1988 Fleer Jim Dwyer

Who is this? former Baltimore Orioles outfielder Jim Dwyer
What is this? An autographed card from the1988 Fleer set
Where'd I get it? I purchased it from a SportsGraphing.com forum member late last year.
How much did it cost? $1-$2


Why is this so special? Dwyer spent 18 seasons in the major leagues as a part time outfielder, defensive replacement and pinch hitter. In 1976, he played 11 games for the New York Mets, so I needed his autograph for my collection. (This card will probably be a permanent resident of my binder unless I manage to track down another copy of his 1991 Wiz Mets card and get it signed.)

However, Dwyer spent most of his career in Baltimore. He won a World Series ring with the 1983 Orioles. In the series, he went 3-for-8 with a home run.

Dwyer also played in the short-lived Senior Professional Baseball League after his major league career was over. He is currently a hitting coach in the Minnesota Twins farm system.

Dwyer's autograph is a bit tiny, and seems to be missing some letters from his last name.

1993 Topps Bob MacDonald

Who is this? Former Toronto Blue Jays reliever Bob MacDonald
What is this? An autographed card from the 1993 Topps set
Where'd I get it? I wrote to MacDonald at the beginning of November and asked him to sign a few cards for me. I got them back the day after Thanksgiving.
How much did it cost? Not much, beyond the postage.

Why is this so special? MacDonald was born in New Jersey and attended Rutgers University. He spent parts of six seasons in the majors in the 1990s. Though he pitched primarily for the Blue Jays, MacDonald also played for the Mets, Yankees and Tigers. According to his Wikipedia page, MacDonald now manages a semi-pro slow pitch softball team.

MacDonald has a decent signature that would likely be quite nice on a larger item... it seems a bit cramped on the baseball cards he signed for me. Here are the other two:

1989 Fleer John Tudor

Who is this? Former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher John Tudor
 
What is this? An autographed card from the 1989 Fleer set
 
Where'd I get it? I wrote to Tudor and asked him to sign it earlier this year.
 
How much did it cost? Less than a dollar, including postage, since I sent it out with the 1986 Topps card I posted last month.
 
Why is this so special? John Tudor spent 12 seasons in the majors, retiring with a 117-72 record. In August 1988, the Dodgers sent Pedro Guerrero to the St. Louis Cardinals in exchange for Tudor as they prepared their roster for the playoffs.

That year, the Mets swept the regular season series from Los Angeles, so the Dodgers went looking for lefty pitching to counter Darryl Strawberry and Keith Hernandez.

Tudor started game four in the NLCS, but didn't factor into the decision. Los Angeles took an early lead in the game, but the Mets battled back and took a 4-2 lead in the ninth inning. Dwight Gooden pitched into the ninth inning for New York, but he allowed a game-tying home run to Mike Scioscia. Kirk Gibson hit another home run in the 12th off Roger McDowell to win the game, even up the series and swing momentum back to Los Angeles.

Tudor missed most of the 1989 season with an injury. He returned in 1990 to pitch one final year with the Cardinals before retiring.

Tudor's signature is mostly illegible, but you can read the letters "T" and "u" clearly. "J" "o" and "d" are visible with effort.

2001 Fleer Futures Fernando Seguignol

Who is this? Orix Buffaloes first baseman Fernando Seguignol
 
What is this? An autographed card from the 2001 Fleer Futures set... I'm not sure if this was an insert, subset or part of a regular set.
 
Where'd I get it? Seguignol signed it for me before a Newark Bears game earlier this year.
 
How much did it cost? Around a quarter?
 
Why is this so special? Fernando Seguignol began his professional career with the New York Yankees organization in 1993, when I was still a junior in high school. He was later traded to the Montreal Expos for John Wetteland.

Seguignol made his major league debut in 1998, at the age of 23. In parts of four seasons with the Expos, he batted .251 with 17 home runs and 40 RBI in 173 games. Seguignol went to Japan in 2002 and played for the Orix Blue Wave.

