Signature Sundays - Yaz!

Just a quick, single-card autograph post today, but it's a really significant one as far as my Red Sox collection goes!  Check this guy out:

Oh yeah!  This emerald beauty represents my very first Carl Yastrzemski autographed card!  I don't chase autographed cards with the fervor that I did a few years back, but I still have a decent back-log of them to scan, add to my proper inventoried collection, and feature here on the blog.  Yaz here was one of those back-logged cards.  Picked this up back in 2017, and it was actually completely free, as I used my third quarter eBay bucks certificate that year to cover the cost of the card in its entirety (was under $50).

I've shown off these 2005 Upper Deck Baseball Heroes Emerald Autograph cards before, and just absolutely adore them.  They take me right back to the Nolan Ryan and Reggie Jackson Heroes inserts I'd get so excited over as a kid collector in the early '90s.  At 99 hard-signed copies each, these are just scarce enough to feel really rewarding when you land a new one, yet prevalent enough that they're not impossible to find in the wild.

I love the signature on this card in particular, as Carl was not shy about using a big, bold autograph to fill the entire horizontal expanse of the card.  A real gem!  I've actually got this guy propped up in a small stand on my home office desk now to provide a little joy during these working-at-home, uncertain times.

Here's the back, not much to these other than an assurance as to the authenticity of the signature on the front.

I'm up to 18 of these Emerald Autographs and counting now from the 2005 Baseball Heroes release.  With 100 cards in the set, I don't think I'll ever complete it, but I don't really aim to either.  Just appreciating each one that I am fortunate enough to acquire is good enough for me.

I still don't have any of Yaz's first three Topps issues ('60 RC, '61 Rookie Stars, or '62), which feels like a pretty glaring hole for a Red Sox collector like myself.  Picking up an autograph was essential though, and with the motivation from finally posting and appreciating this awesome signature still fresh, maybe I'll hunt down one of those vintage needs soon.

Thanks as always for stopping by, enjoy your Sunday, and stay safe!