Signing Results: 1988 Mr. Everything – Orel Hershiser

Signing Results:  1988 Mr. Everything – Orel Hershiser

Taking way much longer than what I had expected, I signed up for a rare signing with Orel Hershiser that was supposed to occur late in the summer of 2010.

Hershiser is like an elusive animal – hard to catch, and oftentimes leaves you catching just a glimpse but never long enough to snap a picture.

So, I waited.  And waited.  And waited some more.

Through the end of the 2010 baseball season.  And through a broken arm, rehab, and bad timing – I waited….

Well, the wait paid off, as it usually does, and now I have signed baseball number 45 in my collection.

And it is signed brilliantly by 1988’s Mr. Everything – Orel Hershiser.  I opted for the 1988 NL CY inscription, and now that I see the ball, I wish that I went for a 1988 CY, NLCS MVP, WS MVP inscription.

But beggars cannot be chosers, and I am just thrilled to finally get this ball home.  It had been a very long time, but the result is absolutely worth the wait.

See for yourself…

I told ya!!

Signed perfectly by one of the pitchers that captivated me during my youth, this baseball marks the entire 1988 baseball season for me.  A season that I will never forget thanks to ‘The Bulldog’!!!

Frank Robinson 1990 Topps – Manager Card

Frank Robinson 1990 Topps – Manager Card

I cannot recall when I picked up this card.  I am not even positive that I paid for it as it may have been part of a package of cards from a ’30-YOC’ reader.

Either way, this baseball card has been sitting on my desk for some time – so it was time to scan it, show it off, and file it with the rest of my Frank Robinson baseball cards.

And while my preference is to collect cards of Robinson that feature him from his playing days, sneaking in a card of an older and wiser Frank Robinson into the collection is not a bad thing…

As for the 1990 Topps design – it rates as one of my least favorite designs from my youth.

Tony Perez 1984 Fleer Updated

Tony Perez 1984 Fleer Updated

Wow, look at how happy Tony Perez is to be back in Cincinnati!!

And who could blame him?  After his first extremely successful tour with the Reds, Perez suited up for the Expos, Red Sox, and Phillies.  And while he was always individually successful at each of his big league stops, there is no doubt that his best times and happiest times at the major league level came when he was playing with ‘The Big Red Machine’.

Known as the ‘Circle of Life’, you can very easily see from the huge smile on his face that Perez was thrilled to be back with the Reds.

Did You Know…

John Valentin is the only player to perform each of these three achievements – perform an unassisted triple-play (7/8/1994), hit three homers in a game (6/2/1995), and hit for the cycle (6/6/1996).

**factoid courtesy of ‘Big League Trivia’