Collecting Cleveland Indians Topps team sets from 1952-present, as well as post-war minor and major league autographs.
This 2000 Fleer Tradition Jose Ortiz ranked #107 on Beckett’s 2005 All-Time Hot List. It’s also a personal favorite of mine. … In 2001, the Oakland Athletics were in the middle of the Moneyball Era. Their top prospect coming into the season was infielder Jose Ortiz, who in 2000 was[…]
The pinnacle of Balfour’s career was in 2013 when he notched 38 saves and earned his first and only All-Star selection. Balfour’s peak with the Athletics remains unforgettable, as his fiery presence on the mound—often expressed vocally—resonated with the passionate Oakland fans, renowned at the time for their own fervent enthusiasm in the stands.
Mail Day: Ben Grieve, of, Oakland Athletics … Oakland outfielder Ben Grieve was part of the first wave of players who helped bring the Athletics back into prominence in the late-90’s. He was also on of the first players that I collected when I got into collecting baseball cards. …[…]
Not only is Tyler Soderstrom Oakland’s #1 prospect entering the 2023 season, but he is also one of the best prospects in all of baseball. He is the rare catching prospect with an elite bat, though there is a chance that his path to the majors will be via first[…]
Starting pitcher Eric Ireland. I followed him very close for a couple of years, and I am still bummed he never made it to the majors.
This morning the Atlanta Braves shipped pitcher Kyle Muller to the Oakland Athletics as part of a massive, three-team trade centered around Oakland catcher Sean Murphy.
Justin Duchscherer had a short, but fantastic career. He was only in the majors for 8 seasons, but was selected to two All-Star teams and retired with a 139 ERA+ over 454.2 innings.
From 2002-2012, while playing for the Saitama Seibu Lions, infielder Hiroyuki Nakajima was one of Japan’s best ballplayers. He was selected to eight All-Star teams, won three Gold Gloves, had had a career .302 batting average with 162 homers. Plenty of Major League Baseball clubs were interested in him, and[…]
The Card: 1972 Topps Jim “Mudcat” Grant Being a fan of both the Cleveland and Oakland organizations, it’s nice when a player plays for both franchises at some point. It’s even better when that player was good, and Mudcat Grant was certainly that too. Mudcat Grant made the majors in[…]
I was able to get this autograph while Sean Doolittle was pitching for the University of Virginia. He would be drafted the next season, but the Oakland Athletics, with the 41st overall pick.