My third TTM try

Continuing my careful compilation of autographed cards from the players who have meant the most during my baseball fandom, I am embarking on a third TTM try.

I've had success with the first two, Ron Cey and Duke Snider, and I couldn't be happier that these two very important players in Dodger history took time out to respond to my autograph request.

In keeping with my decision to keep the autograph requests to key players only, I'm going to ask former Dodger great and world-wide phenomenon Fernando Valenzuela for his signature. Jim of gcrl had success recently in obtaining Fernando's signature, and he was nice enough to help me out in my quest.

I vividly remember Fernandomania during the 1981 season. I remember how dominant he was, starting the year 8-0. I remember reading every line of every newspaper article of every Valenzuela start. Valenzuela helped produce one of the Dodgers' last great years, and I'll be sure to tell him that in my letter.

But I'm not going to send the request in the mail until you help me out. Like the last time, I'd like your input on what card to send to Valenzuela. He apparently signs only one card, so selecting the right one is important. And, again, I don't want to lose the card in the mail, so even though Fernando cards are highly replaceable, I have so many to choose from that I might as well select from the duplicate pile.

So, here are the options:

1986 Topps. Fernando's last great year for the Dodgers was in 1986. He won 20 games, and I remember how great he was that season. It's the only card out of the four I've selected that has a connection to the peak of Valenzuela's career, and his signature would look great on this card.

1990 Fleer. There is a lot of room for Valenzuela to put his signature on this card. He has a large, distinctive signature.

1990 Score. I like this card quite a bit. It's a nice shot, and Valenzuela threw a no-hitter in 1990, so getting an autograph on a 1990 card would be key.

1991 Topps. This is the card that gcrl got signed. In terms of the photograph, it's a no-brainer to send this card. This is what Valenzuela was remembered for, looking to the sky in mid-windup. But do I go a different route than my fellow card blogger and Dodger fan, or do I stick with something that I know is going to look great.

Those are the options. What do you think? I appreciate your opinion. It helped me quite a bit the last time.