Catching Hammerheads

As much as catching a shark would've been the big highlight of Shark Week, it was the Jupiter Hammerheads -- the baseball team, not a rare species found in Florida's tropical waters -- who sealed the deal for the shark fan in our household.

From pitcher Alejandro Sanabia, shown above signing the Hammerheads team ball, to 3B Matt Dominguez, the Florida Marlins' 2007 first-round draft pick who signed this card, the Florida State League team stepped up and made sure that Shark Week, our Summer of Baseball mini-project, was a success.

The team ball, however, wasn't the only item. We also added these:

~ a plastic hammerhead shark,, quite the hit with the team's players. Many said it was the first time they had signed such an item; and

~ Three of Jupiter's All Star Game representatives -- Jeff Allison, Miguel Fermin and Alejandro Sanabia -- on an All Star players ball.

All told, 18 players signed the team ball:

Spike McDougall and Jeff Allison;

Garrett Parcell, Jose Rosario, Miguel Fermin, Alejandro Sanabia and Kyle Gunderson;

Osvaldo Martinez, Gregory Burns, Elih Villanueva, Brandon Tripp and Jhan Marinez; and

Hunter Mense, Matt Dominguez, Ryan Curry, Geraldo Valentin, unidentified (anyone know who it is?) and Smelin Perez.

Part of the game

Beyond all of the autographs Colin picked up over Shark Week, I believe this dugout lineup card, given to Colin by Clearwater Threshers coach Ramon Henderson after the team's 7-3 victory over the Jupiter Hammerheads last Thursday, was the coolest item he received.

I'm sorry, though, I'm not sure what the black dots represent. I'm thinking they might be strikeouts.

Overindulgence?

For good or bad, we've been told many, many times that we spoil our son, Colin.

Well, yes, I'd plead guilty to that charge. Willingly, too.

A case in point: This Philadelphia Phillies Gulf Coast League game-worn jersey of Clearwater Threshers 1B/DH Matt Rizzotti, plucked during Shark Week from a chest inside the team's pro shop at Bright House Networks Field.

As you can see, Rizzotti was more than willing to sign the jersey (it, as well as others, cost $50-$75) as well as verifying he'd worn it during a rehabilitational stint last season.

Just a couple

We didn't fill up the Clearwater Threshers team ball as much as planned during Shark Week, focusing instead on the visiting Jupiter Hammerheads.

Still no worries. We'll make at least one more trip to Clearwater before season's end. This time, though, we'll pay homage to the home team. We missed out on Phils' top prospect Dominic Brown, an error on our part.

That's not to say we didn't add to the 17-signature ball. No, we did. What we lacked in quantity, however, was made up with quality, snagging signatures from two Florida State League All Stars:

~ Starter Yohan Flande, a lefty who, through today (June 15), is 6-1 with a 2.45 ERA. His one-word sig covers part one from Phinley, the Threshers mascot. Tsk, tsk, tsk. The 17th signature, Flande had plenty of room to sign.

~ Pitcher Carlos Monasterios, a righty with a 4-4 record and a 3.48 ERA. He got lit up (three earned runs in two innings) by Jupiter during their four-game series.

Put to good use

Considering the small crowds and fan-friendly approach of Florida State League games, it's been easy for Colin to collect a handful of official FSL baseballs, either through foul balls, players or umpires.

Rather than have them sit around the house collecting dust, though, we started a FSL All Star Game ball during Shark Week, when the Jupiter Hammerheads played the Clearwater Threshers. Though we won't be making the trip to Fort Fyers for the game, the ball, given to Colin by an umpire after a Charlotte-Tampa game, will become a staple for the remaining FSL games in our Summer of Baseball.

Three members of the Jupiter Hammerheads, the Advanced-A affiliate of the Florida Marlins, were the first to sign: catcher Miguel Fermin, from top to bottom, and pitchers Alejandro Sanabia and Jeff Allison.

We hope to add a few more Wednesday, when we'll catch the Fort Myers Miracle, the Minnesota Twins' FSL club, play the Dunedin Blue Jays, a stop within Toronto's organization.