In 2003, he returned to the States and signed with the Yankees again. This time, he actually got to play in the Bronx - he appeared in five games as a September callup. But in 2004, he went back to Japan to play for the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters.

There, he became a star, hitting .306 with 44 home runs and 108 RBI and winning the Best Nine Award at designated hitter. Seguignol stayed with the Fighters until 2008, and he still holds NPB switch-hitting records.

Earlier this season, Seguignol played for the Newark Bears before getting signed by the Buffaloes.

Seguignol's autograph is artistic, but it's not very legible. It's not very noticeable in the scan, but there is a glittery effect in the silver border of the card - I can't remember ever seeing that in another set.

1987 Fleer Tom Herr

Who is this? Former St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Tom Herr
 
What is this? An autographed card from the 1987 Fleer set

Where'd I get it? Herr signed it for me before a doubleheader between the Lancaster Barnstormers and Newark Bears last month.
 
How much did it cost? Not much.  

Why is this so special? I wrote a little bit about Tom Herr when I posted the first card he signed for me this year.

I remember collecting the 1987 Fleer set quite heavily when I was younger. The funny thing is, I was doing it in 1988. I had put together a few Topps sticker albums in the early 1980s, but I just remember them as "stickers." I didn't start collecting baseball cards seriously until 1988.

The local comic shop had a ton of 1987 Topps cello packs and 1987 Fleer rack packs in 1988 - I guess baseball cards were not a big seller for them. So after I got tired of the current year sets, I started picking these up for the novelty. I think I had about 3/4 of the Fleer set by the time the shop sold the last of their cards, including all of the "big" rookies of the day.

Because of those memories, I like to get 1987 Fleer cards signed when I can. It's not the most exciting design of the 1980s, but I think it holds up better than any of the 1988 cards. They do look great signed in blue Sharpie -- especially when the player has a readable signature like Tom Herr.

1989 Fleer Danny Cox

Who is this? Lancaster Barnstormers' pitching coach Danny Cox
 
What is this? An autographed card from the 1989 Fleer set
 
Where'd I get it? Cox signed it for me before a doubleheader between the Barnstormers and the Newark Bears last week.
 
How much did it cost? I'm sure where I got the card.
 
Why is this so special? I wrote a bit about Cox last week, when I posted the other card he signed for me at that game.

1989 was an interesting year for baseball card design. Upper Deck released their first set, which was considered the nicest of the year. Topps had a fairly bland design, but it's aged well and now looks classic. Donruss and Score were colorful, but they were hit and miss -- if the colors worked with your team's logo, they looked ok.

Then there was Fleer. My scanner doesn't like the design and has added a rainbow effect to the ugly grey columns in the border. The saving point is the nice action photo of Danny Cox. Of course, I think the card looks a lot nicer with an autograph.

1987 Fleer Pete Incaviglia

Who is this? Former Texas Rangers slugger Pete Incaviglia
 
What is this? An autographed card from the 1987 Fleer set
 
Where'd I get it? I wrote to Incaviglia in late March and asked him to sign it. I got it back last month.
 
How much did it cost? The card came out of one of the many 1987 Fleer rack packs I bought trying to get "hot" rookie cards, like Barry Bonds & Kevin Seitzer, back in 1988. I think they cost around $1.50 or $2 apiece back then. Now, you can buy unopened rack pack boxes on eBay for around $40.

Why is this so special? Pete Incaviglia was a fun player to watch, because he swung for the fences every time he came up to bat. He usually struck out - he led the American League with 185 in his rookie season. But he did finish his career with over 200 home runs.

Incaviglia was the 15th player to make his professional debut in the major leagues since the amateur draft was implemented. He was drafted by the Montreal Expos in 1985, but Incaviglia forced them to trade him by demanding to go directly to the majors. Following this incident, Major League Baseball implemented a rule requiring drafted players to be under contract for a full year before they can be traded.

After his retirement from baseball, Incaviglia served as the hitting coach for the AA Erie Seawolves and managed the Grand Prairie AirHogs in the American Association.

Incaviglia's autograph is completely illegible.

