Mike Trout's The Catch Signed Ticket: Coming To A Blog Post Near You Today!

Late 2020 or early 2021 saw me send a few items off to a Mike Trout private signing. It was the first time I had ever participated in such an event for any player and I was super excited. The price was.....not at all cheap....but that mid-pandemic cash flow in the hobby was truly a crazy sight to behold.

This beautiful "The Catch" ticket returned to me as part of the grouping. I decided to pay for an inscription and went with the simple phrase you see in quotation marks above. The inscription actually came out stronger from an ink perspective than Mike's signature as it appears he had some pen issues to deal with. Nevertheless, I love this ticket and am beyond pumped to add it to my Millville Meteor and Tickets/Stubs PCs!

The ticket was then shipped to PSA for added protection despite already having an MLB Cert on the reverse. It came back as a straight Authentic by choice, but not a choice I originally envisioned having to make. The company I went through for the signing shipped this back poorly and the tape on the cardsaver ended up getting stuck to the top of the ticket in transit. Once removed from the cardsaver, it ripped off some of the ticket stock, so I had to cut it off and thus submit a short ticket.

The company was not great about handling it and I still need to take advantage of the small credit we worked out, although I'm sure the owner will deny any responsibility again as he did upfront. I love people.

Meeting Robert Carradine

Actor Robert Carradine was at the card shop I work at back in June of 2015. He was shooting an episode of Celebrity Wife Swap where he and T.O. switched places. Thus, Carradine was doing an "autograph signing." The whole thing was humorous and beyond staged. They filmed for probably an hour and a half and ended up using 15 seconds for the actual episode. I did see myself on TV for a brief second. Woo woo.

Carradine, while he clearly didn't want to be there, was nice enough to sign a couple photos -- I also got a prop football signed because they gave me the football, so why not -- and he took a picture with me as well. We chatted for a brief moment. He'll always be the dad in Lizzie McGuire to me (and Revenge Of The Nerds wasn't half bad either).

It was interesting continually reminding my boss it was imperative to not call Robert "David Carradine." The travails of being an employee, am I right.

T.O.'s "friend" who was with Robert was pretty hot, at least.

Clayton Kershaw PSA/DNA Bobble Auto

Just an update on an item I've had since July 23rd of 2011. I met Clayton Kershaw that day and had him sign a bobblehead. I never intend on moving it but I saw little reason to pass on getting it PSA/DNA'd when the PSA folks were in town and in our store this past Wednesday. I worked an extra hour to cover the authentication fee and now this beaut is sticker'd.

One of the cleaner in-person autos I've ever gotten.

You can never have enough Kersh stuff.

TTM Success: Carl Erskine

We TTM'd Carl Erskine at work and he not only returned every card we sent him signed but also included a plethora of extras. He sent 4 copies of the below promotional "card" and I was able to snag one for myself.

Erskine is one of the nicest and most prolific TTM signers out there.

Jay Johnstone is Awesome and Hilarious.

Working in a card shop brings new experiences with it each and every day. About two weeks ago we got a call from a guy looking to bring in some stuff he wanted to get rid of. The next day he called and asked if he could park his truck behind the store. He was almost backing up as he called so I wasn't going to say no. I let my boss know and he headed out to see what was what. My boss soon thereafter walks in with the gentleman and asks me if I know who he is. He tells me the guy hit a home run in the World Series, which of course narrows it down immensely.

As a look of bewilderment spread across my face the guy walked up to me, gave me a big hug, and informed me he was Ernie Banks. That humor should be expected considering the guy hugging me happened to be one of the game's all-time great pranksters, Jay Johnstone. A Dodger in the store! That alone made the day great. Jay proceeded to hang around for about an hour and tell us story after story. My bosses ended up buying everything he brought in, which included a couple of really cool and unique pieces as well as a boatload of 80s and 90s stuff sent to him directly from Sy Berger and Topps.

I had to grab something Dodgers-related for him to sign, and we happened to have the 1981 Topps O-Pee-Chee you see above in-stock. Jay kindly signed without any prompting and also was nice enough to sign the magazine you see above. Jay brought in a handful of those himself, handed them out, and told us it would make for some good bathroom material. Having him sign his John Hancock right across Steve Garvey's body seemed like the logical move.