Signing bonus

As we walked toward Bright House Networks Field on Saturday, we could hear the sounds of a baseball game going on - the announcing of a batter, the crack of solid contact and a smattering of applause.

At first, we thought we had arrived late to the Jupiter Hammerheads-Clearwater Threshers game, part of our Shark Week activities during out Summer of Baseball. Thankfully, that wasn't the case.

Instead, we learned after arriving inside the park, it was a charity Legends game for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Among the former Major League Baseball players taking part in the game and nice enough to sign a foul ball Colin collected during the contest:

~ Pitcher Dick Drago, who played 13 years for the Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, California Angels, Kansas City Royals and the Seattle Mariners.

~ Catcher Mike Heath, a Tampa native, who played 14 seasons with the Atlanta Braves, Detroit Tigers, New York Yankees, Oakland A's and the St. Louis Cardinals.

It's Shark Week

Living here in the Tampa Bay area of Florida, it's no secret that the warm Gulf waters hold a variety of sharks Among them, you'll find bull, nurse, reef, hammerheads and threshers. With Colin being a big fan of sharks -- from a respectable distance, mind you -- he's always eager to learn more.

As a result, this week is one of the biggest of our summer baseball-hounding campaign. In what we're calling Shark Week, the Jupiter Hammerheads meet the Clearwater Threshers. Schedules allow us games on Thursday and Saturday.

In a stroke of luck, the Hammerheads, the Advanced-A affiliate of the Florida Marlins, returned my repeated phone calls for a team logo ball. We're hoping to make it the fifth team-signed ball of the season. Even without one, we could've used one of the four Florida State League game balls that Colin has accumulated this season.

For the Threshers, we'll focus our efforts on finishing their team ball. Atop the list is Dominic Brown, the top-rated prospect in the Philadelphia Phillies system, and fellow FSL All Star Yohan Flande.

Now, we'll also do a little fishing during the week. Maybe, we'll even catch (and release) a shark.

Scoring four

After getting just one or two autographs on one of his hand-drawn team sheets, Colin went deep -- in terms of autographs -- with his latest Major League Baseball effort of the summer baseball-hounding season. Last Thursday, before the Tampa Bay Rays 3-2 victory over the Kansas City Rays, Colin got four Royals players, including star pitcher Zack Grienke, to sign his latest team sheet.

The others to sign were also pitchers: Doug Waechter, a St. Petersburg, Fla., native who added a Bible verse (Colossians 3:23 (New International Version) - Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.); Ron Mahay and Jamey Wright.

This Sunday, he'll have one for the visiting Washington Nationals.

Now, this is fun

Besides getting a decent number of players to sign, we had a real hoot working this Charlotte Stone Crabs team ball at two Florida State League games last week.

Though it's early in the season, the Stone Crabs are one of the friendliest baseball teams we've encountered. The players and coaches went out of their way to sign the ball for Colin, even taking the time to introduce themselves, shake his hand and engage him in conversations.

Then again, this is minor league baseball. It's what the players are supposed to do. But, still, the two trips to watch the Stone Crabs, the Advanced A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays, have been the most enjoyable, to date, of our Summer of Baseball.

Last Thursday, Colin scored 13 autographs, including ones from Matt Fields and Shawn O'Malley, Colin's favorite Stone Crabs player, in between a doubleheader against the Clearwater Threshers. On Saturday, Colin added another half-dozen, with Nevin Ashley, Cody Cipriano and Ryan Royster among those signing before a game against the Tampa Yankees.

Though we missed out on Chad Bradford, the submarine-throwing reliever on a rehabilitation assignment from the Rays, Colin was more than happy to have these players and coaches fill up the ball:

Jeremy Hall and batting coach Joe Szekely;

Shawn O'Malley, Gregory Sexton, Diogenes Luis, Nevin Ashley and Cody Cipriano;

Christian Lopez, Brian Flores, Matt Fields, Ryan Royster and John Matulia;

Pitching coach Bill Moloney, Shawn Williams, Reid Fronk, Emeel Salem and Kevin Boggan; and

Omar Luna, left, and manager Jim Morrison.

