Saturday, April 18, 2009: Cleveland Indians and Milwaukee Brewers Hotel
After getting home Friday night at about 2:15 in the morning from dropping my friend off at his house, I re-organized my cards and added extras to players who I had used and needed more of. I grabbed some food and a drink and laid down on my nice leather couch downstairs and watched Sportscenter. I was heading out again just about 2 hours later to meet up with a friend who was staying in NYC. We hung out for a little while and then headed back over to Grand Central to get some breakfast, and I soon after headed back to the hotel for another long day of autograph collecting. There is apparantly a 4:39 train that leaves the station from where I get on. Apparently, there is also a 4:39 AM. Who knew? Something like this:
It was around 8:00 at this point and a fellow autograph collector called and let me know that I had missed Trevor Hoffman. Unfortunately Trevor was personalizing everything, which stinks, but I'd rather have a personalized anything from Trevor than nothing at all.
Anyway, it was the Brewers who had the early 1:00 game today, and the Indians had the later 3:40 game, so obviously the Brewers would be heading out earlier today. My first autograph came from injured reliever David Riske. Soon then after Prince Fielder and Craig Counsell walked out of the hotel together. Prince is obviously the better player, but since I had gotten him 4 times the day before, I went for Craig, since I have never gotten him before, and he is a guy who doesnt sign a lot either. After Craig signed one, I tried to get Prince, but he was mobbed and a taxi showed up and he had to hit the road. Oh well. At least I got someone.
Next out was Mitch Stetter. The lefty signed one like he always does, but hes cool, and you can grab him over and over again throughout the day when he comes in and out later on, and thats what I did. The bus arrived, and more players started showing up to hop on it. First one out was Todd Coffey, who I had nothing left for since he signed all 6 cards the day before. Brad Nelson, another chubby type player was next out, and I had his 2009 Upper Deck card that he signed as well, which was cool since it was the first 09 UD card I got done.
Next out was Mike Cameron. Mike is a great guy, and will sign a board for everyone if they had one. I did have one, and got 9 cards signed. For those of us who collect in NYC, you will undoubtadly know Sheldon. Sheldon is an older man, who gets various free items signed such as All-Star Game ballots, Starbucks menu pamphlets, and I've heard Metropolitain Museum of Art pamphlets. Well in addition to that he is also clearly a little not all connected. He will ask and shout for the player no matter who it is "Sign an autograph for an older gentleman? Sign one for a fan? Hey what about me?" It doesn't matter who it is, he will do it.
Cameron, is signing for other people first and Sheldon is screaming at him to sign while wagging a 2008 All-Star ballot in his face.
"Aight man. Hang on dude. Jeez, It's nine-thirty in the morning man. Its way too f****** early for this s***. Just calm down." Cameron yells at him.
"I just want an autograph. For a fan." Replies Sheldon
"Yeah, you think your the only fan out here. I wouldnt be mobbed by like twenty people if they didnt give a s*** about me, would I?" Cameron says.
Now at this point everyone is cracking up. Even Cameron is laughing. I think he signed for Sheldon. I didnt see it, because Bill Hall had walked outside with Cameron and I had gone over to get Bill as well. His auto is simple. But it looks nice on an Allen and Ginter and an 06 SP Authentic.
Then we saw Jeff Suppan and Braden Looper walking down. They walked through the hotel and towards Starbucks, so when they came back I got Suppan to sign a card but Looper walked right onto the bus without signing for anyone. Then the bus left. Cameron and Hall were having trouble locating their driver, and were about to jump on the bus, but then their driver got in touch with them. Casey McGehee came out about 2 minutes later and he signed a card quickly before he jumped into a car with Cameron and Hall.
That was it for the Brewers for the morning, but the Indians would start to come out almost right after that, as they were going to leave an hour or two later.
I went to a Dunkin Donuts real quick to get a drink, and as I was returning I noticed a mob around someone who was getting into a taxi. It was Kerry Wood. Kerry is one of the tougher players to get to sign in the league, so I was bummed because I thought I missed a golden oppertunity. I looked over and noticed that his taxi got stuck at a nearby red light and I headed over to see if I could get him to do a rolldown. A rolldown is where a player is in their car and signs in the street for you. Sure enough, he rolled it down right as i came over and I gave him a card and he signed it for me. That was huge since he is tough to get, and especially in the manner I got him in. I was really lucky.
