Angels all-time autograph collection adds

I dug around COMC at various points last winter and picked up these miscellaneous certified autographs for my Angels all-time autograph collection - an on-card autograph of Dylan Bundy was probably the most prominent.

After he was traded to the Angels last off-season, I wanted to see if I could snag one at some point - I still remember Bundy coming into the pro ranks as a hyped up prospect and still have some a couple of loose, empty boxes of 2012 Bowman Draft with his picture on them.

Maybe I could have picked up a certified autograph from one of the Bowman releases from the time Bundy was a stud prospect, just to have something with him pictured in a big league uniform - but something more 'generic' and almost without a team affiliation listed, might have been the more ideal card since he was going to be Angel anyway.

One of the things I like is being able to rummage around and see if I can find some of the most random cards to add to my Angels all-time autograph collection - maybe I have to double check if each of the players such as Matt Ramsey, Thomas Field and Tony Campana actually played for the Angels, but I can nerd out a little finding out they did and can squirrel away their 'junk certified autos.'

As the case maybe these cards often picture players from a hodgepodge of teams, from the minors to the major leagues - I'd really like to put a premium on cards that picture players as an Angel, but I'll take what I can get.

I did find an an an autograph of Jose Suarez, who might have been the team's top pitching prospect entering the 2019 season, thought that may be the equivalent of the No. 15 [or lower] ranked prospect in a deeper MLB organization - I don't know if he's gotten a real extensive look the past two seasons but he's still either young and inexperienced or just doesn't know how to get big league hitters out to stick for good.

I grabbed an autograph of Mike Mayers, pictured as a one-time St. Louis Cardinals prospect years ago - he was an an under the radar find that actually had a great year out of the Angels bullpen in 2020.

I grabbed an autograph of Julio Teheran, just so I don't have to worry about digging up the random in-person autograph card I got when he was still a top prospect at the 2010 Futures Game - he was a longtime starter with the Atlanta Braves with mostly positive results, though maybe the writing was on the wall with his peripherals in recent years and the gamble the Angels took on him failed.

Finally I grabbed an autograph of Tommy La Stella, a previously useful if unheralded platoon player with the Atlanta Braves and Chicago Cubs - who had a chance to play on an every day basis with the Angels a couple of years ago and continued to play well for the Angels this past year before being traded to the Oakland Athletics.

La Stella found some pop in his bat and was named to the All-Star team in 2019 - before a broken leg derailed his season.

I might have gotten a couple of La Stella in-person autographs, once in the Arizona Fall League and once in spring training - I think since he signed only one, the cards I'd gotten inked up were for sets I was chasing, so I wanted one outright.

I hope nothing 'funny' was going on when the certified autograph card from 2014 was signed - but it looks more of a complete, 'fancier' autograph, than any other versions of La Stella's I've seen.

What the Angels need this offseason

As an Angels fan, I like thinking about who my team can get in the offseason and with pitching the obvious need - it maybe Gerrit Cole or bust.

However, I'm not going to fret about Cole at all until I check my phone and see he has signed with a team - Cole might 'hold out' until the spring and as much as the Angels desperately need him, they need to move on getting other guys.

This is my crack at attempting to solve the Angels pitching problems - that almost has little to do with actually getting the guy the Angels are thirsty for the most.

Hyun-Jin Ryu - he might be the more realistic non-Cole priority as a guy who is a magician on the mound, though there might be risks in signing him to a 3 or 4 year deal at a premium rate.

Though he was relatively healthy in 2019, I wouldn't want to sign the guy and see him breaking down again where he might pitch like a Cy Young contender - but someone who may make only so many starts and pitch so many innings.

Cole Hamels - as a veteran who has pitched for Joe Maddon, can he have a little bit of late career success on a 1 or 2 year deal? I don't think of him as that old, but has all the innings and usage caught up with the lefty?

Julio Teheran - on a start-per-start basis, he seems like someone who Angels fans would have fits about on Twitter or on fan forums, though nothing 'bad' really stands out when looking at his stats.

