1991-1992 Durham Bulls
Background-
Going with the Carolina League version of the Durham Bulls for this post. Nieves was signed out of Puerto Rico by the Braves in 1988. The former Major League outfielder signed as a 17 year old, so it took him a few years to reach A-Ball with the Bulls. Nieves first stint with the Bulls was decent, but as a 19 year old, the Braves left in with the Bulls for a second season. It lasted all of 31 games. During that short stint, Melvin Nieves hit .302/.395/.632 with 8 home runs, 9 doubles, and 32 RBIs. The Braves shuffled him up to Double A, and eventually for a cup of coffee in the Majors at the end of the season.
Shortly afterwards the Braves took advantage of his great season trading him to the Padres in exchange for Fred McGriff. It was not a 1 for 1 trade, but Melvin Nieves was the most significant player the Padres received. He ended up as a Top 100 Prospect with Baseball America in both 1993 and 1994 and continued to hit in the Minors after the trade. The Padres called Nieves up for good in 1995, but he only hit .205 and had almost 100 strikeouts in just 234 at bats. San Diego eventually traded him to the Detroit where he had two 20 home run seasons. His final Major League took place with the Reds in 1998. Nieves eventually ended up in Japan for a few seasons before returning to MLB for a comeback attempt with the Nationals in 2005. He never made it back to the Majors.
Shortly afterwards the Braves took advantage of his great season trading him to the Padres in exchange for Fred McGriff. It was not a 1 for 1 trade, but Melvin Nieves was the most significant player the Padres received. He ended up as a Top 100 Prospect with Baseball America in both 1993 and 1994 and continued to hit in the Minors after the trade. The Padres called Nieves up for good in 1995, but he only hit .205 and had almost 100 strikeouts in just 234 at bats. San Diego eventually traded him to the Detroit where he had two 20 home run seasons. His final Major League took place with the Reds in 1998. Nieves eventually ended up in Japan for a few seasons before returning to MLB for a comeback attempt with the Nationals in 2005. He never made it back to the Majors.
Card-
Look for an autograph of a 1990s baseball player, it seems like I always end up look at the checklist for the 1996 Leaf Signature set. The last couple of posts in my Durham Bulls autograph series have been out of this set, looking ahead, there are several more players who I could pick out of this set. Nieves is one of many instances where these large autograph sets, like Leaf Signature, are actually the only option for finding a certified autograph. While Nieves has healthy number of cards for a player who did not stick around too long, this is his only appearance in as a signer as a professional baseball player. The card is very common and very inexpensive, but I still like the looks of the card and am happy to add another autograph of a former Durham Bulls player to the collection.
I love 1996 Leaf for the exact reason you mentioned in this blog. I bet there are a bunch of guys whose only signature is found in that set.
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