Jay is actually the second Dodger to come in since I started working there, as Justin Turner came in a few months back. Many, many thanks to Jay for his kindness and willingness to autograph a couple of items for my collection!

Tim Salmon Appearance: A Beautiful 8x10 Auto and A Minor Bobblehead.

Tim Salmon made an appearance at an Inland Empire 66ers' minor league game way, way back on May 22nd. Yes, I'm a slow poster at times. The 66ers also gave out a Salmon Bobblehead, but the big attraction was that the former Anaheim Angels' star would be signing autographs. I made the trip with a buddy and we were the first two non-season ticket holders into the stadium.

I opted to go the signed photo route and found this beautiful mid-swing shot of Salmon. Tim signed it in bold blue, and though I wasn't sure the signature would be best above him and debated for some time where to ask for his John Hancock, it came out better than I could have hoped for. Tim even inscribed his number without me asking, and he was nice and talkative when it was my turn through the line.

Yeah. Minor league bobbleheads aren't always the best, but it was a real treat to meet Salmon and I am happy to add another bobble to my collection.

My Rancho Cucamonga Quakes' In-Person Auto Haul: Urias, Seager, Anderson, Windle, Caughel.

I attended the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes' game on Thursday, April 24th in Adelanto against the High Desert Mavericks. My buddy was able to get free tickets and I couldn't pass up the chance to get some signatures from some of the Los Angeles Dodgers' best and brightest young prospects.

The main goal of the day was nabbing uber-prospect Julio Urias on the sweet-spot. I happened to only have a pair of Cal League balls on me that my buddy who used to work for High Desert was able to get me, and thankfully Julio was a great signer. I was able to get him to sign the sweet-spot right before he headed into the clubhouse, and he was nice enough to include his number with his John Hancock.

My other huge goal was one I was unable to achieve last season: getting Corey Seager, my favorite Blue Crew prospect, on the sweet-spot. I was able to stop Corey as he was heading down to the field, and asked if he wouldn't mind signing. He obliged and also honored my request that he sweet-spot. It almost certainly helped that Corey was working through an injury and didn't play as he's been on the DL. I intend on getting both Julio and Corey on ROMLB at some point in the hopefully not too distant future.

Here's where things get interesting, and not entirely in a good way. Before getting Julio to sign a baseball, I was able to get him to sign a photo as he walked down to the field. I was stoked obviously, and before retiring for some sleep after getting home I decided to look at my haul. To my dismay, the Urias photo had somehow been damaged by water in the top corner. I had no alternative but to cut off the damaged photo paper. I did have water in my backpack, but it was in an entirely different compartment; closed tightly; one had yet to even be opened; and the other one was almost empty. It's a mystery I have yet to solve.

Tom Windle was the club's 2nd-round pick out of Minnesota last year. He was actually the first player I was able to stop and he kindly signed a pair of pictures for me, including the above one featuring him in his Gophers' garb. Like the previous Urias, it too sustained water-damage and had to be worked on. I will be getting both of these damaged photos replaced the next time the opportunity presents itself.

One interesting project I wanted to complete in one trip was getting this photo signed by both Windle and the starter that night, Chris Anderson. Anderson was the club's 1st-round selection last year and I've always liked this shot of both of them visiting Dodger Stadium and wearing Dodger uniforms. Anderson pitched very well and was nice enough to sign a pair of photos for me post-game.

Here's the Action Anderson picture, complete with signature.

One of my favorite prospects that I feel does not get enough love is Lindsey Caughel. I had the opportunity to meet him last year at a Quakes' game and he was nice enough to toss me the last ball he used to warm-up pre-game. He then signed said baseball sweet-spot after his start. I wanted to get him on a photo from his time with the Ogden Raptors. I decided to switch pens prior to getting Caughel outside by the team bus, and I'm glad I did, because I found my new pen for autographed photos. Lindsey inscribed his current number, which is always cool.

