Odds and Ends

Odds and Ends will be for all of the new stuff I acquire that doesn’t get it’s own post.

2021 Topps Heritage Real Ones Autographs – Jose Abreu and Yermin Mercedes – I got these for a very good price, especially the Abreu. Real Ones autos are usually pretty pricey, so I was happy to get a pretty good deal.

   

Speaking of Mercedes, I also picked up a 2021 Topps Chrome Rookie Autographs Refractor, also for a very good price. For all I know, Yermin may never play in the majors again. But I’ll always love him for the joy he brought Sox fans in early 2021.

I wasn’t a big Nick Madrigal fan, but I was still very upset when he (and Codi Heuer) were traded for Craig Kimbrel. I thought that was too high a price even if we got good Kimbrel. Instead we got bad Kimbrel, which made the trade that much worse. I still pick up cool Madrigal autographs when I get the chance. And this 2021 Stadium Club Chrome Autograph is definitely cool.

You probably remember that I got a bunch of items signed by Luis Aparicio at a recent signing in Venezuela. Well, there was a round 2 of that signing. I was still broke from the first one, but I couldn’t resist getting this 2015 Stadium Club card done. I really love Stadium Club cards from the last 10 years or so.

I was able to pick up a few semi-tough autographs from some 70s Latin players. Acosta and Romo were from PastPros, and Torrealba was from a signing with Five Tool Signings.

       

I also picked up two Allen & Ginters I needed. I am still trying to get all White Sox A&G cards signed, though that is now an impossible project to complete. Both of these came from PastPros.

   

And finally, in addition to the cards of his that I got signed through a recent private signing, I also picked up this 2014 Topps Tier One Acclaimed Autographs Albert Belle card.

Private Signing: Nick Madrigal

It pains me to write this post. I was no great Nick Madrigal fan. In my opinion he didn’t seem to fit in with the rest of the team. He seemed like he had never had fun in his life. But he was a solid player, with the potential to be more. He almost certainly wasn’t going to become a star, but a consistent 3-4 WAR player is very valuable, especially while they’re cheap.

If we had traded him in a package for a legit star, I wouldn’t have been too upset. But we traded 5 years of a good player for 1.3 years of a flaky reliever. Kimbrel has been great this year (at least until he got here), but he has been very inconsistent in his career. We already had a great, consistent, closer in Liam Hendriks. Aaron Bummer and Michael Kopech are more than capable of locking down the 7th and 8th. Ryan Tepera was a fine addition, and would have helped to solidify the middle of the bullpen, along with Garrett Crochet. So we traded something like 15-20 WAR (plus Codi Heuer) for a reliever we didn’t really need that will be lucky to be worth 4 WAR during his time here.

The only way I’ll come around on this trade is if Madrigal’s injury ends up being career-altering in some way, or if Kimbrel is a vital cog in winning the World Series this year and/or the next. Otherwise, I think we got fleeced. I guess this is payback for the Jose Quintana trade.

BM Authentics posted a Nick Madrigal signing shortly before he was injured. It was a very expensive signing, relative to what Madrigal has accomplished. My first inclination was to get a 16×20 done with a “Nicky Two Strikes” inscription, but Madrigal refused to do that inscription. So I ended up sending in just 2 cards. His rookie refractor, and another really nice refractor. At a cheaper price, I would have likely gotten 10 or so items done.

After the trade, I’m glad I only sent in the two items. In fact, I wish I had only gotten the rookie refractor done. I’d be pretty upset right now if I had paid through the nose to get 10 items done.

The two cards turned out great, and I’m glad to have them done. If Madrigal goes on to an All-Star career with the Cubs (UGH), at least I got a couple of cool items done.