One of the great things about growing up in Florida is the proximity to so many different types of baseball complexes. Most of the year you can find baseball to watch. From Spring Training in February through the end of Instructional leagues in October there were lots of chances to see professional athletes and try for autographs.

Growing up just 10 minutes from Dodgertown in Vero Beach afforded a lot of a few other opportunities, Fantasy Camps! Three or four times a year legends of the game would come back and host Fantasy Camps where fans with deep pockets could pay for the privilege of spending a week playing baseball with and against legends. The Dodgers would hold their camps here and stars like Duke Snider, Ralph Branca, Carl Erskine and many more would instruct campers.

There also were camps run by other companies that would host camps with legends from all teams. In the early 2000s, one of these camps had a raffle at their campers vs. stars game. The winners would win one of these really cool signed photos of the legends of the camp. The photo featured Maury Wills, Bob Gibson, Steve Carlton, Brooks Robinson , Jim Palmer and Pete Rose.

Luckily, I was able to get one of the photos and it holds a very prominent place in my collection. It’s really a fun throwback to the great times I had at Dodgertown and the way the hobby used to be.

We hope your enjoyed our Showoff Sunday! Don’t forget to find the post on our Facebook Page and share one of your favorite items!