Category: Uncategorized

Today was the 2009 Twins Autograph Party.  It is an annual tradition that I have been to since around 1994.  While the crowds are bigger now, the players are a lot better.  I remember the early years when you could get through every line and make a team signed baseball there were so few people there.  This year, much like last year, was a zoo.
I met my buddy Shane around 7:30 am.  He was there around 6:30 or so.  We met in the Justin Morneau line.  We waited in the sun (I got a real nice burn around my neck and ears) until the event started.  I finally finished my M&M Boys photo.  It is the two of them high fiving after a Morneau home run.  Joe Vavra (the hitting coach) was at the station with Justin.  He is pictured on my 16×20 celebration and he signed by his head on the photo.
Then we headed to the next station where Delmon Young, Nick Blackburn and Jose Morales were at.  I got a card signed by Blackburn and Morales and (finally) a Delmon Young batting glove.  Shane helped me out and got a 16×20 signed by Young and another signed by Blackburn.  The Blackburn photo was a meeting at the mound with the pitching coach.  When he saw the photo he said “That could not have been good!”  That was funny.
Then it was off to the Jason Kubel, Brian Buscher and Steve Liddle.  I got Buscher on the celebration 16×20.  When I got to Kubel, I told him that I donated my other ticket from the game when he hit for the cycle to the Hall of Fame and asked if he would write cycle on the ticket.  He did.  It turned out to be one of the coolest things I got signed today.
That pretty much did it for the active players.  I ended up getting in the Dan Gladden, Frank Quilici and Juan Berenguer line while Shane wanted to get a Corey Koskie ball signed.  I got Dan and Frank on cards and Juan signed a baseball for me that the guy in front of me wanted signed (I helped him out because I did not have anything for Juan).  Shane was able to get a Blyleven card signed for me while he was in the Koskie line.
I then headed to the station with Julio Becquer, Dick Stigman and Tony Oliva.  I got each on a baseball card with Oliva on his rookie card.
All in all it was a fun time and I did ok.  I had a lot of fun hanging out with my buddy Shane and appreciate all the help he gave me.  We ended up staying for the game.  I did have to leave early to pick the kids up (who spent the weekend with my mom and dad and then my brother’s family) but while we were there, we spoke all in baseball clichés.  That was hilarious!

Today Tony Oliva was signing autographs at an appearance at Gladstone’s Window and Door in Maplewood, MN.  I told my buddy Russ that I would help him with the roofing of his house but I would not go up on his roof.  Sounds funny but there was no way he was getting me up on the roof!  The perfect job for me was cleanup!  Russ’ wife and I cleaned up all the old shingles they dumped on the ground while stripping them off.  It worked out well for me and still provided assistance to them.  On my way to his house, I stopped off to get Tony’s autograph.  I had a heck of a time finding the place because it was not in my GPS.  I was able to pull up their website on my cell phone but it did not have a map or directions.  Just the address.  I pulled over and got a map with the address on Mapquest on my cell phone and got to the signing with about 15 minutes to spare.  I got Tony to sign three baseball cards for me.

Today was one of the days where the Twins had players signing at the three Pro Shops.  Cami told me she wanted to add to her baseball that was started last weekend by Jesse Crain so she wanted to go see Brendan Harris at the Roseville Pro Shop.  We got there just as he showed up and sat in the car for a bit while the line shortened up.  When we walked up to him he smiled at Cami and she asked if he would sign her baseball with “To Cami”.  He wrote “To Cami, Best Always, Brendan Harris”.  She thought that was really cool.  I had him sign a 16×20 team celebration photo to which he commented “Wow!  Cool!” upon seeing.  Then he signed a couple cards for my Twins team collection.

Once we got back to the car, I asked Cami if she wanted to get another autograph for her ball and she said she did so we headed to Apple Valley to get Mike Redmond’s autograph.  By the time we got there, nobody was in line so we walked right up.  Cami asked if he would sign her baseball “To Cami Kat” so he did.  Then she gave him a couple Marlins cards.  He held one up and asked her if he looked younger now or back on the card.  She did not get it so he said “You are supposed to say now.”  We laughed and I pulled out a 16×20 photo of a team celebration and he signed that and a couple other cards for my Twins team collection.  Probably the coolest part of the whole thing was when I asked him if he got to pick his at bat music.  He said he did and I asked him if it was a reference to his infamous naked batting practice he had while playing for the Marlins.  He smiled, laughed and said it was.  In case you do not know his batting practice song it is the verse part of Jermaine Stewart’s song where he sings “…we don’t have to take our clothes off to have a good time…” from the song of the same name.  That was cool.  It was a fun time for both of us capped off by later going to the Twins game and seeing them win!

Caden was supposed to go with me to the ballgame today and I looked forward to spoiling him as well but he decided at the last moment he did not want to go.  Cami jumped at the chance to go again so the two of us headed out. We got there just before the gates opened so we were successful in each getting a Kirby Puckett bobblehead doll.  After that Cami wanted to go to the Plaza again and do some stuff.  As we were walking along, Caden’s friend from school, Lex, saw me and asked if Caden was along.  I told him he decided to stay home.  He and his dad were waiting in line for the kids’ autograph session which featured Jesse Crain and Nick Blackburn.  We started talking with them and the signing started.  They were kind enough to let us in line with them.  I gave Cami a ball for Crain because I did not have a card to give her.  She gave the ball to Jesse and asked him to sign it “To Camden”.  He asked “As in Camden Yards?”  I replied yes so he signed her ball with “To Camden, Go Twins!  Jesse Crain”  She gave the card to Nick Blackburn to get signed and he signed it.  She was nice enough to give that card to daddy as he needed it for a set he was working on! 🙂 Then Lex and his dad decided to head to the spinning wheel we went to a couple days before and Cami wanted to go in the TC bouncy thing again.  Then it was off to get another ‘tat’.  We got in line and she decided she wanted a Hello Kitty painted on her arm.  Then we went to the KSTP spinning wheel and while Cami did not win anything that time, dad won a mini-Gardy walker.  We then headed in the ballpark and got our hotdogs and preztel and sat down to watch the game.  The Twins ended up losing but it was sure fun to spend most of the day at the ballpark with Cami!