Christmas GIft From Max - Bob Welch Signed 1987 Topps

This Christmas, my buddy Max knocked another card off of my signed 1987 Topps checklist.  I still needed Bob Welch, who had passed away, so there obviously weren't any private signings or TTM I could do.

Welch (b. 1956 - d. 2014) played in the majors from 1978 to 1994 for th3 Dodgers and A's.  He had a record of 211-146 with 1,969 strike outs and a 3.47 ERA. He won the AL Cy Young Award in 1990 when he went 27-6 with 127 strike outs and a 2.95 ERA. He finished 8th in the AL MVP race that season.  He was an All Star twice (1980 and 1990).  He won the World Series in 1981 with the Dodgers and in 1989 with the A's. He appeared on the Hall of Fame ballot in 2000 but received only 0.2% of the vote.

Thank you Max for knocking another card off of the list.  I believe I only knocked 3 or 4 cards off of the list this year.  It's getting tougher, for sure.

Let's Talk About The Bonus Situation - A Christmas Gift

Merry Christmas, everyone.  One of the cool things I got for Christmas was this 2017 Upper Deck Alien Stasis Signatures card signed by Yaphet Kotto.  He played Parker in 1979's Alien.  His character is one of a small few who tried to go hand-to-hand against the xenomorph, still a badass move after all this time.  The character of Parker is one of my favorites in the Alien franchise, and the fact that my wife recognized that was equally badass.

Kotto (b. 1939 - d. 2021) acted in such films as Alien, Live and Let Die, The Running Man and Freddy's Dead - The Final Nightmare.

I wish I had picked up some of the Upper Deck Alien and Aliens products when it came out in 2016, 2017 and 2018.  I missed the boat on some great autos, especially now that a lot of the actors from those movies are dying off (Bill Paxton, etc.).

I'm glad my wife found this and got it.  Hopefully I'll be able to add some more in the future. 

Christmas From Max 2024

Max came through again with some cards to help out with my 1987 Topps set.  Crossing off the tough Mark Portugal (above) was something I was really happy to do once I opened his gift.  He also got me another signed card from the set, but I had already gotten the same guy from a private signing, so Max's will be used to trade for someone else that I need and will be posted later on.

Portugal (b. 1962) played in the majors from 1985 to 1999 for the Twins, Astros, Giants, Reds, Phillies and Red Sox.  He had a career record of 109-95 with 1,134 strike outs and a 4.03 ERA.   He finished 6th in the 1993 NL Cy Young Race and won a Silver Slugger Award in 1994.  He was part of the Teins organization when they won the World Series in 1987, but did not pitch in the playoffs.

Max also found this Wamder Franco signed 1987 Topps-design insert when he was looking for signed 87s and picked it up for me.  He got it as a joke, and i definitely chuckled when I saw it.  What a shame, though.  Wander was really cool the couple of times when I met him in Durham.  I'm going to refrain from discussing his issues much more other than I know we will never see him play in the majors again. Still, it's a nice card and I'm still putting it in the autograph album. 

Thank you so much for the Christmas gift Max.  You always come through.  

Some Signed 87s For Christmas From Max

Several tougher 1987 Topps cards were crossed off of my checklist when I got a Christmas gift from my good friend, Max.  He has helped me tremendously with this set, and I am very grateful.  I had sent to Brian Fisher TTM, but never got my card back.  Now, I don't need to worry, as the card is now signed and in the 87 album.

I had been promised a signed Ed Correa from someone else, but he hasn't delivered, so this one will take care.of that.

I had mailed to Keith Atherton, but he also hasn't returned my card.  Mickey Hatcher does sign TTM, but for a fee to a vendor who I had a negative experience with some years ago, so I don't necessarily like dealing with his group.  Max saved me so many headaches by crossing these guys off the list.  He also put me at 752 cards, which means I have 40 to go.  I never thought I'd be this close. 

Thank you so much for the Christmas gift, Max!

Christmas Gift From Drake

My friend, Drake, sent me a nice stack of autographs for Christmas this year.  One of the cards was the above 2020 Bowman Chrome blue refractor of Randy Florentino.  This card is numbered 144/150.  He was a former Wood Duck who is now in the Orioles system, which is cool.

Drake sent this really cool Topps Now card signed by Randy Arozarena, which will be awesome in my album.  I love Topps Now cards, and rarely have an opportunity to get them signed.

Here is an assortment that Drake sent; a lot of these are from when Drake has graphed in the past.  He mostly sees Illinois-area teams and Florida State League teams when he is on vacation.

