SIGnificant Cards - Johan Santana 2005 Fleer Skybox Autographics

Pitching a no-no will certainly garner you some headlines. Making it the first one in the often comical NY Mets fabled history, that's huge. If you take a look at some of the aces the Mets have had on their roster since their MLB debut in 1962, it is more than a little surprising that it took through 2012 to achieve this feat.

Here's a short list to peruse:

• Nolan Ryan 
• Tom Seaver 
• Jerry Koosman 
• Warren Spahn 
• Dwight Gooden 
• Tom Glavine 
• John Candelaria 
• Scott Erickson 
• Sid Fernandez 
• Orel Hershiser 
• Mickey Lolich 
• Bret Saberhagen 
• Frank Viola 

Amazin' right? You'd think one of those guys could pull off the feat, well maybe all of them except Spahn who was 210 years old when he joined the team as a player/coach.

So what does Santana's feat mean for the Mets? Well, to say it is huge is an understatement. The team needs some good mojo this year. They have been so sporadic and have taken a tremendous amount of flak for signing poor players, having bad management, overspending, etc. Right now they are only 1/2 a game out of first and things have turned around.

The night of the no-hitter I was preparing for an episode of Cardboard Connection Radio and knew one of my co-hosts Russ Cohen was going to be giddy about it. Ironically I was going to use the 2005 Fleer Skybox series as the Set of the Week to discuss on the show. I knew we'd be talking about the no-no, but at the last minute, I chose to have our listeners select the set of the week so I could save this card/set to discuss here.

Pictured above is the 2005 Skybox Autographs Johan Santana auto. It is card AG-JS and one of my favorites in my collection. I loved Fleer. Still do. At the bitter end, they were riddled with redemption cards that went unfulfilled for most collectors and buying those products now is a real gamble, but if you were lucky enough to get what was supposed to actually be in the packs, you did pretty well. Here's proof. This card comes right after his stellar breakout campaign in 2004. I had my doubts about holding on to it, but am glad I did. Other autographs that could be found in the set included Justin Verlander, B.J. Upton, Victor Martinez, Miguel Cabrera, Greg Maddux, and David Wright. I also pulled the Wright out of the same box. That's what you could expect from those last few Fleer products though, they were loaded. When I see them today, I walk away with a few boxes or some regret for not purchasing them. Usually they are priced fairly making me think YES-YES instead of No-No.

   
   

Autograph University is Live!

Do you collect autographs? Do you have a story about getting one that you think others would like to hear? Do yourself a favor and check out Matt Raymond's free eBook Autograph University. The free eBook is a compilation of stories of collectors getting autographs and it resonates with me on many levels, because over the years, I've chased down some autographs and have some really good memories to go along with them.

Here's a link to Matt's page. Enjoy!

Read Autograph University

Redemption Report Jimmy Howard by way of Cam Fowler - Mail Day

I'll take a card of a Red Wings player over a Lame Duck.

Playoff Contenders Hockey has delivered strong two years in a row. Last year I opened a phenomenal box that included Rookie Tickets of Jeff Skinner and a redemption card for Cam Fowler. The Skinner was a great addition to my collection as he is a Gold Medalist, and Calder Trophy winner. I thought equally high of the Ducks Fowler who was once touted as a possible top 5 draft pick.

I'm thinking part of the reason he dropped to 12 is that he can't sign his name. It's either that or he has some issues that pushed him down the list a bit that may be reliability related. I mean nearly every one else signed their rookie tickets for 2010-11, and superstars like Alex Ovechkin and Sydney Crosby have signed thousands of cards in the past couple of years. So have NHL icons Wayne Gretzky and Gordie Howe, so why hasn't Mr. Fowler? One can only guess that he believes he is better than those aforementioned players, right? Why else would he not be able to sign a few measly trading cards?