Next out was Kelly Shoppach, who headed out of the hotel. He was nice as always and he signed one like he normally does. Anthony Reyes came out soon after, and same thing like Shoppach, he signs one per person. I got my 2005 Bowmans Best Card done, which is nice and chrome, so I was very happy about that.
After Reyes, Ryan Garko came out and headed over to grab a coffee or something. He signed three more cards giving me 8 so far fort he trip. Nice guy, as always. He would go back into the hotel a little later on. Tony Graffanino was next out of the hotel with his kids. He too is a nice guy, and like the previous night he signed four more cards for me, and like Garko, I had 8 signed cards of him as well.
A few minutes later we noticed a group of 5 players coming out of the hotel. Cliff Lee, Carl Pavano, Vinnie Chulk, Aaron Laffey, and Ryan Garko were the five guys. We followed them closely and they went into a luggage store. Garko bought some kind of a small bag and the five headed out of the store. Pavano was the first one out, and again got his autograph, this time on a 2003 card of him on Florida. Cliff Lee came out next, followed by everyone else. Even though Cliff was on his cell phone he was nice enough to sign while talking. I also got Vinnie Chulk to sign the remaining 3 cards that I had.
That was it before they left for their game. Now both teams were out at the stadiums, leaving the collectors to occupy some time until they returned. I hung out with this guy Matt and we headed over to the ESPN Zone in Times Square to check out the all the games that were going on. There was baseball of course, then some NBA playoffs and the NHL playoffs as well, including the Rangers game. We got some dessert and sodas and just watched the games. We headed out and walked down towards MSG. We walked around for a while, and eventually ended up in Bryant Park, throwing sunflower seeds at pigeons, which is suprisingly fun. After that I headed over to Grand Central to use the bathrooms and purchase my train ticket to go home.
Anyone watch the show on MYV called the real world? They take people with all sorts of backgrounds and throw them in this fancy schmancy house for a few months and video tape their lives. Anyway, for those who watch, this past season was in Brooklyn. Some of the cast members decided to stay in NYC after the show was over to pursue their careers in the Big Apple, and I happened to bump into Scott Herman from the show. I dont watch the show every season, but I happened to watch this one since it was in Brooklyn. Scott is an awesome guy. He gave $1500 to a fellow cast member, Katelynn, so she could afford to pay her bills and stay in New York and on the show. He wasn't looking for her to pay him back, he wasnt looking for anything but to help a friend, someone who he cares about, make it through with the rest of the cast for the show. There arent really words that can describe how generous and amazing what he did was. We talked for a little while, and he asked what I was up to in the city, and I told him all about what I was doing, and he thought it was the coolest thing. I shook his hand and thanked him, and grabbed a picture with him which came out blurry because my camera was dying:
As cool as that was, there were still baseball autographs to get. The Brewers/Mets game was a quick pitchers duel between Johan and Yovanni Gallardo, and we headed back over the other way to the hotel. The bus came about an hour, twenty minutes after the game ended. Again we wanted to get Ryan Braun when he came off, but he said no. So we stopped Corey Hart instead. Corey is another big time player on the Brewers who is really cool. He signed 5 cards for me inclduing 2 Allen and Ginters, and last years Upper Deck X.
After Corey Hart, Mitch Stetter appeared and we got him to sign again, and like always he does one at a time. Then came a big hit. Jason Kendall. Your probably sitting there on your computer at home, scratching your head wondering: "how in the world could Jason Kendall be a big hit. Yeah, he had some good years in Pittsburgh. But Jason Kendall? He just got Corey Hart and Prince Fielder, and Victor Martinez the night before." Now, when I say big hit, I dont mean it as Albert Pujols big, but the difficulty into getting Jason Kendall to sign at the hotel. You are more likely to get hit by lightning. I was happy that he signed an Allen and Ginter, unfortunately it was someone else's very thick marker and the autograph is very thick, which I hate, but I'm just happy to have gotten him.
After Kendall, Casey McGehee (pronounced McGee) came out with his wife and a stroller. Normally it is a common courtesy to let them go about their lives, but he was more than happy to sign. He only signed one of five for me earlier, but finished off all 4 remaining. Including a Bowmans Best, just like the Anthony Reyes shown above.
A little while later Ken Macha walked out of the hotel and headed up the street. I caught up to him. I felt bad because he was with his family, but they were thrilled about it actually. His wife couldnt be nicer, and he was funny.
"Tough loss today Mr. Macha." I said.
