2007 Bowman, Sam Runion

#BDPP20 Sam Runion

Here is a card that I got signed by Sam Runion while he was a farmhand for the Royals. I got the card signed in 2009 while he was with the Burlington Bees. My dad and I were on our way to St. Louis to see the Futures Game and we stopped in Burlington on the way to break up the trip and to take in another ballpark. I got a decent amount of cards signed at the game, mostly on my Bees team set I bought that day. I did take this card and one other of Sam to get signed, but I failed to make that happen before the game as I never saw him. Luckily, once the game started, someone pointed him out to me in the stands charting pitches and I was able to get the cards signed then.

Sam pitched in the Royals system from 2007 through 2013. He started his career as a starting pitcher, but he did not fair well in that role. With the Bees in 2009, he started 28 games and went 5-11 with a 6.60 ERA. He was converted to a reliever the following season and posted similar results. He then missed most of the 2011 season due to injury and came back in 2012 and had his first good professional season. In two levels, Sam pitched in 65.1 innings and went 4-1 with 9 saves, a 2.34 ERA, and 50 strikeouts. He then spent most of 2013 in AA and was 4-2 with a 3.72 ERA. He made one appearance in AAA, too, and gave up 4 runs in 2.2 innings. The Royals cut ties with Sam after that season and he joined the Rays organization in 2014.

The college baseball tournament is underway. While there have been a few upsets so far, none of the top seeds have been eliminated yet. But, there is still plenty of ball to be played over the next couple of days, so anything can happen.