I had a pretty good weekend after a few horrible days of graphing in the City. I had plan for a trip to Sacramento a few weeks ago and went up there this past weekend. I found out that Yoenis Cespedes was going to be on a rehab assignment with the Sacramento Rivercats and made it my mission to go out there and graph(wasn't my intentions when planning the trip). I decided to head to the ball park on Friday night after dinner to see if I can catch Yoenis Cespedes on his way out. It was my first time graphing at this ballpark so I took a lap around the park before figuring out where the players enter/exit. By the time I made my way to where the players exit after the game, the two graphers who had been waiting there told me I had missed Yoenis by ~3 minuets. The two of them got some balls and photos done but he declined to sign their bat. With this new information, I felt confident I would be able to get Yoenis to sign for me the following day. 
I spent Saturday exploring Sacramento with the gf. By the end of the day, she was too tired to go to the ball game but I wasn't going to let that stop me from getting this autograph. I dropped her off at the hotel and headed to the game. I decided to buy the cheapest ticket to get into the ballpark to catch batting practice and try my luck before the game. 

$10 Ticket for a lawn seat.

It wasn't that hard to get the players autograph as the ballpark setup made it extremely accessible. Even with the cheapest ticket, you're allowed to head down to the dugout to watch bating practice. As game time approached, the players make their way to the dugout from a gate/door from center field. As they are walking, people are asking for autographs and photos and the majority of them were more than happy to comply. 

Grant Green & Daric Barton signing autographs before the game

Grant Green

Dan Straily

Once the game started, I made my way around the ballpark to get a sense of what it had to offer. I ran into two of my friends from college and we decided to grab a beer and catch up while paying close attention to Yoenis as he was the designated hitter that day. I had a feeling Yoenis was going to leaving early, as he was scheduled to be reactivated from the DL the following day in the last game of the Orioles series. 

Yoenis in his first at-bat

He came up to bat three times and made his way towards the locker room in the top of the 5th inning. Once he left, I cut ties with my friends and made my way to the players exit. Once I got there, the gate was open with a security guard at the gate. The guard was nice enough to tell me no one had left and asked me whom I was waiting for. He turned out to be extremely helpful and told me to wait at the end of the driveway because this was where players who drive are obligated to stop and make a right turn onto 5th street. As I waited, two graphers came each with a picture and a jersey for Yoenis. The guard I had talked to earlier gave the 3 of us constant updates-color and type of car Yoenis was driving and when he was heading out. The wait was about 45mins that concluded with Yoenis stopping and signing for the 3 of us.

Yoenis Cespedes

I thought it was a great first experience graphing at Raley Field and made up for the week I had graphing the Diamondbacks and Orioles. I found the ballpark to be fan friendly by allowing people to stand by the dugout up until 5mins before game time regardless of ticket. Im almost certain that I will be coming back to graph top prospects and current MLB players on rehab

For those who are interested in graphing the Sacramento Rivercats at Raley Field, some pointers are:

1. You can go down to the dugout regardless of what section you are sitting in. Keep in mind that the home dugout is on the third base side and visitors is on the first base side. 
2. Players (both visiting and Rivercats) make their way to the dugout before game time by coming from a gate/door in center field. You can get their autographs by standing by the dugout and calling them as they walk pass you towards the dugout. 
3. If you miss a player before the game, you can try afterward the game when they make their exit on the corner of 5th Street and Tower Bridge Gateway. There's a driveway a few yards from the corner of 5th and Tower Bridge. At the top of this drive way is a gate that players enter and exits. If they are driving, you can wait at the bottom where they are obligated to stop to make the right turn onto 5th Street.

I'd like to thank Grant Green, Dan Straily, and Yoenis Cespedes for signing. I'd also like to thank the security guard for passing information along to the 3 of us who were waiting-your help was much appreciated! And finally my gf, who puts up with this hobby.  

It's been a difficult week as far as graphing goes. I went out twice this week, first to graph the Diamondbacks on Tuesday 4/23/2013 and again to graph the Orioles on 4/25/2013. My goals for the Diamondbacks were to get Paul Goldschmidt, Cody Ross (I have some 2010 WorldSeries stuff for Ross), Don Baylor and Matt Williams. I completely missed Cody Ross because he went out a different exit but heard from a nice lady at the ballpark who got him as he was walking up on her 2010 WorldSeries bat-she was the only person who was there to get him. Don Baylor said no while Matt Williams signed for three people before getting into a cab. I was informed by fellow graphers that Paul Goldschimdt took a cab on Monday so I stayed in front where people go to hail cabs. At around 12:45pm, the bus pulled up and as luck would have it, Paul took the bus on the day I was waiting for him by the cab pickup/drop off. He only signed for the one person who was the first person to get on the team bus and only one grapher was there by the bus stop. I didn't get anyone I was really after but I did spot Eric Hinske and asked him to sign a used official MLB ball for me-thanks Eric!

