I have very few card collections given my limited resources and space, but I did decide some time ago to begin collecting on-card Royals autographs. It’s been a blast so far trying to track these things down and this is the latest addition to my collection. To view the cards currently in the collection, take a look at the Gallery or the other posts in this series. I’m working on getting a legit want list together on my trade page but, in the meantime, if you have any on-card Royals autos that it looks like I don’t have, don’t hesitate to drop me a line!
I’ve only got one other Brian Bannister auto (this sweet 2008 Allen & Ginter), but both of them are awesome. Dude has a killer signature that looks great on minis and framed minis alike. I’m not sure if there are any other on-card autos of him as a Royal (some early ones feature him with his original Mets) but if there are, I want them. Of course, there won’t be any more from here on out because dude bailed for Japan last year. Then he bailed on Japan to focus on his photo house Loft 19 full time. Take a look at the client list and you’ll likely come to the conclusion (as I did) that Charles Johnson portraits are keeping them in business.
At any rate, Brian’s story is one of ups and downs, mostly due to various arm injuries. His 2007 was epic, though, leading to third place in the ROY balloting. It’s hard to keep up that kind of performance when you’re throwing up a 4.2 K/9 ratio though and he slipped big time the next couple of seasons, eventually hanging it up for Japan (and then for good) last year.
I wasn’t following baseball too closely in the early 2000s but even so, I heard the name Brian Bannister bandied about on short lists of players who were believed to have long careers ahead of them. It looks like Brian’s arm lost a little bit with each injury and those finally worked too hard against him. It’s a tough sport and the toughest position in that sport, so I wish him the best with his photography studio. And I’ll gladly take a tour/lesson/job if you’re reading this, Mr. Bannister!
Recent Comments