TTM Success - Jim Boudreau

While going through boxes the other day, I found this 2006 Upper Deck Legendary Cuts card of Lou Boudreau.  I love the design, but Boudreau has been gone for some time now, so there no way I'd be able to get him to sign it.  I figured I'd try to get one of his kids to sign it; his daughter is married to Denny McLain.  I did some digging and found an address for his son, Jim.  I initially thought it was Boudreau's grandson, but Jim Boudreau corrected me.

Something really cool happened, though; Jim added his dad's auto to the TTM request.  He must have had a stash of his dad's signed cards somewhere.  That was really cool of him.

I also got a note back, explaining that my guess was wrong.  Still, I'm glad I gave it a shot and sent the card out.

I mailed to Boudreau on March 2 and got the card back on March 16, for a 14-day TAT. 

A Package From Nick

 Nick from the amazing blog "Baseball Dimebox" sent me a package that I got today.  There were a ton of Orioles in it, several of which I needed for various PCs.  The above Jim Palmer Boyhood Photos of the Stars card is especially nice (since I completely forgot it existed!).  the amazing thing about this card is the Palmer's hair hasn't changed after all these years!

Another card I really liked (I liked them all, but I can't scan them all) was this one that I had never seen before.  This is a Sunoco Dream Team card of Bob Feller and Lou Boudreau.  It is a surprise addition to my Feller PC.

Nick has a really good eye for the "Diamond In the Rough", if you will, which is one of the many great parts of his blog.  Nick's ability to find something cool about any card is something I really try to use in my card shopping adventures as well.

Thanks for the package, Nick!

Hall of Fame Signed Baseball - Lou Boudreau

Here is the second baseball I got from that online estate sale that I spoke about yesterday.  My 78th Hall of Famer, Lou Boudreau.

Boudreau has one of the crispest signatures for any Hall of Famer, in my opinion.  This signature is on a Bobby Brown OAL ball.

Boudreau (b. 1917 - d. 2001) played in the majors from 1938 to 1952 for the Indians and Red Sox.  He was the 1944 AL batting champion and 1948 AL MVP.  He led the league in doubles three times (each of those seasons hitting 45 doubles).  He won the World Series with the Indians in 1948.  He finished his career with 1,779 hits, 68 home runs and a .295 batting average and was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1970 (his 10th ballot) with 77.3% of the vote.  At first glance, Boudreau doesn't appear to have the numbers to back up a Hall of Fame election, but as a shortstop, he was comparable to other shortstops who are in the Hall, namely, Travis Jackson and Phil Rizzuto.  Boudreau's numbers actually are strikingly similar to those of Jackson.

Something really cool about Boudreau is that he was a player/manager for the Indians from 1942 to 1950 (thus winning the World Series in '48 as a player AND a manager) and for the Red Sox from 1952 to 1954.  He also managed the Kansas City Athletics from 1955 to 1957 and the Cubs is 1960.  He had a career managerial record of 1,162-1,224 (.487 winning percentage) with one World Series title.

Now, I am about to make you all sick.  Baseballs signed by Boudreau usually go for $75-$80.  I got this one for $21.  Not bad, if you ask me.  I'm definitely going to be on the lookout for more estate auctions, that's for sure.