Whatever the reason is, it makes Fowler nothing more than a lame duck. Collectors may never get to enjoy his premiere autographed rookie card because he is a slacker! I waited patiently too. I submitted the redemption card to Panini on 8/23/2011. I actually sat on it awhile hoping he'd get his signatures back to them so I wouldn't have a long wait. Well, Cam... it's nearly a year later and longer than that for you to have actually signed, and guess what, you stiffed em'. So thanks for nothing!

I thought I gave him enough time, and Panini had just launched their Twitter customer service account, so I reached out to them. Within minutes I had a response and an inquiry of my favorite team. Within a day I had a choice for a replacement and within a week from that time had a new card in my hands. This awesome Jimmy Howard (thanks for signing on time), is a Mirror Gold parallel auto out of the Certified product. It is #'d to 25 and a more than suitable replacement. Major props to Panini for handling the issue so quickly and major gas face to Cam "I can't sign my cards" Fowler. 

The lesson for the day? Cam Fowler like other athletes that don't live up to their contractual obligations get the gas face!

SIGnificant Cards - 2011 Angela & Amber Cope Goodwin Champions Auto

Sunday mornings during my youth were spent watching Football in the winter and baseball and NASCAR in the summer. I wouldn't miss the STP car of Richard Petty race against the likes of Cale Yarborough, Buddy Baker, Davey Allison and others. in fact as I am writing this, a major wreck just took place in the 2012 FedEx 400.

NASCAR has come a long way since I was a kid. Sponsorship is a huge factor and the sport has become more diverse. Women also have made a strong impact in what has primarily been a male dominated sport. Danica Patrick has gotten the most attention for sure, but you can trace the 1st woman driver back to 1949 when Sara Christian drove at Charlotte.

Since Patrick has come aboard, other female drivers have made their presence known. Racers like Jennifer Jo Cobb, Johanna Long, Maryeve Dufault have all found their niche. Last year, I took notice of two other women drivers that I felt in my gut were going to be just a little different. We live in a world where reality TV, gimmicks and marketing have proven time and time again that talent sometimes gets overshadowed by hype. These girls have proven that their hard work is resulting in them getting over with fans and getting slots to compete on the Nationwide circuit.

In racing, family is everything. We've seen it many times over the years with the Petty, Bodine, Earnhardt, and Wallace clans, along with many others. Derrike Cope, a former Daytona 500 winner and long time driver at both the Sprint and Nationwide series has 2 twin nieces and they are looking for a family dynasty. The girls have followed in their uncle's footsteps and they are amassing a strong following. The girls have a team that is delivering for them. It consists of a plan with solid marketing, bringing in unique sponsors, and the fact that they are smart, gorgeous and good at what they do most definitely helps their cause. As a result, I started paying attention!

Angela and Amber Cope made NASCAR history when they became the first twins to race at the Nationwide level. If you want to get picky, it was the first time twins competed at ANY level of NASCAR. When I got wind of them, we immediately reached out to them for an interview on Cardboard Connection Radio. I am a huge Press Pass trading card collector and thought they'd be a perfect fit for their sets, especially riding off the popularity of Danica and her first autographed and memorabilia trading cards. We were fortunate enough to get an interview with the twins on several occasions (listen), and they are extremely passionate about becoming successful race car drivers at the top level.

Needless to say that as someone who has collected cards for over 35 years and reported about them for more than a decade, I was floored when I found out that Upper Deck has one-upped Press Pass and delivered the hobby the first autographed trading card of the Cope twins. The card comes from the 2011 Goodwin Champions set. There is a regular base card featuring both blonde bombshells on the same card in their racing gear. A variation of the card also appears on the autograph checklist. The card is unique because it is signed by both girls where many of the Goodwin cards were single signatures. it goes to show you the lengths Upper Deck will go to deliver a quality set. A lot of that can be directly attributed to Grant Sandground who is the mastermind behind the Goodwin revival.

If you are a loyal listener, you know I seek out autographed trading cards of guests that appear on my show. This was a no-brainer. I bought it the day I found out about it. Later, Press Pass issued autographs of the twins along with one of Maryeve Dufault in their exceptional Total Memorabilia product, but those will have to wait for another SIGnificant cards post.