TTM Success - Ted Lepcio

Another player I got back from the lot of cards that I picked up from the Columbia antique shop was a success from Ted Lepcio.  I mailed to him on APril 18 and got the cards back on April 25 for a 7-day TAT.

I really enjoy seeing these 1953 Topps cards come back.  It was pretty painful paying for all of the ones I got, but in the end, the price I [aid was well worth it, since they have been sent out for TTM and most have come back so far.

The other Lepcio card I sent was this 1959 Topps.  It also turned out great.  I should have saved the extra 1959s I had from when I built my set, but I didn't know at the time that I was going to be doing this TTM project.

Lepcio (b. 1929) played in the majors from 1952 to 1961 for the Red Sox, Tigers, Phillies, White Sox and Twins.  He had 512 hits, 69 home runs and a .245 batting average.  Mr. Lepcio also answered the questions that I asked:

Are you still involved in baseball? Not specifically but we support several issues that the Red Sox are involved.

Do you still root for any specific teams or players?  Red Sox - Tigers.  There are a few Seton Hall players in organized ball, I keep up with them.

If you could choose to face one pitcher, who would that be?  I [hit] only .250, but I did have good luck against the Indians staff.

TTM Success - Dick Brodowski

I received quite a few TTM successes on April 25.  Several of which were cards I had gotten from the Columbia antique shop.  The first TTM success I opened that day was from Dick Brodowski on this 1953 Topps.  I mailed to Brodowski on April 18 and got the cards back 7 days later.  This card came with a personalization of "Bill - Best Wishes" which was a nice touch.

Brodowski (b. 1932) played in the majors from 1952 and 1955 to 1959 for the Red SOx, Senators and Indians.  In my TTM success, Mr. Brodowski put in a small note about the time he missed during the 1953 and 1954 seasons:

1953-54 "Battle of Fort Dix" - it took a couple of years to get back to the level of the Major Leagues. - Korean War!!

I thought that was a nice touch from him.  I know a lot of fellow collectors who enjoy folowing the careers and obtaining autographs of World War II veterans, yet there were players who also left the sport to fight in Korea, Vietnam and even Iraq.

Brodowski had a career record of 9-11 with an ERA of 4.76 and 85 strike outs.

TTM Success - Gil Coan

When I went to Columbia to visit my brother a couple weeks ago, he had to work one of the mornings I was there, so I was able to take some time and hang out at the antique shop.  I've been going there for years, but this time was different.  Conrad let me go into the back room where he had all of his boxes of cards stored.  I should have taken some pictures back there, because it was boxes and boxes of vintage cards.  He allowed me to buy a couple unsorted boxes in addition to a stack of cards from 1952 to 1959 that I wanted to use for TTMs.  I spend a good bit of money, but I ended up with a ton of cards.  When I got home, I sent out 25+ TTM requests in the span of two days.

One of those TTM requests was to former player, Gil Coan.  He was the first to come back out of the batch of 50s guys I sent to.  This 1953 Topps card turned out great.  I really liked the scoreboard in the background of this card.  Not only did Coan sign the card, he also signed my note "Sincere Best Wishes, Gil Coan".  I thought that was a really nice touch.

Coan (b. 1922) is a fellow North Carolinian (born in Monroe, but spent a lot of time in Brevard) who played in the majors from 1946 to 1956 for the Senators, Orioles, White Sox and Giants.  He had 731 career hits, 39 home runs and a .254 batting average.  He finished 23rd in the 1951 AL MVP voting when he had 163 hits, 9 home runs and a .303 batting average.

Coan is notable because he was traded to the Orioles for Roy Sievers, another great TTM signer.  Sievers was a St. Louis Brown, but never played on the Orioles.  He was traded before they played an official game.

I mailed to Coan on April 18 and got the card back on April 23, for a 5-day TAT.  Stay tuned for a ton of 1950s guys.  A bunch came in over the last few days, so I plan on getting some posting done to catch up!

1969 Topps Set Pickups From The Antique Shop

When I wasn't buying high-value vintage cards or stuff for friends at the Columbia antique shop, I was knocking cards off of my 1969 Topps set wishlist.

