TTM autographs received: Billy Bean

Bean signed a pair of cards, including the one shown in about 3 weeks - he was named as Major League Baseball's first Ambassador for Inclusion in 2014 and also works as Vice President and Special Assistant to the Commissioner.

The freelance R&D with mini-collections

Through pandemic 2020, all I’ve done from April through the middle of May is cheat sheet / wantlist R&D - I wonder how the work translates into actual cards in-hand?

I’ve got 25-30 mini-collections - as it goes, have I set myself up where I can’t keep up, where I might find myself all over the place?

I haven't actually made much purchases, but do remember worrying about not finding a 1996 Pinnacle Bob Hamelin #289 card listed f/s last week - just the type of random thing that I'd forgotten already, but shows how random my mind gets as I try to come up with a possible addition.

I think I've been working on some specific ‘to do’ topic, namely trying to add to my nations collection - trying to fish out possible additions and haves to be accounted for to try and have a representation of players from different countries.

I'd like to think mini-collections are my flagship loose cards interests - I try not to miss obvious names for ongoing subsets while I strive to add new names and new cards.

Odd lots

It's not a card shop or card show rummage, but I've looked up eBay auctions lots to find random subjects and cards to add to offline cheat sheet - I listed out some possible beyond the glory adds like Luke Kuechly [NFL], D’Angelo Russell [NBA], Kevin Love [NBA], Tyrann Mathieu [NFL] and Shaquem Griffin [NFL].

Maybe I'm pushing past baseball guys but I like an assorted collection of pro athletes represented - while most pros have a ‘beyond the glory’ narrative to what they do for a living, there have been guys that have stood out more than someone simply being a jock.

For other mini-collections, I found some individual cards to list on my cheat sheet somewhere - I like looking at lots on eBay because they can be so random, where a listing can show multiple cards and it’s an Easter egg hunt to find a mini-collection quality card I need.

I try to find the baseball card lots picturing junk wax era or mid 1990s UV coated era cards - for a moment, the temptation is there to make a purchase until I see the s/h cost and figure would have to make multiple purchases off same seller to make these bottom of the barrel purchases make sense.

An apparent downside is all the eBay spam emails generated from my searches - the app’s algorithms do a job on tracking your browsing habits and/or even letting sellers know who has looked at their listings.

1976 Topps Dennis Eckersley RC #98

With the help of $10 and change in eBay Bucks, maybe picking up this graded [PSA-5] old-school rookie card was more palatable than going modern - I wanted a 2019 Topps Update Gold Keston Hiura #150, but the chance of getting one before spring training starts might be over.

I ended up settling for Eckersley since it was on my watch list, which may help guide me towards alternatives to think about - though a card added to ‘my list’ might not be available anymore or perhaps ‘my list’ may not reflect what I might want at the moment.

Eckersley wasn’t exactly ‘one of my guys’ or someone I seriously considered a ‘national star’ but I was vaguely familiar with Eck’s narrative - as a guy who battled substance abuse problems and was a floundering veteran starting pitcher before coming under Tony La Russa and Dave Duncan’s tutelage in Oakland during the mid 1980s.

While Eckersley was a goat a few times in postseason play [1988 World Series and 1992 American League Championship Series] - he was one of the GOATS for the run he had as a dominant, one-inning closer through the early 1990s and maybe Eckersley getting to the Hall of Fame made me take a second look at how he turned things around.

Long affiliated with the Boston Red Sox as their TV broadcasts color guy, Eckersley has had run-ins with Jackie Bradley Jr. and David Price because he doesn’t have a filter at times - I didn’t know Eckersley has a brother in prison and also an adopted daughter who is otherwise homeless.

2018 Choice Trenton Thunder Chace Numata #18

I didn't know anything about this minor league catcher, but grabbed a card of his when I saw a Tweet where his organs were donated to save five lives - as it goes, despite the fatal circumstances of his passing, he's been immortalized in my collection as someone who was able to help those in need.

Card shop finds - a random quartet

I don’t want to get crazy with impulsive non-baseball card quarter box digs if I ever stop at a card shop - so I grabbed a few that caught my eye for a moment and added them to my other purchases of supplies, some other loose cards and several loose packs.

2018 Panini Contenders Draft Picks football Patrick Mahomes II #79 - though he threw two interceptions in his team's 30-14 win last Sunday, he's probably been one of the hyped up NFL players this season; if nothing else, in my bloodlines collection, I wanted to pair this card up with a card of his father Pat Mahomes, who was a former MLB pitcher.

2018 Panini Donruss football Christian McCaffrey #22 - I had a random card of his father Ed, who played in the NFL during the 1990s, so I grabbed a card of Christian's to tie things up [for now] in my bloodlines collection.

2018 Panini Contenders Draft Picks football Adrian Peterson #4 - this card of longtime star running back can go to my beyond the glory collection or my infamous collection.

I would probably inclined to go ‘beyond the glory’ since he has been through a lot in his football life, as well as personal life - in my world of mini-collection cards, there is no need to glorify the mistakes this pro athlete has made.

