He broke out in 2010, but had even a bigger season in 2011 - maybe it was the a lack of 'mainstream cards' that kept me from focusing on Taveras as someone to be serious about getting when I had the chance to do so.
In 2012, I was digging through an assorted dollar box and found a 2012 blue Bowman Chrome parallel to get autographed in-person - if I have the chance, I'm probably going to hold off on that now, since he's had his share of assorted prospect cards.
I get a bug up my you know what and I wonder if I might have thrown the card away or someone might have taken it - though in reality, who cares about a 20-year old trading card I know I have somewhere but can't immediately find.
I dabbled in collecting football cards in the mid 1990's and from a lone pack, I pulled a set of inserts out that featured the Davis card - he was a superstar talent for several seasons, though his career was cut short before he could make any long term impact i.e. sticking around to round out what was probably a Hall of Fame career.
After worrying about the card [it was only one missing from the other cards in the All-Rookie Team hot pack insert set I had stored in a plastic card box] - I found the card squirreled away in an old Angels ticket envelope that was stuffed in a 15 year old Upper Deck lanyard / ticket holder from the 2000 National among other cards in a plastic box of knickknacks.
I don't feel this way when I'm in the heat of the moment and I'm digging around for something, but I do kind of feel like unless something 'drastic' happened - I usually will end up misplacing trading cards and other things but I've more or else will have them secured somewhere [obscure] as opposed to being lost to oblivion.
He was polite and cordial otherwise and I got a baseball and a 2012 Topps Allen and Ginter card signed - he thanked me after I told him he was having a great season and how he should make the All-Star team.
There was some wait, but that's a given at these player appearances - maybe this ended up a 'low key' deal, but at least there didn't seem the mess of 'pros' who brought friends, family and long lost relatives to pounce on an opportunity.
As a fan in the stands I really do not have as much invested in the livelihood of guys playing in the game - however, I am interested in which guys are future stars who capitalize on their potential and which ones that might not live up to the hype.
Pitchers' careers like Ventura are fragile, with injury potential waiting to happen in the next pitch they throw - I would hope that as many pitchers flame out, there will be a resurgence of pitchers whose careers will stand the test of time, but it's ultimately a crapshoot for any particular MLB pitcher.
Now that he's shown a little something in his first year in the major leagues, maybe I see Springer as a poor man's Mike Trout - Springer might be little leaner, maybe a little taller but almost has the same batting stance as Trout and offers the same set of athletic skills.
Springer has shown the ability to be an impact player [like Trout], whether as a batter, base runner or defender - though at 24, Springer is a little older MLB rookie who maybe close to hitting his peak [as opposed to Trout, who still has youth on his side, even though he has already played in parts of four seasons in the major leagues].
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He's not a Buster Posey or a Yadier Molina - but I guess as long as he posts passable numbers at the plate, he'll get his opportunities to play a starring role [as opposed to someone stuck on the bench].
It seemed like just yesterday when he was a fresh faced rookie with the Oakland A's - I didn't really follow guys playing in college when Suzuki enjoyed an inspired collegiate playing career at Cal State Fullerton, but probably became aware of him, when his first-year Bowman Draft cards started to come out late in 2004.
He was a fourth round Angels draft pick in 1993, who made his MLB debut the next year - it maybe obvious, but maybe Lorraine didn't have the top flight stuff as pitcher to stick around at the highest level, so he ended up a vagabond journeyman who pitched for a bunch of teams.
Maybe in alternate universe, Lorraine turns out to have a much more significant MLB career - maybe another Mark Buehrle or Barry Zito [the good, early version of Zito I suppose] if things had worked out a little better for the lefty.
Even thought MLB 2K10 is at least five years old - the graphics are so much better than when I was really into video games 25-30 years ago.
I do get bored however, because maybe baseball doesn't really lend itself to the excitement of non-sport games [which I don't play at all] - the baseball games on the MLB 2K10 plays more like a simulation and I wish it had the following, which I swear I've seen randomly in the various low bit baseball video games of my youth:
1.) An arcade game mode - exaggerated sound effects, animation effects that are combined with whatever 'realism' is injected into the games over the last five years.
2.) More player animations - players adjusting their cups, pitchers on the mound tiring, players spitting seeds, batters admiring home runs, player close ups with seemingly realistic mannerisms.
3.) Beanball brawls, ejections - it's probably not politically correct for games licensed by Major League Baseball, but it would be a fun add to see something where the a beaned batter would get angry and charge the mound; maybe the benches empty and relievers are storming out of the bullpen in anticipation of a fight.