I picked up 41 cards that I needed for the set.  After this trip, I need 178 cards to complete the set.  I couldn't believe that I still needed this Brooks Robinson for the set.  I thought I had added it a while ago.

There were a bunch of stars that I picked up,  This Don Drysdale was a nice pickup.  It is far from mint, but it is still a nice addition.  This is actually Drysdale's last Topps card, as he would retire due to chronically sore shoulder during the 1969 season.

This Bob Gibson is nice, but will probably be upgraded at some point.  I didn't notice that it had a big crease near the bottom right corner.  I know not to expect my vintage sets to be mint, so I may ot even upgrade it at all.

I picked up several of the All Star cards that I was missing.  I added this Brooks (again, I thought I had an extra of this from my PC), Willie McCovey, the below Ron Santo and a Bob Gibson.

So, I made a nice dent in the 1969 set.  I am happy with what I spent, and I hope to keep chipping away at this set this year.  It would be really nice to close it out BEFORE the National, that way I can pick up other stuff, but I don't know.  Events are piling up already for me this year, and budgeting is going to be tough.

Columbia Antique Shop Pickups - 1953 Topps Hall of Famers

I finally got a chance to visit my brother in Columbia, SC after almost a year.  I try to get down there a few times a year, but last year, I was only able to get down there for the crawfish festival in May.  We went down there to hang out, since it had been a while, and also to get out of town for a bit.  The drive down wasn't bad at all, even though there was a winter storm a little farther west of where I was.  It was cold as crap all weekend, though.

As always, I made sure to visit Conrad at Chic Antiques while I was in Columbia.  I emailed him ahead of time so he would have an idea of what I was looking for.  This time around, though, he wasn't able to locate any of the Hall of Fame baseballs that I had on my mind.  That made it easier for me to focus on cards, however, and I was able to knock a nice chunk out of my 1969 set while I was there (will be shown in a later blog post).

Since I didn't get a ball, I got some nice vintage for a few friends of mine.  Aside from the 1969s, I only took home two vintage cards for myself.  The above 1953 Yogi Berra was one that I have seen there a few times, but haven't bought.  Finally, I took the plunge and added it to my collection.  It is a really cool card and I am glad to have it alongside the rest of my Berras.  I think 1953 Topps is a very underrated set.  I have a couple of the big name cards, with the Satchel Paige, Berra and a couple others.  The Mantle is ridiculously priced, but otherwise, this may be a nice set to work on here and there at some point.

Speaking of 1953 Topps, I added another with this nice Ralph Kiner.  Conrad pretty much did a buy one, get one free on these.  For the price he had the Berra listed, I paid that price for both of these cards.  I don't know which card looks better, Berra or Kiner, but I do enjoy the old school Pirates logo on this one.

I intend to start up another 50s set sometime soon, and Conrad has been enlisted in helping me get started.  I doubt it will be 1953, but I do look forward to the day when I can work on this one.  I think they are beautiful cards.

Gift From Conrad - 1971 Dell Baseball Stamps Brooks Robinson

On my return trip with Mom to the Columbia Antique Shop, my intention was to not buy anything else, since I had spent so much on my Banks RC, 59 Topps set needs and the DiMaggio ball.  I did see the above Brooks Robinson in one of the cases that were off to the side.  I figured, it wasn't priced at a whole lot, so I could pick it up for myself, you know, since I did go all the way back there.

While Mom was discussing the Mantle and Jackie with Conrad, he told me he was just going to give me this card, since I was such a loyal customer.

That was really appreciated.  I have actually recommended his shop to a lot of people, and just this week, I have had two of my Instagram followers tell me that they went to his shop, just because of the stories that I have told about it.

This card is a 1971 Dell Baseball Stamps (according to Ebay).  Apparently, they are a tough find, and that makes sense, since I hadn't seen one before I got this one.

So, thank you for the gist, Conrad!  Another nice Brooks Robinson in my collection.

Top 10 Wishlist Pickup - 1954 Topps Ernie Banks RC

Yeah, it might grade at a 1, and looks pretty rough, but I now am in possession of one of the rookie cards that I have been wanting for a long time.  I got this 1954 Topps Ernie Banks RC at the Columbia antique shop this past weekend.  I saw it among the vintage cards that he had, and at a pretty good price.  I was able to get Conrad to take the price down a little further, and pulled the trigger on the card.

