, both of them were members of the Padres last season.

Scott had a rough season this past summer. He played in 104 games for them, but hit a measly .210 in 295 at-bats. He only had 10 home runs after hitting 17 each in the previous two seasons. Scott hasn't reached free agency yet, but I believe that he is arbitration eligible. After this past season, he should just take whatever the Padres offer him.

I do not know how Paul got this card signed, but I would be willing to bet that he got signed through the mail. This is the second Scott Hairston card that has been given me by fellow bloggers. It may be another year before I get to posting the first one.

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.

1999 Topps/Topps Chrome, Danny Klassen

#212 Danny Klassen

Here is a card that I got signed in Round Rock, Texas in 2008. I got these signed the same day as I got the two Steve Woodard cards signed. I know that it is pretty bad that I got two nearly identical cards signed twice in one day, but it was the only cards that I had of those guys.

I got this card signed before the game that day. At the Dell Diamond in Round Rock, they have a row of wooden rocking chairs that can be rented out during a game. The chairs are in left field and are right by the locker room. At this game, I happened to catch Danny at the end of the row in his game pants and a t-shirt talking to the trainer. I asked one of the locals who it was and when I realized I had cards of him, I went and got them signed.

Danny was really nice and asked how my day was going. When I told him that I had been driving all day, he asked where I was coming from and where I was heading and told me to have a good trip. It was cool to have more than the usual "how's it going" chit-chat.

I didn't realize this at the time, but Danny played in 85 Major League games over five seasons with the Diamondbacks and Tigers. Prior to today, I just thought that he was a career minor leaguer. His career number aren't too impressive, but at least he was given a shot. He even got to represent Canada in the 2004 Olympics.

These are the first Diamondback cards on here.

Here are the rockers Danny was sitting on. That is probably him at the opposite end of the row.



As for the Royals Caravan yesterday, it was a complete joke. There was no autograph session. It took me awhile, but I finally learned that it was just a private party with the boosters. Why the Royals would even put that on the schedule and make it sound like a normal Caravan stop is beyond me. But, being the hound that I am, I was able to get one card signed by George Brett and two by Joe Randa. I'll have more on my less-than-memorable George Brett experience in a few weeks when I post the card.