Just a couple quick things I thought I should note.  On the message board we are going to start a tough project next week for charity.  It involves getting an autographed baseball card of every guy that played in the big leagues during the 2008 season!  So far there have been nearly 1100 guys that have been on a big league roster this year.  What we are going to do is make a huge checklist and try and go after every guy.  Hopefully once it's completed we will auction it off on eBay with 100% of the proceeds going to a charity Stephanee and I will pick out.  It's a tough task but I think we can do it...Once again this is going on under the message board next week and we need all the help we can get. 

Lastly there is another false article out there saying I'm heading to FL at the end of the month to start a rehab program and I have a strained elbow.  As far as I know I will be up here until at least late August at the earliest and my injury was diagnosed as a partially torn ligament in the elbow.  Another case of don't always believe what you read!

The Minnesota Twins and the Twins Wives Organization, will be hosting a special event this Thursday, July 3rd at Majors Sports Cafe in Bloomington from 5pm-9pm.   

"Hang with the Majors at Majors" is an opportunity for fans to interact with their favorite Twins players and support a good cause!  There will be a private dinner for 100 lucky fans to dine with the Twins.  Tickets for the dinner are $100 each and are limited to the first 100 people, so call and reserve yours ASAP.  All proceeds from the event will be donated to the Midwest flood relief.

The dinner will be from 5pm-6:30pm.  Only 100 tickets will be sold and are on sale now for $100 each. Tickets may be purchased at Majors in Bloomington (8301 Normandale Blvd, Bloomington, MN, 55438) or by calling Major's at 952-835-8308.

During the dinner event, the rest of Majors will remain open to the public from 5 to 9 p.m., with Twins players bar tending.  So if you can't make the dinner, you can still stop by and hang out.  There also will be a player autograph station (the players will rotate through and autos will be $5 each), a tip jar to collect additional donations, and the wives will be selling Twins tank tops.

Players and wives planning to participate are: Pat & Stephanee Neshek, Joe and Lisa Nathan, Mike Lamb, Matt and Dejie Guerrier, Jesse and Becky Crain, Glen and Alisha Perkins, Kevin Slowey, Brian Bass, Mike and Michelle Redmond, Nick and Natalie Punto, Boof Bonser and Jessica Clark, Delmon Young and Brendan Harris.  Participants are subject to change.

Hey guys I just wanted to give a quick update on my injury.  I just got my hinge brace off on Monday and have started rehab.  So far the rehab has been pretty boring, I do things with no weight right now and it's not too much fun.  I understand that it's going to take time so I'm going to be patient with it. 

What has been up with me lately...not much.  I've been spending a lot of time trading stuff on the message board on here.  Right now I'm going after baseballs signed by Hall of Famers...It's been a lot of fun and if you are a collector the message board is a must.  Also I give stuff away on there and it's a fun little community to chat about anything.

Baseball cards...Well Topps Series 2 and Upper Deck series 2 came out a little bit ago and I'm in both sets.  To tell you the truth I'm not too impressed with either card...I find the Topps design boring and they put too much gloss on the cards that they are impossible to sign even after rubbing them down with powder and signing with a Staedtler pen.  Upper Deck is Upper Deck, you get a nice looking photo and that's about it.  Either way it's another card to add to my list of cards...and as always if you pull one of them out of a pack I always sign for free just make sure you include a SASE.  Now for the good stuff and what I'm really excited about...Topps decided to put me into the Allen & Ginter card set.  This is my favorite product of the year and comes out in a couple weeks.  I always recommend it to people who are looking to get back into cards, it's probably the funnest set out.  Anyways I'm in the set, not sure if I'm a Short Print but they also put me in as an insert.  They took guys who were born from every state in the US and made a card...I get the Wisconsin card...I can't wait to see it.  I'm really happy that Topps has put me in the set and I owe a lot to you guys for writing letters during spring training and letting Topps know that you wanted to see me in a good set.  I have a strong feeling this product is going to sell out quickly once again so get ready for it.  Once again if you pull my card from this send it over with a SASE and I will sign it up.