Drake helped me add some 2022 Stars & Stripes cards and also some different Topps base cards to my album.  I don't have many 2021 Topps cards at all in the album, and the above Adam Plutko helps that cause.  The truth is, 2021 Topps is hard for me to go through quickly with the tiny font on the front of the card; they are very hard to read at a glance.

Finally, here is a 2017 Topps Roman Quinn.  This is the only landscape oriented card, so it got scanned by itself.  I had been trying to get Quinn a few times, but now I at least have this card in the album.

Thank you so much for the cards, Drake!

Christmas Gift From Mom - Lefty Grove Signed Baseball

Mom did it again.  She went and found a Hall of Famer that I needed, and proceeded to add a tough name to my Hall of Fame signed baseball collection.  Not only that, she allowed me to double up on a player who used to be my most coveted signature in the collection.  All of this from the above 1938 Boston Red Sox signed baseball.  The ball has a JSA full letter of authenticity and authenticates five of the ten signatures on the ball (Grove, Bobby Doerr, Jimmie Foxx (!!!!), Fritz Ostermuller and Doc Cramer.  I am going to try to identify the five other guys, but some of the signatures are terribly faded.  The ball has been shellacked, which hopefully will help the signatures stay in their current state.  She got the ball from Fanatics, so it has a really nice case it can stay in.

Grove (b. 1900 - d. 1975) played in the majors from 1925 to 1941 for the A's (Philadelphia) and Red Sox.  He had a career record of 300-141 with 2,266 strike outs and a 3.06 ERA.  He was the AL MVP in 1931 and won the World Series with the A's in 1929 and 1930.  That 1929 team was a 104-win team managed by Hall of Famer Connie Mack and featured Hall of Famers Grove, Foxx, Al Simmons, Eddie Collins and Mickey Cochrane.  The 1930 squad would win 102 games and featured those same future Hall of Famers.

When evaluating Hall of Fame statistics, most pundits like to look at the "Black Ink" meaning instances where a player led their respective league in a stat.  In his career of 17 seasons, Grove would lead the league in: Wins (4 times), Won-Loss % (5 times), ERA (9 times), Games Pitched (1 time), Games Started (1 time), complete games (3 times), shutouts (3 times), Saves (1 time!), walks (1 time), strike outs (7 times, all in a row), wild pitches (1 time), ERA+ (9 times) and so on.  His career WAR was 113.3 (6th all-time for pitchers).  According to baseball-reference.com, his "Black Ink" score is 111, or 3rd all-time for pitchers.  Walter Johnson is first all-time, followed by Grover Cleveland Alexander, then Lefty Grove.

Grove won 20 or more games eight times in his career.  He was a six-time All Star.  He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1947 with 76.4% of the vote.  All of the above stats being considered, Grove was not elected on his first ballot, nor was he elected with a higher percentage that later pitchers would enjoy.  To be fair, his first appearance on the ballot was in 1936 when he was still playing, and also the election process was much different than it is today.

Grove broke into professional baseball in 1920 while playing for the Class D Martinsburg Mountaineers where he got the attention of Jack Dunn.  Dunn would give Martinsburg enough money for Grove's contract to replace their centerfield wall, buying his contract and making him a Baltimore Oriole.  This was when the Orioles were an independent minor league team.  Dunn would hold onto Grove's contract until selling it to Mack's Philadelphia A's for $100,600 in 1925 (just over a million dollars today), the highest amount ever at the time.

Thank you so much for this awesome baseball, Mom.  This is Hall of Famer number 167 in my collection.

Christmas Gift From Gerard - Some Awesome Cody Freeman Cards

Cody Freeman, much like Nolan Reimold, is going to be one of those players who, if I see a card, whether I have it or not, I'm going to pick it up.  My good friend, Gerard, added 6 cards to my small Cody Freeman PC with this awesome Christmas gift.

Cody doesn't have many cards out just yet, but the stuff that is out there looks really awesome.  He was in 2019 Leaf products, and there are quite a few autographs in there.  These cards look awesome, and I am really happy that Gerard hooked me up with them.

This printing plate came in separately.  Cody has a great signature, and one of the cards that I picked up for myself actually has a very early version before he perfected it to what it is on this card.  He even pointed it out to me when I showed him what I had picked up.

Cody is a great guy, and messages me here and there.  He was excited to see that one of my friends was looking out for me with his cards, which was really cool.

Thanks for the Christmas gift, Gerard!

