Christmas Gift From Sam

My friend, Sam, sent me a surprise package for Christmas. I hadn't heard from him since he hooked me up with a couple cases of ROMLBs a few months ago. He's been busy working.  Sam sent me a ton of autos to clean out his collection. There were some great guys in the stack that he sent me, like the above 2014 Bowman Josh Hader.

I'm going to try and name all of the players that Sam sent, so everything is searchable.  That helps me with future graphing and posts, which is something should have been doing all along.  In this scan are cards of Ryon Healy, Jake Skole, Logan Shore and Braden Bishop, It has been a while since i added a 2015 Panini Contenders, which was one of the Braden Bishop cards (top left).

The top left dual of Braden Bishop and Austin Rei is one i could finish.  I've seen that Rei has been signing.  The rest of the cards in this scan are of Marvin Gorgas, Bryson Brigman, Nick Wells, Raul Mondesi and Logan Allen.

Johendi Jiminian (bottom center and right) is a guy that I've never heard of.  I'd have tried to send to him TTM if i had some of his cards, with that unique name.  The other guys in this scan are Delino DeShields Jr, Lance McCullers, Hunter Dozier, Cameron Rupp, Vernon Wells and Luke Jackson.  Jackson used to be Sam's guy for a while. 

The next batch of guys was Mike Nikorak, CJ Edwards, Jacob Nix, Scott Blewett, Foster Griffin and DJ Peters.  I had gotten Blewett myself a while back, but never on the 2016 Bowman.  I don't know how I missed that back then.

The next guys are Ariel Jurado, Mitchell White, Jose DeLeon, Grant Holmes, Mike White, Mike Leake, Travis Kuhn and Justin Nicolino.  I jad hoped to catch Nicolino last season in High Point.  I believe he was on one of the teams I saw there.  I e gotten Grant Holmes before.  He's been around for quite a while.

Finally, here is Max Muncy on a 2013 Panini Prizm and a 2014 Midland RockHounds teak set card.  I was also happy to see this Daniel Vogelbach 2013 Bowman Chrome.  Danny Effin Burgers.

Sam also sent me a stack of certified autos and several signed baseballs.  I don't know what I did for Sam to send me all of this stuff, but I am so appreciative. Sam has taken care of me as of late.  I hate that we don't get the chance to talk like we used to around 10 years ago, but he's still a good friend.  Thank you so much, Sam!

A Long Awaited Trade With Sam

What can I say about Sam?  I've known him for a long time.  A very long time, really.  I finally got to meet him in person back in 2018 when Chris and I went to Texas, and that was a really nice time.  We used to talk every day, now I may hear from him once a year.  Maybe.  It's a common thing, really.  You become friends with someone, get pretty close, then start drifting apart, until you finally realize that you hardly talk at all.  Or you get a text message from them, and realize their number isn't even in your phone anymore.

I liked Sam so much, I took all of the photos he had sent me over time that had him with baseball players, and I made him a shutterfly book that he could share, and maybe get signed by said players.  It took a lot of work, but I felt like it would be a nice thing to do.  I hope he liked it.

I got a message out of the blue from Sam a few months ago, asking me if I would trade him an extra DL Hall autograph that I had gotten IP for some cards that Sam had gotten himself over the years.  I wasn't sure what all he would send, but it made for a nice "blind trade".  Those can be fun, really.

I thought I would maybe get one auto back, but Sam, in fact, sent 4.  None of which I had, which was even better!  The above Mike Nikorak 2015 Bowman refractor is especially nice, since I missed out on him when I saw Asheville a couple years ago (it's ok, I got Riley Pint on EVERYTHING I had).

Sam also included these three cards.  I had sent to DJ Peters TTM, but it got returned to sender, so that helps.  I also was glad to get a Sean Murphy auto back, since I tried to 50/50 on him, but the person missed him.  I sent TTM to Logan Allen, and those cards are out somewhere, hopefully coming back sometime.

So, it was nice to hear from Sam, finally.  I don't hold out any expectation that more trades are in our future, but I do wish him the best.  I hope his knee heals, and he can continue to pitch in college and realize his dream.  He has all of these players he met who he holds in high regard, and I know he aspires to achieve success like they have.

Thanks for the deal, Sam.  Hope to hear from you soon.

Day 3 of the Texas Trip - Reunited With Some Wood Ducks

The third day in Texas with Chris brought us to Dr. Pepper Ballpark, home of the Frisco Roughriders.  We were there to see where the Wood Ducks players go when they move up to Double A.

