Finally!!!

I write often about the Cardinals and the Durham Bulls, but I also enjoy a good card of a good player from the 1980s, 1990s, or 2000s.  I feel I have a really complete list of the Hall worthy players from those decades in my autograph collection.  Some of the players have been tougher than others, but I am really proud of the collection I have assembled.  Going back to 1988, thirty years, there is only one elected through the regular Baseball Writers ballot whose autograph has eluded my collection. 

I first started collecting certified autographs in the early 2000s.  The first time I saw an autograph of Rickey Henderson was in 2004.  Truth be told, there were actually a small number put out in 2003.  At the time, my main reason for avoiding his autographs was price.  They were expensive.  Even today, his early autographs remain expensive.  

Almost $100 for a sticker autograph on thin card stock is not a very appealing card in my eyes.  I knew that Henderson had been in baseball cards set over the past decade and a half, but I just never really looked into the idea of adding one to my collection.  

Until recently.  

I was working on trading a few vintage cards to another collector, when I was offered a Henderson autograph in return.  The vintage cards were not worth $100, but the Henderson card that was offered looked a lot better than the older cards of the all-time stolen base leader I had known from more than a decade ago.  I paused, looked up a few Henderson cards, and found that they were far cheaper than I had thought.  

My trading partner had a few other cards I was more interested in, so I passed.  However, I did start a search for a Henderson autograph.  This is what I came up with.....

I am very happy with this card and I spent well under $100 for this great looking card.  Still a little disappointed that it took me this long to find an autograph of one of the best players from the 1980s and 1990s, but this is a really nice card.  Great design, nice card stock, and Rickey has a very nice signature.   Well worth the wait.