2008 TriStar Prospects Plus Corban Joseph

Who is this? Trenton Thunder second baseman Corban Joseph
What is this? An autographed card from the 2008 TriStar Prospects Plus set
Where'd I get it? Joseph signed it for me before a Trenton Thunder game this summer
How much did it cost? The card came from a discounted blaster double-pack

Why is this so special? The Yankees selected Corban Joseph in the fourth round of the 2008 draft. He rose through the ranks in the farm system, earning a late-season call-up to AA at the age of 21. He struggled in Trenton, and is likely to start the season there again in 2011.

I had two cards that featured Joseph, but neither was really ideal for getting signed - there just isn't any room for a signature except right over the players' face.

2006 Norfolk Tides Brian Bannister

Who is this? Brian Bannister, a pitcher for the Kansas City Royals

What is this? An autographed card from the 2006 Norfolk Tides team set

Where'd I get it? Zach of Autographed Cards was nice enough to get it signed for me at the Kansas City Royals Fan Fest earlier this month

How much did it cost? I think I spent around $12 for the team set

Why is this so special? The Norfolk Tides ended their long-time affiliation with the New York Mets after the 2006 season. I got to see them play a couple games against Scranton Wilkes-Barre during Easter weekend that year.

At the time, Brian Bannister was in the major leagues impressing Mets fans. He'd appear in six games for the Tides while working back from a hamstring injury. During the off-season, Omar Minaya made one of the worst trades of his Mets' tenure. He shipped Bannister to Kansas City for future criminal Ambiorix Burgos, who never contributed to the Mets.

While the Mets struggled to find a fifth starter in 2007, Bannister had a great rookie season for the Royals. He went 12-9 with a 3.87 ERA and was named the AL Rookie of the Month twice. He has not been able to duplicate that level of success since then, but maybe 2010 will be his year.

Bannister's signature remains very legible and has not changed much since his days with the Mets.

2005 Somerset Patriots Giveaway Ryan Radmanovich

Who is this? Ryan Radmanovich, a former major league outfielder with the Seattle Mariners

What is this? An autographed card from the 2005 Somerset Patriots giveaway set

Where'd I get it? I got it signed before a Somerset Patriots game in 2005

How much did it cost? Nothing. Both the card and autograph were free.

Why is this so special? Ryan Radmanovich played in 25 games for the Seattle Mariners in 1998, but he had a much more extensive minor league career. In 17 seasons, he hit 269 minor league home runs.

Radmanovich was the starting right fielder for the Canadian Olympic team in 2004, and he played for Team Canada in the first World Baseball Classic in 2006.

He spent five seasons with the Somerset Patriots in the independent Atlantic League and holds a number of team records. He was honored as a member of the Somerset Patriots All-Time team in 2008.

Radmanovich has an interesting autograph. The open loops at the top of the initial "R" and the "h" are unusual.

2009 Trenton Thunder Kanekoa Texeira

Who is this? Kanekoa Texeira, a minor league pitcher

What is this? Another autographed card from from the 2009 Trenton Thunder team set

Where'd I get it? I got the card signed at a Trenton Thunder game this summer

How much did it cost? The team set was $10.

Why is this so special? Kanekoa Texeira came to the Yankees organization last season as part of the the Nick Swisher trade; earlier this month, he was chosen by the Seattle Mariners in the Rule V draft. He'll either become a major leaguer next season or be headed back to the Yankees.

Texeira had a 9-6 record with a 2.84 ERA as a swingman for the Trenton Thunder this year. The 23-year-old righthander appeared in 41 games, six as a starter.

Texeira has an interesting autograph... it looks like "Ka_Ko_ Te" to me.

I'm not sure what the Thunder were thinking with this card design. On some of the cards, the player photo silhouetted in front of the Thunder logo makes for a cool-looking card. On others, it just looks downright goofy. Texeira's card falls somewhere in between, I think.