I'm really happy to have found this card.  I was afraid I wouldn't be able to get one at a good price, but luckily, I was able to find this one.  I also was glad that I was able to get it from Conrad, because I enjoy supporting his business.  I might have been able to find one in this condition a bit cheaper on Ebay, but in the end, I like this one, and the price I paid.  That's all that matters.

Have I Ever Told You How Awesome My Mom Is?

While my family was visiting my brother in Columbia, SC this weekend, my mom had mentioned how she had wanted to visit the antique shop while we were down there.  I had gone by there right when they opened at 10:00 AM because I had emailed the shop owner to tell him what I needed and I wanted to make sure that I got by there.  I always hated pulling out a bunch of cards for someone, only to have them not show up, and with us not really being sure as to what our plans were for after the Crawfish Festival, I didn't want to take the chance that he would be closed after we finished the Festval.

So, I went by there first thing Saturday, while everyone else was getting ready for the Festival.  I sorted through his '59s, discussed the DiMaggio ball, and searched for a few cards for a friend's birthday.  I had wanted to meet up with everyone so we could all get to the Crawfish Festival at 11:00, but I took 15 minutes too long.  No problem, though, because I was able to run by the grocery store and pick up a few things on my way, which ended up working out.

Anyway, I had texted Mom to tell her that I was about to finish up at the shop, and got a response from her that said "You were supposed to wait for me!  I wanted to go!"  So, I asked the shop owner and he confirmed that he closed at 5:30, so I told Mom that we could always go back, I just wouldn't be able to buy anything else.

That ended up working out, because we were done at the Crawfish Festival by 3:00 and a few of my brothers wanted to go back to Adam's place and either take naps or play Madden on XBox.  That made it so that my wife, my mom and my sister, Christy, could all check out the antique shop.

It was nice going there and not feeling like I HAD to search the cards, since I had already done so earlier in the day.  I walked around a bit and checked out the other antiques that he had for sale as Mom and my wife looked around.  Mom started noticing things that some of my brothers would like, such as an old 1950s Street & Smith magazine with a Miami Hurricanes player on the cover for one of my brothers and an antique tobacco pipe with a case for another brother.

Mom asked me to show her where all of the baseball cards were, since she is also a fan of them, so I took her to his section where he had a bunch of vintage stars in some display cases.  She, being a former Yankee fan, quickly noticed a few of the Mickey Mantle cards that were on display.  There was a 1958 Topps Mantle All Star for a good price, and also a 1958 Mantle for around $500.00.  She asked me why they were so high, and I explained that Mantle was always a good find, whether you were a Yankee fan or not.  She then asked me how many I had, and I told her that I had a couple.  Then she asked, "...well, do you have any of these?  Would you want one of them?"  My response was in the affirmative, of course, so she said "I can get you one, if you want one, it can be an early birthday present or something."  My eyes lit up, as she pretty much gave me a budget on what she would do, so I looked at a few of the cards that he had.

One of the Mantles we looked at had a pretty significant tear on it, so I didn't really want to spend that price on it, but I did see the 1960 Topps Mantle sitting in a corner of the case, at a good price, just above the budget that Mom had set.  I had the shop owner (Conrad) take the card out so I could look it over.  I also was able to talk him down on the price, since I had spent so much earlier, and since he had a sale in the bag with the other items that Mom was getting.

One catch was, however, the nice Jackie Robinson 1954 Topps card that was sitting front and center in the case...

I didn't own any Jackie Robinson cards, other than the 1955 Topps card that is in my set.  I have a good friend who has one, and I always thought it was a beautiful card.  Its price was also just above Mom's budget, so I had Conrad take it out so I could compare it with the Mantle.  Mom looked over bother cards as well.  While I stood there contemplating which card to get, and enduring several eye-rolls from my 15-year old sister, Mom asked me which card I was going to choose.  I told her that it was a really tough decision, but since she was the one buying the "birthday present", she could decide for me and I would be happy either way.