Christmas Gift From Max - Some Tougher 87s For The Set

My good friend, Max, helped knock out three tougher cards for my 1987 Topps set with this year's Christmas gift.

I had mailed to all three of these guys, but haven't gotten a return.  I even spoke to Brian McRae at the National this past summer, and he said his dad doesn't sign much anymore.

McRae (b. 1945) played in the majors in 1968 and from 1970 to 1987 for the Reds and Royals.  He had 2,091 hits, 191 home runs and a .290 batting average.  He was an All Star in 1975, 1976 and 1982.  He was 4th in the AL MVP voting in 1976 and 1982.  He won a Silver Slugger Award in 1982, when he led the league with 133 RBIs.  He won the World Series with the Royals in 1985.

McRae managed the Royals from 1991 to 1994 and the Devil Rays from 2001 to 2002.  His overall managerial record was 399-473 (.458 %).

Wade Rowdon (b. 1960) played in the majors from 1984 to 1988 for the Reds and Orioles.  He had 34 hits, 1 home run and a .217 batting average.

Jerry Willard (b. 1960) played in the majors from 1984 to 1987, 1990 to 1992 and 1994 for the Indians, A's, White Sox, Braves, Expos and Mariners.  He had 195 hits, 25 home runs and a .249 batting average.

Thank you so much for the cards, Max!  That really helps me out big time with the set!  Merry Christmas.

Christmas Gift From Mom - Mariano Rivera Signed Baseball

Mom always enjoys finding me stuff for Christmas that will find its way to the blog, and this year was no different.  She did get me a trash bag full of about 100 pounds of antique baseball gloves, which were really cool.  She also knocked another huge name off of my Hall of Fame list with this signed baseball of Mariano Rivera.  I wanted to get in on a Rivera signing, but baseballs were super expensive, and the cards I would do would also cost me an arm and a leg, so I held off.  This ball is amazing, and has the HOF inscription and the 1st 100% vote inscription.  Pretty amazing!

Rivera (b. 1969) played in the majors from 1995 to 2013, for the Yankees.  The greatest closer of all time retired with a record 652 saves.  His 952 games finished and 205 ERA+ are also all-time records.  He had a won-loss record of 82-60 with a 2.21 ERA and 1,173 strike outs.

Rivera was a 13-time All Star (1997, 1999-2002, 2004-2006, 2008-2011 and 2013) and his best Cy Young and MVP finishes were 2nd (2005) and 9th (2004, 2005), respectively.

He won the World Series with the Yankees in 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2009.  He took home the 1999 World Series MVP and 2003 ALCS MVP honors.  His playoff record was 8-1, with 42 saves, 110 strike outs and a 0.70 ERA.  

Rivera was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2019 with 100% of the vote.  He is the only person ever elected to the Hall with 100%, and probably will be the only one, since there are idiots out there who like to make statements with their ballots; the handful of people who didn't vote for Hank Aaron, WIllie Mays, Ken Griffey, Jr., or Cal Ripken should never be allowed near another ballot.

Rivera is the 159th Hall of Famer in my collection.  Thanks Mom!  Merry Christmas, everyone!

Christmas Gift From Andrew - Sam Huff Autos

My stack of TTMs to be blogged has gotten so big, I took the stack down and put it in a box.  The stack was in danger of either falling over on its own, or being knocked over by a goofball cat who hasn't quite learned that my desk is not for him.  The huge stack also was kind of daunting.  Trying to pull from it and get blogs written has pushed back trades and gifts that I've gotten, just so I don't fall farther and farther behind on the TTM posts.  That's one of the drawbacks to sending out 1,001 ttms in 2020.  Thanks, pandemic!

Anyway, I do have a ton of trades and Christmas gifts to post, still, so I wanted to make sure one got posted, so I could put the cards away.  My awesome friend, Andrew, sent me these Sam Huff autos for Christmas.  They are really awesome cards, and I didn't have any of them in my collection.  The above 2020 Topps Heritage Minors auto/patch it a really amazing card.  It is numbered 3/25.

I hadn't seen any of Huff's Bowman Platinum autos, so this was a nice surprise.  This card isn't numbered.  I don't think I opened any Bowman Platinum in 2020.

The gift was delayed, according to Andrew.  He had the top two cards purchased and ready to mail, then he saw this 2019 Leaf Trinity numbered 1/10 Huff auto.  This card is awesome.  I'm really glad Andrew waited!

