Who is this? Braves scout Tony Demacio.
What is this? An autograph card from 2008 Bowman, card number SC-TD
Where'd I get it? EBay auction from Baseball Card City.
How much did it cost? Ninety nine cents and that included a 2008 Bowman Chipper Jones blue parallel numbered to 500.
Why is this so special? Ok, let's be perfectly frank about this, if Chipper Jones wasn't on this card I never would have bought it. The bonus card of Chipper helped too. Still it's no more strange than the umpire's autographs from Bowman Heritage and it's light years less ridiculous than the Rip Master auto from Finest. I just wish the checklist indicated what team the scout was associated with. I can't seem to find this info anywhere other than to plow through eBay listings for the few sellers who scanned the front and back of the card. I'd pick up any other Braves scouts out there for sure.
I agree with the sentiments with of card set at least, scouts have a huge impact on the success or failure of ball clubs and they really aren't given any respect at all. The Braves have relied on a steady stream of farmhands coming up to the show and performing well from Tom Glavine to Yunel Escobar. The penny pinching Twins have been successful by relying on young, inexpensive talent. The Tampa Bay Rays are leading their division out of nowhere because they hit on so many high draft picks. The Marlins have the lowest payroll by far and remain competitive due to their young players. Meanwhile the Yankees and Mets keep trading all their prospects for high priced vets and you see where they are right now.
One of Skip Carey's favorite things to rant about during Braves broadcasts is how dumb it is that scouts aren't even considered for the Hall of Fame. They're the ones who find all the Hall of Famers after all. I wouldn't have seen what Tony saw in Chipper, I know that for sure. I was too busy complaining because Van Poppel refused to sign with us even though we desperately needed good pitching to replace all those rookies that were getting hammered. You know, Glavine, Smoltz, Avery... the bums. Meanwhile Tony saw something in Chipper he didn't see in anyone else and convinced the organization to make Larry the #1 overall pick. Now that Chipper is one home run away from hitting his 400th, while batting .400 in freaking June, I sure am glad that Tony knew what to look for!
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