The Quest

The Baltimore Orioles have been in town since '54 and have had over 900 men don their uniform. My goal is to obtain a signed card of each player. If you have something I need, or see something you want, don't be shy, we can make a deal.

Collection Statistics

Total Players 877/977 = 89.25%
1991 Orioles Crown Set
Total Players 309/465 = 66.45%
Alive Players 274/369 = 74.25

Saturday, September 17, 2011

Success From Billings Montana

The Billings Mustangs finished their 2011 campaign in the Arizona Fall League on Thursday September 8th with a 2-1 win. Shortly thereafter Eli Marrero sent back my TTM request. The postmark was September 9, so I guess he signed everything following the season.

As the hitting instructor, his team finished with the best record in their division, and mised the Playoffs. A weird loop hole left them on the outside looking in. This glitch gave Eli a little more free time to sign a card for me.

Eli Marrero 2005 Topps Gold #UH-49

Eli will always be remembered as a St. Louis Cardinal, having spent the first seven of his ten Major League seasons in the Midwest. Cardinal fans will remember him as part of the trade that brought Adam Wainwright to their club. Orioles fans will not remember him.

He spent 22 games in Baltimore during the 2005 season, only getting 56 plate appearances. His average barely crested .200 but he made the most of his minimal time. Eight of his eleven hits were for extra bases. He reached base 15 times and scored 9 runs, while driving in 11 runs. His few games did allow for Topps to put him in their update set as a Bird.
Beckett lists him as an Oriole in th 2006 Topps Opening Day Autograph set, but I can't find a picture of it anywhere. He was released in October so definitely shouldn't have been an Oriole. Probably just another Beckett mistake.

Happy to cross this name off the list. After his retirement he was off the grid, only popping up in Billings this year. I wasn't very optomistic, just hopeful.

1 comment:

  1. Wow, congrats on getting a return from Eli. One of my first TTM requests in 2009 was sent to his home with no response to date. Good to know that he signs from the team address, even though the season is over and it took a long time.

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