Monday, August 28, 2017

Signed Beckett from 17 years ago



Going through a few boxes of my old stuff that I recently rescued from my parents attic, there were a few items I was hoping I’d across.
This is definitely one of them.

While I rarely send anything beyond cards in my TTM requests, here’s a Rick Ankiel Beckett I sent when he was the hottest prospect in baseball in 2000.

Ankiel was kind enough to sign and return this for me. I’m not sure if I sent it to spring training or the Cardinals – it was over 17 years ago after all. However, I remember being thrilled to get it back, and I definitely hung it in my room proudly.

Here’s a closer look at the signature.
Before he famously developed the yips, Ankiel was a huge pitching prospect. He delivered in his first full year in the Majors in 2000, going 11-7 with a 3.50 ERA and 194 Ks in 175 innings. And he was only 20! Unfortunately, that postseason is where it all fell apart for him and deprived us of a promising young lefty for years to come.

To his credit, Ankiel returned as an outfielder and even belted 25 HRs in 2008. He could have easily let the yips define his career, but he overcame them and spent seven years in the Majors as a position player. To me, that’s a success, and a true measure of character.

8 comments:

  1. Wow, nice retro success. I never sent out a magazine out as a request before. Come to think about it I haven't even sent out a 8x10 photograph either.

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    1. It's rare for me. I also sent a cover to Mark Prior around the same time (also a success), and I sent an 8x10 to Mussina once.

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  2. That is cool! He seems like a pretty approachable guy. Saw him give a lot of interviews when he released his book last year.

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  3. The fact that Ankiel is one of only 2 players in history with 10 wins and 50HR puts him in elite company. The other being Babe Ruth.

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    1. Oh man. I remember writing about that fact when I pulled his Beanie Bear out of one of those Best Minors (or something like that) boxes. Elite company indeed.

      Sweet Beckett!

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  4. He's a super cool dude. You had to root for the guy no matter what he was doing. Nice piece.

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  5. His book that came out this year is a really good read. It blew my expectations out of the water considering I am not usually super excited to hear gifted athletes tell their life stories.

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