MrMopar's New Dodgers Autograph Thread (and other interesting items on a slow mailday)

[mrmopar]

Today's haul...continued into next post as well. I am pretty excited about 1 item that arrived today. Although it looks like a Dodgers item, technically it is, but then again it really isn't. I'll explain in post 2.

Steve Garvey SGA.

Joe Beckwith PC.

Bill Buckner Team Issue 8x10.

Dave Goltz Team Issue 8x10.

Jerry Grote PC

Johnny Oates 79 Topps.

Jack Perconte Yearbook page.

Doug Rau PC sized photo.

Ed Amelung 3x5.

 

[mrmopar]

I'll start with the true former/future items. First is a classic 70s action card featuring Tommy John on a 1971 Topps. John would join the Dodgers in 1972 and get his first Dodgers card that year as well.

The next couple are from a very cheap assorted lot. I only bid a couple bucks in case I won. I actually won! Included are a few decent players and fan favorites, but I was looking at Angel Berroa, Henry Blanco and Jesse Orosco, all of whom played for the Dodgers at some point in their careers.

The final item...

So, I actually have a signed minor league card of this player when he played for either Clinton or Lodi in 1979-80. Those early TCMA Minor League cards were so nondescript, that sometimes it is hard to tell them apart. I would consider that more of a grail for this player as a one time Dodgers prospect, but this item I just got shows the player in an actual Dodgers uniform. This may have been from some sort of cross organizational training camp hosted by the Dodgers, as he never actually played for the team.

He was drafted by the Angels in January 1977, but was released by June 1978. The Dodgers signed him as a free agent in January 1979 and he proceeded to play 2 years at A level for them, Clinton and Lodi as mentioned earlier. In 1980, as Rickey Henderson was showing the world his base stealing skills at the MLB level reaching the 100 mark, this 22 year old swiped 120 bases at the single A level! Not sure how it works exactly, but it would seem the Dodgers failed to protect this prospect and the Padres snapped him up in the 1980 Rule 5 draft.

He would make his major league debut for the Padres the following year and by 1983 this speedster had secured a starting position with the club. Mostly roving the outfield, he did play behind Steve Garvey for almost 50 games at first as well. He ended the 83 season with 66 steals and was a key player in the Padres' road to the World Series, having the best offensive year of his career, stealing another 70 in 1984. He hit well in the playoffs with 14 hits, .316 in the NLCS against the Cubs and .364 in the World Series against the Tigers, but stole only 1 base across the combined playoffs (against the Tigers) and was caught stealing once per series.

Apparently the magic was gone by 1985. A quick look appears to show a drug problem may have contributed to his downfall though. The Padres traded him to the Orioles in June 1985. He would still show flashes of his speed, stealing 71 bases over the following 3 partial seasons for Baltimore, but his career was over by the end of the 1987 season. A sad tale of wasted talent, he died of AIDS January 6, 1991 at the age of 32.

Alan Anthony Wiggins on a Dodgers B&W PC.

 

[mrmopar]

Today brings a duplicate, one I struggled to find at a decent price. As with many things, if you wait long enough, you find a deal. In this case, copy #2 was good enough not to pass up. Phil Garner Archives buyback /89.

The other "completes" my run of 2020 Heritage cards unless some of the more touted prospects flouder. I'll then go back and pick up their cards then. For now, I have signatures of all of them otherwise and don't need to spend the money.

This is the red ink /71 Tommy Dean card. I now have regular and red ink versions for Dean, Al Ferarra (Padres) and Joe Moeller(Dodgers). I also have the regular ink Will Smith auto.

I am extremely glad Topps included Dean in their set, as he was once very briefly a Dodger. He is one of many little known players that have been featured in the Real One signature subset for Heritage since the series debuted. I can't believe too many people get as excited as i do about select players like this unfortunately. Team autograph collectors are rejoicing though.

Dean played 12 games at SS for the 1967 Dodgers before being traded in early 1969 to the Padres with another prospect who never made the bigs for Al McBean. McBean was a sad 2-6 for the Dodgers in 1969 and played 1 game in 1970 before being released in late April. The trade of Dean ultimately helped pave the way for another young prospect to settle into the SS role behind the aging Maury Wills, Bill Russell. Russel played just 1 game at SS for the Dodgers in both 1969 & 70 and only 6 in 1971, but in 1972 it became his primary spot and by 1973 he appeared in all 162 games for the team at that position and never looked back. Dean on the other hand was out of baseball by the end of 1971.

Dean technically does not have a Dodger card, but if you squint and pretend, you can call his rookie card a Dodger card. He is pictured as a Dodger (although the LA is airbrushed out) on the card and shares it with 2 other short time Dodgers who have no other cards with the team, Bobby Darwin and John Miller. Darwin is clearly a Dodger on the card, but of course Miller is wearing Yankee pinstripes in his airbrushed image. This looks and feels like a triple Dodgers card to someone like me who wishes it was, but it is not (only because of that tiny "Padres" under his name).