So, she PUSHES me out of the way and says "Let me talk it over with the shop owner, and it will be a surprise of which card you will get."  So, we are shooed away from them while they conducted business; I walked around the shop and looked at some tobacco cards that he had in a separate case, then chatted with my wife for a bit.  Mom made a purchase, and we left the shop.

In the car, she opens her bag and pulls out BOTH cards.  She wasn't able to choose between the two of them, either.  So, according to Mom, my birthday (in September) and Christmas are already spoken for, this year!  That is fine by me!

She went through the receipt and showed me that Conrad had given her awesome deals on each of the items that she had bought.  I really think he enjoyed that we came back to the shop and he also enjoyed chatting with my mom as she bought from him.

I am now the proud owner of both, a 1960 Topps Mickey Mantle and a 1954 Topps Jackie Robinson.  The Mantle can go alongside the 1959 (in my set), 1962, 1964, 1967 and 1969 (in my set) that I have.  I'm surprised that I have that many Mantles, really.  Especially since I'm not a Yankee fan at all.  I think any baseball card fan and look at any Mantle and realize how iconic he is on a card.

The Jackie is equally as amazing.  That 1954 set is an awesome set, and I actually have quite a few of them.  I might be poised to begin the set sometime soon, and the Jackie pushes it forward quite a bit.  Add in the fact that a purchase I made earlier in the day even furthers the set, if I choose to build it soon, but you'll have to wait til my next post to see what I'm talking about there.

So, thank you so much, Mom, for really hooking me up with these awesome cards.  Browsing through the antique shop with you really reminded me of our times going into the old shop when I was a kid and looking at all of the cards.  I felt like a little kid, again!  Except that Conrad doesn't look like Rafael Palmeiro.

Thanks, Mom!  I love you!

Antique Shop Pickups - 1959 Topps Set Needs

I made quite a few purchases at the Columbia antique shop.  I'll break them up into a few posts, so keep an eye out for them.  This post will center around the set needs that I picked up for my 1959 Topps set.

This Al Kaline card is a little rough, but I like it nonetheless.  Kaline was one of the last big names that I needed, so I was happy to take it off of the list.

I didn't realize that I still needed Hoyt Wilhelm for the set.  This one is a nice card that I got for pretty cheap.  I'm pretty sure that I don't need any more Hall of Famers, but I probably should consult a checklist.  I've been wrong in the past.

Finally, here is a nice group card of the Cubs, including Ernie Banks.  I still need a few of these, and some of them carry a bit of a premium.

In all, I picked up 37 cards for my 1959 set.  This definitely pushes the set along for me.  I still need quite a few high numbers, but this set should be completed this year.  That is my goal, at least.

Hall of Fame Signed Baseball - Joe DiMaggio

I visited the antique shop in Columbia, SC today and left there with a ton of stuff.  One of the more notable items I got (and I got a few) was my 110th baseball signed by a Hall of Famer.

Joe DiMaggio (b. 1914 - d. 1999) played in the majors from 1936 to 1942 and 1946 to 1951 for the New York Yankees.  He had 2,214 hits, 361 home runs and a career batting average of .325.  He was a 13-time All Star (every season he played), two-time batting champ (.381 in 1939 and .352 in 1940) and was a three-time AL MVP (1939, 1941 and 1947).

Dimaggio won the World Series nine out of the ten times he played for the title.  He won in 1936 through 1939, 1941, 1947, 1949, 1950 and 1951.  Only Yogi Berra has more rings than DiMaggio did.

DiMaggio is the owner of one of the records that baseball may never see broken, a 56-game hitting streak.  DiMaggio accomplished the feat in 1941.  That is one of those records that you will likely never see broken, much like Cal Ripken's consecutive games streak, or Cy Young's wins record.  DiMaggio was an excellent hitter who could have achieved muchmore, had his career not been interrupted in its prime due to World War II.

DiMaggio was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1955 when he was named to 88.8% of the ballot.  He had appeared on the ballot in 1953 and 1954, but wasn't elected (he also appeared on the ballot as a player in 1945).  His inclusion on the '53 and '54 ballots were largely due to the fact that it was always hinted that he night come out of retirement.  He is the reason for the 5-year waiting period on the current Hall of Fame ballot.