Dylan Bundy - maybe the Angels can trade for the 27-year old and turn him into something he hasn't been as a Baltimore Orioles pitcher. Despite double digit losses and inflated ERAs during the past two seasons, the 27-year old has been relatively healthy and may have some potential to be unlocked.

Wei-Yin Chen - maybe the veteran lefty has just had the worst luck since signing a big money contract with the Miami Marlins; going dumpster diving, maybe the Angels can offer him a spring training invite to see if he can show something to make the team as starting rotation depth.

Hold-overs - Andrew Heaney, Griffin Canning, Shohei Ohtani, Jaime Barria, José Suarez and Patrick Sandoval.

2013 Topps Series I 72-card Walmart recap

I get bored seeing cards from Topps' current year flagship product a couple of months after they are released for public consumption - at the same time however, I can't really stay away from seeing the same cards look like in-hand when they first hit the shelves for the first time.

#274 Miguel Montero
#223 Yonder Alonso
#158 Chad Billingsley
#63 Justin Masterson
#150 John Danks

#143 Jim Johnson
#131 Ian Kennedy
#293 Jeff Karstens
#117 Aubrey Huff
#325 Kevin Millwood
#230 David Robertson
#306 Jerry Hairston Jr.
#104 Jed Lowrie

#317 Baltimore Orioles - 2012 AL Wild Card
#82 Jason Vargas
#103 Evan Longoria
#310 Edwin Encarnacion
#179 Detroit Tigers - 2012 ALCS Game 4
#35 Justin Verlander
#246 Ryan Braun, Giancarlo Stanton and Jay Bruce - 2012 National League Home Run Leaders

#64 Will Middlebrooks - gold parallel serial #'d 0585/2013

#310 Edwin Encarnacion - Emerald parallel

#CH-46 Hanley Ramirez - Chasing History insert
#CD-7 Jesus Montero - Chasing the Dream insert

#TM-49 Matt Kemp - 1972 Topps Mini insert
Million Dollar Chase code card
#68 Colby Rasmus
#201 Jonny Venters
#302 Aaron Hill
#200 Scott Downs
#191 Chris Capuano
#98 Gaby Sanchez
#174 Jason Grilli
#321 Allen Craig
#132 Ryan Vogelsong
#77 Dustin Moseley
#74 Kenley Jansen
#203 Wilson Ramos
#86 Henry Rodriguez
#305 Shelby Miller
#187 Nick Maronde
#111 Casey Kelly
#3 Hunter Pence
#50 Adam Wainwright
#1 Bryce Harper
#313 Maicer Izturis
#279 Vicente Padilla
#168 Kyle Farnsworth
#211 Jarrod Parker
#184 Geovany Soto
#30 Neftali Feliz
#121 Delmon Young
#194 Miguel Cabrera, Josh Hamilton and Edwin Encarnacion - 2012 American League Runs Batted in Leaders
#12 A.J. Pierzynski
#185 Rob Scahill - Walmart blue parallel
#271 Jeurys Familia - Walmart blue parallel
#278 Christian Garcia - Walmart blue parallel

#224 Jon Jay - Walmart blue parallel
#65 J.P. Howell - Walmart blue parallel
#22 Clayton Kershaw
#213 Alex Rodriguez
#75 Barry Zito
#178 Justin Maxwell
#242 Matt Kemp
#21 Lucas Duda
#87 Mike Olt
#296 Didi Gregorius
#78 Dylan Bundy

#CH-12 Evan Longoria - Chasing History insert; these last four Chasing History inserts maybe parallels since they have a foil finish and sort of a bronze / gold finish as opposed to the earlier Ramirez Chasing History insert I pulled, which had a silver finish.
#CH-1 Roy Halladay - Chasing History insert

#CH-46 Hanley Ramirez - Chasing History insert
#CH-21 Frank Robinson - Chasing History insert