Private Sessions

I have been following Chris Potter Sports for a while, waiting for the opportunity to get involved. Then, a few months ago, three players aligned at one signing and I had to make a move.

Don Aase 1991 Orioles Crown #1

Aase has held a spot in my collection from the beginning. He was one of the first cards I traded for years ago and now that 1987 Topps card is available. Aase was once a consistent TTM signer but his habits have changed over the last few years. I felt cornered I needed to pay for his signature on a Crown card or never get it.

Mike Pagliarulo 1994 Score #489

Mike does not sign TTM. I could only find two recorded successes over the last decade. I definitely didn't want to waste stamps. I was expecting his cost to be a little higher, given his propensity to not sign. But his cost was reasonable and it was a no brainer.

Albie Pearson 1991 Orioles Crown #356

My history with Albie was documented here in a post about the 2010 National Convention. I had heard he wouldn't sign the Crown card but apparently when paid he is less discerning with the signing tastes. He was my main reason for getting involved in the signing. I think it was a $45 well spent, you?

There Must Be Something Wrong

I am back to trading. Something I took a break from for a little while, by accident. I wasn't very organized, at least to my standards so took some time to get things in order. Then I bought more 2011 and mucked up the works. But my break led to two trades, this being the second.

Hiflew from Cards From the Quarry checked out my list and a trade was born. I sent him some 2011 Rockies and a little something extra. Hope he enjoys.

Did I mention I hate my scanner. It prints, but will not recognize the software to scan a picture. New drivers have been installed to no avail. Anyone know of any ways to fix or troubleshoot the problem. If not, I will be going "Office Space" on the damn thing.

That being said, I will pilfer a few photos of the highlights.

2011 Topps base:
Zach Britton #418

Chris Tillman #636

2011 Inserts:
Brian Matusz 2011 Topps Toppstown #TT2-38

Adam Jones Diamond Parallel #396
Mike Gonzalez Diamond Parllel #381 Perfect timing, I just ran out of Gonzo cards.
Cal Ripken 60 Years of Topps (83) #60YOT-91

2009 Upper Deck Goudey
Cal Ripken #20

Also included from Goudey: Brian Roberts and Nick Markakis.

Randomness:
Ty Wigginton 2010 Upper Deck #79.

As far as trading goes, the Ripkens, Roberts, Markakis and Wigginton cards are available. The rest will be prepped for signatures.

It's weird. The three players I used to collect are now all on the trading block, Ripken, Roberts and Markakis. Strange.

Trade With Ryan G.

Ryan is the genius behind The Cardboard Zoo or This Card is Cool. You won't be disappointed following either one, but should just follow both. The zoo is his insane attempt to collect a card from every set ever produced. EVER. Completely certifiable. Completely awesome.

Anyway, he tracked me down for some Topps II cards he needed and we worked out a sweet little trade. The only picture I have is for the gem of the trade, to me at least.

Joe Gaines 1964 Topps #364

So far, Joe is the lone '64 in my collection, looking all sad and lonely in his nine pocket sheet. He would like some company. Anyone have some of his teammates looking for a change of scenery?

To round out the deal Ryan sent along current O's, some new additions, retired players, HOFers and a few inserts for good measure. A very eclectic trade package. Here is the breakdown.

Benny Ayala (1)
Kevin Bass (1)
Daniel Cabrera (1)
JJ Hardy (1)
Adam Jones (2)
Derrek Lee (1)
Mark Lewis (1)
Chad Moeller (1)
Eddie Murray (1)
Russ Ortiz (3) Yes he was an Oriole for a hot second.
Felix Pie (2)
Mark Reynolds (2)
Brooks Robinson (1)
Frank Robinson (1)
Miguel Tejada (1)
Justin Turner (1)
Koji Uehara (1)
Mike Young (1)

The current players will make their way to the In Person box to try and have signed this year. Hardy and Lee Gypsy Queens will be on the top of the list. Russ Ortiz will hopefully sign TTM for me and I am working on tracking down Mark Lewis.

I appreciate the time to make the trade and that you follow the blog. Anyone else interested in trading? Let's do this thing.