Hall of Fame Baseball #100 - Mickey Mantle

The quest began in January of 2010 when I posted here that I wanted to branch out into memorabilia.  It was a discussion with my good friend, P. A. at the card shop on a Saturday that getting some signed baseballs by Hall of Famers wouldn't be too difficult a task.  I began with three baseballs, the Cal Ripken that my mom gave me in 1992; a Jim Palmer given to me for my 19th birthday in 1999 by my old boss, Todd and a Brooks Robinson given to me by Mom a few years later at Christmas.  The first baseball in my quest (4th overall) arrived on January 14, 2010 (A ball signed by Stan Musial, which you can see here).  Four years and 96 baseballs later, we now have number 100, Mickey Mantle.

This has been an exhaustive quest.  I have obtained several baseballs through the mail, at card shows, over Ebay, through auction houses, antique shops, two trades, birthday and Christmas presents from my mom and great friend, Drew and a couple in person autographs.  I haven't spent near what one might think on these 100 baseballs. I've watched sales and auctions like a hawk.  I've learned a thing or two about autograph authentication along the way, of course.

The Mantle ball came about, like I said last night, through my friend Conrad from the antique shop (Chic Antiques) in Columbia, SC.  He did shows with a good friend of mine in the 1980s and early 1990s where they would meet Hall of Famers in person, one of which was Mantle, himself.  Conrad wanted to help me with my quest, so he gave me a deal I couldn't refuse on both the Koufax ball and this Mantle.

As you can see, the signature is amazing.  Words can't describe, so I'll just let you take a look at the picture and see for yourself.

Now what do I do?  I've reached a plateau, 100 signed baseballs and I've nearly run out of room in my China cabinet.  This ball and several others won't even be able to be displayed since they are in a safe location, not in my house.  Do I keep moving forward and knock more players off the list (and go for Jimmie Foxx, ultimately)?  Do I rest on my laurels and admire the fact that I reached #100?  I don't really know at this moment.  I'm inclined to continue on, maybe try to reach 150 or more.  If I do, I need to devise an alternate means of display.  Also,I know I have to replace at least one ball (Niekro) because of fading.  I also need to re-assess my choice of pens/balls for TTM and IP autographing as well to eliminate the fading issue (which I think I have solved).

So, we'll see what the future holds.  If I were to guess today, at this moment, I'd be willing to say Hell Yeah, keep em coming, but I do have some things to think about.

Mickey Mantle (b. 1931 - d. 1995) played in the Majors from 1951 to 1968, all for the Yankees.  He had 2,415 hits, 536 home runs and a batting average of .298.  Mantle was a 16-time All Star, 3-time AL MVP (1956, 1957 and 1962) and the 1956 AL Batting Champion (.353 average).  He won the World Series with the Yankees 7 times (1951, 52, 53, 56, 58, 61 and 62) and made 12 trips to the World Series all together.

He was a 4-time AL Home Run champion (1955, 1956, 1958 and 1960) and hit 50 or more home runs twice (1956 and 1961). He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1974 (his first ballot) when he was named to 88.2% of the ballot.

So, there you have it.  I am celebrating a huge milestone in my collection.  I wanted #100 to be special and I couldn't honestly think of getting anyone other than Mantle at #100 (unless a Jimmie Foxx fell into my lap).  I'd like to thank everyone who helped me get to this point, namely Mom, my wife, P. A., Drew and Conrad.

Hall of Fame Signed Baseball - Sandy Koufax

Well, as you may be able to tell, I now have Hall of Fame signed baseball #99 in my possession as the above ball signed by Sandy Koufax.  What does that mean?  Well, if Koufax is #99 and not #100, then #100 must be epic, right?  You are correct.  I got both in one purchase a couple weeks ago, and they finally have arrived.  I'll spend tonight talking about Koufax and will follow up tomorrow on the #100 ball.