"Yeah it was a tough one." Says his wife, actually.
"Ehh." Replies Ken
"Well, thank you for signing, and good luck to you this season." I told him.
"Thank you!" Shouts his wife.
"Ehh." Ken says again.
It was really funny how he just said "ehh" to everything because he seriously thought about what to say both times. Upon making my way back to the hotel after following Ken up the street a little but, Chris Duffy was making his way back with his very pregnant wife to the hotel. He was mobbed by literally twenty people. He was really cool about it and his wife was all smiles. he signed 3 inclduing a 2007 Allen and Ginter, which I have no idea how he got, but hey, works for me.
Hitting coach, and last years intererm manager Dale Sveum came out a little while later. He is apparenly tough to get as well, but luckily he did sign the lonesome 1988 Topps card I have of him. About 20 minutes after he left, Mike Cameron and Bill Hall came out together again. Most people went up to Cameron, and left Bill Hall standing alone. Cameron would sign, but Bill Hall signed another one, giving me 3 for the day. A few minutes later Prince Fielder walks out of the hotel, and again gets mobbed. I was lucky that I got him this time, once on a nice 2008 UD A Piece of History, and a new 2009 UD Spectrum, both of which came out rather nicely. After that, Seth McClung was the last guy we would see for a while. He signed his absolutely terrible signature on 2 cards. About an hour after that Dave Riske came out again, and signed one like he normally does.
After that there was a big gap until someone else came around, and that was some of the Indians returned off the bus after returning from the game. Kelly Shoppach signed one off the bus, giving me a total of 4 for the series. Right after that, someone had told me that Kerry Wood had walked down the street. We headed down that way and sure enough he was coming back our way. He wasnt happy at all, but he did sign a few as he made his way back to the hotel. I was lucky enough to grab him again.
Unfortunately, I missed out on Ryan Braun. He and some friends were waiting for a taxi to go to dinner. He did sign, but I wasnt able to get up to him in time before he jumped into the cab. Bummer.
After that, Yovanni Gallardo returned with his family on one of those bicycle cab things. We had seen him go out earlier and he said when he came back he would sign. He kept his word, and signed a 2007 Topps 52 Rookies Card and a 2009 Topps Heritage, a pair of very nice cards. Mitch Stetter was looking for a place to grab some food. Some other collectors recommended a few places. He took the ideas, and when he returned about twenty minutes later he signed one more for me, the fourth of the series.
After that Trevor Hoffman came out. I have gotten Trevor 3 times before, and after seeing his autograph I wasnt that upset that I didnt get him, and for the fact that he was personalizing everything. But it still would have been awesome to have gotten him one more time. I guess since Milwaukee doesnt come back to NYC, the only chance I can get him would be going down to Philly or DC and trying there, or if Milwaukee is out of contention and someone is looking for relief and he gets traded to a team that comes in later in the year. After he stopped signing I did try and get him to do one more...
"Please Trevor, just one more."
"Im sorry, Im going to dinner, when I come back."
"Please Trevor, my train leaves in 10 minutes! Im a huge fan and it would really mean so, so much to me."
"Well I really appreciate that your a fan, but I'm going to dinner, so maybe when I come back."
"Alright, thank you Trevor."
I tried, but it didnt work. It worked on Jake Peavy last year, when I told him I had to go to work, but oh well.
Fausto Carmona came out a little while later. He had refused earlier in the day since he was pitching, but since at this point there were only 3 people there he had no problem signing a nice 08 Allen and Ginter for me. It was only 9:45 at this point but after signing he told me that I should go to bed. I probably needed to, since I had basically an hour of sleep since Thursday at 11:30 am, but I wanted to wait for Trevor Hoffman.
Jhonny Peralta was the next guy out a few minutes later, and he was nice as always. He signed five for me, making him the high man for the series on both teams with 11 cards signed.
After seeing Trevor Hoffman back in the hotel, I decided to head home. I knew I somehow missed him. He either walked right by me or he took the side entrance which is more likely. That was the day. I walked back over to Grand Central and grabbed a train and went home very happy anyway.
