A Return to Regular Blogging?

I don't generally pay too much attention to how often I post here; I generally try to write with some sort of regularity and will write about Orioles autographs when there is something to say. But something jumped out at me looking back at the month of April. I wrote 18 posts, which is more than I've written in any specific month going all the way back to August 2012, and it's nearly a third of the posts I wrote during the entire 2013 calendar year. There was a time last year where it really seemed to me that the blog was slowly dying.

For whatever reason, the start of the 2014 Orioles season has reinvigorated my desire to write about the Orioles and their autographs. Part of it has been the ease of writing the debut posts, which seem to pretty much write themselves, but I've also gotten into the walk-up songs again, and even looked into the player's status on Twitter. So things are really rolling along here at the GOAP. Will I keep up this pace all year? I'd have to say it's unlikely based on recent history, but at least I'm on track to post ten-ish times each month. And that ain't bad.

To celebrate my "return", here are a bunch of upgrades that I've been able to acquire recently. And it seems only appropriate to show off my dad's Old Man Cards, since they have certainly contributed to my continued passion for my collection!

I've written about all of these players in the past, so click the links on their names if you want to read about them and their histories with the O's!

Greg Aquino

Brian Bass 

Fernando Cabrera

Scott Feldman

Jake Fox

Sean Henn

Michael Morse

Omar Quintanilla

Clay Rapada

Josh Stinson

Delmon Young- big thanks goes out to my Spring Training Orioles autograph collecting buddy, Alan, for getting this one personalized for me after I flew back North

Back To 100%

Considering that I haven't exactly had a ton of time for autograph collecting and/or blogging over the course of the 2013 baseball season, I consider myself pretty fortunate to still be able to say that I have an autograph of each and every one of the 966 players who has appeared in an Orioles uniform over the team's 60 years of existence.

Since I now possess autographs of all the 24 players who debuted over the course of the 2013 season, here's the breakdown for how those autographs came to be in my collection:
Obtained from player in minor leagues: 5
Obtained in-person from the player at MLB level: 5
On consignment from another collector: 3
Purchased online: 11

Quite a difference from past years when it probably would have looked something more like 30% obtained in minors, 60% obtained at MLB level, and 10% purchased. But such is the way things go when one doesn't have time to get autographs in person. Luckily, every one of the 11 autographs that I bought are certified signatures, and none were particularly expensive. In fact, most were quite cheap, which is perfect for me.

Without further ado, here are the three latest autographs that I purchased from COMC.com. (As you can see, I haven't had time to scan my own autographs yet, so I grabbed screenshots from their website. Hey, it's better than a post without pictures, am-I-right?)

Orioles #961-963

Michael Morse- options were somewhat limited since I didn't want a Nationals autograph bogging down my collection

Steve Clevenger- I would never have guessed that the Cleaver would have had a certified signature out there

Dan Johnson- there are a startling number of certified autographs of his out there; I tend to forget that he was something of a prospect back in the day

I was very pleased that all three of these autographs are on-card, and that all look pretty nice, although Clevenger's autograph leaves something to be desired. 

These three will likely stay in my collection unless I'm able to get any of these guys to sign one of my dad's custom OMC Orioles cards. Though I would guess that only Clevenger is back in the system in 2014, so that will complicate things with the other two. 

I also have a sneaking suspicion that Topps will be a jerk and include Morse as an Oriole in their 2013 Update or 2014 Series One set since he's something of a "star" although he did next to nothing during his month with the Orioles. If he is included on a Topps card than I have to add him to my need list, which I would greatly prefer not to do. 

Orioles #961-963, Morse, Clevenger, & Johnson

Wow, I can't believe that it's been an entire month since I have posted. I'm slightly embarrassed, but what can I say? Life just gets in the way of the fun stuff sometimes, and honestly, I've been a pretty bad "blogger" for most of this summer. I don't even have that much time to write today, but I wanted to just re-touch base with the Orioles Autograph "World" out there, just to let everyone know that I haven't completely gone away.

One issue with today's three subjects is that I don't have an autograph of any of the trio, so this will be a non-visual post. I will hopefully rectify the new holes in my collection in the near future, but for now, these three all go on my need list.

Oriole #961- Michael Morse, debuted 9/1 against Yankees

Morse was acquired from the Mariners for OF prospect, Xavier Avery, back on August 30th, just ahead of the waiver deadline, which means he was passed through waivers before he was eligible to be traded, and can still be on the O's 25 man postseason roster. Although, since he currently only has hit three singles in 24 ABs and is playing only part-time, I would be surprised if he was included, should the O's force their way into the October baseball picture. So far, this trade is a bust, and since Morse is a free agent at the end of the year, it's becoming more and more unlikely that he will make any impact for the team, although I suppose that could change with one timely swing of the bat.

At an Orioles-Nationals game that I attended with some friends years back, I heckled Michael by yelling "Morse Code" (not my best effort, but I'm not much of a heckler) and one of my buddies still reminds me of that to this day.

Oriole #962- Steve Clevenger, debuted 9/13 against Blue Jays

I mentioned Clevenger's name in the post I wrote about the trade that hinged on Scott Feldman's arrival from the Cubs. Steve was included in the deal since the Orioles needed some catching depth in their system, and it's a cool story since he grew up in the Baltimore area and was/is an Orioles fan. Although he has appeared in games for the Cubs over the past three seasons, it was probably a lifelong dream-come-true to get into a game for the Orioles.

He has appeared in just that one game to this point, but he was a major reason the Orioles came out on top in that game, as he hit a 2 RBI double to tie the game after the O's had been trailing the Jays 3-1 in the 7th inning. The Orioles continued the comeback to win 5-3, and Clevenger is 1-4, with that double and 2 RBI in his Baltimore career. Currently, he has been a better contributor, and much cheaper, to the team than Morse has been.

Oriole #963- Dan Johnson, debuted 9/14 against Blue Jays

I have to admit something about Dan Johnson, something that hasn't happened to me in years. I had no idea that he was even in the Orioles' farm system until I heard he was being called up. And I'm the kind of fool that keeps track of all 60 of the players who the O's invite to Spring Training every year, so this was somewhat of a big deal to me, and a true sign that I'm off my Orioles autograph game.

Anyway, Dan has a single Orioles at-bat to his name so far, when he appeared as a pinch-hitter to lead off the 9th inning against the Blue Jays. He struck out swinging, and the O's lost 4-3. I wouldn't be completely surprised if that is the extent of Dan's career in the black and orange. Which gives me an idea for a future post, one at-bat O's. At my current rate of posting, I will write that up in 2020.



For those of you out there who are working with me on trades, don't worry, I haven't forgotten about you, but I just need to find time to process everything. And I hope that this isn't my only post for the next month, but time will tell!