Finally, I was able to secure a third autograph from the 17-year-old Urias -- I feel weird just typing that, and even older thinking about it -- on another photo and with my new blue sharpie. He inscribed his number once again, and that small pink smudge to the right of the "J" came from his hands and is on the actual picture. It's awesome, and I intend on getting this same photo signed once again. Why, you may ask? Because this one isn't staying with me. A good friend requested I try and snag him Urias' signature for our upcoming in-person trade, and Julio was nice enough to sign after leaving the clubhouse on his way to the bus.

Meeting Corey Seager - My Favorite Prospect - For The Second Time, and Lindsey Caughel For The First.

I took in another minor league game last Thursday, with the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes heading out to Adelanto, California to take on the High Desert Mavericks (Mariners' High-A team). My buddy interns for the Mavericks so I'm able to get in for free, which always helps. After three and a half hours in traffic I finally arrived and took my seat about ten feet from the Quakes' dugout.

As the visiting team exits the clubhouse in Adelanto, they have to walk through the concourse and through the stands. I was able to catch Corey Seager coming onto the field and asked if he had time to sign a ball. He obliged, and signed right underneath the Cal League logo on a game-used ball. While I still want a couple of sweet-spots to add to my Seager PC, I really like how this ball turned out. He included his number 22 as well.

As the Quakes finished warming up, starter Lindsey Caughel walked by me on his way to the dugout and tossed me the ball he had been warming up with.

If you've never been to a minor league game, it's an incredible experience, as you get to interact with players and coaches, hear the players talking on the field, and get signatures and used baseballs much more easily than at a major league game.

I got a chance to hear Seager talk hitting with hitting coach/first base coach Johnny Washington; catcher Chris O'Brien lament running up the first base line (he's a fluffy gentleman, to say the least); and one player I couldn't identify talk about having to pee every ten minutes (I can relate on that front).

O'Koyea Dickson high-fived me during the game and, unlike with Lastings Milledge, he did not get in trouble for it. Quakes' right-fielder Scott Schebler had the big hit of the night as he clubbed a two-run homer. Post-game I got to chat with a couple of players, most notably Caughel, who was more than happy to sign the baseball he had tossed me pre-game.

Caughel is a really cool guy and I've already followed him on Twitter and thanked him for his generosity in signing, especially on a day when he was the starting pitcher. He inscribed his number without me asking.

All in all, it was a tremendously fun night. I'll be taking in one last Quakes' game before their season comes to a conclusion. Here are a few pictures I took throughout the night to bring us home.

A couple videos of Seager and Caughel. My camera was not made to take videos.

If I remember correctly, Caughel struck out the guy he was facing in this clip.

My goals for the last Quakes' game I'll attend in 2013 are a sweet-spot Seager and a Caughel photo. Anything else is gravy.

Meeting Corey Seager, My Favorite Prospect, For The First (Of Many) Times.

When I found out that top prospect Corey Seager had been promoted to High-A Rancho Cucamonga early in August, I knew where I'd be on some of my off days in the near future. I made the trip last Thursday - wooo, nearly three hours in traffic - with some pictures and a used Cal League baseball and hoped for the best.

Corey signed after finishing his pre-game routine, and as fate would have it the pen I had died the moment he started to sign my picture. There are few words to describe that feeling when you see your pen die after nearly three hours in traffic. Thankfully, he was really cool and willing to wait while I dug out another pen, and as I was doing so another fan let me use his. He included his number 22 as well, which is awesome. I attempted to get Corey again after the game, but I just missed him by the tunnel and he slipped out of the clubhouse through some secret exit.

All in all, a great experience meeting my favorite Dodgers' prospect. I already plan on going to a couple more minor league games this year and some next year if Corey's in Rancho again, which I think he will be.

The Greatest Mailday EVER: A Nick Offerman, a.k.a. Ron Swanson, Auto.

Late last year I saw a post over at It's like having my own Card Shop about the most amazing and manly TTM success ever. Though I had never sent out a through-the-mail request up until that point, I immediately knew that would soon change and I would be undertaking a vital and crucial mission. GET NICK OFFERMAN'S AUTOGRAPH AT ALL COSTS.