Here's the Reacp:
Cleveland Indians
Rafael Betancourt: Refused
Fausto Carmona: 1/9
Vinnie Chulk: 3/3
Zach Jackson: Missed
Masahide Kobayashi: Missed
Aaron Laffey: 0/0
Cliff Lee: 1/9
Jensen Lewis: Refused
Carl Pavano: 1/8
Rafael Perez: Refused
Anthony Reyes: 1/8
Joe Smith: Refused
Keryy Wood: 2/6
Victor Martinez: Missed
Kelly Shoppach: 2/6
Asdrubal Cabrera: Missed
Mark DeRosa: Missed
Ryan Garko: 3/9
Tony Graffanino: 4/7
Johnny Peralta: 5/8
Shin-Soo Choo: Missed
Trevor Crowe: Missed
Ben Francisco: Missed
Grady Sizemore: Refused
Travis Hafner: Refused
Eric Wedge: Missed
Joel Skinner: Missed
Rick Manning: Missed
Jamey Carroll: Missed
Indians Total: 23
Milwaukee Brewers
Dave Bush: Missed
Todd Coffey: 0/0
Mark DiFelice: Missed
Yovanni Gallardo: 2/9
Jorge Julio: 0/0
Braden Looper: Missed
Seth McClung: 2/5
Manny Parra: Missed
Mitch Stetter: 3/4
Jeff Suppan: 1/9
RJ Swindle: Missed
Carlos Villanueva: Missed
Jason Kendall: 1/9
Mike Rivera: Missed
Craig Counsell: 1/9
Prince Fielder: 2/9
Bill Hall: 3/9
JJ Hardy: Missed
Casey McGehee: 5/5
Brad Nelson: 1/1
Rickie Weeks: Missed
Ryan Braun: Refused
Mike Cameron: 9/9
Chris Duffy: 3/9
Corey Hart: 5/9
Ken Macha: 5/5
Dale Sveum: 1/1
Willie Randolph: Missed
Trevor Hoffman: Refused
David Riske: 2/7
Brewers Total: 46
Here are the highlights from Saturday's collecting:
The next time I will be in the city will be for the Nationals on April 25th. There will certainly be a blog update, with hopefully a monster of a day to report! Until then enjoy these two mammoth updates!
Season Stats
Saturday's Total: 69 Autographs
Season Total: 138 Autographs
Average Total: 69 Autographs/Hotel
**Tied Record: Most Autographs obtained in a 2 team day (with 4/17/09)
It was around 8:00 at this point and a fellow autograph collector called and let me know that I had missed Trevor Hoffman. Unfortunately Trevor was personalizing everything, which stinks, but I'd rather have a personalized anything from Trevor than nothing at all.
Anyway, it was the Brewers who had the early 1:00 game today, and the Indians had the later 3:40 game, so obviously the Brewers would be heading out earlier today. My first autograph came from injured reliever David Riske. Soon then after Prince Fielder and Craig Counsell walked out of the hotel together. Prince is obviously the better player, but since I had gotten him 4 times the day before, I went for Craig, since I have never gotten him before, and he is a guy who doesnt sign a lot either. After Craig signed one, I tried to get Prince, but he was mobbed and a taxi showed up and he had to hit the road. Oh well. At least I got someone.
Next out was Mitch Stetter. The lefty signed one like he always does, but hes cool, and you can grab him over and over again throughout the day when he comes in and out later on, and thats what I did. The bus arrived, and more players started showing up to hop on it. First one out was Todd Coffey, who I had nothing left for since he signed all 6 cards the day before. Brad Nelson, another chubby type player was next out, and I had his 2009 Upper Deck card that he signed as well, which was cool since it was the first 09 UD card I got done.
Next out was Mike Cameron. Mike is a great guy, and will sign a board for everyone if they had one. I did have one, and got 9 cards signed. For those of us who collect in NYC, you will undoubtadly know Sheldon. Sheldon is an older man, who gets various free items signed such as All-Star Game ballots, Starbucks menu pamphlets, and I've heard Metropolitain Museum of Art pamphlets. Well in addition to that he is also clearly a little not all connected. He will ask and shout for the player no matter who it is "Sign an autograph for an older gentleman? Sign one for a fan? Hey what about me?" It doesn't matter who it is, he will do it.
Cameron, is signing for other people first and Sheldon is screaming at him to sign while wagging a 2008 All-Star ballot in his face.
"Aight man. Hang on dude. Jeez, It's nine-thirty in the morning man. Its way too f****** early for this s***. Just calm down." Cameron yells at him.
"I just want an autograph. For a fan." Replies Sheldon
"Yeah, you think your the only fan out here. I wouldnt be mobbed by like twenty people if they didnt give a s*** about me, would I?" Cameron says.