Eric Hinske

Today, I went up to the City to graph the Orioles with the intentions of graphing Adam Jones, Manny Machado, Matt Wieters, JJ Hardy and Chris Davis. The Orioles didn't stay at the usual hotel all the other teams have been staying but went to the Parc 55 instead. This is a difficult hotel because not only are there multiple exits, the staff at the hotel will not allow graphers to stand on the side walk right outside the main entrance. I don't understand how the hotel staff have the authority to police that as the sidewalk is not hotel property. Anyways, this made it extremely difficult to graph anyone. I saw maybe 6 players the entire day. I was helping a fellow grapher with his Heritage set but the two players I saw, Chris Tillman and Tommy Hunter turned us down. Around 1:45pm, a towncar pulled up to the main entrance and Manny Machado rushed from the lobby into the car. He didn't acknowledge anyone (diva in the making. guy has one year in the bigs and thinks he's Albert Pujols). I wasn't able to get any of the autographs I intended to get but was able to get the Orioles Hall of Fame pitcher/announcer, Jim Palmer. Mr. Palmer had breakfast at the Puccini & Pinetti restaurant and signed on his way out. He was very approachable and made small talk with the small group of graphers that showed up for the Orioles at this shitty hotel. He was kind enough to put the HOF '90 inscription without being asked. Thank you, Mr. Palmer. 

Jim Palmer-HOF '90 Inscription

Graphing is 95% luck and 5% skills. It takes some skills to be able to recognize players in street clothes and sometimes from blocks away. You always have to have your guards up and pay attention to your surroundings-whos out and about, whos yet to come out, where the town cars are, taxis, team buses, etc. The other 95% is just being at the right place at the right time. This past week, I wasn;t able to get any of the players I intended to get but was able to salvage the trip with a rookie of the year and a hall of famer. Maybe my luck will turn around next week. 

Went up to San Francisco on Friday to graph the Padres at the hotel. The group of graphers was small compared to what it usually is when other teams are in town. As noon approached, a few more showed up but still a relatively small group. I assumed they took this opportunity to graph the Giants. It was really slow as none of the players made their way to the ballpark until around 1:00pm. For the most part, everyone signed when asked and some doing multiples with the exception of Edinson Volquez but it was understandable as he was pitching that day. I don't know if this is a good signing team or if it's because of the small group of graphers. Carlos Quentin and Cameron Maybin didn't make the trip and Huston Street took the back exit so I'll graph them next time the Padres come to town. I want to thank Chase Headley, Luke Gregerson and Clayton Richard for signing.

Chase Headley

Clayton Richard

Luke Gregerson

It's been four days since my last graph and I was starting to get that itch. The San Francisco Giants were away in Milwaukee and the Oakland A's played a morning game so graphing the major leaguers was out of the question. I decided to graph the San Jose Giants down in Municipal Stadium, a whole 5 mins drive from my house. I got there at the end of the 8th inning and saw two charter buses parked in the front of the stadium. I decided to wait there and see if any graphers would come by but didn't see any so I decided to walk inside the stadium. I spotted a few people waiting behind the backstop so I hung out there to study their actions. It was quite obvious they were graphers from all the baseball cards and the sharpies. I tried to be nice and introduce myself but one of the guys brushed me off-fuck him. Some of these graphers think what they are doing is totally secretive and won't tell you anything. Shit like that just pisses me off and makes this hobby all the more difficult. Anyways, Im not dumb so I knew what was up. I decided to press this guys button and make it obvious that I was following him wherever he went. I don't recommend doing this but I knew I can take him if he was gonna try and act dumb. After a few mins to walking around following this prick (excuse my french) he ended up standing right outside where I had spotted the 2 charter buses earlier. By this time, there were a good amount of graphers there so I knew this is it. I started talking to this older gentleman who's been graphing the Stockton Ports the past two nights for some information. Unlike the guy who brushed me off earlier, this guy was really informative. We waited til about 10:15pm when Addison Russell came out. He loaded all his equipment onto the bus and signed for everyone there, doing multiple items as well as inscriptions. I had him sign an official Rawlings MLB ball for me and decided to head down to the San Jose Giants player parking lot to see if I can get Kyle Crick and Clayton Blackburn. I hung out by the players parking lot for about 15 mins and passed the time by talking to this kid I met, Brandon. Nice guy who's from down in the southern California area but is attending San Jose State. We shared some stories while waiting for Kyle Crick since we had just missed Clayton Blackburn. It wasn't took long before Kyle emerged and signed for like 6 graphers that was there waiting for him. 

