From the Collection: Carlos Beltran, of, Kansas City Royals
Carlos Beltran had a fantastic career and was a borderline Hall of Fame player.
Collecting Cleveland Baseball Since 1982
Collecting Cleveland Indians Topps team sets from 1952-present, as well as post-war minor and major league autographs.
New Arrivals: Kyle Tucker, of, Houston Astros
I am a big Kyle Tucker fan. I was able to get him in person back in 2016 when he was with the Low-A 2016 Quad Cities River Bandits. So it’s been fun following his career ever since.
From the Collection: Austin Riley, of, Atlanta Braves
Austin Riley was the 44th overall pick of the 2015 draft, and by 2019 was the Brave’s #1 prospect and the #22 best prospect in baseball. But plenty of highly rated players flop when they get to the big leagues, and it certainly looked like that could’ve been the case with Riley.
New Arrival: Brad Snyder, of, Cleveland Guardians
From 2004-2008 outfielder Brad Snyder was one of Cleveland’s best prospects, ranking as high as #3 in 2006. His power-speed combination had some people comparing him to Fred Lynn, which is a very high compliment. Unfortunately, strikeouts were a problem that dogged Snyder as he moved up through the minors,[…]
From the Collection: Bo Naylor, c, Cleveland Guardians
Bo Naylor is Cleveland’s #1 prospect and, hopefully, their starting catcher in the very near future. His status as the organization’s best prospect was cemented by an awesome 2022 campaign, where he hit .263/.392/.496 between AA and AAA.
From the Collection: Mookie Betts, of, Los Angeles Dodgers
I was able to get this autograph TTM from Mookie Betts in 2012, while he was playing for the Low-A Lowell Spinners. It’s hard to believe, but at the time he was not a huge prospect and was not even ranked by Baseball America.
From the Collection: Jose Ramirez, 3b, Cleveland Guardians
On July 6th, 2012 the Lake County Captains played the West Michigan Whitecaps. The Captain’s line-up had two future major league players batting at the top of the order, with Jose Ramirez leading off and Francisco Lindor in the #2 hole.
From the Collection: Japhet Amador, 1b, Houston Astros
aphet Amador signed with the Houston Astros back in 2013. He was 26 at the time and a veteran of the Mexican League. His numbers in Mexico were impressive; the season before signing with Houston he hit .368/.419/.693 with 36 homers for the Mexico City Red Devils.
From the Collection: Paul Goldschmidt, 1b, St. Louis Cardinals
Paul Goldschmidt had a career year in 2022, hitting .404/.578/.981 with 35 HR. He led the league in slugging, OPS, and OPS+.
New Arrival: Mike Schmidt, 3b, Philadelphia Philles
Mike Schmidt spent 18 seasons in the big leagues and would retire with 548 HR, and a career 148 OPS+. He was selected to 12 All-Star teams, and won 10 Gold Gloves and six Silver Sluggers. He won three NL MVP awards.