1982 Fleer Tom Herr

Who is this? 1980s St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Tom Herr
 
What is this? An autographed card from the 1982 Fleer set
 
Where'd I get it? I got it signed before Wednesday's doubleheader between the Lancaster Barnstormers and Newark Bears

How much did it cost? I'm not sure where I picked up this card
 
Why is this so special? You've got to love those old 1982 Fleer cards. Tommy Herr was lucky because the photo on his card is actually in focus, even though it's not a great shot.

Herr was a Cardinal for 10 seasons. He went to three World Series with them, earning a ring in 1982. He represented the National League in the 1985 All-Star Game, and he was the last National League player to drive in 100 runs while finishing the season with fewer than 10 home runs.

After he retired from baseball, Herr became the first manager of the Lancaster Barnstormers.  He led them to their only Atlantic League championship in 2006. Herr then left the team to manage the Hagerstown Suns in 2007. Last season, he returned to the Barnstormers as the team's bench coach. This season, Herr is filling out the Lancaster lineup card again.

Tom Herr comes from the era when players still had legible autographs.

1987 Fleer Steve Lyons

Who is this? Steve Lyons, a 1980s utility player who spent most of his career with the Chicago White Sox

What is this? An autographed card from the 1987 Fleer set

Where'd I get it? I wrote to Lyons and asked him to sign it last month; I got it back last week

How much did it cost? About a dollar for the card and postage

Why is this so special? Lyons spent nine years in the major leagues, but he's best remembered for one play -- when he unbuckled his pants to get the dirt out while standing on first base.




I also remember a This Week in Baseball feature that highlighted his versatility -- he once played every position in an exhibition game. After Lyons ended his playing career, he became a broadcaster.

I think it's neat that Lyons included his nickname "Psycho" when he signed the card. I don't know how he came by that nickname, and I'm not quite sure that I want to. :)

1982 Fleer Doug DeCinces

Who is this? Doug DeCinces, a third baseman for the the Baltimore Orioles and California Angels in the 1970s and 80s

What is this? An autographed card from the 1982 Fleer set

Where'd I get it? I wrote to DeCinces and asked him to sign it. I got it back about 10 days later.

How much did it cost? Postage, basically.

Why is this so special? Doug DeCinces who had to follow Brooks Robinson as the Baltimore Orioles' third baseman. While it couldn't have been an easy task, DeCinces did it well enough to get inducted into the team's Hall of Fame in 2006.

Over his 15 year career, DeCinces accumulated over 1500 hits, 237 home runs and over 800 RBI. He was an All-Star in 1983 and he won the Silver Slugger in 1982.

There aren't many fans of the early 1980s Fleer sets. There were a ton of errors and variations, and the photo quality really isn't all that it should be in a major league set. But that's part of the charm for me.

Most of the shots in the 1982 set don't really look like the work of professional photographers. They remind me more of the photos a fan might take with consumer-level equipment. Can't you imagine some fan with a field access pass asking DeCinces to pose for a quick photo when you see the shot on this card?

DeCinces has a reasonably neat autograph, but it looks a little cramped.

1982 Fleer Lonnie Smith

Who is this? Lonnie Smith, a former outfielder for the Philadelphia Phillies, St. Louis Cardinals, Kansas City Royals and Atlanta Braves

What is this? An autographed card from the 1982 Fleer set

Where'd I get it? I wrote to Smith a couple of weeks ago and asked him to sign it.

How much did it cost? Just postage.

Why is this so special? Lonnie Smith was a member of the 1980 World Series Champion Phillies. Though he was only a part time player, he had a good enough season to finish third in the Rookie of the Year balloting. Smith hit .339 with 3 home runs, 20 RBI and 33 stolen bases in 100 games.

Smith was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals before the 1982 season. He had an All-Star year for his new team, hitting .309 with 8 home runs, 69 RBI and 68 stolen bases. He led the league with 120 runs scored.

Smith had another good season in 1983, but his star was beginning to fade by 1984. He soon found himself on a new team, the Kansas City Royals.