4.) Fully developed postseason scenarios - maybe have a celebration montage if you win the World Series, maybe have several different ones or even one for each team, so there would be something to play for as opposed to the merely season ending and rolling over to the next.
5.) Broadcast crews - they sort of add realism to the games, but they can only say so much; they probably shouldn't mention anything that can be outdated like names of the managers in the dugout.
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Pack one
#89 Alex Rios
#111 Wei-Yin Chen
#98 Jon Lester
#BP 16 Dylan Floro
#BP 7 Devin Williams
#BCP 45 Michael Feliz - Chrome
#BCP 32 Lewis Thorpe - Chrome
#196 Chris Archer
#86 Taijuan Walker
#189 Joe Mauer
Pack two
#120 Alfonso Soriano
#19 Giancarlo Stanton
#129 Jimmy Nelson
#BP 41 Gus Schlosser
#BP 55 Matt McPherson
#89BIB-CR Cal Ripken Jr. - 1989 Bowman is Back insert
#BCP 27 Raimel Tapia - Chrome
#211 Madison Bumgarner
#140 Chris Davis
#162 Trevor Bauer
Pack three
#184 Patrick Corbin
#206 Jonathan Lucroy
#BP 97 Miller Diaz
#BP 103 Chris Kohler
#188 Eric Hosmer - State parallel
#BCP 81 Brandon Cumpton - Chrome
#BCP 90 Manuel Margot - Chrome
#102 Felix Hernandez
#124 Mike Napoli
#16 Starlin Castro
Pack four
#139 Carl Crawford
#161 Jered Weaver
#6 Oswaldo Arcia
#BP 51 Hunter Dozier
#BP 47 Alex Reyes
#BCP 96 Wuilmer Becerra - Chrome
#BCP 102 Steven Ramos - Chrome
#38 Torii Hunter
#200 Bryce Harper
#172 J.R. Murphy
Pack five
#28 Salvador Perez
#178 Brett Lawrie
#62 Aroldis Chapman
#BP 33 Devon Travis
#BP 24 Pierce Johnson
#BM-TBJ2 Marcus Stroman - Bowman Mini
#BCP 110 Joe Wendle - Chrome
#BCP 52 Hunter Renfroe - Chrome
#151 Andre Ethier
#41 Wilmer Flores
Pack six
#37 Will Middlebrooks
#18 Austin Jackson
#128 Jonathan Schoop
#BP 36 Daniel Robertson
#BP 44 Tim Cooney
#BP 72 Matthew Bowman - State parallel
#BCP 16 Dylan Floro - Chrome
#BCP 7 Devin Williams - Chrome
#114 Joey Votto
#134 Yadier Molina
Pack seven
#197 Carlos Santana
#87 Jake Marisnick
#108 Alex Cobb
#BP 56 Gosuke Katoh
#BP 70 Yimi Garcia
#156 Nick Swisher - green bordered parallel serial #'d 139/150
#BCP 41 Gus Schlosser - Chrome
#BCP 55 Matt McPherson - Chrome
#156 Nick Swisher
#133 Homer Bailey
Pack eight
#218 Davis Holmberg
#63 Jean Segura
#173 Yosmil Pinto
#BP 79 Drew Granier
#BP 89 Michael Ratterree
#BCP 66 Ben Lively - Chrome
#BCP 72 Matthew Bowman - Chrome
#155 A.J. Burnett
#144 Elvis Andrus
#166 Matt Carpenter
It's probably not a good thing to copy what others are doing, but I read about discount blaster breaks all the time and at least 2014 Bowman is somewhat new - as opposed to some 'oddball' blaster boxes sitting on retail shelves of a big box store's trading card section for the better part of a year.
2011 Topps football Indianapolis Colts team card #328
2013 Panini Elite Extra Edition Anthony DeSclafani #62
2014 Topps Heritage Jose Molina #261
2014 Topps Heritage Grant Balfour #271
2014 Topps Museum Collection Mike Zunino #19
2014 Topps Museum Collection Lou Brock #CCR-48 - Canvas Collection Reproduction insert
2014 Topps Heritage Joey Butler / Jim Adduci #104
2014 Topps Gypsy Queen Wil Myers #49
2014 Topps Gypsy Queen Asdrubal Cabrera #96
2014 Topps Gypsy Queen Eric Hosmer #99
At 24, Cron is an older MLB rookie and his minor league stats don't seem to be all that special - hopefully he can stay healthy and establish himself as a first baseman / DH who is going to stick around for a while.
