dusty baker through the mail success!

i sent a 1978 topps card to johnnie b. baker back in june - c/o the cincinnati reds.  after four months of waiting, i sent a similar request to his home address.  since then, i have noticed that the successes that were recorded on a couple of ttm forums were usually received in january, so i have been hopeful over the last couple of weeks.  then, i saw a posting on one of the forums that they had received their cards.  the next day, i had two envelopes postmarked from sacramento in my mail box.  awesome.

not only do i now have two autographed copies of his 1978 topps card,

but he also signed his 1976 card as well.

i was a big dusty baker fan back in the day.  he was probably 3rd or 4th on my list of favorite dodgers in 1977, mainly because he was part of the 30 home run club that year.  i remember going to a game at dodger stadium where dusty came up in the bottom of the 9th with two outs and a chance to tie or win the game.  we were all standing and chanting 'dus-ty, dus-ty'.  it was awesome.  sadly, he made an out and the game was over.  i also recall discovering (and being impressed) that he had been a teammate of hank aaron's and, when i learned about jackie robinson and the integration of the major leagues, it was dusty that i thought of as far as how there was a time when he would not have been allowed to be a dodger.  it was hard for me to comprehend, and still is as a matter of fact.

i talked to dusty briefly at a spring training game a couple of years ago, and he seemed like a decent guy.  he promised to sign my card when he got back to the dugout, but by then i was up in my seat.  i didn't think it would take two years to finally get it done.
this is the 21st piece of my modest 1978 topps dodgers autograph project.

here's the tally:

team card (red adams) - through the mail success!
dusty baker - through the mail success!
glenn burke
ron cey - through the mail success!
vic davalillo - ebay success!
terry forster
mike garman - through the mail success!
steve garvey - through the mail success!
ed goodson
jerry grote - through the mail success!
burt hooton
charlie hough - through the mail success!
tommy john - in person/through the mail success!
lee lacy - through the mail success!
tom lasorda
dave lopes - through the mail success!
ted martinez - ebay success!
rick monday - in person/through the mail success!
manny mota - through the mail success!
johnny oates - ebay success!
doug rau - through the mail success!
lance rautzhan - through the mail success!
rick rhoden
bill russell - through the mail success!
reggie smith - through the mail success!
elias sosa - through the mail success!
don sutton
steve yeager
nlcs (davey lopes) - through the mail success!

21/29 = 72%

thanks dusty!