We've got plans to catch the Stone Crabs in Dunedin later this month. Maybe we'll get Fields to sign the broken bat -- since repaired -- he gave Colin after Saturday's game.

We're hoping, too, that Tim Beckham, the Rays' No. 1 pick last summer, will make the move up from the Bowling Green Hot Rods of the South Atlantic League.

Tough crowd

One would think that Major League Baseball players would find Colin's team sheets hard to ignore. They're hand-drawn and there's no way they'd ever end up on eBay.

Unfortunately, that's not the case.

Only Minnesota third baseman Brian Buscher, a native of Jacksonville, Fla., took the time to sign for Colin before the Twins' 3-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday at the Trop.

I'm thinking that future attempts for Major League Baseball clubs will have to follow our normal hockey-hounding routines. Instead of hanging out near the dugout, we'll try our luck at the Renaissance Vinoy Resort & Golf Club in St. Petersburg, where teams stay when they're in town.

Too bad Philly won it

Though we were disappointed when the Tampa Bay Rays lost to the Philadelphia Phillies during the 2008 World Series, we weren't going to miss out on an opportunity to see the famed World Series trophy when it came to Clearwater recently.

Granted, it'll never carry the stature and status of Lord Stanley's Cup -- at least in our humble household -- it was cool seeing the trophy, all shiny in silver and gold, for the three innings it was on display at Bright House Networks Field, home of the Phillies spring training and Florida State League affiliate, the Clearwater Threshers.

Besides checking out the World Series trophy, Colin also added to his Clearwater Threshers team ball. Among those adding to it was Kyle Drabek, the Phils' first-round pick (18th overall) in the 2006 MLB draft, who's coming back from Tommy John surgery. His signature, with the No. 8, is second from the bottom.

Also signing were Luis Ramon Arzeno, Chance Chapman, Michael Cisco, Fidel Hernandez, Tim Kennelly, Cody Overbeck and Johan Sampson.

He'll take two

It might not be the greatest start to our Major League Baseball hounding campaign, but we all have to start somewhere.

With the Oakland A's in town to play the Tampa Bay Rays last week, we took in an afternoon game on a fly-away day. Despite the rain and grousing about a $15 parking fee, we made it inside -- dry and in time -- for Colin to snag the first two MLB autographs of the campaign on one of his hand-drawn team sheets.

Oakland pitcher Brett Anderson, who won a bronze with Team USA at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, was the first to sign. A's pitching coach Curt Young, who spent 10 years in the big leagues, also signed, even engaging Colin, decked out in Rays gear, in a conversation about his loyalties.

"Hey, you got a lot of Rays stuff on. Who are you rooting for - the Rays or the A's?" Young asked.

"I like the Rays because they're my hometown team," Colin replied. "But I really like baseball."

"That's good," Young said. "That's what I wanted to hear."

Brett's FSL Report #1

Editor's note: Baseball Mondays is pleased to announce that Brett, a Fort Myers, Fla.-based autograph hound, is its Florida State League correspondent.

It was a great week when two Florida State League teams -- the St. Lucie Mets and Sarasota Reds -- visited Fort Myers, allowing me to score autographs from many of the top prospects in baseball and a Hall of Famer as well.

First up was St. Lucie, who have the New York Mets' three first-round picks from last year: Ike Davis (18th overall), Reese Havens (22nd overall), and Brad Holt (33rd overall). All three were great signers; each doing nine cards each. Davis also signed two Brooklyn Cyclones programs after the cards.

Also signing cards were Kirk Nieuwenhuis, Francisco Pena (former major leaguer Tony Pena’s son), Greg Veloz, manager Tim Teufel (who signed nine cards), Brant Rustich and Stephen Clyne.

Overall, the Mets, for being one of the FSL's most prospect-laden teams, are great signers. Not one player refused to sign, or didn’t sign what was handed to them.

