Collecting Cleveland Indians Topps team sets from 1952-present, as well as post-war minor and major league autographs.
Years ago, while he was in college, I wrote to Mike Minor. He ended up not signing the card that I sent, but did write me a nice note and signed a bio page. Been a fan ever since and I was happy to see him have a career year[…]
Scott Rolen was a very good player. Maybe Hall of Fame good. Rolen made the big leagues in 1996 and by 1997 was a regular in the Phillies lineup. That season he would hit .283/.377/.469 and win the NL ROY. Rolen would spend 17 seasons in the big leagues and[…]
Jason Castro is a former Hawaiian League player (2008 North Shore), so I like to follow his career. And he is having a very nice season, hitting .257/.331/.529 with 10 HR for the Twins. Good for an OPS+ of 125. Castro has one All-Star selection, back in 2013. That season[…]
I got this card two years ago, part of a Spring Training consignment. Paul Goldschmidt is…just a great player. Especially when you consider that he was drafted in the 8th round (2009). Eight seasons in the big leagues and he has yet to have a bad campaign. The lowest OPS+[…]
While I don’t think you could call me a Baltimore Orioles fan, I really like those late-60’s and early 70’s teams. Robinson was a huge part of those teams. All told he had a hell of a career: Robinson was famous for his defense–in case his nickname, “The Human Vacum[…]
There are not many players that I was more excited to see the majors than Jason Heyward. After being the 14th overall pick of the Braves in 2007 he moved quickly through the minors. By 2009 he was considered by many to be the #1 prospect in all of baseball.[…]
When this card came out in 2012 it was one of the more popular cards in the set. And with good reason! By the end of 2012, Andrew McCutchen was already a two-time All-Star, Silver Slugger and Gold Glove winner. He ended the 2012 season 3rd in MVP voting. And[…]
I wrote to Bobby Jenks in 2009-2010, sending a signature card to get signed. This is what I got back and was initially disappointed. At the time I was not much into getting Ginters signed…but this changed that quick. The card looked fantastic–clean design that really lets the autograph pop.[…]
Ah, forgot this one! Also acquired at the MLB Japan All-Star Game practice yesterday. Not really a huge Royals fan, but I do really like Whit Merrifield. I got to see him play plenty this past season since he is in the same division of the Indians. He had an[…]
Crowded event. Luckily while there were plenty of people, the vast majority of them were kids or nice collectors. Never got contentious. Gates opened at 11 am and practice ran from 1:00-2:00pm. Gates opening at 11 implied that there would be…something…happening inside by that time. Using that we figured players[…]