Therion's All Time Astros Autograph Collection (1,004 Reached!! 25 To Go!)

[Therion]

One addition in today!

Yulieski Gurriel, the most controversial character in the World Series

 

[Therion]

A huge addition today!

Aurelio Monteagudo

Monteagudo signed very little and passed away in 1990.

 

[mrmopar]

Yep, same story with Dodgers. I do like adding new players, but it can also be frustrating. Getting Dodger autos on Dodger cards means fighting for prospector cards or waiting and waiting means potentially missing out on players that blossom into stars and become expensive. I have been trying to add cheap new aquisions on certified cards as soon as they join the team and then hope I can upgrade to a Dodger card later.

On the flip side, getting older Dodgers is now an effort in either futility or deep expense. Many left on my "waitlist" are very early turn of the century Brooklyn players, no-namers who died pre 50s or BIGGIES like Ruth (Coach), Daubert, W. Robinson, Maranville, Hack Wilson, etc.

It IS the fun of it......and with the Yankees, I'm going to have to rely a lot on the new guys, because the old ones keep getting more and more expensive!!!

 

[Therion]

Just be glad that neither of you have to look at a list and realize Jay Dahl is on it. I’ve only seen two ever and one was a forgery.


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[deaconblues63]

A huge addition today!

Aurelio Monteagudo

Monteagudo signed very little and passed away in 1990.

I had never heard of Aurelio Montragudo, so I looked him up and learned this interesting fact on Wikipedia:

“He, Aurelio Rodríguez and Aurelio López are the only three players in MLB history named Aurelio, and all three were killed in car accidents between the ages of 44 and 53.”



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[Therion]

I had never heard of Aurelio Montragudo, so I looked him up and learned this interesting fact on Wikipedia:

“He, Aurelio Rodríguez and Aurelio López are the only three players in MLB history named Aurelio, and all three were killed in car accidents between the ages of 44 and 53.”



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And two of them were pitchers for the Astros!

Both of their autographs are TOUGH.

Monteagudo was, I believe, the first screwball pitcher the Astros ever signed.

 

[mrmopar]

Well, most clubs probably have their own "Jay Dahl". One of the most notorious Dodger toughies is Clancy Smyres. I'll let the article do the talking...

https://www.sportscollectorsdaily.c...is-autograph-is-more-valuable-than-babe-ruth/

There may be others from turn of the century teams that are just downright tough as well, but I never hope to even sniff anywhere close to 100%. However, given a team as new as the Astros, getting to 100% completion would be a much more realistic goal aside from the Jay Dahls of the world.

 

[Therion]

Well, most clubs probably have their own "Jay Dahl". One of the most notorious Dodger toughies is Clancy Smyres. I'll let the article do the talking...

https://www.sportscollectorsdaily.c...is-autograph-is-more-valuable-than-babe-ruth/

There may be others from turn of the century teams that are just downright tough as well, but I never hope to even sniff anywhere close to 100%. However, given a team as new as the Astros, getting to 100% completion would be a much more realistic goal aside from the Jay Dahls of the world.

Jay Dahl is the rarest modern era autograph, though I know the competition is stiff. He was 17 years old when he made his one and only appearance for Houston on the All-Rookie team that also featured future HOFer Joe Morgan. Dahl had a terrible game but he was an incredible pitcher that just wasn't ready for the Majors. He was sent back down to the Minors and dominated. Less than a year later, he went out celebrating a win with a team secretary and the team's catcher. They were involved in a car accident and both Dahl and Troutman (the secretary) were killed. The driver was permanently blinded.

Having died at 18 years old and not being a highly touted prospect, Jay Dahl is considered the toughest modern era autograph by pretty much everyone.

That said, a team like the Dodgers or Yankees that extend into the pre-war era will have tougher autographs on their checklists.

 

[Therion]

Knocked the last Z name off the list! Autograph number 840 is Oscar Zamora!!