Now at this point everyone is cracking up. Even Cameron is laughing. I think he signed for Sheldon. I didnt see it, because Bill Hall had walked outside with Cameron and I had gone over to get Bill as well. His auto is simple. But it looks nice on an Allen and Ginter and an 06 SP Authentic.
Then we saw Jeff Suppan and Braden Looper walking down. They walked through the hotel and towards Starbucks, so when they came back I got Suppan to sign a card but Looper walked right onto the bus without signing for anyone. Then the bus left. Cameron and Hall were having trouble locating their driver, and were about to jump on the bus, but then their driver got in touch with them. Casey McGehee came out about 2 minutes later and he signed a card quickly before he jumped into a car with Cameron and Hall.
That was it for the Brewers for the morning, but the Indians would start to come out almost right after that, as they were going to leave an hour or two later.
I went to a Dunkin Donuts real quick to get a drink, and as I was returning I noticed a mob around someone who was getting into a taxi. It was Kerry Wood. Kerry is one of the tougher players to get to sign in the league, so I was bummed because I thought I missed a golden oppertunity. I looked over and noticed that his taxi got stuck at a nearby red light and I headed over to see if I could get him to do a rolldown. A rolldown is where a player is in their car and signs in the street for you. Sure enough, he rolled it down right as i came over and I gave him a card and he signed it for me. That was huge since he is tough to get, and especially in the manner I got him in. I was really lucky.
Next out was Kelly Shoppach, who headed out of the hotel. He was nice as always and he signed one like he normally does. Anthony Reyes came out soon after, and same thing like Shoppach, he signs one per person. I got my 2005 Bowmans Best Card done, which is nice and chrome, so I was very happy about that.
After Reyes, Ryan Garko came out and headed over to grab a coffee or something. He signed three more cards giving me 8 so far fort he trip. Nice guy, as always. He would go back into the hotel a little later on. Tony Graffanino was next out of the hotel with his kids. He too is a nice guy, and like the previous night he signed four more cards for me, and like Garko, I had 8 signed cards of him as well.
A few minutes later we noticed a group of 5 players coming out of the hotel. Cliff Lee, Carl Pavano, Vinnie Chulk, Aaron Laffey, and Ryan Garko were the five guys. We followed them closely and they went into a luggage store. Garko bought some kind of a small bag and the five headed out of the store. Pavano was the first one out, and again got his autograph, this time on a 2003 card of him on Florida. Cliff Lee came out next, followed by everyone else. Even though Cliff was on his cell phone he was nice enough to sign while talking. I also got Vinnie Chulk to sign the remaining 3 cards that I had.
That was it before they left for their game. Now both teams were out at the stadiums, leaving the collectors to occupy some time until they returned. I hung out with this guy Matt and we headed over to the ESPN Zone in Times Square to check out the all the games that were going on. There was baseball of course, then some NBA playoffs and the NHL playoffs as well, including the Rangers game. We got some dessert and sodas and just watched the games. We headed out and walked down towards MSG. We walked around for a while, and eventually ended up in Bryant Park, throwing sunflower seeds at pigeons, which is suprisingly fun. After that I headed over to Grand Central to use the bathrooms and purchase my train ticket to go home.
Anyone watch the show on MYV called the real world? They take people with all sorts of backgrounds and throw them in this fancy schmancy house for a few months and video tape their lives. Anyway, for those who watch, this past season was in Brooklyn. Some of the cast members decided to stay in NYC after the show was over to pursue their careers in the Big Apple, and I happened to bump into Scott Herman from the show. I dont watch the show every season, but I happened to watch this one since it was in Brooklyn. Scott is an awesome guy. He gave $1500 to a fellow cast member, Katelynn, so she could afford to pay her bills and stay in New York and on the show. He wasn't looking for her to pay him back, he wasnt looking for anything but to help a friend, someone who he cares about, make it through with the rest of the cast for the show. There arent really words that can describe how generous and amazing what he did was. We talked for a little while, and he asked what I was up to in the city, and I told him all about what I was doing, and he thought it was the coolest thing. I shook his hand and thanked him, and grabbed a picture with him which came out blurry because my camera was dying:
As cool as that was, there were still baseball autographs to get. The Brewers/Mets game was a quick pitchers duel between Johan and Yovanni Gallardo, and we headed back over the other way to the hotel. The bus came about an hour, twenty minutes after the game ended. Again we wanted to get Ryan Braun when he came off, but he said no. So we stopped Corey Hart instead. Corey is another big time player on the Brewers who is really cool. He signed 5 cards for me inclduing 2 Allen and Ginters, and last years Upper Deck X.
