drewscards 2014 Year in Review

Hey everyone, Drew back here! I can't believe 2014 is already coming to a close. It's safe to say it's been one of the best, if not the very best year of my young life thus far, although it hasn't been close to my biggest year in this hobby. I headed off to college for the first time, and decided the dorm life isn't for me. I fell in love with a girl who I've had the pleasure of being with this entire year. I took up a new hobby in collecting vinyl records of all my favorite bands, which has divided my card/memorabilia budget at least in half, but I've still been finding ways to make occasional additions. Here is a look back at some of my fondest sports memories of 2014:

On January 31st...
Dad and I went to NYC for the Super Bowl Boulevard and met one of the greatest running backs in NFL history!

In early February... 

I got back a TTM success from the best current pitcher in the MLB, Mr. 3 Time Cy Young winner himself, Clayton Kershaw!

I also bought some beautiful cards after selling some stuff on COMC.com!

On March 22nd...

I met my favorite pitcher of all time and started my Core Four Sports Illustrated autograph project!

Dad also bought me a Donnie Baseball for my autographed ball collection that day!

In June, following my high school graduation...

William gave me a card from his collection that I had my eye on ever since he first pulled it!

I also saw Yankee phenom rookie Masahiro Tanaka pitch in person with my girlfriend!

On July 8th...

I went to my first Mets game!

On July 12th...

As part of my family and I's amazing trip to San Francisco, we got to attend a Giants game at AT&T Park!

On July 21st

I received a TTM success from Yankee prospect Ty Hensley, and it was one of a kind.

On August 4th...

My family, girlfriend, and I went to a Yankees game, and Justin Verlander flipped my sister a ball for her first ever baseball game!

On August 17th...

Dad and I took in one more card show before I went off to college, and we met a Yankee great and personal favorite player, Johnny Damon!

We met several other players that day, and I was able to add my 52nd autograph to my Mickey Mantle 16x20 project! Almost done!

Finally, I traded my Tom Seaver framed signed photo for 2 signed Yankees baseballs, including this one of the Goose!

Before I Went Away for School...
I got myself a going away present!

On August 28th...

I got a really cool TTM success from newly inducted Hall of Fame manager Tony LaRussa!

In September...

I got a TTM response from the Son of the Mick, David Mantle!

On September 26th...

I kissed my all time favorite player goodbye as he walked away from the game.

On September 27th...

Mrs. Robinson mailed me back some beautiful signatures for my collection!

On November 15th...

Following the Giants World Series victory, I decided to collect anything and everything Joe Panik related, being a hometown kid!

On December 22nd...

William got me an amazing Yogi Berra relic card as a Christmas gift!

Now that I had the chance to reflect on my 2014 year, I can officially confirm that it was the best year of my life. On top of all the amazing milestones I've been able to reach in my life this year, I even made time for this hobby and started a new one. But, that doesn't mean it can't get better, because my goal is to make 2015 even better than this one. I think I've got a good shot.

Thank you to everyone who helped make another year of drewscards possible. Really, without all the interaction I receive from you all, I wouldn't be doing what I'm doing. From my early years in the blogosphere as an immature middle schooler to my current life in college, I can't thank you all enough for everything. 

Have a safe and Happy New Year guys and girls, I can't wait for another exciting year! See Ya!

Oh, and before I put an official wrap to this year,

Rest in Peace Grandpa Walt. Thank you for all the memories.

TTM Tuesday!

Hey guys, Drew back here! First and foremost, I want to thank everyone who commented on my previous post advising my recent college decision. Regardless, I am planning on coming home next semester, and I want to say that its more than just that I'm homesick. Being lonely has played into my decision quite a bit, however I also feel uncomfortable on my campus and since it's a big sports school, a majority of the students have a really scummy attitude. I've made one friend on campus, and he and I agree that we're misfits at this school, and after a few of my old friends came to visit a few weeks ago, I realized I couldn't defend why I came to this school in the first place, so I decided that coming home would be the right decision for me. It's one of the first real life decisions I've had to make, but I feel relieved having made a decision and am looking forward to returning home and commuting to a great local private school while getting to see some old friends, my girlfriend, and my family.

