It's hot here. Too hot. The kind of heat that makes me skip the farmer's market and grocery shopping. That means more time to clean the house and sort some cards.
Today I targeted three packages Rod over at Padrographs sent me back at the start of summer. I thought it was gonna take me a few weeks to get to them, but it ended up taking a few months.
There's obviously way too much to cover in a single post, so I decided to focus on what he's best known for: autographs.
Let's start with some familiar names...
2011 Topps #178
Let's take a trip back to the 80's...
Did you know that Mark Davis is one of five pitchers to win a Cy Young Award while representing the Padres? He was also part of the trade that sent Dravecky to the San Francisco Giants.
1985 Mother's Cookies Padres #1
Dick Williams was the manager of the Padres when I started rooting for them during the 1984 World Series.
1985 Fleer #30
If you followed baseball back in the 80's, then you're familiar with Dravecky's story. If not and you're interested, click here.
What you might not know is that his signature changed after he had his left arm amputated. If you ever see a signed ball, photo, or card of his with his first and last name on the same line, then it was before his surgery. These days, he's signs his last name below his first.
1990 Donruss #302
I wish I could write about all of the autographs that Rod sent my way, but it's getting late and I really want to publish this post tonight. But feel free to check them out... and offer any comments on any of these guys down below:
Not all of the autographs from Rod were of the TTM or IP variety. Here are the pack pulled autographs:
Rod went big and sent me this really cool Topps buyback autograph of Goose Gossage:
2013 Leaf Perfect Game Showcase Jersey Auto #JA-JN1
When I saw this card, his name sounded familiar. Then I looked him up and was reminded of the time he broke into someone's house, got kicked in the face, and tasered. On the brighter side, he's still playing pro ball in Mexico.
2013 Bowman DP&P Autographs #BCA-HR
2020 Bowman Platinum Top Prospects Auto #TOP-59
2022 Prizm Draft Picks Signing Sessions #SS-DM
2024 Topps Archives Signature Series (1987 Topps #380)
This is only my second Gossage autograph featuring him with the Padres... and my first with him signing across his face. I was very surprised to see this card slide out of the small flat rate shipping box.
But I was even more surprised to see this framed and matted signature:
Yup. That's a cut signature of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar... one of the greatest basketball players of all-time. When I turned it over and saw it, I was left speechless.
He also sent me an autograph of this lesser known Laker:
2012-13 Absolute Rookie Auto #182
Not gonna lie. I've never heard of Mr. Johnson-Odom. But he does share the last names of two famous and popular Lakers legends: Magic Johnson and Lamar Odom.
Let's wrap things up with the final two autographs he sent me...
1991-92 Score Canadian Bilingual #554
Brian Hayward was one of the Minnesota North Stars players chosen by the Sharks as part of the special dispersal draft in 1991. He's credited as being the goalie in the first win in franchise history.
A few years ago Rod sent me a relic card from Harmon's NCIS days. It was one of my mom's favorite television shows. And now I have an autograph to go with it.
If you're wondering why he's featured as a quarterback for UCLA, that's because he was their starting quarterback in 1972 and 1973. The thing I mainly remember him for is his role in Summer School.
Obviously there's a lot of other stuff I need to cover in regards to Rod's care packages, but it's already Monday in some parts of the country, so I'm going to wrap this up here.
Thank you Rod! And thank goodness the temperature has finally dropped into the 70's.
Happy Sunday and sayonara!