For those of you unfamiliar with the man's phenomenal work, he portrays the venerable Ron Swanson on one of the greatest pieces of art ever produced, Parks and Recreation. I'm a huge fan of Swanson and of Offerman's work and general being; you could even say he's a hero of sorts. Vegetarians and mustache haters, send your complaints my way.

I relayed to Mr. Offerman that I am a huge fan of his work on Parks and Rec, really enjoy his viral videos, and aspire to one day have half the stache he does. He personalized the 8x10 he sent my way accordingly with "Greg, Admire my girth." Totally bitchin'. I need to get this framed ASAP. He was also kind enough to include a second signed picture I requested for a friend of mine, which I hope she'll enjoy.

A tremendous thank you to Mr. Offerman for the fantastic picture, his generosity in sending it my way, and his great work. I highly recommend everybody send a request to Nick at: lee.offermanwoodshop@gmail.com

Meeting Mike Piazza and My Collection Of My Childhood Hero.

I had the distinct pleasure of meeting Mike Piazza at a book signing last night in Pasadena. Piazza was appearing and putting pen to paper on copies of his just-released autobiography, Long Shot. I purchased one copy and headed out to meet my childhood hero.

I met up with Arno from I'm Ballsy and also met Martin from True To The Blue for the first time. Only copies of the book were in play for Piazza's John Hancock and no pictures were allowed in order to keep the line moving. Well, they said no pictures but Mike was posing for quick photos. An employee took my camera and snapped a photo which was blurry as could be.

Oh well, I'll meet Piazza again some day in the future and get a nice photo with him. Though I would have loved to get a good photo and shake the man's hand, I was just happy he was on the West Coast and signing to begin with. I thanked him for signing and told him I appreciated his time, and Mike said "take it easy man." Or something along those lines.

While the event marked the first time I've met the former Dodger backstop and one of the greatest players to ever wear Dodger Blue, it is not the first Piazza auto in my collection. I've never posted what I have before so I figured what better time than the present and post-book signing.

Above is a sweeeeet bat signed by the 62nd-round pick in the 1988 MLB Draft. My pops picked it up for me when I was a young lad and it's been one of my prized possessions ever since. It does come with a COA which is cool.

My youth was also blessed by the presence of this fantastic sweet-spotted Piazza ball which was also acquired by my father. I may have the COA lying around somewhere, or it might not have even come with one, it's been so long. I choose to believe all Piazza memorabilia I have that was acquired by others to be legit.

Mike's John Hancock finds a home in my PC of the future Hall of Famer in the form of an 8x10 mounted on a pretty rad plaque. Regardless of what people say about Piazza or what he believes Vin Scully to have done, he'll always be my childhood hero as well as the favorite player of my youth and one of my all-time faves.

Finally, another bat, this one a team bat from the '97 squad that was yet another gift from my dad. I need to take pictures of the whole darn thing and get it posted.

A big thanks to Mike Piazza for signing a copy of his book for me - I need to find a second copy so I can actually read it - as well as to Vroman's bookstore in Pasadena for putting on the event and Vin Scully Is My Homeboy for the heads-up on said event.

Trade With Nomo's Sushi Platter: In-Person Trades Rule All Trades.

I completed my eighth trade with Spiegel of Nomo's Sushi Platter. You can check out the first here, second here, third here, fourth here, fifth here, sixth here, and seventh here. Mike had a team bag full of cards for me when we met up at the Dodgers' recent FanFest event held at Dodger Stadium.

Mike included two new additions to my major player collections in the form of a new Bison and a new Russ Martin. I really dig the Kemp.

An Animal in Peril I was without found its way to me while eluding extinction. I'm slowly chipping away at 2011 and 2012 Ginter, both of which I would love to be done with by the time 2013 Ginter hits shelves and the internet everywhere. Oh, and now all I can think of is Sexual Harassment Panda.....

Some random goodness, Platter style.

Finally, Mike was gracious enough to give me a brand new baseball to use at FanFest, which led to the above fantastic sweet-spot auto of Dodger import Hyun-Jin Ryu. The ball could potentially wind up in DodgerBobble's hands as he's expressed some interest in it and I could perhaps be swayed into parting with it.

Thanks for the great trade Mike! I'll get to work on a splendid return package!

