Dilferules's 1988-present Oakland A's autograph thread

[Dilferules]

Seeing the great team autograph threads from Therion, dano7, and MrMopar has alwayds made me want to do something similar with the A's. With my 1988 Topps autograph set long-term project I've hesitated to spend even more on obscure A's signatures, but now that I'm getting down near 30 remaining for the '88s those pickups are really going to slow. So I may as well start a new side project...but I don't have any interest in going all the way back to the beginning of the Oakland A's, or God forbid the beginning of the Philadelphia A's, so I'm starting from 1988 - the first year I started paying attention to baseball and the A's. I've got quite a few but I'm not near complete now...making it a running thread to track my progress should prod me on to get closer to 100%.

Personally for me my order of signature preference would be:
1. A's certified auto
2. non-A's certified auto
3. A's uncertified auto
4. non-A's uncertified auto
I'd prefer that they all be on cards but that won't be possible for some real obscure players. As far as upgrading goes, I probably won't bother to upgrade any uncertified A's autos to certified non-A's autos but I'd like to upgrade non-A's stuff when possible.

EDIT: Current wantlist is here.

I will go by year beginning with the entire 1988 team, then new players for each subsequent year. Then I'll show new additions and upgrades as I get them.

Let's start with the players I have from the 1988 team, in alphabetical order.

Don Baylor - He finished up his playing career with the '88 A's. I don't believe he has any certified A's autos.

Lance Blankenship - I always liked Lance, he was a utility infielder/outfielder.

Rich Bordi - I have no memory of him on the team but he apparently started 2 games. No A's cards for him from this stint but luckily there's this older one from his previous time with the team.

Todd Burns - Todd was underrated and had some really good seasons as a reliever and swingman with the A's but was out of baseball before 1996 Leaf Signature came along, so no certified autos for him.

Greg Cadaret - He was shipped to the Yankees as part of the Rickey Henderson trade the next year.

Jose Canseco - You've probably heard of this guy. I have several of his autographs but you can't go wrong with Sweet Spot.

Jim Corsi - The first 1996 Leaf Signature (extended) card of the thread! There will be a couple more.

Storm Davis - Cool name and nice signature, too bad he does not have any certified autos. Not quite good enough to make a Fan Favorites set unless he had spent his whole career with one team.

Dennis Eckersley - I have a boatload of his autos but here's a Sweet Spot.

Mike Gallego - I also have his 1996 Leaf Signature Extended card but I might as well show my A's auto.

(continued in the next post)

 

[Dilferules]

1988 (continued)

Ron Hassey - Oof this smudged signature on his 1988 Topps Traded is rough, I need to upgrade at some point. I do have his regular 1988 Topps auto as well but he's with the White Sox.

Dave Henderson - This 2007 Co-Signers card is the only certified A's auto of Hendu, who sadly passed away in 2015.

Rick Honeycutt - Rick made it into the 2019 Archives Fan Favorites auto set!

Glenn Hubbard - The famous snake lover finished his career by playing 2 seasons with the A's, and has some Braves certified autos but none with Oakland.

Doug Jennings - He was a decent prospect in the late '80s who never panned out, then for some reason had a card in 1994 Signature Rookies as a washed up 29 year old AAA player.

Ed Jurak - Played 3 games with the A's and I have no memory of him at all.

Carney Lansford - Definitely an A's fan favorite, and made it into 2 Topps Fan Favorite auto sets.

Mark McGwire - I don't have many of his autographs, they're a little cheaper than they used to be but still not cheap.

Gene Nelson - I would love to see him get into a Fan Favorites set like Honeycutt did, but I doubt that'll happen.

Steve Ontiveros - The 1994 AL ERA champ has no certified autos.

(continued in the next post)

 

[Dazed]

Great start! I look forward to watching your progress. Keep us posted with who you need. Maybe we can help you out.

 

[Dilferules]

1988 (continued)

Dave Otto - Not much to say about Dave Otto. His name is Otto.

Dave Parker - The Cobra has a few A's certified autos but they're very limited, I haven't managed to snag one yet.

Tony Phillips - Tony didn't make it into any certified auto sets prior to his 2016 passing.

Eric Plunk - Always thought he was real dorky-lookin.

Luis Polonia - No certified autos for Luis.

Matt Sinatro - I very vaguely remember his 10-game stint with the A's. No A's cards for him to upgrade to.

Terry Steinbach - Always one of my favorites.

Dave Stewart - I have tons of Stew autos including this 1/1.

Walt Weiss - I always loved this Fan Favorite auto.

