2007 Topps, Jamie Vermilyea

#UH203 Jamie Vermilyea

Here is the first of three cards that I got signed by former Blue Jay, Jamie Vermilyea. Jamie is the pitching coach for the Winnipeg Goldeyes and I got the cards signed at a Wingnuts game last season.

Out of the three cards that Jamie signed for me, this is the only one that I had in my collection to start with. The other two cards were purchased from COMC. Had I realized that Jamie only pitched in two Major League games, I may not have bought the other two cards. Yeah right, all three look great in my collection. It is just hard to come up with three posts for one guy with such little Major League playing time.

Like I said, Jamie pitched in two games with the Blue Jays in 2007. In those two relief outings, he logged six innings of work without allowing any runs. He gave up just five hits without walking anyone and striking out two. Even though it was a limited workload, those are some decent numbers to hang your hat on.

For as much crap as I gave the Update and Highlights set, this is how great the signatures can come out looking if the card is properly prepped. To see how bad they can look when unprepped, see my previous post or just wait for the next two.

2007 Topps, Eulogio de la Cruz

#UH190 Eulogio de la Cruz

Here is a card that I got signed a couple of days before the previous one of Ryan Rowland-Smith. This was signed at a Round Rock Express game while he was playing for the Albuquerque Isotopes. He signed this lone card for me before making his way onto the field. And since this was me getting this card signed in 2008, it was unprepped and came out looking like total crap.

Eulogio, who also goes by Frankie, played in parts of four Major League seasons with the Tigers, Marlins, Padres, and Brewers. He saw the most big league action with Milwaukee in 2011 when he got into 11 games and logged 13 innings while posting a 2.77 ERA. For his career, Frankie has no record and a 8.16 ERA. He walked 26 while only striking out 20.

Frankie last pitched in Mexico in 2014.

2007 Topps, Ryan Rowland-Smith

#UH188 Ryan Rowland-Smith

Here is a card that I got signed at a Texas Rangers game in 2008 while Ryan was playing for the Mariners. I got him to sign this lone card for me after batting practice. At the time, it was the only card I had of him. Six years later, I would get two more cards signed by him.

In some of the first posts I did on this Update and Highlights set, I talked about how I had a lot more problems with unprepped cards from the Update set than I did for the first two series. This card is the one exception to that argument. This card is totally unprepped and it came out looking good. I wish I could say the same about tomorrow's card.

Ryan is an Australian that was signed my the Mariners at the age of seventeen. You always hear about the Latin American kids being signed at a young age, but I had no idea they did that in Australia, too. Granted, Ryan was eighteen when he made his pro debut. But, it has got to be an entirely different mindset for a young Australian coming over to play baseball than it is for a Latin American kid. Luckily it worked out for Ryan as he played in the big leagues for parts of four seasons.

2007 Topps, Travis Metcalf

#UH183 Travis Metcalf

This is a card that I got signed by the former Ranger, and fellow Kansan, Travis Metcalf. I got the card signed at a Wingnuts game in 2011 while Travis was a member of the Ft. Worth Cats. I could only find one card of Travis before the game, so this was the lone card he signed for me. I, of course, found another card of him in my collection later on that I totally missed. I really need to get my cards more organized.

Travis played for the Rangers for parts of two seasons in 2007-08. He only got into 80 games and he hit .249 with 11 home runs and 35 RBI. He played in 57 games in 2007 and hit .255 with 12 doubles, 5 home runs, and 21 RBI. He played in fewer games in 2008 and most of his numbers decreased from 2007 from the 105 less at-bats that he had. But, one number did rise and that was his home run total. Though he did have ten less doubles in '08, he managed to squeak out one more home run than he had the previous season. He even had one more home run that year in the Majors than he did at AAA, even though he had over 220 more at-bats at the minor league level. He must have just been swinging for the fences when he was called up by the Rangers in '08.

After 2008, Travis played two more seasons of AAA ball before heading to the American Association in 2011. He hit .275 with 4 home runs and 20 RBI before calling it a career that season.