After Corey Hart, Mitch Stetter appeared and we got him to sign again, and like always he does one at a time. Then came a big hit. Jason Kendall. Your probably sitting there on your computer at home, scratching your head wondering: "how in the world could Jason Kendall be a big hit. Yeah, he had some good years in Pittsburgh. But Jason Kendall? He just got Corey Hart and Prince Fielder, and Victor Martinez the night before." Now, when I say big hit, I dont mean it as Albert Pujols big, but the difficulty into getting Jason Kendall to sign at the hotel. You are more likely to get hit by lightning. I was happy that he signed an Allen and Ginter, unfortunately it was someone else's very thick marker and the autograph is very thick, which I hate, but I'm just happy to have gotten him.
After Kendall, Casey McGehee (pronounced McGee) came out with his wife and a stroller. Normally it is a common courtesy to let them go about their lives, but he was more than happy to sign. He only signed one of five for me earlier, but finished off all 4 remaining. Including a Bowmans Best, just like the Anthony Reyes shown above.
A little while later Ken Macha walked out of the hotel and headed up the street. I caught up to him. I felt bad because he was with his family, but they were thrilled about it actually. His wife couldnt be nicer, and he was funny.
"Tough loss today Mr. Macha." I said.
"Yeah it was a tough one." Says his wife, actually.
"Ehh." Replies Ken
"Well, thank you for signing, and good luck to you this season." I told him.
"Thank you!" Shouts his wife.
"Ehh." Ken says again.
It was really funny how he just said "ehh" to everything because he seriously thought about what to say both times. Upon making my way back to the hotel after following Ken up the street a little but, Chris Duffy was making his way back with his very pregnant wife to the hotel. He was mobbed by literally twenty people. He was really cool about it and his wife was all smiles. he signed 3 inclduing a 2007 Allen and Ginter, which I have no idea how he got, but hey, works for me.
Hitting coach, and last years intererm manager Dale Sveum came out a little while later. He is apparenly tough to get as well, but luckily he did sign the lonesome 1988 Topps card I have of him. About 20 minutes after he left, Mike Cameron and Bill Hall came out together again. Most people went up to Cameron, and left Bill Hall standing alone. Cameron would sign, but Bill Hall signed another one, giving me 3 for the day. A few minutes later Prince Fielder walks out of the hotel, and again gets mobbed. I was lucky that I got him this time, once on a nice 2008 UD A Piece of History, and a new 2009 UD Spectrum, both of which came out rather nicely. After that, Seth McClung was the last guy we would see for a while. He signed his absolutely terrible signature on 2 cards. About an hour after that Dave Riske came out again, and signed one like he normally does.
After that there was a big gap until someone else came around, and that was some of the Indians returned off the bus after returning from the game. Kelly Shoppach signed one off the bus, giving me a total of 4 for the series. Right after that, someone had told me that Kerry Wood had walked down the street. We headed down that way and sure enough he was coming back our way. He wasnt happy at all, but he did sign a few as he made his way back to the hotel. I was lucky enough to grab him again.
Unfortunately, I missed out on Ryan Braun. He and some friends were waiting for a taxi to go to dinner. He did sign, but I wasnt able to get up to him in time before he jumped into the cab. Bummer.
After that, Yovanni Gallardo returned with his family on one of those bicycle cab things. We had seen him go out earlier and he said when he came back he would sign. He kept his word, and signed a 2007 Topps 52 Rookies Card and a 2009 Topps Heritage, a pair of very nice cards. Mitch Stetter was looking for a place to grab some food. Some other collectors recommended a few places. He took the ideas, and when he returned about twenty minutes later he signed one more for me, the fourth of the series.
After that Trevor Hoffman came out. I have gotten Trevor 3 times before, and after seeing his autograph I wasnt that upset that I didnt get him, and for the fact that he was personalizing everything. But it still would have been awesome to have gotten him one more time. I guess since Milwaukee doesnt come back to NYC, the only chance I can get him would be going down to Philly or DC and trying there, or if Milwaukee is out of contention and someone is looking for relief and he gets traded to a team that comes in later in the year. After he stopped signing I did try and get him to do one more...
"Please Trevor, just one more."
"Im sorry, Im going to dinner, when I come back."