Also in town watching the hometown Fort Myers Miracle was Hall of Famer Paul Molitor, a roving instructor for Minnesota. Luckily, I had this game-used ball in the car, which Molitor signed as he left the field. Molitor travels to the Twins' affiliates during the regular season, taking notes on players for the big league club.

The next team in town was Sarasota. The Reds have Cincinnati's two most recent first-round draft picks: catcher Devin Mesoraco, in 2007, and first baseman Yonder Alonso, in 2008, who's rated the Reds' No. 1 prospect as well.

Alonso, drafted seventh overall from the University of Miami, is a tough autograph for FSL standards. While most players are happy to sign and will come over asking if you need anything, Alonso will go out of his way to avoid graphers. He'll limit you to a strict one-per when he signs.

A couple of graphers from Fort Myers told me a story about Alonso from a recent road trip to Sarasota. They were waiting by the dugout, and when Alonso comes out, they ask, “Can you sign an autograph for us?” Alonso walks over and signs for one of them and walks away. The other asks him to sign, and he responds, “I signed an autograph for you, and you both are together, so share it.”

Not knowing what to expect, and seeing recent autographs from him varying from his full-name signature to an Y and a line, I asked him to personalize to get the best possible signature. It worked out as planned, with Alonso being very friendly and signing the bat beautifully with: To Brett, Best of Luck! God Bless!

The next day I asked him to sign a card and got a much different signature, and he was not as friendly as the first encounter.

The rest of team were pretty good signers. Among the players signing cards were Mesoraco, Justin Reed, Denis Phipps, Zach Stewart, Alex Buchholz, former major leaguer and current hitting coach Jorge Orta, Ben Davis (a former major league catcher who is converting to a pitcher), Jerry Gil and Neftali Soto (another one-per signer).

Getting Extended

Extended spring training (or XST) games at the Minnesota Twins' minor league facilities are great spots to score some autographs from young baseball prospects, says Brett, a Florida State League correspondent for Baseball Mondays.

For those of you new to extended spring training, it is mostly young high school age players (drafted the year before) and international players who are not ready yet to be on their own in a minor league city. One example is Cincinnati Reds prospect Yorman Rodriguez, 16, who signed last August for $2.5 million, the largest amount given to a Venezuelan prospect.

Many players at these complexes, including some big leaguers and top prospects, are rehabbing from injuries. Some sign, some don't.

Boston's John Smoltz, in Fort Meyers as he rehabs his way back to the Red Sox, wouldn't sign recently for five people. But Boston's No. 2 prospect Nick Hagadone, coming back from Tommy John surgery last summer, willingly signed.

XST's Southern Division includes squads from the Tampa Bay Rays, Baltimore Orioles, Twins, Red Sox and Reds. Among the players to sign cards recently include:

~ Red Sox: Ryan Colvin, Drake Britton, Derrik Gibson, Yamaico Navarro, Ryan Pressley, Pete Ruiz, Christian Vazquez (Brett took the photo), Ryan Westmoreland (Brett took the photo), Bryan Peterson (Brett took the photo), Hunter Cervenka, Hagadone, Tommy Hottovy, Andrew Dobies and Tyler Yockey;
~ Rays: DJ Jones, Dustin Biell, Elias Otero and Ben Ogilve.
~ Twins: Aaron Hicks (Minnesota's #1 prospect), Tyler Ladendorf (Brett took the photo), Danny Rams and Jeff Lanning.

Right up front

Colin got a great start on his Tampa Yankees team ball last week, snagging 14 signatures before a Florida State League game against the Daytona Cubs. He had a great time, too, announcing the Yankees' batting order in the bottom of the fifth.

The biggest deal about the game, though, was watching it with Colin's Nana and Babop, visiting from New England. They're fervent New York Yankees fans, so Babop bought us all seats right behind Tampa's dugout. That alone made for great memories.

