Fan Fest Pickup - Joe Mahoney Spring Training Jersey

I'm skipping around a bit now, but I really didn't want to post a whole bunch tonight, especially since the last autograph station we went to had 4 guys signing.  I hope to do that one tomorrow, depending on my mood.

After that station was done, Chris and I met back up with Scott and we made our way to the memorabilia room one more time.  Since they were about to close, I figured they would have marked a few things down. I was right.  They had marked the team issued jerseys down to $80 and the spring training jerseys to $20.  I missed out on the Dontrelle Willis jersey, but did manage to pick up the above Joe Mahoney jersey.

I got to see Mahoney play in Bowie a couple years ago and during that game, he hit two home runs.  After the second home run, he threw his batting gloves on top of the dugout right by where we were sitting.  I was too late as a kid grabbed them up and ran away.  Not to be beaten again, I snatched this jersey up and it is now here in my home.  I plan on wearing it to a game, even though Mahoney isn't with the team anymore. For $20, I know I got a deal!

Fan Fest Memorabilia Room Pickups - Game Used Baseballs

After our autograph signing at 11:20AM, Scott, Chris and I worked our way around the Baltimore Convention Center to check out the sights and sounds of 2014 Orioles Fan Fest.  We finally made our way to the memorabilia room, my favorite destination at Fan Fest, and found some cool stuff.

On the Spring Training jersey (for $50), I could have picked up a Dontrelle Willis jersey.  I held off, figuring I could land a jersey later on as the prices dropped.

I went in there hoping I could score a lineup card, but I was too late.  They were already gone.  So, I checked out the game used baseballs, instead. This year was the first year I was at Fan Fest with my smart phone, so I was able to check the game information on the baseballs.  I was able to pick up baseballs of some of my favorite players, while other folks standing there looked at me like I was crazy.  One of the three baseballs I got was for Chris as well.

In the lot shown above from our first visit to the memorabilia room, I got two Nate McLouth game used balls and a Nolan Reimold ball.  I could have sworn I picked up a Brian ROberts ball as well, but maybe I sat that one down by mistake.  Oh well, what I got was still cool.  Here is a little bit of info, as told by MLB Authenticators:

Ball 1. Cle @ Bal, June 26, 2013.  Batter - Nate McLouth; Pitcher Scott Kazmir.  Bottom of the 5th, Pitch in the dirt.

Ball 2: Cle @ Bal, June 27, 2013.  Batter - Nate McLouth; Pitcher Corey Kluber.  Bottom of the 2nd, foul ball.

And the third ball, which was a bit of a surprise:

Ball 3: Bos @ Bal, September 27, 2011.  Batter - Nolan Reimold; Pitcher - Erik Bedard, Bottom of the 3rd, pitch in the dirt.  According to baseball-reference.com, Nolan would go on to strike out looking in this at bat.  The Orioles would lose the game 8-7 and would fall to 68-93 on the season.

Of course, we all know that the next day, history would be made.  The most epic final day of a regular season was upon us, and Nolan Reimold would have a key role in that game.  Yeah, this ball came from the day before, but how much do you want to bet that he was wearing the batting gloves he gave me during the above at bat?  Pretty good chances, right?

I didn't even think about the date when I verified this ball.  I just thought it was cool that it was a pitch to Nolan and it had come from a former Oriole.  Funny thing was, though, Chris had found this ball on the floor, just under the table.  Kind of like we were meant to have it.  Pretty awesome, I think.

Rest In Peace, Ralph Kiner

Today, another Hall of Famer was lost when Ralph Kiner passed away this morning at the age of 91.  He was really nice to Chris, Drew, Adam, Joe and I this summer when we met him during an autograph signing. I have to commend the guy for getting out of the house at 90 (at that time) and meeting and greeting fans.

Kiner took the time to painstakingly sign the two baseballs we had and was nice enough to speak to Chris. I'm really sad to see him go, but he leaves a legacy as one of the greatest power hitters of all time.

So, I leave you all with this overlong video of Mr. Kiner signing autographs for us.  Special thanks to my good friend, Drew, who shot the video.

I'll be back on later tonight hopefully to resume my Fan Fest posts. If I don't get one on tonight, I'm sure you understand why.

Fan Fest Autograph Station 1 - Lough/Webb/Bundy

Before I kick off my showcase of autographs, I do want to say that I got a dozen OMLB "Cal Ripken's Final Game" baseballs to take with me to Fan Fest to get signed.  The box of 12 was $50 cheaper than a normal box of OMLB baseballs.  You can see the logo on the above baseball signed by one of the newest Orioles, David Lough.  As far as I know, his last name is pronounced to rhyme with dough.  He seemed like a really nice guy.  My son, Chris, welcomed him to the team and told him the he would like him because he is taking over for Nate McLouth and McLouth was one of Chris's favorite players.  Lough smiled and signed Chris's baseball and was equally as nice to me when I told him "Welcome to Baltimore."

From everything I hear, Lough is going to be a solid addition to the team.  I really hope that's the case, because I really liked McLouth.  I believe that Lough is going to be a similar type player, except with him you add batting average and subtract stolen bases.  I'm ok with that.  The Os got Lough in a trade with the Royals for Danny Valencia.

The next baseball (above) is signed by another newcomer to Baltimore, Ryan Webb.  Webb came to the Orioles as a free agent (and he passed his physical, gasp!) from the Marlins.  He's a really effective ground ball pitcher who should fit into the bullpen nicely.  He didn't really replace Jim Johnson, but he has similar makeup and is several years younger (and much cheaper).