Thanks so much for the Christmas gifts, Andrew!  I hope you like what I sent you.  I may have forgotten to send you one thing I bought, so you'll be getting a Valentine's Day or Presidents Day gift soon.

Christmas Gift From Nate - Joaquin Andujar Signed 1987 Topps

My good friend, Nate, hooked me up with a really tough auto for the 1987 Topps set, Joaquin Andujar.  The signature on the card looks great, and matches all of the Andujars that I have looked at while shopping for the set.

Andujar (b. 1952 - d. 2015) played in the majors from 1976 to 1988 for the Astros, Cardinals and A's.  He had a record of 127-118 with 1,032 strike outs and a 3.58 ERA.  He was an All Star 4 times (1977, 1979, 1984 and 1985) and a Gold Glove Award winner in 1984.  He was a 20-game winner twice (1984 - 20 and 1985 - 21).  His best Cy Young Award finish was in both of those seasons, where he finished 4th in the NL voting.  His best MVP finish was 19th, in 1982 (NL).  He won the World Series with the Cardinals in 1982.

It was really awesome of Nate to pick this card up for my set.  It was actually fortuitous, because he messaged me asking me what I wanted for Christmas, and I got a notification that this card was posted a few minutes later, so I sent him a link.  Nate jumped on the card, and sent it to me once he got it.  Thanks so much, buddy!

Christmas Gift From Aidan

My buddy, Aidan, surprised me with an awesome Christmas gift that finally came in today, thanks to delays with the USPS.  Among the stack of awesome cards that Aidan Sent were two cards I needed for my 1987 set.  I knew about the above Joel Davis; I actually had sent this card to Aidan so he could enter it in a private signing.  He basically said "I'm going to do this signing for you, but I need to find the card..."  I had plenty, so I saved him from having to buy one.

Davis (b. 1965) played in the majors from 1985 to 1988 for the White Sox.  He had a record of 8-14 with 126 strike outs and a 4.91 ERA.

Aidan also included this Gary Redus that I needed for the set.

Redus (b. 1956) played in the majors from 1982 to 1994 for the Reds, Phillies, White Sox, Pirates and Rangers.  He had 886 hits, 90 home runs and a .252 batting average.

Aidan also included some Stranger Things cards, a couple Orioles cards, some random stuff and a couple autos.  Thank you so much for the gift, Aidan!

Christmas Gift From Gerard - 15 Signed 1987 Topps For The Set

Gerard's Christmas gift came in today.  I didn't mind, because it extends the Christmas feeling a bit longer, and he had already told me that there were a bunch of signed 1987 Topps cards headed my way.  I was blown away when I opened the package, though, because Gerard went above and beyond and expectation I may have had for his package.

Gerard is one of two people who have been very focused on helping me complete this set (Max being the other one).  I have had help from a lot of other people along the way, too, but these two guys have been very aggressive in helping me cross people off of my list.

It's really funny, actually, that so many folks have been wanting to work with me on trying to get as close to completion as I can be on this thing.  I think that has made it that much more special.

I now have 650 of the 792 cards in the set signed.  I haven't (and probably won't be able to) completed all of the team leaders cards, but surprisingly, I have completed a good many of them just over the last couple of months.  I intend to keep pushing for those, as well, but for all intents and purposes, I add to my tally once some ink is applied to any of the cards.  Some of the leaders cards have deceased players on them now, and those will be very hard to complete.  Those are some things I can focus on after I whittle the list down even further.

Thank you so much, Gerard, for this amazing gift.  I sincerely appreciate your friendship.  I also want to thank everyone who has so far helped me with this set.

Christmas Gift From Max - Six 87s For The Set

My good friend, Max, hooked me up this Christmas with some tougher autos to cross off of my 1987 Topps checklist.  Max has helped me out so much with this set, and it is greatly appreciated.  I am getting closer and closer to my goal of having all of the cards signed.  I've even completed a few of the tougher team leaders cards.

Fernando Valenzuela is one of the tougher players to get from the set, and with 2 cards, that makes the effort doubled.  I'm glad I could cross one of these off of the list.

Valenzuela (b. 1960) played in the majors from 1980 to 1991 and 1993 to 1997 for the Dodgers, Angels, Orioles, Phillies, Padres and Cardinals.  He had a career record of 173-153 with 2,074 strike outs and a 3.54 ERA.  He was the NL Cy Young Award winner and NL Rookie of the Year in 1981.  He was an All Star six times (1981 to 1986) and was a 20-game winner in 1986.  His best MVP finish was 5th, in 1981.  He was a Silver Slugger Award winner in 1983.  He won the World Series in 1981 with the Dodgers.