Besides Matthew Cusick (shown above), the following prospects, listed top to bottom, signed this New York Yankees ball (the park's souvenir store didn't have any Tampa Yankees logo balls):

Jack Rye, manager Luis Sojo, a former big leaguer, and Blue, the squad's mascot;

Jonathan Hovis, Austin Krum, Craig Heyer, Cusick and Grant Duff;

Mitch Hilligoss (who tossed us a game-used ball between innings), Addison Maruszak and Jonathan Ortiz; and

Brandon Laird, Jesus Montero (the Yankees No. 2 prospect) and Eric Fryer.

Wiffleball windup

How do you burn off hot dogs, macaroni and cheese and ice-cold cans of soda? How about taking part in a backyard game of wiffleball? Here, Colin prepares to unleash his blazing "speedball" pitch.

Leading off

Just like here in the Tampa Bay area, there's no pro hockey taking place in Toronto, either. But rather than let that sideline hockey hounds, a handful have turned their attention toward baseball, specifically the Toronto Blue Jays.

Al, Hound Central 4.0's Toronto-based correspondent, files the first Major League Baseball hounding report of Baseball Mondays' 2009 summer campaign, sharing the bounty of his family's visit to a recent "Have a Ball With the Jays" event.

It looks like they had a great time, doesn't it?

This old-school Blue Jays jersey, a design from the team's earliest days in the late 1970s, turned out to be a pretty sweet item.

Signing it were Rod Barajas, #20; Jose Bautista, #23; Shawn Camp, #57; Jesse Carlson, #39; Raul Chavez, #13; Scott Downs, #37; Jason Frasor, #54; Roy Halladay, #32; Brandon League, #22; Jesse Litsch, #51; John McDonald, #6; Dustin McGowan, #29; Bill Murphy, 62; Lyle Overbay, #35; Scott Richmond, #48; Alex Rios, #15; Ricky Romero, #24; B.J. Ryan, #52; Marco Scutaro, #19; Brian Tallet, #56; and Vernon Wells, #10.

Need proof that the Blue Jays' bigger-named players attended the event? How about this photo of pitcher Roy Halladay signing a replica jersey? Works for me.

A better look at Halladay's signature on his replica jersey. Nice placement, between the name and the numbers, too.

Halladay also signed this 8x10. Not a bad haul, eh?

Johnny McDonald, or simply "Johnny Mac" within Blue Jays fandom, is known as a super nice player.

Reports say Alex Rios, on left, solidified his fan-favourite status at the event, staying almost an extra half-hour so people went home happy. The same, I've heard, can't be said for Marco Scutaro. That's Aaron Hill with Rios.

A Lyle Overbay-signed baseball.

A Vernon Wells-signed baseball.

Halladay and Rios signed the brim of this Blue Jays hat

These Blue Jays mini ice-cream-cup helmets were signed by Brandon League, #22; Rod Barajas, #20; Brian Tallet, #56; Vernon Wells, #10; Jesse Carlson, #39; and Raul Chavez, #13. Great idea.

Our first forays

Given our proximity to three Florida State League (High-A) teams, it makes perfect sense -- to us, at least -- to keep our hounding skills current with trips to minor league stadiums in Clearwater, Dunedin and Tampa.

Instead of cards, though, we'll focus on team logo baseballs. They're affordable, portable and, when completed, will look pretty neat lined up in Colin's curio bookcase.

So far, we've started on two teams -- the Clearwater Threshers and Dunedin Blue Jays. Tomorrow, with Colin's Nana and Babop in attendance, we'll start a Tampa Yankees ball.

Over the summer, we'll try to hound every team in the league. I'm not sure we'll do team balls for every club, these will come into play over the course of the season: Charlotte Stone Crabs, the Tampa Bay Rays' FSL club, and the Jupiter Hammerheads, a Florida Marlins farm team.

While we'll try to get the league's best prospects on the team balls, this project is more about having fun than anything else. That's the best part about collecting as a hobby -- there's no pressure involved.

Here's what we've collected so far:

We kicked off our FSL hounding campaign Saturday, April 18 with this Clearwater Threshers team ball.