I got the balls from Conrad, the proprietor of Chic Antiques in Columbia, SC.  I've supported his store for some time now, especially since I learned that he was close friends with someone I was close friends with.  It's a small world (after all).  So, when I emailed Conrad to see if he could help me with my project, he came back with several options for #100.  A couple guys I had, so he had it narrowed it down to two.  I decided that since he gave me such a good price on each, I would go ahead and buy them both, hence the dual purchase.  Not bad, plus I bought "local", even though Columbia isn't exactly local to me, I bought them from a small business, local to my brother.  Close enough.  Anyway, I'm really glad to have helped Conrad out as he definitely helped me out.  If you are ever in Columbia, please check out Conrad's shop, located on Huger St.  Tell him I sent you!

Sandy Koufax (b. 1935) played in the majors from 1955 to 1966 for the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers.  He had a career record of 165-87 with 2,396 strikeouts and a 2,76 ERA.  He was the Cy Young Award winner 3 times (1963, 1965 and 1966), the NL MVP in 1963 and won 20+ games 3 times in his career.

He won the World Series with the Dodgers in 1959, 1963 and 1965 and was on the 1955 team that won it all as well, but he didn't pitch in the post season.  His career post season record was 4-3 with a 0.95 ERA and 61 strikeouts.  Interestlingly enough, his final game pitched was in the 1966 World Series, a loss in Game 2 against a 19-year old rookie and an upstart team.  The rookie?  Jim Palmer and the team was the Orioles.  The O's would go on to sweep the heavily favored Dodgers in 4 games and Koufax would retire after the Series.

Koufax is my 99th Hall of Fame signed baseball in my collection.  I now have Koufax's rookie card (1955 Topps); his final regular Topps issue (1966 Topps) and a signed baseball).  Stay tuned to see who made the cut as #100.

1969 Topps Pickups From The Antique Shop

I finally was able to sit down and scan some 1969 Topps cards I got from the antique shop in Columbia last weekend.  I picked up 29 cards total and several of them were higher end cards.  I picked up this really cool Bobby Cox rookie.  Someone at the card shop in Winston-Salem had asked me to look for one for them, but they never were willing to pay to get it.  So, I never picked one up for them and completely forgot it was in this set.  Anyway, I'm happy to have it and it is in really good condition.

I saw this Earl Weaver (look how young he is!) and had to add it, too.  He began managing the Orioles halfway through the 1968 season, so this is also his rookie card.  Not bad!

I was especially happy about this card.  Ernie was on the tail end of his career here, but he still looks like he is happy to be playing ball.  I seriously would consider starting an Ernie Banks PC.  Off of the top of my head, I can think of some awesome cards that he has.  The fact that I was also able to get him to sign for free TTM is just a bonus.  Quick trivia question: What do Ernie Banks and I have in common?  Answer: We both attended a Pearl Jam concert in 2013.

Rounding out the Hall of Famers I picked up, I got this nice Joe Morgan.  The card is really sharp.  Morgan is a super nice guy and was amazing to Chris the few times he has met him.  I'll never forget that and I'm sure Chris never will either.

Some other notable cards I got were Orioles: Boog Powell and Elrod Hendricks; rookie cards: Graig Nettles and Amos Otis; and other notable names such as Tommie Aaron, Mayo Smith, Roy White (whom my buddy Drew has met) and Ken 'Hawk' Harrelson.

I think I did really well with these 1969s.  I definitely enjoy this set and can't wait to add more to my collection.

1959 Pickups From the Antique Shop

I'm going to keep this post short since it is late and I got home so late from work, but I wanted to discuss the 1959 Topps cards that I got from the antique shop in Columbia, this past weekend.

I was able to knock out 21 cards that I needed for my set (my wishlist has already been updated to reflect these pickups).

6 of the cards are the Sporting News Rookie Stars of 1959 cards like the one seen above.  They carried a little more of a premium than the other cards I got.

Other than the Rookie Stars cards, most of what I got were commons.  The most notable names were Ruben Amaro (shown above) and Johnny Roseboro.  Even commons in this set cost a little more than I'm used to, but I think a lot of that was due to me dealing with a guy who specialized in vintage cards, which is completely fine.

Anyway, with the Gibson and Mantle already taken care of, I believe I am making great progress on this set.  I still have the Mantle All Star card to get, which is a high number as well.  The thought of getting that and some of the other All Star cards might just be enough to give me a nosebleed.  Yikes.  Anyway, I'm in no rush and am knocking cards out at an impressive clip, so I will just keep on it and see where it takes me.