Valenzuela appeared on the Hall of Fame ballot in 2003 and 2004, but received only a high of 6.2% in 2003 before falling under the 5% minimum in 2004.

Moose Haas (b. 1956) played in the majors from 1976 to 1987 for the Brewers and A's.  He had a career record of 100-83 with 853 strike outs and a 4.01 ERA.

Chuck Cary (b. 1960) played in the majors from 1985 to 1991 and 1993 for the Tigers, Braves, Yankees and White Sox.  He had a career record of 14-26 with 322 strike outs and a 4.17 ERA.

Thad Bosley (b. 1956) played in the majors from 1977 to 1990 for the Angels, White Sox, Brewers, Mariners, Cubs, Royals and Rangers.  He had 430 hits, 20 home runs and a .272 batting average.

Steve Yeager (b. 1948) played in the majors from 1972 to 1986 for the Dodgers and Mariners.  He had 816 hits, 102 home runs and a .228 batting average.  He won the World Series with the Dodgers in 1981 and was also the MVP of that World Series.  Yeager appeared on the 1992 Hall of Fame ballot, but received only 0.5% of the vote.

Ozzie Virgil (b. 1956) played in the majors from 1980 to 1990 for the Phillies, Braves and Blue Jays.  He had 549 hits, 98 home runs and a .243 batting average.  He was an All Star twice (1985 and 1987).  Virgil didn't appear in the World Series in 1980, which the Phillies won.

Thank you so much for the cards, Max!

I hope everyone has a great Christmas.  This year has been tough, but I am thankful for all of my friends and family.

Another Hall of Famer on Moms Ball - Red Ruffing

Another Hall of Famer that I can cross off of my list, thanks to my mom, is Red Ruffing.  Mom really nailed it with this baseball, as the guys that are on it are ones who would be super tough to get on single signed baseballs.  So, this multi-signed ball really helps the collection a lot.

Ruffing (b. 1905 - d. 1986) played in the majors from 1924 to 1942 and 1946 to 1947 for the Red Sox, Yankees and White Sox.  He had a career record of 273-225 with 1,987 strike outs and a 3.80 ERA.  He was a 6-time All Star (1934 and 1938 to 1942) and had a career-best MVP finish at 4th place in 1938.

Ruffing's career got off to a rough start between 1925 and 1929, losing between 13 and 25 games each of those seasons.  He led the league in losses in 1928 and 1929 with 25 and 22, respectively.  He turned the corner in 1930 when the Red Sox traded him for Cedric Durst; at the time, Ruffing was 0-3, but he would go 15-5 with the Yankees.  After the trade, Ruffing would average almost 17 wins a season for the next 13 seasons.  He won 20 games or more in four straight seasons (1936 to 1939) .  Ruffing won the World Series with the Yankees in 1932, 1936 to 1939 and 1941 ( 6 championships).

When Ruffing was traded from the Red Sox to the Yankees, then-Yankees manager, Bob Shawkey, a former pitcher, was convinced he could get better results out of Ruffing by changing his pitch delivery.  The changes worked, and the trade of Durst for Ruffing is considered one of the most lopsided trades in MLB history.

Red Ruffing was elected to the Hall of Fame in a run-off election in 1967, his final year of eligibility on the ballot.

Ruffing is my 150th Hall of Fame signature on a baseball. 

Mom's HOF Ball Part 2 - Earle Combs

The next Hall of Famer on the baseball Mom gave me is Earle Combs.

Combs (b. 1899 - d. 1976) played in the majors from 1924 to 1935 for the Yankees.  He had 1,866 hits, 58 home runs and a .325 batting average.  He led the league in triples in 1927, 1928 and 1930.  He batted .300 or better in 8 seasons, 4 of which he batted .340 or better.  He won the World Series with the Yankees in 1927, 1928 and 1932.  In his World Series appearances, he batted .350 (4 series, includes a 1926 loss to the Cardinals) with 1 home run.  His best MVP finish was 6th, in 1928.

Combs was elected to the Hall  of Fame in 1970 via the Veterans Committee.  He had appeared on 15 Hall of Fame ballots between 1937 and 1962, but didn't received more than 16% of the vote.  His career WAR, if anyone cares, 43.9; he had 7 seasons of 4.0 WAR or better, which is pretty good, even though I still don't understand the stat.  Regardless, for a veteran of 9 full and 3 partial seasons, Combs has some really good stats.