"Please Trevor, my train leaves in 10 minutes! Im a huge fan and it would really mean so, so much to me."
"Well I really appreciate that your a fan, but I'm going to dinner, so maybe when I come back."
"Alright, thank you Trevor."
I tried, but it didnt work. It worked on Jake Peavy last year, when I told him I had to go to work, but oh well.
Fausto Carmona came out a little while later. He had refused earlier in the day since he was pitching, but since at this point there were only 3 people there he had no problem signing a nice 08 Allen and Ginter for me. It was only 9:45 at this point but after signing he told me that I should go to bed. I probably needed to, since I had basically an hour of sleep since Thursday at 11:30 am, but I wanted to wait for Trevor Hoffman.
Jhonny Peralta was the next guy out a few minutes later, and he was nice as always. He signed five for me, making him the high man for the series on both teams with 11 cards signed.
After seeing Trevor Hoffman back in the hotel, I decided to head home. I knew I somehow missed him. He either walked right by me or he took the side entrance which is more likely. That was the day. I walked back over to Grand Central and grabbed a train and went home very happy anyway.
Here's the Reacp:
Cleveland Indians
Rafael Betancourt: Refused
Fausto Carmona: 1/9
Vinnie Chulk: 3/3
Zach Jackson: Missed
Masahide Kobayashi: Missed
Aaron Laffey: 0/0
Cliff Lee: 1/9
Jensen Lewis: Refused
Carl Pavano: 1/8
Rafael Perez: Refused
Anthony Reyes: 1/8
Joe Smith: Refused
Keryy Wood: 2/6
Victor Martinez: Missed
Kelly Shoppach: 2/6
Asdrubal Cabrera: Missed
Mark DeRosa: Missed
Ryan Garko: 3/9
Tony Graffanino: 4/7
Johnny Peralta: 5/8
Shin-Soo Choo: Missed
Trevor Crowe: Missed
Ben Francisco: Missed
Grady Sizemore: Refused
Travis Hafner: Refused
Eric Wedge: Missed
Joel Skinner: Missed
Rick Manning: Missed
Jamey Carroll: Missed
Indians Total: 23
Milwaukee Brewers
Dave Bush: Missed
Todd Coffey: 0/0
Mark DiFelice: Missed
Yovanni Gallardo: 2/9
Jorge Julio: 0/0
Braden Looper: Missed
Seth McClung: 2/5
Manny Parra: Missed
Mitch Stetter: 3/4
Jeff Suppan: 1/9
RJ Swindle: Missed
Carlos Villanueva: Missed
Jason Kendall: 1/9
Mike Rivera: Missed
Craig Counsell: 1/9
Prince Fielder: 2/9
Bill Hall: 3/9
JJ Hardy: Missed
Casey McGehee: 5/5
Brad Nelson: 1/1
Rickie Weeks: Missed
Ryan Braun: Refused
Mike Cameron: 9/9
Chris Duffy: 3/9
Corey Hart: 5/9
Ken Macha: 5/5
Dale Sveum: 1/1
Willie Randolph: Missed
Trevor Hoffman: Refused
David Riske: 2/7
Brewers Total: 46
Here are the highlights from Saturday's collecting:
The next time I will be in the city will be for the Nationals on April 25th. There will certainly be a blog update, with hopefully a monster of a day to report! Until then enjoy these two mammoth updates!
Season Stats
Saturday's Total: 69 Autographs
Season Total: 138 Autographs
Average Total: 69 Autographs/Hotel
**Tied Record: Most Autographs obtained in a 2 team day (with 4/17/09)
hey.....great blog. I will see you around this year. Great totals. I actually recognize you from seeing you at a Mets vs. Marlins game last year. The one were hanley signed a storm in the game.
I know you don't give out info but maybe we can work something out through email. Send me a email at: nilo@jillsingergraphics.com Thanks! Also do you do basketball?
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hey.....great blog. I will see you around this year. Great totals. I actually recognize you from seeing you at a Mets vs. Marlins game last year. The one were hanley signed a storm in the game.
I know you don't give out info but maybe we can work something out through email. Send me a email at: nilo@jillsingergraphics.com Thanks! Also do you do basketball?
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Nope, no basketball for me, but the occasional hockey every now and again (based on team.) Thanks for reading, and Im sure ill see you too. I dont remember you, but send me an email to: joneli24@yahoo.com with a picture if you can and I'm sure we can work something out via email then.
-Jon
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