(Almost) Hall of Fame Signed Baseball - Greg Maddux

It's just a matter of waiting patiently until the announcement is made on January 8, 2014 at 2:00PM, but as of right now, this ball will have to wait to be placed among my Hall of Fame signed baseballs.  This one and possibly a couple more that I have, really.  We'll have to see.

That being said, for the low price of $52.00, I was able to pick up this Greg Maddux signed baseball from Conrad at the Columbia Antique Mall.  Conrad had gotten several cases of the Maddux balls from a private signing (he also had some Glavines, one of which I should have grabbed.  I was really happy with this Maddux, though.

Maddux (b. 1966) played in the majors from 1986 to 2008 for the Cubs, Braves, Dodgers and Padres.  He:

• was a 2-time 20 game winner (1992 and 1993)
• led the NL in wins 3 times (1992, 1994 and 1995)
• set a record (once held by Cy Young) by winning 15 or more games in 17 straight seasons
• won 13 or more games in 20 total seasons
• won the Cy Young Award an unprecedented 4 straight times (1992 through 1995)
• finished second in the Cy Young voting in 1997; 3rd in 1989 and 2000; 4th in 1998; 5th in 1996
• led the NL in ERA 4 times (1993, 1994 1995 and 1998)
• had a season ERA of 2.20 or better 4 times
• had a season ERA of less than 1.64 in two seasons (1.56 in 1994 and 1.63 in 1995)
• won the World Series in 1995 with the Braves
• went 2-3 with a 2.09 ERA in 5 World Series starts
• won the Gold Glove Award 18 times
• was a 8-time All Star
• finished as high as 3rd in the NL MVP voting (1995)
• had a career record of 355-227, ERA of 3.16 with 3,371 strikeouts
• had 109 complete games, 35 of which were shutouts
• is ranked 8th all-time in Wins with 355
• is ranked 10th all-time in Strikeouts with 3,371
• is ranked 1st all-time in putouts by a pitcher with 546

So, based on all of this, I am REALLY happy to have added this ball to my collection.  My only question is, with the voting being announced on January 8th for the 2014 Hall of Fame election, what idiot(s) will leave Maddux off of their ballots?  You and I know that someone will and they will try to make an argument for their decision.  Kind of like the woman last year who tried to say that Shawn Green was a deserving candidate but then said that she didn't vote for Jeff Bagwell because he did steroids.  That is another story all in itself, but you get my point.

Anyway, regardless of the few stupid voters out there, Maddux will be getting a call on January 8 saying that he is a member of the 2014 Hall of Fame class (one that has the potential to be one of the largest in history).  It will be then that this ball will be placed among my collection of Hall of Fame signed baseballs.

Hall of Fame Signed Baseball - Willie Stargell

I spent this weekend visiting my younger brother in Columbia, South Carolina for my niece's 4th birthday party.  As always, when I'm in Columbia, I visit this really awesome antique shop called 'Chic Antiques.'  The shop is run by a friend of a friend (it's a small world) and I always like going and saying hello.  I always seem to find some good deals while I'm there.  I got myself several 1959 Topps for my set (which I will show later), a couple cards for my good buddy Andrew, a 1961 Topps Boston Red Sox team card for Scott, 2 1963 Fleer for another friend and finished up with this amazing signed baseball for a paltry $50 bucks.

I told the shop keeper that I was looking for some Hall of Fame signed baseballs and he brought out several to see what I needed.  He showed me this Willie Stargell and quoted me the amazingly low price of $50, so I had to jump on it.  The ball is not authenticated, but I know that it is legit.  I have 100% confidence that anything the guy sells me is authentic.

Willie Stargell played in the majors from 1962 to 1982, all for the Pittsburgh Pirates.  He won the World Series with them in 1971 and 1979 (against MY Orioles).  He retired with 2,232 hits, 475 home runs and a .282 batting average.  He was the 1979 NL MVP.

Stargell is now my 65th Hall of Fame signed baseball.  I'm hoping I can knock off a couple more at next week's card show.