 

[psj]

Those pesky Z names lol. Good job!

 

[mrmopar]

Assuming some of these are budgetary constraints? I see a 77T Taveras for $30 obo on eBay and another for $40 obo. Several 64-65 Grote cards signed for $5-20+ as well. Didn't search any others, but both were Dodgers as well.

 

[Therion]

I just haven’t picked them up yet.

Some of it is also finding the right auto. Taveras’ 77T is a four player RC. He has another Astros card that looks much better but doesn’t come up terribly often.


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[Therion]

Today swings us back to the other end of the alphabet and I've knocked off my last A need, Norichika Aoki. Not the ideal card, but I'll update one day. Got it in a group of 10 autos for $8, so can't complain too much.

 

[mrmopar]

Is it one of those SSPC cards? I only have Dodger minor league issues or a 1990 Target card that I am aware of. Those are technically Dodgers, but they are a last resort over just about anything else.

I just haven’t picked them up yet.

Some of it is also finding the right auto. Taveras’ 77T is a four player RC. He has another Astros card that looks much better but doesn’t come up terribly often.


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[Therion]

Is it one of those SSPC cards? I only have Dodger minor league issues or a 1990 Target card that I am aware of. Those are technically Dodgers, but they are a last resort over just about anything else.

Yep! Taveras is also a possibility for a private signing on SCN, so waiting to see if that works out.

My big issue are guys like Brian Powell. Ever since his suicide, people have gone crazy because he didn't sign much. $150 for a baseball is not happening.

 

[mrmopar]

One of the biggest issues of what it is really worth. To a passionate set or theme collector, a rare or scarce autograph on a specific card or team item may be worth a ridiculous amount. To the greater majority of the rest of the world, it's worth next to nothing. However, if a seller sees one example of a crazy price, they think their item should be worth that and they never budge.

Powell is a prime example and his signature should pretty much be worthless. His career was not noteworthy in any way that I saw, so he is probably only sought by team or set collectors.

Although he never actually played for the Dodgers, he has a single Dodger card. Leigh Neuage died at 19 and his autographs are understandably scarce, but to anyone other than a Bowman or Dodger completist, is there really any reason for it to be worth anything more than any other player that never played MLB ball in the end?

I am working on getting a signature of a different player who also died young, although after his career had already ended. He never played at the MLB level but had 1 card and I have never seen one signed. The signature that I may be able to obtain is NOT on the card, but from a cancelled check. I would like it for the novelty and might possibly try to make it into a custom if I get one, but I also would not be willing to pay a lot for it. Aside from passing away young and thus keeping supply down, there really is nothing to drive value in this person's signature and I imagine demand would not be there even if a flood of signatures became available. I also imagine that if a signed card did come to market though, it would bring crazy prices just because of set collectors.

Yep! Taveras is also a possibility for a private signing on SCN, so waiting to see if that works out.

My big issue are guys like Brian Powell. Ever since his suicide, people have gone crazy because he didn't sign much. $150 for a baseball is not happening.

 

[Therion]

Patience pays off in the end. I refused to pay $150 for Dr. Mike Marshall. I needed him and everyone that had something wanted too much. His career was interesting but not in any way worth that price.

Eventually an auction popped up in honest auction format and I got him for $38. Patience wins in the end. I don’t need the last 62 cards today. I’ve worked 10 years to get here. I can wait 10 more to finish.


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[Therion]

The final "S" arrived today!

Mike Stanton

His autograph is only moderately difficult to find but mostly because of the Yankees pitcher with the same name.

 

[mrmopar]

I don't know if everyone sees "?" for your photos or just some, like me. Is that the same Stanton who played for the Mariners in the 80s? His signature is tougher to find than most common type players of that same era for the Mariners. In fact, several 80s era Mariners seem a lot harder than you'd expect given their careers. Some guys just don't like to sign I guess.

 

[MrMet]

Yeah I’m not seeing the pics either


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