Sometimes you get an itch, and you've got to scratch it. That happened recently for me with Topps Archives Signature Series cards. I got on eBay to see which of these encased, autographed, serially-numbered cards I could get on the cheap. I wound up with three cards from three different decades, used in three different Archives Signature Series sets.
First up is this 1982 Topps Kent Tekulve autograph, encased and stamped as part of the 2016 Topps Archives Signature Series All-Star edition. There are plenty of these out there, with this one numbered # 078 / 134. This is such a cool card, with the purple and orange on the border and Tekulve wearing the yellow and black like a boss. I was pretty happy to land this one.
I didn't know much about Pat Borders, but I like the 1990 Topps design and the price was right. I did a little reading up on Borders, and it was pretty interesting. He never made the All-Star team, but he won two World Series rings, a World Series MVP, and an Olympic Gold Medal. Fittingly for a guy who earned most of his fame in the playoffs, this card was signed for the 2017 Topps Archives Signature Series Postseason edition. It's # 13 / 47, and features a nice shot of Borders in his catching gear.
The last card is from 2014 Topps Mini, signed and stamped as part of 2017 Topps Archives Signature Series. It features Derek Norris, a guy who I was building a small player collection for until his ex-fiancee accused him of domestic abuse in an Instagram post and he found himself out of baseball for a while. He denied the claims, but MLB found enough in their investigation to suspend him for a while. He signed a minor league deal with Detroit in December. The team says that they had done some looking into the incident, and determined that he deserved another chance. This card is numbered # 1 / 1.
That Tukelve card is pretty sweet. It seems like it would be difficult to play baseball wearing that tall hat. Great pick ups!
ReplyDeleteIt does seem like it would be difficult to wear a tall hat while playing baseball. It would look kinda goofy to add a chinstrap to it, though.
DeleteCan't go wrong with a Tekulve card!
ReplyDeleteI like how Borders signed his card in the only free space he could find. Made me chuckle a little bit.
Yeah, there wasn't a lot of room on that card for a dark-colored signature. He did what he could with it.
DeleteI was pretty bummed to hear about Norris. He was one of my favorite players during his time in Oakland. I obviously don't condone his actions, but hopefully he's able to learn from his mistakes and do something with this second chance.
ReplyDeleteP.S. Cool cards. I love picking up these on the cheap as well.
It was pretty disappointing to hear the news about him. I do hope that he's been able to make the necessary changes in his life.
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