1992 Donruss, Brian McRae

#387 Brian McRae

Here is another Brian McRae card that I got signed at some point. I don't know when I got this card signed, but it was probably at a Royals Caravan event around 2000 or so.

I forgot to point this out earlier, but this Donruss set lists the outfielders actual position (left, right, center). You don't see too many cards that do this. I know that '90 Score did this, but I can't think of any others.

Tomorrow, I will be posting the coolest autograph that I have. Hopefully, I will also have a new scanner so that I can get a great scan of it.

1992 Donruss, Fred McGriff

#283 Fred McGriff

Here is another extremely cool Padrograph that Rod sent me. For me, this one is definitely in the top five out of all of the cards that he sent me. You can't beat the Crime Dog and his hat that sits high on his head.

McGriff is probably most famous for ending up 7 home runs shy of 500. I really thought that he was going to make it. In 2002, at the age of 38, Fred had a stellar year for the Cubs where he had 30 homers and 103 RBI. That was his sixth and final 100 RBI season for his 19-year career. But, his numbers fell dramatically the next season while with the Dodgers. He only had 13 homers and he average fell to .249, which was his lowest since his rookie season. The Dodgers let him go after the season and the Devil Rays signed him, hoping to add some excitement to their season as he closed in on 500. He started the season 9 home runs shy.

But, it wasn't meant to be. He only got into 27 games with the D-Rays and he hit only .181 with two homers. The Rays released him right before the trading deadline. He must have got hurt that year since he only played in 27 games throughout the first half of the season.

So, there he stands at 493, tied with Lou Gehrig.

I wrote to McGriff for some autographs back in November, but I still haven't received anything back.

1992 Donruss, Jerald Clark

#144 Jerald Clark

Here is the latest Padrograph from Rod, Jerald Clark. Jerald played 7 seasons in the Majors, mostly with San Diego. In 1992, he played in 146 games with the Padres, hitting .242 with 12 home runs and 58 RBI. That off-season, he was the 7th overall pick by the Rockies in the expansion draft. He spent one season with the Rockies, playing in 140 games. He hit .282 with 13 dingers and 63 RBI. He became a free agent after that season and he went to Japan for a year. The next season, 1995, he was back in the U.S. and he got into 36 games with the Twins. That was his final season in the Major Leagues.

1992 Donruss, Marquis Grissom

#137 Marquis Grissom

Here is another card that I got through the mail in the early '90s. Grissom played for the Expos franchise that was building momentum in the early '90s. Unfortunately, they got derailed by the strike and the team was never the same afterwards. If it wasn't for the strike, this team might have been still playing in Montreal.

Grissom had some really good years while with Montreal. He had 207 stolen bases in one three-year span. In 1993, he scored 104 runs and had 95 RBI. After his days with the Expos, he played for the Braves, Indians, Brewers, Dodgers, and Giants. He played in three straight World Series from '95-97, winning it in '95 with the Braves. He was with the Giants in 2003 when they went to the Series, but he did not play in it.

1992 Donruss, Steve Avery

#81 Steve Avery

To be honest, I have no idea when when I got this card signed. I know that I got it signed through the mail in the early '90s, and it obviously wasn't before 1992. It was most likely '92 or '93, but that could be wrong.

Around 1993, this was a very good autograph to have. That season, Avery finished up with a 18-6 record to go along with a 2.94 ERA (that was his second 18 win season). He also finished with 223.1 innings pitched, which would be his last season with over 175 innings pitched. The next season, he finished with 151.2 innings pitched and the year after that, he was at 173.1 innings pitched. That was the last time that he finished over 150 innings pitched. It was downhill from there as arm injuries started to take its toll. After stints in Boston and Cincinnatti, as well as a comeback attempt with the Braves, again, Steve found himself jobless after the 2000 season.

In 2003, he tried to make a comeback with the Tigers. After 22 appearances in Toledo (only two of them were starts), he got the call to Detroit. After 19 appearances in relief in Detroit, he finished his last Major League season 2-0, with an 5.63 ERA.

1992 Donruss, Eric Karros

#16 Eric Karros

Here is yet another card that I got signed through the mail in the early '90s, probably 1992. Eric won the National League Rookie of the Year in 1992, so I was able to get both league's ROYs that year. Eric was the first of four consecutive ROYs for the Dodgers.

Eric had a good career that lasted 14 seasons. All but two of them were with the Dodgers. He hit over 30 home runs five times and had over 100 RBI five times as well. He now works for Fox and helps out with their pregame show on Saturdays.

Either this card or the previous one (Nilsson) was my very first Rated Rookie that I got signed. Eric has a good looking signature. I know that Night Owl will appreciate it.

1990 Donruss, Dave Nilsson

#4 Dave Nilsson

What ever happened to Dave Nilsson?

I got this card signed through the mail in 1992 or 1993. This was one of my first Rated Rookie cards that I had got signed.

The reason I asked "what ever happened to Dave Nilsson" is because after looking at his career stats, it looks like he fell off the face of the Earth. His last season in the Majors was 1999. That year, he had career highs in home runs (21) and average (.309). Plus, that was the one year that he made the All-Star team. He apparently became a free agent after that season.

Well, according to Wikipedia, he quit playing professional ball so that he could play for Australia in the 2000 Olympics. He also helped Australia to a silver medal in the 2004 games and he played for their 2006 WBC team. It takes a lot of guts to quit playing in a league that pays extremely good money to represent your country in a week-long tournament. I wonder if he'll be playing in the WBC this year. He'll be 39 years old.