2018 Panini Player of the Day football Russell Wilson #36 - as the Seattle Seahawks teams around him as been torn down and rebuilt over the years, maybe the narrative surrounding his career has lost its luster.

While Wilson has been singled out as a divisive figure in the locker room for any number of reasons - I still like the guy enough to pick up a card of his.

Featured autograph - Robert Stock

I was pulling inserts out of a binder and found this certified autograph of San Padres relief pitcher Robert Stock - I remember Baseball America naming Stock the best player in the nation [2005 Youth Player of the Year] and I thought this guy could be special like Joe Mauer or something.

Stock went to college before entering professional baseball - it looks like he'd made the transition from a catcher into a pitcher in 2012, but after being released by the St. Louis Cardinals in 2014, he was pretty much a 'never has been.'

Stock bounced around a bit, but a stint in the independent leagues in 2016 helped revive his career - he pitched in affiliated minor league ball with the Cincinnati Reds in 2017 and was signed by the San Diego Padres for this season.

Featured autograph - Jonny Venters

It's fun to find autographs I didn't even know I had but must have gotten at some point - in the early part of the decade, Venters was a weapon out of the Atlanta Braves bullpen but three Tommy John surgeries just about derailed his career.

Against all odds, Venters made it back to the majors leagues in 2018 with the Tampa Bay Rays - regardless of what happens, the occasional comeback story of an individual player is something to get sentimental about.

Beyond the glory addition - Don Wilson

I didn't know who Wilson was until I probably stumbled upon a YouTube video of him pitching in the 1971 MLB All-Star Game - as much as I think I soak up baseball history like a sponge, my focus when talking about old-school [pre 1980] and vintage [pre 1974] players are mostly devoted to the legends / icons.

Wilson may have starred for the Houston Astros, compiling a 104-92 won-loss record in 9 seasons with the team - but due to a fatal accident in his car, he never did build on the promise he had shown at various points of his career.

Beyond the glory addition - Bob Moose

Rummaging through the old-school / vintage quarter box at my card shop, I picked a 1974 Topps card [#382] featuring a player with seemingly funny looking hair - go figure, I don't have a mini-collection devoted to hair styles, so maybe I could add this to my facial hair collection.

After finding out more about Moose through this Card Corner feature on the Baseball Hall of Fame Website, I decided to add his card to my beyond the glory mini-collection - there is kind of a cross over with my infamous mini-collection but my beyond the glory mini-collection is more inspired by professional athletes who may have had a narrative attached to their playing careers besides just making some mistakes and getting in the news for it.

A card of notable professional athlete who prematurely loses their life is added into this collection - maybe someone who passes while still being an active player or someone who passes in a somewhat of an odd set of circumstances.

I learned Moose threw the wild pitch that led to the series ending run in the 1972 National League Championship Series - a successful MLB pitcher otherwise, he passed away at 29 due to a car accident.

Featured autograph - Mark Appel

Designated for assignment by the Philadelphia Phillies, Appel seems destined to be a first round pick who maybe a failed prospect - still, as I see Appel as a baseball player who may not reach the big leagues, I'll always look at this clip as something to digest and really think about.

TTM autograph received: Paulo Orlando

I sent a request to the Kansas City Royals outfielder in April and got my card back signed this month - a longtime minor leaguer from Brazil, Orlando has spent parts of the past three seasons in the big leagues, though he got hurt and played in only 39 games in 2017.

TTM autographs received: Mike Krukow

The longtime broadcaster for the San Francisco Giants signed my cards in several months - Krukow's career in the booth with partner Duane Kuiper and dealing with a condition called IBM is detailed in-depth in this ESPN story I stumbled upon through Krukow's page on Wikipedia.

The 30-Day Baseball Card Challenge - Day 9

"One of your favorite cards from the 1950s."

1955 Bowman Eddie Waitkus #4 - I was thrilled when I found a copy of this card at my LCS back in 2015.

The write up on the back of the card spells out Waitkus' comeback - after being shot by an apparent stalker.

Featured autograph - Dickie Thon

I probably first read about Thon when he was featured in Sports Illustrated back in 1990 - I generally know of him as a player who might have been a star shortstop for years to come if he hadn't gotten beaned during a game in 1983.

Though Thon bounced back to enjoy a solid playing career - the beaning derailed his ascent and literally changed his perspective as a professional ballplayer.

I got Thon's certified autograph [$4] to add to my all-time Angels autograph collection - at SCN, there isn't much to go on with zero successes reported out of 23 requests.

Presumably Thon isn’t really a tough autograph, just a retired player who might not typically be accessible because he lives in Puerto Rico - and may not be focused in coaching or doing something stateside.

1955 Bowman Eddie Waitkus #4

I've wanted a copy of this card after I saw it on a random Funny Baseball Cards post and finally found one at my LCS for $2 - the story of Waitkus was the apparent inspiration for the book, The Natural, which was eventually made into a movie starring Robert Redford.