Hi everyone, thanks for being patient with me while I sort out this injury.  I also wanted to thank everyone for all the support.  It's pretty neat to see and it has helped me feel better about everything that has happened.  Right now it looks like I'll be out the rest of the season.  They told me it will be 3 months before I will throw then I can start to play catch if everything goes as planned.  Right now I'm in a restrictive brace that basically forces me to stay in the same arm position...I even have to wear the thing while I sleep.  It's not been fun but it's something that happened and I understand what it will take to get back so all I can do is keep my head up.  Right now I will still be going to every home game and hanging out with the guys.  I usually watch all the games inside the clubhouse and lift my legs during the first 3 innings of the game. 

As of right now I have a lot of time to do things I don't normally get to do.  So far I have been on my message board trading items and having a giveaway and auctions.  The best item up for auction right now is the 2007-08 Pink my little pony bullpen backpack signed by all the bullpen members...Be sure to check it out.

You guys wanted to see the video of me getting hit in college, here it is - Warning, this video is graphic.

Just arrived in Detroit last night and it felt just as cold as KC.  Today I thought would be a good time to talk about mail!  As a lot of you know fan mail is a pretty high priority for me.  When sending a letter there are a lot of things that will help you have success.  Basically when you send out a letter it arrives at the Metrodome and is sorted out by Ryan, one of our clubhouse guys.  Each day a big mail pile arrives and has to be sorted.  I wish I could take a picture of our mail boxes but we are on the road right now.  Basically it's a big cubby on the wall with little cubby holes with our names over each box.  Some guys do their mail, some don't and some pay marketing firms to open their mail and throw in a generic letter with a photo.  When sending to players one of the biggest things you have to know is if the guy does his mail or not.  I mean it's a waste if you spend a $1 on a couple stamps and lose a baseball card...nobody likes that.  So finding out who signs is huge.  There are a lot of websites out there that offer a pay service and provide up to date signing habits and which address works to send to guys.  Also there are the Jack Smalling address books that list every address of players.  Lastly you can check out message boards and try to get some freebie addresses or trade with people.  On my message board we have a cool section where people post their recent successes (as of right now though we have restricted access to the message board so if you aren't a lucky member you have to look elsewhere). 

Okay so you have the address and the guy signs what else?  Well for me my favorite letters are short and to the point.  In a perfect world my favorite letter would be "What's up Pat, I know you are busy, just wanted you to sign this card if you have time!"  I think most players would like it this way also.  There are many times in the clubhouse when guys are opening their mail and they either get a 2 page letter or something so ridiculous they have to show everyone.  To be honest probably only a handful of guys read the longer letters...most guys grab the SASE, sign the card, toss the letters without reading them and put the mail in a pile. 

Never ever ask another player to get something signed from another player.  It happens...every week I get one of these and have to toss it.  I guess in Junior High terms it would be like a guy trying to get the hot girl and using her ugly friend to get in with her...it's just not right.

Always include a SASE.  What's a SASE some of the younger people might ask.  It's short for Self Addressed Stamped Envelope...What's that...it's a return letter that has a stamp and address already on it so the player can throw the card in quickly.  When I do my letters if there is no SASE there will be no response.  I've collected tons of baseballs, hats, shirts, cards and other things over the past couple years because there was no SASE.  I don't want the stuff but I also do not think I should have to go to the post office, buy an envelope, address it up and pay for the postage.  This would def make me want to never do fan mail so I try to spread the word and make it clear that a SASE is a must if you want a reply. 

What to send?  Most TTM (Through The Mail) autograph request are for baseball cards.  I don't mind signing a lot of cards at one time.  Other guys will only sign one and keep the rest, again you have to do your research.  I also sign 8X10's, baseballs, hats, shirts, jerseys you name it if it has a SASE send it over.  If you need a birthday inscription that's fine also, I'm easy on that stuff.  Other guys have different signing habits and you'll have to look into them.

So in conclusion know the player and how he signs, short letters, SASE, 1 card if you are not sure and you should have a lot of success.  Time wise all guys are different.  I like to do my mail in the clubhouse once it comes in.  Sometimes we are on the road for a long time like right now so it might take 3 weeks to get back from me.  Be patient and if you follow the rules above you might have some success.

Also the offer still stands...Send me any signed baseball or hockey card no matter how good the player was or is or at what level and I'll trade you for one of my cards signed!