MLB Hall of Fame Class 2016

Obviously, one of the things I like collecting most are baseballs signed by MLB Hall of Famers.  At last count, I had 28 such signed balls, and with the induction of Ken Griffey Jr. into the Hall that number is now 29.  To rehash this story, this is one of the very first signatures I ever obtained and I got it as a kid at Qualcomm Stadium, the former home of the San Diego Padres.  All I remember was that it was one of the first interleague games ever, and that I was hanging over the Mariners dugout.  This is on one of the old AL only major league baseballs that were used before MLB went to one uniform ball.

The fact that the ball is in such good condition and I never played catch with it or anything is astounding to me, because kids don't know any better.  I had no idea how rare it was to get him to sign, I had no idea I was lucky to get him on the sweet spot, nothing.  Now, he is in the Hall of Fame and pretty much the first signature I ever remember obtaining. 

Since this blog would be boring with just one photo, I included some photos of items I have signed by other guys who came close to getting enough votes this year, and I'm sure will be in at some point in the future.  First up, Trevor Hoffman;

Obviously I never had a problem getting Trevor to sign things.  He was always one of the coolets players on the team and willing to sign.  The photo was I believe a day or two or three after he got his 400th save, which he inscribed the date of on the picture.  

Next up is Jeff Bagwell, who got close this year but still hasn't quite made it into the Hall yet.  He was never connected to any PED use, but many of the writers and reporters assume he used, so he hasn't got the prerequisite number of votes.  It will happen.

Lastly, we have Barry Bonds.  The guy was a jerk, and the guy was obviously using PED's, but frankly, he is a Hall of Famer.  He probably won't ever get in, but he should based on how good he was even before his career was tainted by use.

Thanks for reading and congrats to both Ken Griffey Jr. and Mike Piazza.