We got to the ballpark early, then met up with my friend, Ethan, and bought his lunch.  Chris and I weren't hungry, since we had eaten at our first Brazilian steakhouse earlier that day.

All of the pictures I had seen on Dr. Pepper Ballpark showed me that it was a really beautiful place.  I wasn't disappointed, as it definitely was one of the nicest looking parks I have ever been to.

While we were there, my friend, Sam, met us and graphed with us for a bit.  He actually helped Chris and I get a few Anthony Gose cards signed, since Gose only signs one per.

We also were able to get cards signed by some of the former Wood Ducks on out team set.  Josh Morgan, Brett Martin, Anthony Gose, Adam Choplick, CD Pelham, Jonathan Hernandez and Edgar Arredondo all remembered us.

I took a few 50/50s for Gerard for the Roughriders and their opponent, the Springfield Cardinals.  I was especially happy to get the 2010 Bowman USA 18U card signed by Chris Chinea.  I picked those cards up from a dime box at the 2012 National.

I got most of these cards from Gerard for the 50/50.  I think one of the Lane Thomas cards was mine, but I'm not even sure now.

I got a Gose card signed for my good friend, Cal, as part of a 50/50 with him.  Max also sent me a few, so I'm going to hook him up with one, as well.

This Victor Roache card was actually mine.  I foundit fairly quickly when I was looking through my box.

I also met up with fellow Instagrammer, John, who I had done 50/50s with earlier in the year.  He hooked me up with two 1987 Topps that I needed for my set.

This was our last baseball day of the trip.  We spent the next day hanging out at Dinosaur Valley State Park in Glen Rose, Texas, and returned home that Saturday.

Amazing Christmas Gift From Sam

My good friend, Sam, told me that he was still working on another part of a Christmas gift for me when he sent the first bit of it back in December.  He even told me what he was working on; he was sending an 8x10 to Nolan Reimold TTM to try to get it signed and inscribed to me for Christmas.  Funny thing was, when I was at Fan Fest, I got Nolan to sign a ball for Sam, inscribed "To Sam, Merry Christmas", without knowing that Sam was working on this TTM.

The package with the signed photo came today.  I was still amazed by Sam's generosity, even though he told me a month ago that this was coming.  The photo looks great, and I will get it framed this weekend.

Sam, wasn't done, however.  He said he had picked up a surprise and would include it with the Nolan photo.  When the Nolan got here today, it was in a page protector and some cars stock that served as protection.  I had shown my wife the Nolan photo, and as I was taking it out of the protector, I told her "You know, Sam said he was sending something else, I wonder if he forgot to put it in the package." Then, as I got the photo out of the page protector, I noticed there was another photo behind it.

This awesome black and white 8x10 signed by friend of this blog, Mr. Virgil Trucks.  I had tears in my eyes as I studied this photo that I had never seen of him before.  Clearly taken in Spring Training of 1958, this was something I definitely wasn't expecting from Sam.

I once was really hard on Sam.  He had asked me to find a bunch of cards for him, which I did.  I spent hours of several days going through boxes of cards, pulling out guys he said he was looking for.  He would message me as I was halfway through and ask for additional guys.  I had to stop a coupld times and go through the same boxes again and again.  Finally, I had him a stack of cards, then when he said he wanted them all, I named a modest price.  He balked, and walked away from the deal.  I was upset and didn't talk to him for a while after that.  Sam, would message me a few months later, asking if I had cards of a certain player, to which I jumped on him because he made me go through those boxes of cards for hours, just for him to kill the deal.  I overreacted, and was rude to a kid.  That was something I swore I wouldn't do.  He apologized, and I apologized.  I felt terrible that I jumped all over this kid, all about some cards.

Since then, Sam and I have become really good friends.  I have helped him grow his collection.  I made him a really cool photo book from Shutterfly that he could use for his trips to Spring Training.  He keeps telling me that my blowing up on him wasn't a big deal, but I still regret it to this day.  He has been very generous over the last couple of years that we have been friends, and now he goes above and beyond to get me something he thought I would enjoy for Christmas.  Sam is a really good guy, and I am happy to call him my friend.  Thank you so much for working so hard on getting these photos for me.  I appreciate it, and I will love having them hanging on my wall.  Thank you, little buddy.  You're a great guy!

Christmas Gift From Sam

 

 I got half of my Christmas gift from my good friend, Sam, recently, with the other half on the way.  He says it is going to be something really good.  I don't know, though, because I really loved this half of it.  Ok, he told me what it is, and he's right, it's really amazing.  Sam got me some really cool cards to go with the gift, but the second half was delayed.  This Chris Davis patch from 2014 Panini National Treasures is really awesome.  It is a nice piece of patch numbered 9/25.