Earle Combs is my 149th Hall of Famer on a baseball.

Fun fact, of all of my baseball player autographs in my collection, Combs is my first to have played on the legendary 1927 Yankees.

Mom Knocks A Bunch of Hall of Famers off of the List Part 1 - Frank Home Run Baker

My mom has been working hard on crossing some tough names off of my Hall of Famer list.  She found this Yankees legends signed baseball and handed it to me this past week while I was vacationing back home.  I had taken the vacation as a mental health break, and ended up riding around with my mom while she ran errands, like old times.

She had told me that my Christmas gift for 2020, 2021 ans 2022 had come in, and she couldn't wait until December to give it to me, so she went ahead and hooked me up while I was in town.  I was surprised that she found a baseball with at least 4 Hall of Famers that I needed (and another Hall of Famer that I already had, but was happy to add again).

One of the Hall of Famers on the baseball is Frank "Home Run" Baker.  His signature is at the top of one of the side panels on the baseball.  From what I was able to gather, this baseball was signed at a Yankees legends or old timers day.  The ball is a very old baseball; it looks like it is a Spalding official baseball.

There are also a bunch of other former Yankees on the ball, and as time allows, I will tackle each one in a separate post.  I can't thank Mom enough for the ball, and the ability to cross off some of these tough players from my list.  So, thank you, Mom!  Here we go with the first player profile:

Frank "Home Run" Baker (b. 1886 - d. 1963) played in the majors from 1908 to 1914, 1916 to 1919 and 1921 to 1922 for the Philadelphia A's and New York Yankees.  He had 1,838 hits, 96 home runs and a .307 batting average.  His best MVP finish was 3rd, in 1914.  He led the league in home runs, hence the nickname, from 1911 to 1914.  This was during the deadball era, so his home run totals were 11, 10, 12 and 9 in those years, respectively.  He also led the league in RBIs 1912 and 1913;and in triples in 1909.

Baker won the World Series with the A's in 1910, 1911 and 1913.  He appeared on 15 Hall of Fame ballots, before being elected in 1955 via the Veterans Committee.

Baker managed the Easton Farmers of the Eastern Shore League and is credited with discovering Jimmie Foxx.  He was fired as manager upon selling Foxx to the A's because the Farmers believed that Baker didn't get enough money for Foxx.

Baker is my 148th Hall of Famer on a baseball.

Christmas Gift From Noah

It took him a while, but I got a really great package in the mail from my good friend, Noah.  I've known him for a long time, and always enjoy when we are able to get up with each other and chat.  Noah has been preoccupied for some time now with a very awful personal tragedy that happened, and it isn't my place to discuss it here.

So, when I got the package and the letter from him, it really touched me.  This Cedric Mullins patch auto was amazing.  I like these patch cards, and Noah really hit a home run.

He sent me an addition to my post card album (yes, I have an album for signed post cards, in addition to my albums for baseball cards).

Finally, he sent this great Brooks Robinson auto.

Thank you so much, Noah!  I really appreciate it, and I am always thinking about you.

Christmas Gift From Kaleb

I'm still working on posts regarding various Christmas packages that came in from friends recently.  I'm trying to catch up on those, and not fall too far behind on TTM posts.  It is what it is, but I'll be way behind once the Wood Ducks season starts.  Oh well, I'll have stuff to write about for the foreseeable future, and that's ok with me.

My good friend, Kaleb, sent me a nice Christmas gift that had a stack of Orioles cards, and this Roy Campanella 2010 TOpps Peak Performance relic card.  I like Campy, and would like to add his autograph to my HOF collection at some point.  I'd prefer a pre-stroke auto, but I might have to settle for a post-stroke "autopen" one.

Anyway, I really appreciated the gift from Kaleb, and am excited that I might be able to catch a game with him in a little over a month.  Thanks so much, Kaleb!

Christmas Gift From Jackson

My good friend, Jackson, sent me this awesome Christmas gift that included the above signed Brooks Robinson 1965 Topps.

1965 is one of my favorite sets, and I was glad to be able to put this Brooks in my autograph album.

Jackson included this Jim Palmer Hall of Fame plaque card, which I had never seen before.  If The Orioles hadn't canceled Fan Fest, I would put this at the top of my list of cards that I would want to get signed.  Unfortunately, I won't be able to for the time being, but might give it a shot later this summer.

Finally, Jackson included these two cards in the package.  I might see Jomar Reyes this summer, and I can always use new Brooks cards.

Thank you so much for the package, Jackson!