 

[mrmopar]

Like the design of this Will Smith. Have Smith a few times, but just needed to add this specific card.

Carl Crawford F/F Dodger. This is a mini, which I like.

An assortment of JD Drew autos. Someone, same seller who I got the first three from, was blowing out these cards, so I grabbed 12 more. The Crawford was also his. Do I need 15 new JD Drew autos, especially none as a Dodger. Definitely not, but I felt the deal was too good to pass up for these F/F Dodgers.

 

[WizardofOz1982]

Like the design of this Will Smith. Have Smith a few times, but just needed to add this specific card. View attachment 113033

Carl Crawford F/F Dodger. This is a mini, which I like. View attachment 113034

An assortment of JD Drew autos. Someone, same seller who I got the first three from, was blowing out these cards, so I grabbed 12 more. The Crawford was also his. Do I need 15 new JD Drew autos, especially none as a Dodger. Definitely not, but I felt the deal was too good to pass up for these F/F Dodgers.

View attachment 113035

Nice pickups. Love those Cracker Jack Mini Autos.

If one of those 2001 Fleer Autographics Drews needs a home I still need that one.

 

[mrmopar]

Nice pickups. Love those Cracker Jack Mini Autos.

If one of those 2001 Fleer Autographics Drews needs a home I still need that one.

Is that the two in the upper left corner? One is numbered, the other is not. I am not attached to either if you need one.

 

[mrmopar]

Paco Rodriquez /25.

Juan Marichal Archives /17.

 

[WizardofOz1982]

Is that the two in the upper left corner? One is numbered, the other is not. I am not attached to either if you need one.

It is. Let me know what you need for one.

 

[mrmopar]

It is. Let me know what you need for one.

Do you care which or just want the card itself, numbered or not?

 

[mrmopar]

Garvey /15. Decent for a no logo card.

Bill Russell. I do love this set and the autos you can get. Lots of semistars when those guys were harder to find in product.

A pair of Ron Fairly, 67 & 68 Topps.

 

[mrmopar]

Ron Cey /25.

Corey Seager "mini" /25.

Claude Osteen.

Bobby Valentine. This is ugly, but it was 18 cents, so why not?

Lastly, a dual Valentine and now deceased Mike Strahler.

 

[Therion]

I love multi-signed items.

 

[mrmopar]

Rick Honeycutt.

Raul Mondesi. A little commentary on paid signings. I saw recently that someone was hosing a Mondesi signing. The price was $50 per card, maybe a flat too...not sure. I can see that getting specific items signed might be more appealing at those prices, but you can find certified auto cards of his for under $15 delivered all day! People pay for those signings though. I guess I will take the cheap route and take what I can find.

This Garvey photo was a fiasco. I guess I just seen to invite problems. Thankfully, given all the transactions I have been a part of on ebay in the last 20 years+, it's still a very small percentage, but it is irritating each time none the less. Bought this and a signed wire photo with Willie Davis and Bill Madlock. I think I might have even mentioned it before. Anyway, turns out they sent me the wrong photo. I got a Sizemore/Stennett photo instead of my two. The selelr claims the other buyer was uncooperative. Luckily he had a 2nd Garvey. The other photo was a whim to ride for free with the Garvey, so I got a refund on that. The back up arrived today.

Silver lining is that I was allowed to keep the Sizemore/Stennett. Sizemore was a Dodger, but I don't have a scan for this piece, since I didn't buy it to begin with.



Charlie "Tim" Thompson. Thompson was a 30 year old rookie on the 1954 Brooklyn club. He appeared in 10 games for them. 4 defensively. The rest it seems were PH/PR (Catcher pinch running?) appearances.

Sandy Alomar Jr and Candy Maldonado. Alomar got into 27 games for the 2006 Dodgers as a 40 year old, 18 as a catcher and 9 as a pinch hitter. The Dodgers traded him to the White Sox where he finished the year. The Mets signed him as a 41 year old free agent for 2007 and he retired after only seeing action in 8 games all year. Maldonado came up with the Dodgers, playing at the MLB level from 1981-85. The Dodgers traded him for Alex Trevino. The Dodgers got parts of 2 seasons out of Trevino before sending him packing. Maldonado pent another 19 years in baseball.

 

[mrmopar]

Brian Jordan /13 Archives. I may have this one already. He had a bunch of low print autos in this set. I have gotten a bunch pretty cheap, so easier just to buy and if it's a dupe, no worries.

Rafael Furcal /25. This former ROY had a decent 5 1/2 year run with the Dodgers from 2006-2011, and his 2nd of 3 AS appearances in 2010, all with different teams (ATL, LA, STL).