Cron definitely has some pop in his bat, though given 500 at-bats, he maybe more of a Billy Butler type of hitter - as opposed to a Mark Trumbo all-or-nothing slugger.
I found it utterly fascinating how people have mispronounced his last name - if I heard it right, it's supposed to be like said like 'Krone' and not 'KRON.'
For retired players, I'd like to stumble upon former Angels if they are coaching somewhere - Scott was a pitching coach for the Salt River Rafters in the Arizona Fall League team in 2013 and is currently the Tulsa Drillers' [Colorado Rockies AA affiliate] pitching coach.
As far as any progress towards the all-time autograph collection, I'd like to complete a run from the 1990 through present - I figure I have a good number of players' autographs from the last 25 years and it might be easier to account for the players autographs I still need.
As focused as I maybe in tracking down players from the last three decades - I'll fill in the blanks 'as is' with former Angels that I still need from the 1980's and before.
As much as I'd like to have a complete collection, it might be one of those situations where it's not realistic and I'm not some rich collector - I'm probably not going to end up with the 'hard to find' former Angels i.e. ones who might have passed prematurely, ones that might be notorious recluse types who don't sign or ones that may be on the run for whatever reason.
#111 Wei-Yin Chen
#98 Jon Lester
#120 Alfonso Soriano
#19 Giancarlo Stanton
#129 Jimmy Nelson
#61 Ubaldo Jimenez
#171 Christian Betancourt
#58 Curtis Granderson
#BP 79 Drew Granier
#BP 89 Michael Ratterree
#BP 97 Miller Diaz
#BP 103 Chris Kohler
#BP 51 Hunter Dozier
#BP 47 Alex Reyes
#BP 33 Devon Travis
#BP 24 Pierce Johnson
#179 Kevin Gausman - Green border parallel serial #'d 140/150
#BM-MT 3 Alex Meyer - Bowman mini
#BCP 87 Franklin Barreto - Chrome
#BCP 106 Alexander Guerrero - Chrome
#BCP 99 Kenny Giles - Chrome
#BCP 93 Yency Almonte - Chrome
#BCP 40 Logan Vick - Chrome
#BCP 34 Cesar Puello - Chrome
#77 Carlos Beltran
#185 Marco Scutaro
#207 Hyun-Jin Ryu
#51 C.C. Sabathia
#73 Tim Lincecum
#46 Francisco Liriano
#72 Anthony Rizzo
#92 Jed Lowrie
I don't think these blisters are harder to find than any other 'pack types,' though the lure of the black border parallel cards got me - once these blister packs are gone off the shelves, at least I can say I got one.
Black border pack
#447 Dustin Pedroia
#494 Carlos Gonzalez
#269 Albert Pujols
Pack one
#181 Nick Christiani / Tuffy Gosewisch - 2014 Rookie Stars
#204 Jonathan Papelbon
#15 Asdrubal Cabrera
#198 Eric Hosmer
The 25-year old may not ever reach Anaheim, but with the Angels pitching up-and-down - Raley may get an opportunity to get back to the major leagues as a Halo at some point this season.
Pack one
#66 Dustin Pedroia
#176 Jose Ramirez
#BP 52 Hunter Renfroe
#BP 45 Michael Feliz
#BTP-29 Maikel Franco - Bowman 100 insert
#BCP-10 Zach Borenstein - Chrome
#BCP-3 Jacob May - Chrome
#51 C.C. Sabathia
#73 Tim Lincecum
#46 Francisco Liriano
Pack two
#90 Jose Reyes
#112 Allen Craig
#179 Kevin Gausman
#BP 32 Lewis Thorpe
#BP 27 Raimel Tapia
#BCP 48 Trevor Gretzky - Chrome
#BCP 92 Nelson Rodriguez - Chrome
#72 Anthony Rizzo
#92 Jed Lowrie
#114 Joey Votto
Pack three
#201 Matt Kemp
#138 Wade Miley
#BP 18 Luke Jackson
#BP 9 Eric Jagielo
#BP 66 Ben Lively - State parallel
#BCP 82 Kendry Flores - Chrome
#BCP 67 Anthony Santander - Chrome
#134 Yadier Molina
#156 Nick Swisher
#133 Homer Bailey
Pack four
#160 Jason Kipnis
#53 Edwin Encarnacion
#75 Hanley Ramirez
#BP 4 Rosell Herrera
#BP 59 Tucker Neuhaus
#BCP 61 Ryon Healy - Chrome
#BCP 53 Ryder Jones - Chrome
#155 A.J. Burnett
#144 Elvis Andrus
#166 Matt Carpenter
Pack five
#192 Tim Hudson
#122 Michael Cuddyer
#BP 68 Melvin Mercedes
#BP 76 Gabriel Ynoa
#PA-SP Shawn Pleffner - Prospect autograph serial #'d 385/500; it's always a moral victory when I pull a certified autograph, regardless of who it is.