Bob Welch - He had a couple of A's certified autographs before his death in 2014. Baseball's last 27-game winner!

(continued in next post)

 

[Dilferules]

1988 (concluded)

Curt Young - He went on to be the A's pitching coach for a while and was a decent 5th starter type for a few years.

Missing:

Stan Javier - I was shocked to discover I don't have a Stan Javier autograph (he wasn't in 1988 Topps). I've got one incoming from eBay now.
Felix Jose* - I've got an Archives Fan Favorites Cardinals auto sitting at COMC so I own one but won't have it in hand for a very long time.
Orlando Mercado - He's not a tough signature but has only one A's card (1989 Upper Deck) so it's a question of waiting for it at a price I like.
Jeff Shaver - This will be a tough one, he has 8 minor league team set cards but nothing from the majors and his entire MLB career was pitching one inning in one game.

So as of 6/17/21 I'm 31/35 for 1988.

 

[Dazed]

I lived in Tacoma in the Summer of 1987. Spent many evenings sitting in the bleachers talking to the bullpen pitchers. I had high hopes for Dave Otto. Being from Missouri and a big Mizzou fan. On days he didn't pitch I was able to visit with him.

 

[Dilferules]

I lived in Tacoma in the Summer of 1987. Spent many evenings sitting in the bleachers talking to the bullpen pitchers. I had high hopes for Dave Otto. Being from Missouri and a big Mizzou fan. On days he didn't pitch I was able to visit with him.

Awesome! I wonder if he got a World Series ring for the one game he pitched for the 1989 A's. Combine that with the triple he hit in 1993 for the Pirates, and pitching for the Cubs in his last season (looks like he grew up near Chicago) and that's a pretty fun career for somebody that never panned out.

 

[Dilferules]

1989

The A's had 13 new players in 1989:

Chris Bando - No recollection of him at all, but that figures since he played a single game for the A's - the final game of his career. No A's cards for him, but I have plenty of A's autographs of his brother Sal.

Billy Beane - No A's cards from his 37-game stint with the 1989 team, but I have this one that shows him as the GM. His lone certified auto card is a Fan Favorites SP that shows him on the Twins.

Bill Dawley - No memory of him and like Chris Bando I only happen to have his autograph because he was in 1988 Topps. No A's cards were made for him.

Rickey Henderson - I have 4 Rickey autographs. Rickey's autographs are expensive.

Dann Howitt - Yup it's Dann, not Dan.

Mike Moore - He doesn't have any certified autos but I definitely need to upgrade to an uncertified A's card. He played for the A's for 4 years and started and won 2 games in the '89 World Series.

Ken Phelps - He has a few A's cards and I'll upgrade eventually but I'm not in a big hurry because he sucked out loud with the A's.

Jamie Quirk - I always liked Quirk and definitely need to upgrade this ballpoint Royals card - he had several A's cards produced.

Matt Young - His lone A's card is in 1990 Topps and it's pretty dark and crappy for an autograph so this may be the one I'm sticking with.

Missing:
Larry Arndt - Had a 2 game MLB career and his lone major league card is in 1990 Topps Debut - tough signature to find.
Dick Scott - Topped Arndt with a *3* game career and is also in 1990 Topps Debut. He did at least go on to be a manager in the A's system.
Scott Hemond - I was surprised I didn't have one since he spent a few years on the team. I've got an autograph on the way from eBay.
Brian Snyder - Pitched 2/3 of an inning for the A's then his MLB career was done...he played for the Mariners in '85 and was in 1986 Topps, I've got one of those on the way from eBay.

So for 1989 that's 9/13, overall 1988-89 40/48.

 

[Dilferules]

1990

14 new A's in 1990.

Troy Afenir - I thought this card looked cool so he would definitely be a star. He was not.

Harold Baines - This is his lone certified A's auto, a short print out of 2004 Fan Favorites. I always liked Baines so this is one of my favorite cards.

Mike Bordick - Unfortunately when he had a Fan favorites autograph a while back it was an Orioles card. We'll always have 1996 Leaf Signature.

Ozzie Canseco - Woof, if there were ever a need for an upgrade.

Steve Chitren - He would go on to pitch in 56 games for the 1991 A's and that was it for his MLB career.

Darren Lewis - Longtime Giants outfielder but he started on the A's.

Willie McGee - Willie has a few A's cards so an upgrade might be nice some day.

Mike Norris - He pitched in 14 games for the 1990 team but is more known for his 1975-1983 stint, which got him into the 2005 Fan Favorites autograph set.