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

2007 Topps, Joakim Soria

#UH180 Joakim Soria

I can't believe that this is the first card of Joakim Soria that I have posted on here. Joakim was a mainstay at the Royals closer position for four and a half years before requiring a second Tommy John surgery early in 2012. Rather than pay him $8 million to finish his recovery and pitch in the second half of 2013, the Royals declined his option and Soria became a free agent. He moved on and has played with three other teams before rejoining the Royals last month. And it took him coming around full circle before I would finally post a card of him.

The Royals selected Soria in the Rule V draft from the Padres prior to the 2007 season. It seemed like a long shot for him to make the club out of Spring Training, considering that he had only pitched in 16.2 innings of affiliated minor league ball. Plus, those innings were over two seasons that were separated by four years and his initial Tommy John surgery.

But, Soria overcame the odds and made the club and lasted with the team all season. He pitched 69 innings that season and went 2-3 with 17 saves, a 2.48 ERA, and 75 strikeouts. Add in the fact that he went on to save 160 games for the Royals in his initial go-around and I think it is safe to say that he is the club's best Rule V pick ever. He might just be the best reliever ever selected in that draft.

I got this card signed at Royals Fanfest in 2011. I think I have nine cards signed by Soria, but this is the best looking signature in the bunch. All of the signatures I have from him are an "S" followed by a straight line. This is the only one that has some actual squiggles after the "S".

2007 Topps, Tony Abreu

#UH151 Tony Abreu

Here is a card that my now wife got signed for me at an Oklahoma Redhawks game in 2012. We went down there on a Sunday just for something to do and to see the Royals AAA team play. My wife had never helped me 'graph up to that point, but that all changed that day. Like it or not, she was going to help me out that afternoon.

She had no idea what she was doing, but I was with her to help her along. We settled in next to the Storm Chasers dugout and waited for them to exit the clubhouse. I called a couple of guys over to show her how it was done. Then the starting catcher, Adam Moore, made his way to the dugout. She hollered for him was he was gearing up. He said he would sign in a bit and she felt completely rejected. Next, Tony Abreu appeared and she yelled for him. He, too, said he would sign later. At that point, she was zero for two and had had enough. She threw a little tantrum and told me how dumb this was and that she didn't ever want to do this again. I just laughed at her and told her to chill out because this is how it is. Once guys started coming out of the dugout to warm up, they started to sign a bunch and she eventually got back in on the action.

It was a rough start for her, but she still continues to help me out whenever she can to add autographs for my collection. It must be hard to be married to a person with such an eccentric hobby, but she puts up with it and does what she can to contribute. I am so lucky to have her and I love her so much!

2007 Topps, Victor Diaz

#UH133 Victor Diaz

Here is a card that I got signed at a Wichita Wingnuts game in 2014. Victor had just joined the Nuts late in the season after the Mexican League had finished. He was brought on to add a bat down the stretch. While he did not do too well in Wichita, the team still managed to win their first American Association title while he was there.

Victor saw time in the Major Leagues for parts of four seasons with the Mets and Rangers. Three of those seasons were in New York and he hit .260 for them with 15 home runs and 48 RBI. He then spent one season with Texas and he hit .240 with 9 home runs and 25 RBI. His best season was with the Mets in 2005 when he batted .257 with 12 dingers and 38 RBI.

2007 was the last time Victor played in the Majors. After that, he bounced around to about every league imaginable, including stints in Japan and Korea. He played last year with the Grand Prairie AirHogs of the Am-Ass and had a subpar season, hitting just .236. Being only 33 last year, I would not be surprised to see him back in the league next season.

Victor does have some cards out from his days with the Mets. But, this was the only one that I had laying around when he joined the Nuts that year. I usually get pretty excited when a former Major Leaguer comes to Wichita and I try to find at least three cards of that player. Since Victor was only here for twelve games, I was stuck with this lone card.