dennisjames71 Posted June 3, 2010 Share Posted June 3, 2010 Yeah, so it seems like it was just yesterday when I pulled this card out of an Upper Deck pack…back in July of 1989. So this week has been less than pleasant when I heard that Mr. Griffey was gonna hang up the bat and the glove today. My Tampa Bay Rays are coming down to Earth with a thud, holiday weeks throw me off, and I have to hear constant Lakers gab on local sports radio here in the L.A. area (I hate the Lakers)…now this news. I just wanted to share an anecdotal and personal Griffey story…Back in 1996, I lived in a small town in California called Lancaster. We had just got the Single-A affiliate for the Seattle Mariners (the Lancaster Jethawks) and they were going to play an exhibition game in late March (on Easter Sunday)…and the team they were going to play that day was the Seattle Mariners. My girlfriend at the time worked for the city and snagged a couple of (behind the dugout) tickets. Woo Hoo!! Back then especially I was the biggest Griffey fan…that same girlfriend had bought me an autographed Griffey bat for my birthday the previous year. Anyway, I brought my black Rawlings (Griffey of course) fielder’s glove and 3 baseballs to the stadium. I didn’t expect much chance to meet the guy at first but hung out by the Mariners dugout…A-Rod was there and yes, he was the aloof, jerk that he is now; he barely acknowledged the fans. But lo and behold Griffey comes flying out of the dugout with that trademarked smile and signed away and posed for a few photos with the many fans there. I got a chance to shake his hand and he signed my glove and one of my baseballs. I also got Edgar Martinez and Jay Buhner to sign another ball too. What a day, Griffey hit at least 2 HRs and was just a class act. It’s great to see that his class was something that always stayed with him…up until the end of his career. For him to feel that “he was a distraction” to the team’s effort and deciding to bow out gracefully…that speaks volumes in my book. Man, I’m gonna remember that “class” all of those tremendous moments in his Hall-Of-Fame career. Thank you Mr. Griffey…I’m gonna miss you bud. Dennis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yankee4Life Posted June 3, 2010 Share Posted June 3, 2010 Wow man. You were pretty lucky to get his autograph. It's priceless today. Thanks for sharing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dennisjames71 Posted June 3, 2010 Author Share Posted June 3, 2010 Yeah, I agree Y4L, I haven't met a ton of sports stars but Griffey was my hero. I defintely have that bat, ball, glove and that very same rookie card to this day. And you what's crazy, I have a Willie Mays signed ball that I would give up before the Griffey stuff. Griff's stuff just means more to me I guess. Wow man. You were pretty lucky to get his autograph. It's priceless today. Thanks for sharing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Homer Posted June 3, 2010 Share Posted June 3, 2010 man, you better have married that girl! in all of my years, junior was the only one that i never got an autograph from...well the only one i wanted--we know what i think of a-rod. jr had always eluded me, so count your blessings. i got to meet edgar and buhner on multiple occasions, but not griffey so i am extremely jealous! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dennisjames71 Posted June 3, 2010 Author Share Posted June 3, 2010 Lol! Well, unfortunately that same girlfriend ended up cheating on me about 2 years later and thus ended that..But hey, I still have that bat and the memories of that day...I just haven't thought of her in ages. Yeah, Buhner and Edgar were really cool too, even Randy Johnson was more pleasant and engaging than A-Rod. Man, what does that say about A-Rod? Lol! man, you better have married that girl! in all of my years, junior was the only one that i never got an autograph from...well the only one i wanted--we know what i think of a-rod. jr had always eluded me, so count your blessings. i got to meet edgar and buhner on multiple occasions, but not griffey so i am extremely jealous! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baseballfans Posted June 3, 2010 Share Posted June 3, 2010 wow the UD card cost about $230 bucks http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110531291049 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dennisjames71 Posted June 3, 2010 Author Share Posted June 3, 2010 Wow, I haven't checked prices in years...that's kinda cool baseballfans...I'm a little less depressed now. wow the UD card cost about $230 bucks http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110531291049 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcoll Posted June 3, 2010 Share Posted June 3, 2010 i loved when play in seattle with dad playing in outfield with him. that never happened any other time that i know of its of sad to me, he's my age and one of last things that was around of the hay days of the reds. be he was a kid and bat boy then, but still, has he ilved those days in there club house. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dennisjames71 Posted June 3, 2010 Author Share Posted June 3, 2010 Hey mcoll, yeah I'm pretty bummed about the news. Griff is just 1 year older than me and I've always "connected" with the guy. I am honored to have seen the guy play in person and to have shaked his hand. i loved when play in seattle with dad playing in outfield with him. that never happened any other time that i know of its of sad to me, he's my age and one of last things that was around of the hay days of the reds. be he was a kid and bat boy then, but still, has he ilved those days in there club house. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkB Posted June 3, 2010 Share Posted June 3, 2010 That's a cool story Dennis, glad you got to meet him. That signed baseball might fetch quite a decent amount on eBay in the next few days, as well as when he's inducted into the HOF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Z Posted June 3, 2010 Share Posted June 3, 2010 wow the UD card cost about $230 bucks http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110531291049 I was in the business of selling baseball cards. There's something you gotta understand about that card in that link. It's graded by PSA to be a 10 Gem Mint. That's the best of the best condition. Very few cards are graded a 10 by PSA. PSA is like the industry standard when it comes to companies that grade cards, so.. That card in that condition graded by PSA is damn rare and that's what is warranting that high price. If that card was a PSA 8, which still looks great to the eyes, it would be worth much less. I'm just fillin' people in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baseballfans Posted June 4, 2010 Share Posted June 4, 2010 This Fleer RC card sold almost $900 plus more than the regular Fleer card. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=220608243259 Anyone know how we can obtain this card back in the day? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yankee4Life Posted June 4, 2010 Share Posted June 4, 2010 This Fleer RC card sold almost $900 plus more than the regular Fleer card. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=220608243259 Anyone know how we can obtain this card back in the day? Yes. Fleer at that time would release two versions of their yearly baseball card set. The regular cards and then the glossy card set, which always sold for a bit more. You usually would be able to buy the glossy set in a collector's tin. I believe I may have the 1987 set somewhere. It was just a way for Fleer to sell their cards twice and people fell for it, like I did in 1987. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Z Posted June 4, 2010 Share Posted June 4, 2010 This Fleer RC card sold almost $900 plus more than the regular Fleer card. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=220608243259 Anyone know how we can obtain this card back in the day? !!! WOW !!! That's a lot of money for a card from '89. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emath2432 Posted June 4, 2010 Share Posted June 4, 2010 For all the disappointment that came along with his days in Cincy (just imagine what could have been if he even played 3/4 of the 700+ games he missed), I was still ecstatic when he came. I am a die hard Cubs fan, but most of my family are Reds fans. I have always loved the Reds (just not as much as those north side losers), and was so happy to see him go home. I was in the stands the day he hit his first Cincy Home run. Without going back and looking at the schedule, I am thinking it was in the 6th game of the season. We had gone to all 3 games in that series (Cubs at Cinergy Field), and I am pretty sure it was games 3-6. He hit it on Sunday afternoon. Maybe about the 6th, or 7th inning. He was off to a horribly slow start, and I remember hearing some *** holes in the center field stands yelling at him, and telling him to go back to Seattle. Funny how they were standing just the same as everyone else, giving him a standing ovation after he hit that home run. Sorry to see ya go Kid. Thanks for the memories... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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