Willie Randolph - He has a number of A's cards but is kind of a tough signature (still missing his '88 Topps All-Star card from my set) so this one may have to do.

Scott Sanderson - I either got this one TTM or got lucky buying one since my name is Richard. He has several A's cards so this is in need of an upgrade.

Missing:
Steve Howard - He has a few MLB cards but only played this one year in the majors and is a bit of a tough signature.
Joe Klink - I could swear I picked up a Klink auto recently so I'm hesitant to buy one in case I find it later.
Reggie Harris - Same as Klink, I might already have one.
Joe Bitker - Pitched one game for the A's and 14 games for the Rangers 1990-91. He does have a 1991 Topps Debut A's card but I'll probably have to settle for one of his Rangers cards.

So 10/14 for 1990 and 50/62 overall 1988-90. That's it for today.

 

[mrmopar]

I'll see if I can help you out with some cheaper, easier ones from my discard auto pile. For some of the 1989-91 guys, there is a chance of getting the Topps Debut cards signed if you need them. They won't be certified, but a great way to get some otherwise obscure guys.

 

[bstanwood]

Pretty sure he is the same guy as one of the stoner kids from super troopers, Geoffrey Arend

 

[Dilferules]

I'll see if I can help you out with some cheaper, easier ones from my discard auto pile. For some of the 1989-91 guys, there is a chance of getting the Topps Debut cards signed if you need them. They won't be certified, but a great way to get some otherwise obscure guys.

That would be an incredible help, thanks...yeah for some of these guys the Topps Debut cards are their only MLB cards.

View attachment 135341
Pretty sure he is the same guy as one of the stoner kids from super troopers, Geoffrey Arend

View attachment 135342

Haha, I mean probably never seen both of them in the same place at the same time.



I dug around and found Reggie Harris but no Klink still...

So that puts me at 51/62 for the first 3 years.

 

[banjar]

Cool idea for a collection, and for a thread. Love the Baylor autograph. Groove! The Rockies first manager...

 

[mrmopar]

My scrub pile is getting pretty weak. I used to add a few a week, then sold a few lots and now I am not buying much in the way of random lots that have much extra.

There is certified:

Greg Smith
Mike Rouse
Graham Koonce
Bobby Kielty
Danny Putnam

Non-Certified:

Reggie Harris (x2)
KirkDressendorfer
Fred Caligiuri (He's an old timer, forgot you were not chasing pre 88 guys)

I may have a couple others that I missed or that were in Minor League or with another team. I can dig deeper later if you have some names you need that I can reference.

 

[Dilferules]

My scrub pile is getting pretty weak. I used to add a few a week, then sold a few lots and now I am not buying much in the way of random lots that have much extra.

There is certified:

Greg Smith
Mike Rouse
Graham Koonce
Bobby Kielty
Danny Putnam

Non-Certified:

Reggie Harris (x2)
KirkDressendorfer
Fred Caligiuri (He's an old timer, forgot you were not chasing pre 88 guys)

I may have a couple others that I missed or that were in Minor League or with another team. I can dig deeper later if you have some names you need that I can reference.

View attachment 135344

Thanks for looking! I believe I have all of those since I found my Reggie Harris autograph.

 

[Dilferules]

1991

There were 19 new A's in 1991.

John Briscoe - John was a quadruple-A kind of reliever, he had a 6-year career (all with the A's) but only pitched more than 17 games once. In half of those seasons his ERA was over 7.

Scott Brosius - One of my favorites on the crappy mid-90s A's teams, he was more famous later as the 1998 World Series MVP for the Yankees.

Ron Darling - Darling finished his career with four and a half seasons in Oakland. I don't believe he has any A's certified autos but I should pick up an uncertified one some day.

Kirk Dressendorfer - He was one of the A's "Four Aces" from the 1990 draft along with Todd Van Poppel and two guys that never made the majors. So not exactly aces. The seven games he started in 1991 were his entire MLB career.

Andy Hawkins - I think I had blocked how desperate the A's were that year that they brought in Hawkins to start 14 games. He was right at replacement level and that was the last of his career. He does have one A's card (1991 Stadium Club) so an upgrade is possible.

Brook Jacoby - He played half a season for the A's and suuucked. But he does have several A's cards so this is an eventual upgrade.

Brad Komminsk - He hit .120 in 24 games and that was the end of it for him, but he did get a 1992 Score A's card.

Vance Law - Another player that stunk up the joint to finish their career on the 1991 A's. He did get a few A's cards out of it and is a super easy signature so I'll upgrade this one.