#BCP-85 Nomar Mazara - Chrome
#BCP-98 Akeel Morris - Chrome
#102 Felix Hernandez
#124 Mike Napoli
#16 Starlin Castro
Pack six
#146 Justin Verlander
#168 Mike Trout
#BP 88 Santiago Nessy
#BP 95 Pat Stover
#179 Kevin Gausman - State parallel
#BCP-108 Tyler Marlette - Chrome
#BCP-8 Ryan Eades - Chrome
#38 Torii Hunter
#200 Bryce Harper
#172 J.R. Murphy
Pack seven
#149 Asdrubal Cabrera
#39 Andrew Lambo
#BP 90 Manuel Margot
#BP 96 Wuilmer Becerra
#BP 60 Dillon Overton - Blue border parallel serial #'d 143/500
#BCP 93 Yency Almonte - Chrome
#BCP 40 Logan Vick - Chrome
#154 Martin Prado
#44 Abraham Almonte
#55 Ian Desmond
Pack eight
#64 Yovani Gallardo
#174 Michael Choice
#BP 102 Steven Ramos
#BP 110 Joe Wendle
#BM-SM 5 Chris Taylor - Bowman Mini
#BCP 34 Cesar Puello - Chrome
#BCP 26 Micah Johnson - Chrome
#77 Carlos Beltran
#185 Marco Scutaro - pictures Gregor Blanco / UER
#207 Hyun-Jin Ryu
"Are you famous or something," the guy asked in a clueless sort of way.
It's funny how 15-20 people [including myself] clamored to get autographs from this particular coach - yet an average Joe at the ballpark may not be so inclined to pay attention to the players or coaches, particularly out of uniform.
It probably makes me feel like the weirdo for trying to track down these random professional baseball players for their autographs - spending way too much time trying to track down scribbles.
"Yeah, I'm Ted Bundy," the former player said.
We're talking about referencing a serial killer, but the response the former player made got a few chuckles [even if people weren't actually sure why] - it came out of nowhere and I think it showed how the former player was having fun; hopefully the random yahoo got a clue, but as long as the subject kept signing, so be it.
I don't even know where I lost it, all I knew is after a game I realized I didn't have the book - it could have ended up in anybody's hands and I'm kind of bummed out about it.
I probably have enough extras to have something to get signed, though I’ve lost some set cards and other cards that may have been priorities - it’s an eye opener because I tend to be on auto pilot [when it comes to graphing in-person] and when I make a rookie mistake, I’m reminded I’m not so flipping perfect, things aren’t so seamless and I really have to be focused.
I go through a mental checklist since I’ve messed up and lost my autograph book before - though 'it' happens, I try to keep things simple beforehand and alert to make sure I don’t leave things behind.
I try not to run around like an airhead when I’m graphing, so I try to exercise some 'quality control,' even if it seems all kind of random and unorganized - making sure I’m not getting a bunch of imperfect autographs [streaking, beading, etc] by using crappy pens, making sure the autograph is dry on the cards and making sure signed cards are tucked away from cards I’m still trying to get inked up.
It’s kind of ironic, this latest mess up comes at a time, when I’m trying to bring less cards - maybe the good thing is that I had whatever signed cards I had put away in my binder for the home team and in the plastic box I was carrying around in my tote bag.
I have to ‘rebuild’ what I lost, but I think I can basically account for many of the cards - most of the unsigned cards lost are feature players that either are tough or won’t sign; if the players had signed those cards already, maybe I wouldn’t have to worry about lugging those pieces of cardboard I lost.
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When the coach was walking down the right field line with another ball, I finally realized he was Cleveland Indians pitching coach and former Angel Mickey Callaway - I called out to him and he actually tossed me the ball, which bounced towards me, but landed in an exclusive section of seats 'on the field.'
I had to get the attention of a woman - so she could come over and pick up the ball for me.
"He's got butterfingers," quipped the father of a collecting acquaintance.
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