2009 Topps Andre Ethier

Who is this? Andre Ethier, an outfielder for the Los Angeles Dodgers

What is this? An autograph card from the 2009 Topps set

Where'd I get it? I wrote to Andre Ethier back during spring training and asked him to sign it; I got it back yesterday.

How much did it cost? The card came out of a pack; the autograph was free

Why is this so special? Andre Ethier is a talented young hitter. This season, he won a Silver Slugger award and finished sixth in the NL MVP voting. Ethier hit a career high 31 home runs and had a career high 106 RBI. There's no reason to think he won't continue to improve.

I'm hoping that Andre Ethier is the one who signed my card, but I'm a little less certain than I am about most of the autographs I've obtained through the mail. There was some thought that a friend or relative was helping him to sign some fanmail that was returned earlier this fall.

At a quick glance, the signature on my card looks like some recent examples of his autograph that collectors have obtained in-person... but it's such a simple signature that it wouldn't be very hard to copy.