Overall, my first experience graphing minor leaguers was a positive one. Compared to the major leaguers, it's really easy here. All of the players sign and are very friendly towards their fans. If anyone is reading this and is interested in graphing some San Jose Giants game, the three area to be are:

1. On the first base side before the game. The players will warm up and almost always sign on their way in. This requires having an actual ticket to the game in order to come into the stadium for warm-up/batting practice.
2. After the game, there are two charter buses parked right in front of the stadium on Alma Street. Stand right in front (or sit since theres two benches) and wait for the visiting players to walk out after the game. This does not require an actual ticket to the game. If you come towards the end of the game like I did, you can walk in for free and watch the game from the backstop.
3. For those who are interested in obtaining San Jose Giants players autograph, there is an entrance with a sign that states that this the players parking lot. It's a chain linked fence with this green covers with a gate. The San Jose Giants players will walk out this gate after the game and walk towards their cars. If you hang out here, you can graph the players as they walk out.

I hope this helps. If you have questions, feel free to shoot me a message below. 

Addison Russell

Kyle Crick

I decided to go up to San Francisco to graph the Detroit Tigers last Friday, April 12, 2013 with one particular graph in mind-Miguel Cabrera. I got into the city around 10:00am and walked to the Parc 55 hotel where the Tigers stayed during 2012 season. I got there but didn't see any of the usual group of graphers so I knew something was up. I decided to walk around to the big name hotels and see if I can spot any familiar faces. It didn't take long for me to find the group of usual graphers standing in front of Union Square so I knew I was in the right place. Right when I got to the hotel, I saw Jim Leyland walking back. I asked if he can sign but was rejected. Jim said he doesn't sign at the hotel. According to some of the seasoned graphers out there, this was unusual of Jim because he typically signs at hotels. I guess you have to change things up when you are the heavy favorites to win the World Series but end up getting swept. Shortly afterwards, Jhonny Peralta came out and signed for everyone waiting. He didn't talk much but was really nice about signing because he signed and posed for pictures upon returning from shopping in downtown. A few of the graphers spotted Justin Verlander walking to a nearby restaurant. A handful of them decided to wait by the restaurant hoping he would sign when he leaves. I decided to stay knowing Justin's signing habits (he doesn't sign at hotels) and wait for the triple crown winner. Around 1:30pm, a bus pulled up to the back of the hotel to pick up the first wave of players, coaches and media personnel. Within a few minuets, Miguel Cabrera emerged and signed for the group of ~15 people who were waiting. Unfortunately for me, Miguel signed my ball using a black ball point pen that he used to sign a ball previous to mine. If you're new to graphing, it is strongly suggested you use a BLUE BALL POINT PEN when graphing baseballs. This prevents autograph from bleeding into the ball and/or fading over time. After getting Miguel's autograph, I stuck around for a little longer hoping to get Prince Fielder, Torii Hunter and Alex Avila. No one spotted any of those players and by 4:00pm, I decided to call it a day and headed home. I want to thank Jhonny Peralta and Miguel Cabrera for taking the time to sign today. Thanks for reading!

Jhonny Peralta

Miguel Cabrera

Welcome to my blog. This is to document my hobby of collecting MLB autographs. I've been autographing (graphing) since 2008 when I got my first autograph from Vernon Davis while working at Champs Sports. Vernon came into the store to buy some Air Force 1's and I asked for his autograph on a Vernon Davis jersey. Little did I know that first graph would turn into a hobby/addiction. I've been graphing on and off since 2008 but have taken time off due to school (yes, I have my priorities straight). I recently graduated from nursing school this past December, so I will be graphing a lot more. As I graph, Il continue to document my success/failures. Thanks for reading.

My first autograph