November 14, 2023, Wilson Baseball Hot Stove Event

Last night was the 48th annual Wilson Hot Stove event.  I had heard a lot about it, but had never troed to go.  I finally got there, and had a great time.  My good friend, Jesse, met me at the North Carolina Baseball Museum for the pre-event reception, then headed over to the community center for the night's dinner and awards ceremony. 

One of the big draws to this year's event was Reds prospect, Rhett Lowder.  He was there to receive the pitcher of the year award commemorating his season with Wake Forest.  He was really nice and signed cards for Jesse and I.

John Roper was at the museum prior to the event and signed all of the cards I brought with me.  We talked about some of the big contracts that players were signing then also about his hometown of Raeford, NC.  That led to a conversation about his gas fireplace.  Ah, the things we converse about. He was a really cool guy, and seemed genuinely happy to be there. 

A surprise attendee at the event was Trot Nixon.  He had attended the event in years past, but more recently had not been able to come, due to other commitments.  I took a chance and brought some of his cards, and happily got them signed.

I got Jerry Narron on a 1987 Donruss, and upgraded my 1971 Topps Dick Such to blue Sharpie, as opposed to the one he signed in black Sharpie.

This 1970 Topps Senators Rookie Stars card turned out nicely.  Unfortunately, Dick Stelmaszek is no longer with us.  It also doesn't look like Gene Martin signs regularly.

The museum itself is really cool.  There is at least a card for every former major leaguer who came from NC.  There are a ton of signed baseballs and memorabilia.  I want to take some time and visit the museum during regular hours and really take some time to look at everything. 

I had a great time at the hot stove event and would love to go again next year.  There seem to be some big names that come from time to time.  A few years ago, Rod Carew was a guest speaker. I'll hold out hope that some big names come and I can get some great autos there in the future.

In all, I got the following autographs: Rhett Lowder x 3, Jerry Narron x 1, Trot Nixon x 5, John Roper x 16 and Dick Such x 2 (27 total autographs).

TTM Success - Johnny Damon

This was a big one.  It was also a TTM success that I had waited quite a while for.  In the end, the wait was worth it, I got a TTM success from Johnny Damon.

The above 2004 Topps Cracker Jack card looks amazing.  I'm so glad I sent that one along.

I also got these two 2005 Topps cards signed, which turned out really well.  He didn't sign my 2007 Topps Opening Day, but I'm not complaining.

Damon (b. 1973) played in the majors from 1995 to 2012 for the Royals, A's, Red Sox, Yankees, Tigers, Rays and Indians.  He had 2,769 hits, 235 home runs and a .284 batting average.  He was an All Star in 2002 and 2005.  His best finish in the AL MVP voting was 13th in 2005.  He won the World Series with the Red Sox in 2004 and with the Yankees in 2009.  Damon appeared on the Hall of Fame ballot in 2018, but received only 1.9% of the vote.

I mailed to Damon on October 26, 2017, and got the cards back on February 2, 2022, for a 1,580-day TAT.

Some Signed Cards From Jackson

My friend, Jackson in Arizona, has been hosting private signings for a good while now, and seems to have found his niche and is pretty successful.  Recently, he has done a few and has sent me some cards as a thank you for helping him out over time.  Above is a nice 2007 Bowman Derrek Lee that Jackson sent me.  I'm pretty sure that I didn't provide the card, but it still is nice to see one get into my album.

Lee (b. 1975) played in the majors from 1997 to 2011 for the Padres, Marlins, Cubs, Braves, Orioles and Pirates.  He had 1,959 hits, 331 home runs and a .281 batting average.  He led the NL with 199 hits and 50 doubles in 2005, on his way to his best MVP finish (3rd).  He was an All Star in 2005 and 2007.  He was the NL Batting Champion in 2005 when he hit .335.  He was a Silver Slugger Award winner in 2005, and a Gold Glove Award winner 3 times (2003, 2005 and 2007).  He won the World Series with the Marlins in 2003.  He appeared on the Hall of Fame ballot in 2017, but received no votes.

Jackson sent me these two Neal Cotts cards from a recent signing, a 2004 Bowman and a 2004 Topps Cracker Jack.  I love the Cracker Jack set; they look awesome when signed.

Cotts (b. 1980) played in the majors from 2003 to 2009 and 2013 to 2015 for the White Sox, Cubs, Rangers, Brewers and Twins.  He had a record of 21-24 with 421 strike outs and a 3.96 ERA.  He won the World Series with the White Sox in 2005.

Finally, I provided several Jack Spradlin cards to Jackson for a signing, and I was able to get this 2010 Topps Pro Debut back signed.

Spradlin (b. 1984) was an 8th round pick by the Nationals in the 2005 June Amateur Draft out of USC.  He played in the minors from 2006 to 2010 in the Nationals system, reaching AAA.  He had a record of 17-18 with 317 strike outs and a 3.91 ERA.

Thanks for the signed cards, Jackson!

Some Great Signed Cards From Jackson

My friend Jackson, in Arizona, took a 50/50 for me and also sold me a signed card.  The card he sold was the 2004 Cracker Jack Dotrelle Willis shown above.  I really like the Cracker Jack set, and have contemplated picking up a box.  The cards look great when signed.  Jackson did a private signing with Willis, which I missed.  Thankfully, he had some extras, and I picked this beauty up.

Jackson also sees Will Morris and Harvey Monte locally over there, so he got some cards out of my boxes and had them signed for me.  We split the Morris cards, and since I had only one Monte, he gave me that one.

I was afraid that I wouldn't have any Monte, but I had the single card in my "rookies" box, so it was good to get that one out.

Thanks so much for taking the cards and selling me the Willis, Jackson!