Lonnie Smith has a surprisingly neat autograph, though this one is a little bit smudged. You don't see that too often on 1982 Fleer cards.

2002 Fleer Tom Goodwin

Who is this? Tom Goodwin, a former outfielder with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Kansas City Royals, Texas Rangers, Colorado Rockies, San Francisco Giants and Chicago Cubs

What is this? An autograph card from the 2002 Fleer set

Where'd I get it? I got the card signed at a Somerset Patriots game in 2005

How much did it cost? The card came from one of many, many packs I opened in 2002 to complete the Fleer set. The autograph was free.

Why is this so special? Tom Goodwin spent 14 seasons in the big leagues, and was an every day player for seven of them. He never really hit for average or power, but Goodwin was fast. He still had the speed to steal 23 bases at age 36 when I saw him play with the Atlantic City Surf.

In the majors, Goodwin once stole 66 bases in a season for the Kansas City Royals. (He also lead the league with 22 times caught stealing that year.)

Goodwin doesn't have the best autograph but you can clearly read his initials, at least.

1991 Fleer Danny Darwin

Who is this? Danny Darwin, a former Major League pitcher who played for a bunch of teams from 1978-1998.

What is this? An autographed card from the ever-popular (and very yellow) 1991 Fleer set

Where'd I get it? I got this card signed through the mail earlier this year.

How much did it cost? Less than a dollar, counting the value of the postage stamps used for the autograph request.

Why is this so special? Danny Darwin may not have been the best pitcher in baseball, but he spent 21 years in the big leagues and has 171 more Major League wins than me (and most of the people reading this blog.)  He led the National League with a 2.21 ERA in 1990, and he's got a pretty nice autograph. :)

1996 Fleer Pat Listach

Who is this? Pat Listach, a utility player for the Milwaukee Brewers and Houston Astros in the 1990s

What is this? A signed 1996 Fleer card

Where'd I get it? One of my trading partners got it signed for me at the ballpark this season when Listach was managing the Iowa Cubs

How much did it cost? I'm not quite sure what I traded for it.

Why is this so special? Pat Listach was the 1992 American League Rookie of the Year for the Milwaukee Brewers. He had the best season of his career as the Brewers' full-time shortstop, batting .290 with 1 home run, 47 RBIs and 54 stolen bases.

After managing the Iowa Cubs for the past two seasons, Listach will become the Washington Nationals' third base coach in 2009.

The autograph is reasonably clear for a modern player's, but I don't think Listach will be winning any penmanship awards.

1985 Fleer Alvin Davis

Who is this? Mariners first baseman Alvin Davis.

What is this? An autographed 1985 Fleer card, number 488.

Where'd I get it? Big auction lot.

How much did it cost? Less than a buck.

Why is this so special? Known as Mr. Mariner Alvin was the first - and pretty much only - star the Seattle Mariners had before Junior showed up. Alvin was the Rookie af the Year in 1984 and manned first for the M's for 8 years. His stats don't look spectacular nowadays, but 20 homers a season and a lifetime .280 average was pretty good for the dead-ball 80's. Alvin retired in 1992 after only 9 seasons in the league and a brief stay in Japan. He's still a fan favorite in Seattle though and he was the first member of the Mariners' Hall of Fame. Alvin knows his bible verses too as he has his signature inscribed with 1 Timothy 2:5: "For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus" Alvin's an 80's star and a nice guy it seems.

2006 Fleer Greats Mike Hargrove

Who is this? Indians first baseman Mike Hargrove.

What is this? An autograph card from 2006 Fleer Greats, card number NG-MH.

Where'd I get it? Atlanta Sports cards.

How much did it cost? $5.