Dipping Into the Well...Again

Ryan of The Great Orioles Autograph Project has a ridiculous collection if you haven't checked it out, do so now. I am so envious of his collection and his numbers are completely staggering. At least I have hope that I can get close. Whenever possible I pilfer his leftovers.

I decided not to collect managers at the same time he decided to start, I sent three his way. Ryan is looking for Oriole managers and coaches autographs if you have any lying around.

This was one of my biggest hauls to date.

Jim Busby 1957 Topps #309

Will Clark 1996 Leaf Signature Autographs #46

Omar Daal 1994 Topps #29

Charles Johnson 1993 Upper Deck #435

Roger McDowell 1992 Upper Deck #484

Mark McLemore 1994 Flair #5

Rafael Palmeiro 1994 Collector's Choice #605

Oswaldo Peraza 1989 Score #571

Allan Ramirez 1984 Donruss #332

Steve Reed 2002 Upper Deck 40 Man #855

Nelson Simmons 1986 Topps #121

Thanks again for another trade.

Getting A Hit For My Birthday

When I was celebrating with my family for the 4th, my brother and nephew couldn't wait any longer to give me my birthday gift. Today I turn the big 31. They had to give me my present because they both wanted to watch and "help" me open it. I got my first hobby box of the year, Topps Series II.

As I stated last week, I am a much bigger fan of the 2nd series than the 1st. So I was quite happy to bust packs with my family.

Still no scanner so here are the goods again:
Topps 60
T60-56 Roberto Alomar Indians
T60-60 Mel Ott New York Giants
T60-61 Tom Seaver Mets
T60-64 Jorge Posada Yankees
T60-67 Andrew McCutchen Pirates
T60-72 Eddie Mathews Milwaukee Braves
T60-78 Francisco Liriano Twins
T60-85 Johnny Bench Reds

60 Years of Topps
60YOT-102 Manny Ramirez Indians
60YOT-107 Roy Halladay Blue Jays
60YOT-112 Alex Rodriguez Derek Jeter Yankees
60YOT-60 Yogi Berra Yankees
60YOT-62 Jackie Robinson Brooklyn Dodgers
60YOT-69 Stan Musial Cardinals
60YOT-79 Gaylord Perry Giants
60YOT-85 Don Sutton Dodgers
60YOT-88 Ron Guidry Yankees
60YOT-90 Steve Garvey Dodgers
60YOT-99 Larry Walker Expos

60 Years of Topps Original Backs
93 Andre Dawson Expos

Before There was Topps
BTT-5 1933 Goudey

Topps Black #'d/60
394 Austin Jackson Tigers

Diamond Anniversary
300 Walter Johnson Senators (SP)
417 Miguel Cairo Reds
437 Jordan Schafer Braves
440 Grady Sizemore Indians
449 Austin Kearns Indians
487 Chris Snyder Pirates
542 Mike Pelfrey Mets
545 Jose Tabata Pirates
548 Ryan Franklin Cardinals
555 Madison Bumgarner Giants
579 Jeff Niemann Rays

Diamond Duos
DD-1 Roy Halladay Roy Oswalt Phillies
DD-16 Josh Hamilton Joey Votto Rangers/Reds
DD-27 Josh Johnson Justin Verlander Marlins/Tigers
DD-30 Sandy Koufax Clayton Kershaw Dodgers
DD-4 Adrian Gonzalez Carl Crawford Red Sox
DD-7 Frank Thomas Adam Dunn White Sox
DD-9 Adrian Beltre Elvis Andrus Rangers
DS-13 Jason Heyward Braves
DS-14 Miguel Cabrera Tigers
DS-17 Matt Holliday Cardinals
DS-22 Ryan Howard Phillies
DS-5 Joey Votto Reds
DS-6 Buster Posey Giants

Topps Gold
356 Alfonso Soriano Cubs
402 Jack Cust Mariners
452 David Freese Cardinals
463 Will Venable Padres
566 Jordan Zimmerman Nationals

Kimball Champion Minis
KC-59 Tony Gwynn Padres
KC-61 Greg Maddux Braves
KC-62 Luis Aparicio White Sox
KC-64 Jackie Robinson Brooklyn Dodgers
KC-69 Robin Roberts Phillies
KC-75 Bob Feller Indians
KC-89 Duke Snider Dodgers
KC-98 Gary Carter Mets

Topps Toppstown Series 2
TT2-10 Justin Upton Diamondbacks
TT2-3 Cliff Lee Phillies
TT2-30 Carl Crawford Red Sox
TT2-34 Ike Davis Mets
TTW-26 Trevor Cahill Athletics

Week 1 & Week 9 Hobby Shop Redemption cards.
I am happy to look at lists for base cards, I have close to the complete set.