Del Bissonette had a heck of a rookie season with Brooklyn in 1928, with 188 H, 25 HR, 106 RBI and hitting .320. His franchise rookie HR mark would stand decades of challengers the likes of Snider, Campy, Furillo, Howard, Davis, Parker, Geurrero, Garvey, etc until I believe Mike Piazza broke it in 1993. Subsequently, Cody Bellinger has raised that bar considerably.

He would play for the Brooklyn team another 3 solid years 1929-31 before a freak injury and a serious case of blood poisoning forced him to miss the entire 1932 season. While playing volleyball during spring training in 1932, Dazzy Vance landed on Bissonette's ankle and severed his achilles tendon. After the surgery to repair the damage, he developed a case of blood poisoning that nearly killed him. After a year off, he came back for part of 1933, but was not the same and was sent to the minors and never made the bigs again after that. He continued to play until 1938, later coached and even made a brief managerial appearance in 1945 with the Braves, replacing manager Bob Coleman about 2/3 through the season. He was not retained the following year, but did remain in baseball until 1952 it appears.

Bissonette became an apple farmer in his home town after his baseball career ended and appeared to shun baseball for the most part. In 1972, at the age of 72, he reportedly shot himself in the stomach while in his orchard. Police apparently ruled it a suicide attempt. He survived for almost a week, but took a turn for the worse and eventually succumbed to the injury.

 

[dano7]

Nice read on the Bissonette! Great autos, as well as the story!!!

 

[mrmopar]

Edwin Jackson.

Todd Zeile.

Masao Kida on some sort of Japanese phone card.

This last one is kind of cheating. He was with the Dodgers organization, although he never played or coached for the Dodgers at the MLB level.

Lance Parrish. As his career was winding down, he played for the Mariners one season in 1992. After the season ende,d he was granted free agency and the Dodgers picked him up in January 1993. He would play 11 games that spring at the AAA level for Albuquerque, but the Dodgers released him May 7, 1993. The Indians picked him up the same day and he played 10 games for them before being released by them May 30. Talk about no love for Lance! That would be it for the 1993 season at any level. He would squeeze out parts of two more years, with two different teams (Pirates and Blue Jays), before his playing career was over at the age of 39.

Parrish would also later coach (1997-98) and manage (1998, 2005-06) in the Dodgers minor league system.

So, going to count him just this one time, since it was a slow mail day + he may not have many Blue Jay cards either, so this was a neat pick up.

 

[Therion]

I generally do not like cards signed in red, but that one looks very nice!

 

[mrmopar]

I generally do not like cards signed in red, but that one looks very nice!

Red is kind of a weird color for autographs. Green too (Cobb, Cool Papa to name a couple who used that color frequently).

 

[mrmopar]

When these types of "certified cuts" first came out (Signa Cuts was my first experience), I was digusted with them. Most of them looked TERRIBLE. Nothing like a nice card of someone's lower body only! However, it was like a car wreck, I couldn't look away. Several of them had card buybacks that were fit so poorly, that I started collecting the different versions. Some used the same image over and over and would just get one. Several others have since made many equally as bad cuts, including Leaf. The Signacuts were numbered, but Leaf has not numbered these. I have seen several different crappy image cuts, but there are a few others who seem to like them too and most get snapped up before I see them. That is another complaint for another time. Why has ebay become more of a fixed price platform than an auction platform?!

Anyway, feel free to marvel at it's ugliness! Steve Garvey.

The Dodgers traded for him on July 31, 2019 and Adam Kolarek finished the season 2-0 in 11.2 innings across 26 games. Sounds like he may be some sort of set up reliever. His career record so far is 8-3 with 2.5 years under his belt with Tampa before coming to LA. He's still with the Dodgers as far as I know, but since 2020 isn't happening so far, neither is he. No Dodger cards...yet either, so I settled for a 2nd card featuring him with a former team just to get the graph. This is a slight improvement to the first card I grabbed right after the Dodgers landed him last year. He is 30 now, so I don't have high hopes he makes a big splash with the rest of his career, but he is a Dodger, so he is on the checklist.

 

[mrmopar]

Steve Garvey Archives 1/50. I don't usually buy the #1/xx unless it is around the same price as any other numbers. This card was not easy to get when they first came out, but I finally landed a copy and probably paid more for it than what I paid for this 1/50 recently.

I bought this lot for the plate, but the auto was a nice toss in bonus. I originally needed a Brock Stewart auto after he made his debut in 2016 and this set was the only option and they were cheap, so I ended up buying all of the different colors and sets. There are a bunch. I think I have all of them finally, except maybe signed press plates. I don't think he'll ever increase in value, but it was fun to chase them for a while. He was 2-3 with the Dodgers over the course of 4 seasons and 36 games. The Blue Jays got him off waivers July 31, 2019 and he ended up the season going 4-0 for them in 10 games.