Anyway, personal life aside, I've gotten four TTM successes since my most recent autograph post, and here are the first three of them! Enjoy:

Adam Kennedy: 2/2 in 22 Days (Received September 9th)

Adam Kennedy was a staple of my childhood watching baseball. He was always around, and I never knew much about him, but prior to sending off a few of my cards of his, I looked up his lifetime stats and saw that he actually was a fairly solid player. In 2009, he led a career resurgence in which he batted .289 with the A's, swatting 11 home runs, driving in 61 runs, and stealing 20 bases. Mr. Kennedy is now retired, and signed a 2008 Allen & Ginter as well as a 2010 Topps card for my collection; both of which look fantastic signed boldly in blue.

Austin Meadows: 1/1 in 127 Days (Received September 15th)

Last year, I sent 2013 Pirates #1 draft pick Austin Meadows this same card, only to get a response from his mother, which you can see here. Luckily, I retried Meadows earlier this season and got him back this past month, signed beautifully in blue. I've heard great things about him thus far into his minor league career and I really hope to see him succeed for the Bucs down the road!

David Murphy: 2/2 in 35 Days (Received September 25th)

David Murphy has had his moments so far into his 9 year career. He has been known as an average player often times, but he did offer a lot to Rangers fans; maybe to a little bit lesser extent than Nick Swisher gave the Yankees in his time. Now, they both play together in Cleveland, and neither of them had very good years in 2014. However, Murphy has shown that he could turn it around, and I'll definitely be rooting for him after he signed my 2009 Topps and 2012 Gypsy Queen cards in black with bible verses! I remember reading Night Owl Cards' posts about how much he liked that Murphy card, so when I saw it I knew I should try to have him sign it. Sure enough, he came through!

Thank you so much to these three players for signing my stuff, and again to my Dad for opening everything for me while I've been gone! But, I'll be home soon! 

See Ya!

Surprise College Care Package!

Hey guys, Drew back here! So... I've been in college for a little over a month now, and I have to say, the experience really isn't for me. I've always felt like I was more mature than other kids my age, so seeing people act crazy and lose their minds almost every night is almost sickening to me. I know its what most kids our age are supposed to do, but it doesn't feel right for me, so I may end up returning home to commute to a local school following this semester. 

Anyway, one of the coolest things that has happened since arriving at school was receiving a really thoughtful care package from William and his family! William and I have always had a lot in common, and he really understood a lot of what I've been going through when I explained it to him; so he sent me all sorts of snacks and cards to help brighten my day. And he sure did!

Within all of the awesomeness in the box were 3 packs of Bowman baseball! Here's what came out of them:

Nothing overly spectacular was found in these packs, but I did miss the feeling of opening a pack. When things get stripped away from you and you're in a position to start over, there's absolutely nothing better than going back to what you love; and being able to open packs, even though I haven't been very interested in buying cards lately; was an awful lot of fun.

The highlight of the 3 packs was this mini refractor of Royals star rookie Yordano Ventura. These Royals games have been phenomenal thus far into the postseason. I've been glued to my TV whenever they've played (especially because I don't get Fox Sports 1 on my TV, depriving me of all the NL games). William, your Orioles are an awesome story, and seeing them win would be great for your franchise, but I wouldn't be upset if the Royals made it to the World Series one bit.

William also threw in a bunch of recent Yankees cards he's pulled, including a ton of 2013 Topps Mini cards. I've never even seen these to be completely honest, but I'm really glad I got the chance to see them. It's a cool concept solely because Topps did the same thing in the 1970's, otherwise it'd just be an annoying gimmick. I'll take any Jeter cards I can get though! (By the way, sorry the scan got cut off, I'm still adjusting to my new printer/scanner I have in my dorm!)

Along with the Topps mini cards came some other gorgeous Yankees cards, all of which I'm certain I don't already have. I love the look of this year's Finest, and Gypsy Queen (as overdone as it is by now) still has a soft spot in my heart. I also completely ignored the fact that Topps Heritage covered my favorite vintage set of all time today, and I may have to go out and buy some packs of it now!

William, you're the man. I really appreciate all you do to cheer me up, you're a great friend, and even though we've been used to being long distance friends for a while, I definitely miss being more readily available to talk. Thank you. (And thank Chris again for the awesome letter!)

Congrats to the Orioles on advancing, by the way! See Ya!