Oh... I almost forgot the hit. My first ever auto pulled from Topps base product.

Aroldis Chapman Topps 60 Autographed Relic/50....................
Redemption.

Bummed it's a redemption but happy I beat the odds of 1:4500 packs. The card books at $80, not too shabby. As usual all are for trade for Orioles autos, base, prospects I need. If the Chapman doesn't have any takers, it will be bound for the Bay.

Redeeming Qualities

I have been trading card on The Bench for years and really like the results. As a autograph collector though, things have stalled a bit. My collection is growing and the autos I need are becoming more scarce. So when I trade there are a lot of offers for mid-2000's graphs of prospects that never panned out.

Hopefully my latest trade won't fall into that category.

Manny Machado 2011 Bowman Redemption

This didn't come cheap, but I feel it was well worth it. I gave up 30 or so Mets base cards and inserts for it. I think I did alright seeing as though the Mets cards were not highly sought after.

Machado was called up to Frederick recently so in person signings may be a ton easier. I need to get my hands on some base cards to give them a go. Anyone trying to unload some?

Visitors To The Blog

The Cardinals have a reputation of being the Yankees of the National League regarding signing. What I saw, could not have been further from the truth.

Many Cadillacs and sedans made their way under the stadium, hiding visiting players from view. The handful that made their own transportation plans though, treated us fans well.

Matt Holliday signed for one person without slowing down and barely looked at the item. It could not have been a great signature.

Yadier Molina walked down the street pretending like he didn't speak English. It worked.

The rest of the club signed for every fan.

Jake Westbrook 2011 Topps #2

Ryan Theriot 2007 Topps Heritage #78

Ryan Theriot 2011 Topps Diamond Anniversary #438

Colby Rasmus 2011 Topps Opening Day #180

David Freese 2011 Topps #452

Jason Motte 2009 Finest Refractors #135

Jon Jay 2011 Topps #295

I traded an extra card of Jay for the Jakubauskas I got signed later. Very good move.

Outscored and Out-Signed

I love my Orioles I truly do, but they are a last place team with a first place attitude when it comes to autographs. I know each person has a different experience at the park and players can't sign for every single fan but most players won't even acknowledge a fans existence.

Before Thursday's 9-6 drubbing by the Cardinals I was posted along a railing pleading with professional athletes to "Sign please?", with little luck. Many of the players avoid the hassle of being asked by sneaking down a back stairway or driving under the stadium. They stay as far away as possible as to not give false hope.

Then comes the golf cart. This allows players to easily carry their bags to the clubhouse but also to ignore fans face-to-face. Now I don't mind not getting a signature, but I can't stand the brush off. The players aren't deaf, we know that, yet they stare blankly forward, eyes averted from the hoards of screaming fans (sarcasm font).

I want something from my players. A gesture, a head nod, a wave. Maybe even a smile when my plea is being dismissed. That's all I ask. Oh, that and "Mr. baseball player, can you sign please?". Not every player is dismissive every time, my successes are a testament to that but I would like to feel recognized. I don't want to think up snide comments about being brushed off, I just can't help it.

Our questions did work, twice.

Blake Davis took a cab to the stadium and then walked down the line signing for every waiting pen. I didn't have a card for him so used up my last blank. I think he was just happy to be recognized.

Blake Davis 2011 Orioles Topps Stadium Card

Brad Bergesen arrived fairly early, 12:30 and signed for us fans. His 12:30 signing was the last for the Orioles outside the stadium.

Brad Bergesen 2009 Topps Update #211

Anyone following uber-Oriole-autograph hound Ryan at The Great Orioles Autograph Project may know why I got the Bergesen card signed, the orange jersey. He is collecting Orioles clad in orange and this one will be heading his way to complete our zillionth trade. More on our billionth later.

