Collecting White Sox Autographs Since 1991
The fine folks over at Under the Radar Sports Promotions recently had a private signing with Javier Vazquez. I’ve been waiting for a signing with Javy, as I had a really nice multi-player card that I needed him to complete. Everything from the signing turned out great!
Macey225 over at SCN was taking items for the Chicago Sports Spectacular in March. There were a few Sox guys there, but the autograph fees were pretty high, so only sent in a couple of things. I sent in a Bobby Jenks rookie refractor and a Luis Vizcaino Topps World Series card. I’m kind of disappointed with how the Jenks turned out. He signed it pretty small, with a thin pen, and right on the Angels logo. But that’s just how things go sometimes!
I participated in a recent private signing with San Diego Padres (still hurts) superstar Fernando Tatis Jr. I would have loved to have gotten 4 more cards and a mini helmet signed, but the signing started at $140 per item. So all I sent in was a Bowman Chrome rookie. I’m very happy with how it turned out. Hopefully I’ll be able to get some more stuff done in the future.
The latest acquisition for my Rookie Card Project is Roadrunner himself, Ralph Garr. Got a nice price on this from Mill Creek Sports.
I was pretty excited when Kenny Williams finally got his man and signed Adam Dunn. He ended up having one good year and was pretty terrible the rest of the time. Still, he had a pretty good career as a TTO slugger.
I wasn’t thrilled when the White Sox signed Dallas Keuchel. He had been trending downward for a while, and I thought the Sox were going to be stuck with a mediocre pitcher. That could still happen, but Keuchel was pretty damn good in 2020. He definitely would have made the All-Star team had there been one. So I went ahead and picked up a signed rookie.
George Bell. George freaking Bell. I still can’t believe Ron Schueler traded Sammy Sosa for George freaking Bell. Imagine The Big Hurt and Slammin’ Sammy hitting back to back in their primes. It would have been something to see! Anyway, here are my two BAS authenticated Sammy Sosa rookies. I think they’re a couple of beauts!
I won’t lie, I’m not the biggest Jermaine Dye fan. I’ve met him a few times, and he hasn’t struck me as the friendliest guy. I was actually kind of sad when he won World Series MVP in 2005. I would have loved for a beloved mainstay of the team to win the award. Somebody like Mark Buehrle or Paul Konerko. Still, I can’t deny that he ended up having a pretty good career with the Sox.
I have two copies of his rookie card signed. The one that has been slabbed by PSA has his early full signature, which I think is pretty cool.
Jake didn’t quite live up to expectations during his time with the Sox. He made three great starts in 2009, had a solid 2012, and was otherwise pretty mediocre. But there was never any doubt he was giving his all. I met him during spring training in 2011, and he seemed like a really nice guy. He signed tons of stuff for me. I was thrilled to see him go on to win the World Series in his first two seasons after the Sox traded him.
Alvarez was on the team during my formative years as a Sox fan. So I’ll always be a fan. I was pretty upset when they traded him in the famous “White Flag” trade, though it ended up working out pretty well.
