Franz Wagner

The Same Day We Signed Up — Franz Wagner in the Tunnel

Two cards, signed on camera by a player who wasn't even dressed to play — on the same day we committed to his family's camp.

March 11, 2026. Franz Wagner was still out, still on the injured list, with no reason to be anywhere near a crowd. We saw him in the tunnel anyway.

That was the same day we had signed up for the Wagner Brothers camp — the one scheduled for that fall, right before preseason. We had already committed to spending a day with his family in the gym. We had no idea we would be standing in front of him before the day was out.

He stopped. He talked with us for a minute, and he was kind about it — the kind you notice, because a player who isn't playing owes a tunnel full of people exactly nothing. Then he signed. Two cards, one after the other, with the camera running the whole time.

The first was his 2023-24 Topps Chrome #79. The second was his 2024-25 Panini Mosaic #37. Both came back from CGC and JSA as Authentic Autographs, certified on consecutive numbers — 6157402102 and 6157402103 — graded together because they were signed together.

That is why the Wagner brothers hold the place they hold in this museum. Franz had every reason to keep walking. He stopped instead.

We're going to miss his big brother.
We're going to stay diehard Wagner fans.

Kia Center, Orlando March 11, 2026

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Kia Center, Orlando March 11, 2026