Fred Manrique - Same as the above, played his last 9 games in Oakland...didn't get any A's cards out of the deal, though.

Ernie/Earnie/Ernest/Earnest Riles - Had several A's cards so I'll have to grab one of those at some point.

(continued in next post)

 

[Dilferules]

1991 (continued)

Eric Show - The 1991 A's were his last MLB stop before his 1994 death. He has several A's cards but with his early passing getting one of those might be tricky/expensive/fake.

Joe Slusarski - Definitely need to upgrade to an A's auto, I was surprised this was the only one I had.

Todd Van Poppel - I have perhaps the most extensive Todd Van Poppel collection in the world, including two game-used jerseys and nearly every one of his cards. I'm just weird like that.

Willie Wilson - I always liked Wilson and I love this 2012 Archives Fan Favorites auto.

Missing:
Dana Allison - 11-game career...I've got one incoming.
Kevin Campbell - Bounced up and down with the A's and Twins for 5 seasons...I've got one incoming.
Johnny Guzman - Reliever pitched 7 games over 2 seasons but does have some A's cards.
Bruce Walton - Bounced up and down with multiple teams for 4 years and has some A's cards.
Ron Witmeyer - 11 games in 1991 was it for him, but he does have a couple of A's cards.

So hey at least there's nobody with no MLB cards this year. 14/19 for 1991 and 65/81 1988-91.

 

[Dilferules]

1992

16 new A's in '92.

Jerry Browne - I always liked Jerry.

Kelly Downs - I kind of forgot he was on the team but he was pretty good in '92 and bad in '93. He does have some A's cards.

Eric Fox - One of the few autographs I ever got in person at an A's game.

Goose Gossage - Panini has made several Gossage Oakland autos recently but they're all fairly low-numbered and of course lacking the logo so if I ever upgrade it may just be to an uncertified A's card.

Shawn Hillegas - I kind of remember him? He's got a few A's cards.

Mike Kingery - I also very vaguely remember his 12-game stint. He does have one A's card in 1992 Stadium Club.

Jeff Parrett - He definitely has several A's cards so I'll need to upgrade at some point.

Randy Ready - More vague memories here. He's got a few A's cards as well.

Jeff Russell - He's got several A's cards from 1993.

(continued in next post)

 

[Dilferules]

1992 (continued)

Ruben Sierra - I was surprised and delighted when Topps put out this Sierra A's auto in 2013, snagged one immediately. I believe it's still his only certified A's autograph.

Bobby Witt - This one is a little junky so I'll probably get a different one eventually.

Missing:
Vince Horsman - I've got one incoming.
Henry Mercedes - Got one incoming.
Troy Neel - I was a little surprised I didn't have one, got one incoming.
Mike Raczka - 8 games in '92 was his whole career but he did get A's cards in 1993 Donruss and Pinnacle.
Todd Revenig - Got one incoming.

So 10/15 for 1992 and overall 75/96 1988-92. I suspect my completion percentage will continue to drop through the '90s since I hadn't previously really gone after uncertified autos to fill any gaps.

 

[Dilferules]

1993

15 new A's in '93.

Mike Aldrete - A central California guy like myself.

Joe Boever - Vaguely remember him, he did get a few A's cards.

Brent Gates - No certified autos for Brent, I was a little surprised he wasn't in 1996 Leaf Signature.

Steve Karsay - I definitely need to pick up an A's autograph of him, he was one of my favorites from the '90s.

Scott Lydy - He continued playing in AAA until 2001 but his 41 games on the '93 A's were his only major league action.

Mike Mohler - Oh 1996 Leaf Signature, how I love you.

Ed Nunez - Finished up his 13-year career with the '93 and '94 A's and made it into several card sets with the team.

Craig Paquette - Had an 11-year MLB career but no certified autos.

Kevin Seitzer - He started the year with the team but was released mid-season. He has several A's cards for that stint.

Dale Sveum - I think if you look up "common" in the dictionary there's a picture of a Dale Sveum card. And he did have a few A's commons from 1993 but they're from more obscure sets like Pacific and Mother's Cookies.

Missing:
Kurt Abbott - Surprised I never picked up his Marlins '96 Leaf Signature but I've got an uncertified A's card on the way.
Marcos Armas - Got one incoming.
Eric Helfand - Had 3 cups of coffee with the A's and got some cards out of it.
Miguel Jimenez - Same as above but 2 cups.
Roger Smithberg - 2 cups for Smithberg as well, he got in 1994 Donruss and Topps with the team.

So that's 10/15 for the year and 85/111 1988-93.