Mr.Clutch?

I was recently decided against keeping ALL of my 1986 Donruss set. Many are in my "to be traded" boxes but I couldn't rid the collection of this Pat Tabler card. Donruss immortalized Mr. Tabler with his nickname, Mr.Clutch.
Tabler didn't come by his impressive moniker by chance. He hit a more than respectable .488 (43 for 88) with the bases jammed. Some might call him the Jerry West of baseball. I am just not one of them (West was also known as Mr.Clutch). Tabler currently works as a color commentator for the Toronto Blue Jays.

I can't think of any other examples of random base card additions in the 80's but I am sure there are some. (Maybe Pete Rose had one?)

Dinged Corners Assignment: Favorite "On Card" Autographs

When Patricia, of Dinged Corners, assigns us bloggers some homework, we best get to it without complaining. So here are my favorite on-card autographs (of which I have very few).

#3 - 1996 Signature Rookies Torii Hunter
My mom has been on the yard/garage salecircuit for a few months now and happened upon a big box of baseball cards. She paid $10 for the lot. The cards were super fun to go through. I kept a few, my brother kept a few, and the rest will find their way to the blog world in due time. One of the gems of the box was this Torii Hunter autograph, numbered to 5000. Torii has turned out to be a pretty good player as well as an excellent Topps card poser. Thanks Mom!

#2 - 1991 Score Brian Barnes

I got this one in person at a Jimmy V fund event. Brian is from North Carolina, not too far from my hometown of Tarboro. My brother asked him if he remembered playing our high school team. He did and even remembered who the opposing pitcher was. I got cards signed by Marquis Grissom, Lee Smith, Kenny Lofton, and others that day but the interaction with Barnes was the best.

#1 - 2004 Topps Cracker Jack Lucy (Silver Ink) This remains my one and only TTM autograph. Unlike many stars who scribble their names without regard to what it looks like, I have heard that Lucy practices first so that each fan gets her best. That is how it should be.

There you have it. My 2006 Turkey Red Roy Oswalt on-card auto may be my most collectable card of this type but the previous three are my favorites. The thing they all have in common is some personal connection.