For Debbie Anderson, baseball is in her blood.
“My dad played in the minor leagues. He played for the St. Louis Browns,” she remembers.
It was through her father that she developed a love for the game, her two favorite teams, and collecting. Debbie’s home is filled with baseball history signed by some of the sport’s biggest stars. In the past, Debbie has sent items off to the players with a letter explaining that she wants to add the items to her collection. She says she has gotten every item back. Sometimes they were signed, other times they were untouched.
So after becoming a fan of Angels centerfielder Mike Trout in 2012, Debbie bought two of his rookie cards and mailed them off in hopes of getting his autograph. She waited patiently, but after not hearing back for more than a year, Debbie figured she’d struck out and was afraid that cards were gone forever. Determined to get them back, Debbie wrote a letter to the team and even sent one to the Angel’s owner, but never got a response. So she decided to pitch her story to Solve It 7.
Tracking down the actual cards Debbie sent three years ago was next to impossible, but we were able to find replacement cards at a local sports shop. We also reached out to The Angels, who were set to visit Fenway this month. After hearing what happened, The Angels decided they wanted to do something special for their super-fan.
Before Sunday’s game, Mike Trout, surprised Debbie while she was touring the visiting team’s dugout. He also signed the new cards and several items, saying “I try to sign as much as I can for fans, but the fan mail..sometimes it gets crazy.”
With a smile on her face, Debbie later told us “You not only solved my problem you created an experience for me that is a lifetime experience, which is amazing.”
So if you have a problem, maybe we can hit a home run for you. Give us a call at 617-367-7777 or sent us an email at solveit7@whdh.com.