TTM Success: Aaron Boone

This was one I had forgotten about!

Right after the Yankees named Aaron Boone their manager in December of 2017, I shot him a TTM request at Yankee Stadium. I figured he might be spending a few days in his new office, working through the roster and getting settled in.

It didn't quite work out that way, as he never got back to me...until now, over a year later! A couple days ago, this rolled in:

The card looks great signed, and I've always admired Boone's signature.

Thanks, Skip!

Yankees cards coming to life

One of the coolest blogs out there, Baseball Cards Come to Life!, recently sent me a great trade package. Bo runs a very cool blog, complete with some awesome player interviews and #walletcard posts. I wish I had his ability to notice so many cool things in NYC. I probably walk by so many each day that I never take the time to notice. Bo does.

It all started with this card, the 5x7 Zenith Tino. I didn't have this one, so jumped at that chance.
Bo also protected these cards in a fun way:

I'm glad Pat LaFontaine was a Ranger for a short time. I remember watching their team quite a bit when he was there.

To me, the best part about the trade package was how random it was, and I mean that in a good way. It was filled with cards from all years, many from sets I don’t remember or had forgotten about. Here are a few cards that stuck out to me:

Topps 206 was one set I missed as a kid, but I do recall there being several versions of each card, as on display here:

SI Yankees!

Ziploc!

There were a bunch of Classic cards, including the ones featuring the Saved By The Bell design. I thought I was being original by calling it that but it looks like this is well known by Night Owl and every other blogger.

How have I never seen this Prime Time card? It’s great, although that looks like a brutal sun. Good concentration, Deion.

And I can effectively say, this is my first card of Meatloaf. Wonder if he signs TTM?

Bo, such a fun package. Thank you so much!

The new bleepin' manager of the Yankees

I was surprised that the Yankees chose Aaron Boone as their next manager. I was expecting Hensley Muelens due to his coaching experience.

Overall, I'm fine with the move. There wasn't a no-brainer candidate out there. I was a little surprised at the process though. I really figured that Brian Cashman had a plan in place once he let Girardi walk, but it really didn't seem like he did. Maybe he did at one point and then it didn't unfold as he expected. Or maybe he just went in with a completely open mind.

I think Boone will be fine. Many people think his 2003 HR gave him a leg up, which is laughable. But that's just how people on Twitter think sometimes. The managerial job has changed now, and you need a guy who is open to analytics and is a strong communicator. He is more a manager of people and processes, versus managing a game. It's interesting to see. It has changed almost as much as any position in the game.

Boone is walking into a good situation with a group of exciting young players; ones he must win-over and relate to, and also maximize their potential. I suspect his bench coach will have strong coaching experience, and I'm interested to see how he fills out his staff. We do know that Larry Rothschild will return as pitching coach, so I like the stability there.

I wish Aaron Boone the best of luck, and hope he is the right answer for a long, long time.

I know more about college baseball than all of you combined

After years of competing in the Autographed Cards blog College World Series Contest, I finally claimed victory! I won’t lie, about 95% of my selections were guesses, but hey, a win is a win. I always enjoy this contest because it reminds me to check out the CWS, and also learn a bit about who the key schools are each season. Plus, it gives me a school to root for since my alma mater doesn't have a baseball program, which is pure crap.

The prize is always very generous, and this year was no different. The highlight was easily the signed photos, which included HOFers Jim Palmer and Dennis Eckersley, a likely HOFer (next year) in Ivan Rodriguez, and Curt Schilling. Very nice selection.

This ball was included as well, which I believe was either a foul ball or was stumbled upon in the stadium.

Lastly, Zach also include a hard case of Yankees! I didn’t have this 2016 Gold Pineda, so I’ll happily add that to my collection.

Thanks, Zach! Looking forward to defending my title next year!

TTM Success: Aaron "Bleepin'" Boone

One of my best Yankee memories is Aaron Boone's Game Seven ALCS walk-off HR vs Tim Wakefield in 2003. I was in college at the time, and for some reason my dorm-floor was littered with Massholes. Red Sox fans everywhere. It was unacceptable. Boone's HR shut them up pretty quickly. While the Yanks unfortunately didn't win the World Series, the memory of that HR is one of the finest I have.

I sent Boone this card in c/o ESPN five months ago and just got it back a few days ago. It was post-marked from Arizona, so it looks like he has his mail forwarded there. At the time I needed this for my Topps Yankees Project. He has one of the nicest signature out there in my opinion, and I appreciate this success from a Yankees legend.