Manager Ernie Whitt was the first to sign the Threshers team ball. Others following suit were Javis Diaz, Derrick Mitchell, Matt Rizzotti and mascot, Phinley.

The Dunedin Blue Jays team ball was started Saturday, April 25.

Dunedin's Moises Sierra, top, and Justin Jackson were among the first Baby Jays to sign the team ball. Others signing were manager Omar Malave and Chris Emanuele.

Back in the game

While some fans may pooh-pooh baseball's minor leagues, we actually embrace them. Believe it or not, our affinity for the leagues, especially the Florida State League, goes far beyond getting autographs.

First and foremost, a night at a minor league game is much more affordable. We can get three tickets and parking for under $20. Can't find those deals at a Major League Baseball park, can you? A hot dog doesn't cost $5, either.

Secondly, the games are seldom crowded. Good seats are available and the autographs, save for the occasional 19-year-old egoist, come pretty easy. Though premium giveaways and holidays draw packed houses, they are the exception, rather than the norm.

Finally, there's always some sort of promotion going on. In this case, it was Kids Night at Dunedin Stadium, home to the Toronto Blue Jays' Class High-A affiliate, the Dunedin Blue Jays, and the prerequisite picture with the team's "feathered" mascot.

As the top photo shows, Colin (that's him with the catcher's glove and American League All Star Evan Longoria T-shirt) got to join two Dunedin players Justin Jackson, left, and John Tolisano on the field Saturday during the national anthem. How cool is that?

Down here in the Tampa Bay area, we're fortunate enough to have two more FSL teams within an easy drive -- the Clearwater Threshers, a Phillies farm team, and the Tampa Yankees, a New York Yankees club. Though we'll take in a handful of Tampa Bay Rays games, many a summer weekday night will be spent at minor league parks.

It's been awhile, hasn't it?

Welcome back to Baseball Mondays, our offseason pursuit that provides a pleasant, but muggy, diversion from hounding NHL teams. Started two years ago, the blog's weekly postings chronicled our first foray into baseball autographs.

Unlike our Hound Central franchise -- now wrapping up its fourth campaign -- Baseball Mondays takes a more leisurely approach to the hobby. Having fun is more important than anything else. And that's where the Tampa Bay Rays, select MLB opponents and Florida State League clubs in nearby Clearwater, Dunedin and Tampa come in.

Between now and the Lightning's training camp, we'll attend 20 baseball games, providing more than enough fodder for the postings.

Two points of interest, I believe:

Shark Week: On Thursday, June 11, and Saturday, June 13, we'll watch the Jupiter Hammerheads play the Clearwater Threshers. Colin love sharks.

Thursday, July 9: We take in a MLB-FSL doubleheader (Toronto Blue Jays at Tampa Bay Rays at 12:08 p.m. and then the Lakeland Flying Tigers at Dunedin Blue Jays at 7 p.m.)

I've also strong-armed Moody and Al, a couple of Hound Central 4.0 correspondents, into providing occasional reports from Atlanta and Toronto, respectively. I'll likely introduce you to a few more hounds and their efforts over the summer, too.

Really, the hiatus isn't as long as it appears. Rather than resurrecting Baseball Mondays (which, in hindsight, would have been the more logical choice), last summer's baseball musings and additions were chronicled on Hound Central 3.0.

Who did we get? Given our proximity to the Trop, most came from members of the Tampa Bay Rays:

~ a pretty sweet team ball in one, long afternoon;
~ a couple from AL Rookie of the Year Evan Longoria; and
~ and a postcard from Hall of Fame pitcher Gaylord Perry.

No donut holes here

Who says you have to go to the team hotel or ballpark to score an autograph? I don't.

Take a look at the poster and replica Devils Rays batting helmet that Tampa Bay's Akinori Iwamura signed for Colin during a fan session at a Dunkin' Donuts in Pasadena, Fla., on Saturday.

Not only did the fan-friendly Iwamura sign this poster, but he also signed this official MLB baseball. It's pretty neat when one of the team's star players makes a public appearance and signs hundreds of autographs for free. That, to me, is community outreach.