"The Dodgers and Los Angeles After 50 Years: The Economics of How a Sports Icon and a City Grew Together" -- A Recap From UCLA.

I attended a sports and economics event centered around the Dodgers and Los Angeles back in November. The event was held at my Alma mater of UCLA and included such speakers as Peter Guber, Ron Cey, Gary Beban, and Dodgers' Team Historian Mark Langill. Apparently UCLA is going to begin offering a Sports Business Program to its students. I may very well find myself back at UCLA as a student in the near future.

After listening to a very interesting and informative panel, I waited around in the hopes of snagging a couple of autographs. After taking a few pictures of him with fellow fans, Ron Cey was kind enough to sign the above 8x10, bringing me to 50% completion on my Great Infield Project. I asked The Penguin to inscribe the accomplishment he is most proud of, and he chose "1981 World Series MVP."

I missed out on Guber but was fortunate to get two fantastic John Hancocks on the event program. Gary Beban is the only Heisman winner in the history of UCLA Football, taking home the award as the Bruins' QB in 1967. He kindly inscribed "UCLA '67 Heisman" without me even asking. The second signature belongs to the aforementioned Langill. I was actually most nervous to meet him, as he basically has my dream job and gets to do the type of work I would love to one day do in any capacity. I spoke with Mark for a few moments about being History majors and working in the sports industry.

Langill, Cey, and Beban were all exceptionally nice gentlemen and I greatly appreciate them taking the time to sign for me and speak at what was a truly fantastic and thought-provoking event.

2013 Dodgers' FanFest Recap: Some Autos and Some Terrible Lines (HADOUKEN!)

I made the trip to Dodger Stadium for the 2013 edition of FanFest, the club's second such event. My recap of last year can be found here. I wasn't as prepared for this year's event but wasn't going to miss it. I spent the day with my good buddies Spiegel and Arno which made the long wait bearable. Shout-outs to DodgerBobble, Jesse, Alex, Teresa, and Oscar, whom I met in-person for the first time. Dodger Bloggers, Unite! My goal was to grab autos of some of the new Dodgers. I didn't think last year's line situation could get any worse. I. Was. Wrong.

The line this year began outside of the actual event. You waited with thousands and then were asked to pick one player. If that player was still available you were given a wristband for that player only. As the above sweet-spotted ball shows, the player I chose - the best option left by the time I reached the selection station - was Hyun-Jin Ryu, the Korean newcomer who inked a 6-year, $36 million deal this offseason. He sweet-spotted automatically which is really cool and inscribed his number as well without me asking. Matt Kemp was one line over. Anyhoo, I clumsily dropped the cube holding the ball shortly after meeting Ryu but thankfully the case took all of the damage. Many thanks to Spiegel for the baseball. I owe you Broseph Goebbels.

There was almost no line for Shawn Tolleson, a righty reliever I have high hopes for. He has tremendous stuff and will help anchor the pen for years. I asked Shawn to sign under Kenley Jansen on what I've begun referring to as my "ball for Dodgers I like." Tolleson inscribed his number without me asking and requested that I let Kenley - who was at the next table - know that his signature was too large. Noted.

Matt Guerrier also had a short line and I was in possession of a picture I needed signatures on. He's in the picture so I decided to grab him while I could. He was a really nice guy and stayed until everyone who wanted his signature got it. Javy Guerra, also in the picture, was in the station to Matt's right but I couldn't grab his signature, unfortunately. Blue pen was a bad idea; should have used silver. Oh well. Photobomb away, Dee.

The final Dodger I met was Brandon League. The line was reasonable and even though I didn't have anything to get signed I decided I shouldn't turn down a free John Hancock when given the chance. He signed the above postcard for me and inscribed "Party Hard Greg!", per my request. All credit to Arno for making use of that inscription many times and inspiring me to give it a go.

All in all it was a fun day and I look forward to next year's FanFest when I'll be arriving ridiculously early. I did miss out on A.J. Ellis for a second straight year, which is very disappointing. Oh, and Magic Johnson, Peter Guber, or any other Dodger owner/employee reading this: hire me and I'll make FanFest and the autograph lines in particular run more smoothly next year. Seriously. I'm available and more than willing to lend a hand.