Why is this so special? I always knew Mike Hargrove as Grover, the Indians' great manager, not The Human Rain Delay. Apparently Grover was the 70's version of Nomar Garciaparra with his OCD routine at the plate. I liked the Indians team back in the mid 90's and I thought Hargrove was a pretty good manager. I liked the fact that the Braves beat them in '95 better, but I was rooting for them in '97. He also managed for the Orioles and Mariners before resigning out of nowhere in 2007 in the middle of a winning streak. He's currently managing an independent league team in Kansas, the Liberal BeeJays. No, I'm not kidding. They're really called the Liberal BeeJays. Bee Jay as in American League founder Ban Johnson you dirty-minded folk.

This card is the autographed version of the Nickname Greats insert set from Greats of the Game. Mike even signed it with the nickname inscription. It's a pretty sweet idea but I'm not too thrilled about the clear plastic sticker stuck on the card. It simultaneously mars the photo and makes the signature hard to read. That aside, it's a pretty neat autograph from a guy who made a big impact in the league, especially in Cleveland.

2000 Fleer Autographics Joe Crede

Who is this? White Sox third baseman Joe Crede.

What is this? An autograph card from 2000 Fleer something or other. I can't find it in my price guide.

Where'd I get it? Could be from anywhere, really.

How much did it cost? I have no earthly idea. I might have shoplifted the thing for all I know.

Why is this so special? This is one of those 'mystery' cards where I have no idea where it came from. I've had it forever though. Might have been out of a pack, might have been from a shop, might have been an auction. It's a pretty kick ass card though wherever it came from. Autograph cards from the late 90's and early '00s just seem to have been designed better than a lot of them today. This card is a perfect example. There's a good action shot of Joe, a little color in the background to keep it from getting boring, and a nice large clear space for a signature where the name and logo don't get in the way. Joe's signature, by the way is fantastic. A nice big J and C with flair, and even better every letter is completely legible. You can paste that sig to the bottom of the Declaration of Independence it looks so nice. Joe is having a pretty fantastic year himself, having hit 14 homers already. It looks like prospect Josh Fields pushing for Crede's job has gotten Joe back on track after an injury riddled '07 season.

2002 Fleer Greats Maury Wills

Who is this? Dodger shortstop Maury Wills.

What is this? An autograph card from 2002 Fleer Greats.

Where'd I get it? Atlanta Sports Cards in Alpharetta.

How much did it cost? Five bucks.

Why is this so special? I'm not sure if I'm ecstatic for getting a certified autograph of an all-time great for five bucks or mad that I found it so cheap. This card cost something like 1/1000th of a scrub prospect's superfractor. Can someone explain this to me? It's not the first time Maury was disrespected, on the advice of their scouts Topps declined to sign Maury to a contract in the minors. Later on they scrambled to get him on a card once he hit the bigs and became a star. Upstart Fleer beat them to the punch in 1963, and Topps ended up faking a 1962 rookie card in their MVP subset in 1975. Maury's '62 season was amazing as he won the MVP award and broke Ty Cobb's single season stolen base record. Like Maris a year earlier, Maury got the dreaded Asterisk because he played in a 162 game season that year. Asterisk or no, he revolutionized the use of the stolen base as a weapon in the 60's and led the Dodgers to 3 World Series titles. Plus he named his son Bump. How cool is that. I bought a ton of these packs when they first came out but never landed an autograph. I would have been thrilled to pull this gold sparkly card with Maury's John Hancock. You suckers buy the superfractors, I'll buy up the stars.

1994 Fleer Greg Olson

Who is this? Braves catcher Greg Olson.

What is this? An autographed 1994 Fleer card, number 370.

Where'd I get it? In a trade with Russ.

How much did it cost? Received in trade.

Why is this so special? Another great auto out of nowhere! All star Greg Olson (not Gregg) was only with the Braves for four seasons but it sure does seem like he was there a lot longer. Great auto from a great guy who would stand on his head for the team. Thanks Russ!

1999 Fleer Mystique Tim Dwight

Who is this? Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Tim Dwight.

What is this? An autograph card from 1999 Fleer Mystique serial numbered 423/725

Where'd I get it? I have no earthly idea.

How much did it cost? I probably overpayed for it.

Why is this so special? The one special moment in that Super Bowl. The ONE moment I could look back on with pride, and I fell asleep. Argh.