Webb was very outspoken on the Twitter by criticizing Alex Rodriguez when A-Roid announced he was suing the Player's Association.  When it was my turn to get an autograph from Webb, I asked him to please put one in A-Roids ribs when he comes back.  Webb just smiled and said "He isn't coming back."  Well put, sir.  I think I'm really going to like him in the late innings.

Finally, I got another signed (my third) baseball of Dylan Bundy.  Bundy is on the mend at the moment from obligatory Tommy John surgery.  He looks to come back after the All Star break, if not sooner.  I wouldn't rush him at all.  I'm really scared that he is going to end up like Mark Prior, but I hope he doesn't because it has been forever since the Orioles drafted and developed a solid MLB pitcher.  We'll see what the future holds.

The first autograph session was at 11:20AM and my next one wasn't until 4:40, so I had a ton of time to kill. Check back to see when Scott and I picked up in the memorabilia store while we waited.

Fan Fest Pickup - Mike Flanagan-Boog Powell Signed Baseball

One of my favorite pickups from this past weekend's Orioles Fan Fest is a bit bittersweet as well.  I have wanted a Mike Flanagan signed baseball for quite some time and that want/need was compounded a couple years ago when Flanny took his own life following years of battling depression.  The former Cy Young Award winner's death cast a pall on the life and career of one of the Oriole greats.  His death really affected me because I was one of those Oriole fans who heavily criticized his moves as GM, but in reality, a lot of his moves (and even some non-moves) turned out to be good ones.

With the recent passing of one of my favorite actors, Philip Seymour Hoffman (who has a key role in my second favorite movie ever, The Big Lebowski), I realize that life is really short and we need to enjoy it as much as we can.

So, that being said, I was really glad to be able to find this Flanagan ball at Fan Fest from one of the vendor tables.  The vendor area was full of some really cool Orioles stuff, a lot of it was stuff I would have been interested in taking home, but I didn't want to spend a whole lot.  I saw the ball (it is a 1993 All Star Game commemorative ball) and its price of $20.00 and was thinking I should probably get it, then Scott walked up and said I should ask the guy if he would do $15. The guy agreed and I was able to get the ball.

I really didn't think I would leave Fan Fest with a Flanagan ball, let alone one with Boog's signature on it as well.  I was really happy.  Of all the stuff I got at Fan Fest, this might be my favorite.

Going back to what I said before, it might not make sense in the context of me talking about buying a baseball, but I spent this past weekend with my son and a good friend.  We had a great time, enjoyed each other's company, and then had an amazing dinner together after Fan Fest.  I'm glad I was able to do it, and am happy that I am doing my part to make positive memories for Chris.  I hope he can look back at stuff like this when he is much older and think to himself, 'Wow, my dad took me to some really cool places...' Because, really, that's what it is all about, making good memories.

COMC Pickup - 2013 Bowman Chrome Blue Wave Refractor Manny Machado

I got another COMC package in today.  I was going to hold off posting anything from it until I posted my Fan Fest stuff, my 2014 Topps stuff and a package I got today from Weston.  Unfortunately, it took me a lot longer tonight to sort my 2014 base cards, plus, I had someone take me up on my offer to build a 1987 Topps set, so I was finishing that up.

That being said, I decided it would be best for me to do a brief post tonight on one card as opposed to some Fan Fest items, etc.  Therefore, behold the 2013 Bowman Chrome Blue Wave refractor of Manny Machado that I got off of COMC for $10.25.  Not bad, since Manny's stuff carries a premium these days.

I really wanted to get the Blue Wave refractor, so I went ahead and used some store credit on it instead of running up my Paypal on Ebay.  The card scanned amazingly, as you can tell above.

Stay tuned tomorrow, as I hope to get started with actual hits from Fan Fest.

2014 Orioles Fan Fest Thoughts

Yesterday, I spent the day with my son and my good friend, Scott (from the blog Mr. Baseball-Scott) at the 2014 Orioles Fan Fest.  Originally, I was pretty upset that I was unable to get as many autograph vouchers as I had liked, but in the end, I did really well.  The above photo is of our first autograph session, David Lough, Ryan Webb and Dylan Bundy.  We also had vouchers for later in the day to the Bigbie/Urrutia/Wieters/De La Cruz signing.

The crowd wasn't quite as large as last year, but 15,000 fans still crowded into the Baltimore Convention Center

Nick Markakis brought his beard with him.  He looks like a young Chong, from Cheech and Chong.

Chris was recruited by my buddy, Michael to get him some autographs from the kids line.

Chris enjoyed meeting Matt Wieters for the third time.  He first met him in 2008 when Wieters was with the Keys, then again in 2009 when Wieters and Tillman were signing autographs with the Baysox.

So, here are Chris and Scott posting with our total haul.  Between the three of us, we got 24 signed baseballs, 21 signed post cards, 3 MASN bags, an Eddie Murray statue, a Chris Davis shirt, a Joe Mahoney Spring Training jersey, a Keys hat, 6 signed photos and 6 game used baseballs.

I doubt I'll post about each and every item, but I do intend to break out a few posts on certain items, so stay tuned.  In the meantime, I would like to thank Scott and his family for a great time and them being such amazing hosts.  I really appreciated our time together.