Inside I was nearly denied season ticket access because the usher had never seen tickets like mine before. Fan assistance quickly put out the fire before I made an ass of myself. I made my way to my seats and posted up, determined to knock some names off my list.

Luke Scott came over and signed because that is what he does. I have never seen him not sign in some fashion. I can't turn down a signature so I added another to the trade section.

Luke Scott 2011 Orioles Topps #BAL8

After a lot of pleading and more blank stares I became truly shocked. Zach Britton grabbed a sharpie. Many graphers said he hadn't signed much at all this season. His signature made my day. A difficult graph in the majors and another name crossed off the list.

Zach Britton 2010 Bowman Platinum #PP7

The Orioles went into the clubhouse and I was tempted to see what the Cardinals would bring but decided against it. Chris Jakubauskas emerged from the dugout and went to chat with Lance Berkman. On his return he stopped to sign for the 10 die-hards that decided not to chase Mark McGwire around.

Chris Jakubauskas 2010 Upper Deck #453

When BP was over and the Orioles came back out to stretch Jeremy Guthrie was the only player to sign. He went up the first base line for easily ten minutes. I didn't want to relinquish my spot and hopes for Vlad. I shoulda gone and grabbed another Guthrie instead of wasting my breath.

All told I got five Orioles on the day, putting in five hours of pursuit. Three players can be crossed off the list, Bergesen will find a new home and Scott is looking for one.

Before entering the stadium, six Cardinals signed seven cards, beating the Orioles 7-5 in autographs.

Another Contest Entry

One of these days I will do a contest of my own. Maybe when the Orioles have a winning record again, or when I get close to 100 followers.

In the meantime check out Greg's blog and contest here.

I still don't understand the blog title, Platschke, Thy Sweater is Argyle, but he is entertaining.

My Oriole Dream Turned Nightmare

Let me take you back to a much more pleasant time, April 9, 2011, when my Oriole dream began.

The Orioles were battling the Texas Rangers for American League supremacy and first place splendor was shining at the Yard. In the glow of the stadium lights I was forgoing my teams 5-0 dismantling of the Rangers in dapper style. The lovely wifey was hobnobbing with construction types and that called for a gussied up Orioles fan to miss a game.

Maybe it was the prestige of the exclusive Center Club, but I was feeling elite. Or maybe it was just the tux I was forced to wear. Not sure, but it actually felt cool, something I know little about. Around the entire club were auction items to benefit Everyman Theatre and for some reason I put down my credit card, just in case. Just in case became a reality when four Orioles tickets and a parking pass for any game of my choosing fell into my lap. I also bought up a dress for wifey that every woman wanted but couldn't fit in to. I had to counteract the baseballness of my actions for her benefit.

The Orioles home schedule was a little dull until I started thinking about players I wanted to see, not teams. Then it became easy. Only one name came to mind of who I wanted to see play. Albert Pujols and the St. Louis Cardinals, June 30th. My order was placed, the date circled and then I waited.

I waited for the Orioles to show their true colors and fall from grace. I waited for comfortable Spring weather to turn to disgusting stickiness. I waited for a day to not have to work. I waited for Albert Pujols to break his hand. Starting to get nightmarish.

I was undaunted. Determined to make a day of it, take off work, get autographs and watch a win. OK, so I made at least I made a day of it. My Orioles showed a normal disdain for sharpies and Brian Matusz showed he could throw batting practice. After three and a half innings last night and an 8-0 deficit, my nightmare was full blown.

But then I woke up.

I was sitting here

in Orioles "Dream Seats".

I texted pictures of my seats to any friend I thought would be jealous and a few who would chastise me for wasting my money. These were truly awesome seats, except when players wouldn't stop swinging bats in the on-deck circle. The were blocking my view of the plate. But I won't complain.

Finally, the bullpen settled things down and the bats heated up and they actually made it respectable. Wifey, my step-brother and his friend joked that we could never see a major league game from any other seats again. Minor league games would now only be watched from inside the dugout.

Overall it was a good experience, neither a horrific nightmare nor the "Dream" my ticket promised. Had players been more receptive to signing prior to the game it would have been a dream, more on that to come.

I plan on chronicling my exploits in the coming days, stay tuned.