Sam hooked me up with another 2009 Bowman Sterling Nolan Reimold auto.  I love these cards, and am happy he sent it, regardless of how many I own.

Another card, among the many he sent, was this 2006 Bowman Futures Game relic of Nolan.  I had one of these already, but am happy for more.  With Nolan autos and relics, I don't care if I have duplicates.  I like getting any and all of them that I can get my hands on.

Thank you so much for the gifts, Sam!  You didn't have to get me anything else, but I'm happy you thought well enough of me to do so!

Instagram Trade With Sam - Team USA Relics

I completed a trade with my buddy, Sam, recently that landed me a couple relics of some Team USA players.  I got these because he didn't want much for them, and I thought it would be cool to put them up and see if these guys made the majors some day.

Josh Elander was drafted by the Braves in the 6th round of the June 2012 draft and spent last season at High A Lynchburg.  His numbers are pedestrian, but is still young enough (24) to maybe still have a chance at the majors one day.

JJ Schwarz is a freshman for the University of Florida and actually had a 4 homer night last Tuesday night, which was pretty cool.  He's someone that I will have to remember when his time to be drafted comes around.  It looks like he is around 18-19 years old and is a catcher for Florida.  Definitely someone for me to keep an eye on.

I don't so a lot of prospecting, but I thought it might be cool to take these off of Sam's hands and see what happens.  If anything, they're cool cards.

Thanks for the deal, Sam!

Awesome Mail From Sam - Ivan Rodriguez Signed Baseball and Rangers Gnome

I completed a trade with my buddy, Sam, who sent me the above Ivan Rodriguez signed baseball and a Texas Rangers gnome.

I have been friends with Sam for a while on Instagram, and we have made quite a few deals.  I send him most of the Mariners cards that I come across, and he hooks me up with some IP autos and Orioles stuff.

According to Sam, he met Pudge last year at an event and got two baseballs signed.  One was an OMLB ball and the other was the ball that he sent me, a Texas League ball.  The ball actually looks like it is game used.  It might be, but I'll have to ask Sam to be sure.  He provided me with a photo of himself and Pudge, even though I didn't doubt that the auto was legit.

I'm going to hold off my normal recitation of Pudge's stats, since I believe he will get into the Hall of Fame soon.

The other item (aside from a few cards) that Sam sent was this Texas Rangers gnome from a giveaway.  I'm not a Rangers fan, but I love giveaway items.  Sam included this gnome because I sent him some stuff (including a rally towel) from Orioles Fan Fest.  This will take a nice spot in one of my display cabinets along with my bobble heads.

Thanks so much for the trade, Sam!  I really appreciate it.  I hope we can get some more going, soon.

Christmas Gift From Sam

Not too long ago, I posted about completing my 1997 Topps set.  The post is right here.  The final card I needed for that set was sent to me in a Christmas package by my buddy from Instagram named Sam.  I talk to two guys named Sam on Instagram, this one is the Mariners fan.  Sam is one of the first few folks I dealt with on there, and I have been hooking him up with Mariners and Rangers cards for TTMs for a long time, now.

Sam was really generous when he sent me that card to finish my 1997 set, but also included a few other cards that he thought I would like.  The above manufactured patch of Chris Davis is one that I had been looking for to put into my PC for a while since it came out.  I think there are two versions of this patch, the above one and the cartoon bird.  So, I'll still have to pick up a cartoon bird one, which shouldn't be too hard.

Finally, I got this 2013 Topps Chrome LJ Hoes auto.  I used to have one, but I sold it on COMC.  I'm glad Sam sent me this one, because I feel like the auto is better, and I had seen Hoes play back when he was on the Keys.  I won't be trading this one away, since my buddy was kind enough to give it to me.

Thanks for the Christmas package, Sam!  I really appreciate it!

Set Complete - 1997 Topps

I got a package in the mail today from my friend, Sam, from Instagram that had his Christmas gift and this final card I needed for my 1997 Topps set.  I'll post the Christmas gift another time, but I wanted to start the year off by knocking out a 90s set.  I couldn't believe that Sam had the final card that I needed, and he found it quickly one evening when we were exchanging Kik messages and I was complaining that I missed this one when I went on a Sportlots buying spree a couple months ago.

Sam really came through for me, and for that I am very grateful.  Thanks so much for helping me complete the set, Sam!