A jaw-dropping gift from a player I collect

This past Christmas season, my last day in the office was Friday, December 21. It was a bit of a rainy day in the NYC area, and most of my co-workers had already checked out or started their holiday travel by just not coming into work at all.

I wrapped up work somewhere between 4 and 5pm, and made my way home. My wife texted me that I had three packages waiting for me, and that one was sort of big. I hadn't been expecting any more gifts that I ordered, so I figured I was in a for a few surprises.

I got home, and noticed one package was bigger than the others. The other two were excellent in their own right - my Secret Santa package from Tim over at I Love the Smell of Cardboard in the Morning, and a 'just because' package from the Cutchfather himself over at Collecting Cutch. Obviously, both contained cards, and good ones at that!

But the large, padded mailer was a mystery, even mores when I looked at the return address. The name of the sender?

Ty Hensley.

Now, many of you know my fondness for Ty Hensley, as he's been a mainstay on this blog since the Yankees drafted him in 2012. It was Year 2 of my blog, and I was very interested in the prep pitcher from Oklahoma that the Yankees snagged at 30th overall. Many expected him to go much earlier, and draft recaps raved that the Yankees got a steal at #30.

I started scooping up his cards, first from Bowman Draft, then Leaf, and so on. Slowly, my collection grew through eBay purchases and Zippy Zappings. Ty and I interacted on Twitter a few times, creating even a stronger bond for me. And I even interviewed his Mom, Marci, on my blog in 2014.

Through a series of injuries and other unfortunate events, Ty's career with the Yankees didn't quite go as planned. Still, he remained a high-character, hard-working guy through it all. Then he was taken by the Rays in 2016 Rule 5 minor league draft. He spent a year-plus in their organization, including spring training in 2018. He ended the season playing for the Evansville Otters of the Frontier League, where he was part of a combined no-hitter. 

So yes, I've been a Ty Hensley fan since day one of his pro ball tenure. Now back to the padded envelope.

I couldn't quite imagine what could actually be in there? Too big for a signed ball. Maybe a hat? Or t-shirt? Nothing could have prepared me for finding a powder blue mesh jersey when I opened the package! I saw the front of it first, and didn't quite recognize the logo, although given the color scheme, I figured it was a Rays spring jersey of some sorts. 

Then I turned it over.

Holy sh*t.

It appears that this was one of the jerseys Ty wore while in camp with the Rays. Not only that, but he wrote and signed a thoughtful message on the jersey:

Thank you for following me. Look forward for the years to come. The comeback is just getting started. Believe in yourself!

I was still in disbelief, and kept taking the jersey out to look at it. How something so extraordinary could happen to a regular old collector like myself was just mind-boggling.

I'm not sure if either received it, but I did send a 'thank you' email to Ty's mom, as well as mailed Ty a thank you card to the address that was on the envelope. Whether or not they saw those, I do want Ty to know how much this gesture meant to me, and that this is something I'll cherish forever.

I am definitely going to frame this jersey, but haven't quite figured out how yet. I might frame the jersey by itself, or perhaps along with a few of my favorite Hensley cards. There's always my 2013 Bowman rainbow to think about, as well.

Regardless, thank you Ty! This is certainly the coolest thing in my collection, and I can't wait to proudly display it.