Additions to the Orioles Coaches Collection

As I've mentioned in the past, my Orioles' Managers & Coaches autograph collection takes a backseat to my O's player autograph collection, and rightfully so. The players collection is what started this all, and the managers & coaches collection came along as an afterthought, a logical one, but an afterthought nonetheless.

That being said, it doesn't mean that I completely neglect my mini-collection, and I still keep my eyes peeled for any of the remaining autographs I need for it. I'm pretty much down to the nitty gritty with it, so additions are rather rare these days. But every now and then, something comes along.

And I'm pretty excited about this first addition as I have been searching for one of these for a few years now, after foolishly neglecting to bid on one that sold for just a few dollars probably two years ago.

At times like these, I sometimes say to myself, how many other people out there can really want and/or need a signed Ralph Rowe Orioles postcard? I know that there can't be many of us around. After all, he never played in an MLB game, and that typically will significantly decrease the market for one's autograph. He did coach eight seasons in the majors (four each for the Twins (1972-75) & O's (1981-84)) so I guess that the other people in the market for his autograph are largely collecting coaches just like I am. Also, he passed away in 1996, so that also makes his autograph harder to track down at this point.

And while I didn't quite get this one for the $3 range that the last one that I saw sold for, I believe I got this delivered for under $15, which isn't too shabby. If you're in the market for that kind of thing, anyway.

Next up are a few signed cards that I was able to add in trades. I already had signed Orioles postcards of both of these guys, but generally like to have a signed card as well if it's available. Some may call that overkill, but I collect how I collect. What can I say?

Greg Biagini kind of holds a special place in my household, as Kalina gave me her signed O's postcard of his for my collection, and we both enjoy saying his last name (be-a-genie). Fun, right? 

During the middle of a long-time MiLB managing career, he served as the Orioles hitting coach from 1992-94 under Johnny Oates. Sadly, he passed away from kidney cancer in 2003, when he was just 51 years old.

Last up, we have Tom Trebelhorn, who was recently somewhat back in the spotlight as he is a coach for Team Italy in the WBC  and that squad had a bit of a Cinderella run during this year's tournament before being eliminated earlier this week. Tom was a long-time Orioles coach from 2001-07.

I'm not really sure where this card came from or what it is, but it certainly seems to be his only Orioles "card". My guess is that this was included in some sort of magazine or program over the years, but I can't say for sure.

Orioles Coaches Collection Pt. 2 & Congrats to Bobby Dickerson

Around the time that I was writing the first part of my Orioles coaches email yesterday, the Orioles officially announced that they had hired a new third base coach for the 2013 season, Bobby Dickerson.

Luckily, I already had Bobby's autograph in my collection, as he had been a minor league instructor for the organization over the past few seasons. Even better is the fact that Bobby played in the organization back in the day, so this autograph is going to stay in my collection, with the likely addition of a team-issued Orioles postcard.


Moving on to wrap up the various signed coaches cards in my collection...In case you missed it, yesterday I profiled some of the types of signed items of Orioles coaches that are in my collection. Today, I'm showing off the rest.

Many of the men who have coached for the Orioles played at the MLB during their career and were thusly included in some major release sets for whichever teams they played with; this variety of autograph makes up a good 20-25% of my coaches collection.

 Some other coaches were MLB managers at some point along the way, and so signed copies of the cards that commemorated their assorted managerial stints reside in my collection.

While a couple other guys were at one point minor league managers or players and so signed versions of those cards fill their spots in my collection.

 I love pulling out a fairly rare card like this for a guy like Graham to sign. There aren't many of these going around and guys like Graham (who is currently some sort of O's minor league instructor) don't typically get many autograph requests.

If you're wondering why there are two cards from the AA Eastern League Harrisburg Senators, they are the team that was closest to my hometown of Carlisle, PA, so I've been to more than my share of Senators games.

I also have this Orioles signed team card of Stearns from during the time of his O's coaching stint. I never know how to feel about these team signed cards. They are obviously better than nothing, but I still prefer to see a picture of a person with my autographs. Which is why I'm such a fan of my dad's custom cards.


Finally, to finish off the collection, I present to you my autograph a man who was an Orioles coach in 1963, and also happens to be in the Hall of Fame for his on-field success during his playing career, Mr. Luke Appling.

I particularly like this autograph as it fits in both my Orioles coach collection, and my minuscule HOF postcard collection. Two birds with one stone is my kind of thing.

Anyway, I hope that you enjoyed seeing some of my autographs of the men who have helped to shape the Orioles over the years.

Hoscheit, It's Vern

Depending on how you pronounce Vern's last name, the title might make a little more sense. I honestly don't know how to pronounce, and my default setting is funny. 

 bullpen coach, 1968

 My recent acquisition of ol' Vern's autograph reminded me that I have neglected my coaches/managers collection, at least in terms of blogging, over the past few months. So here are a bunch of autographs of the men who have helped lead the Orioles over the years.

Cal Ermer, coach 1962

 Mike Ferraro, third base coach 1993

Davey Lopes, first base coach 1992-94

Sammy Ellis, pitching coach 2000

Phil Regan, manager 1995

Rick Down, hitting coach 1996-98

Tom Trebelhorn, third base/bench coach 2001-07

pitching coach 1989-91

pitching coach, 1987, 2001-04