TTM Success - Jeff Tabaka

I added another 1993 Topps Marlins player to my album with this success from Jeff Tabaka.  The card turned out really well.

Tabaka (b. 1964) played in the majors from 1994 to 1998 and 2001 for the Pirates, Padres, Astros, Reds and Cardinals.  He had a record of 6-5 with 119 strike outs and a 4.31 ERA.

I mailed to Tabaka on July 31 and got the card back signed on August 15, for a 15-day TAT.

TTM Success - Jake Sanford

I got a couple nice 2019 Bowman Draft cards signed through this TTM from Jake Sanford.  The above light blue refractor isn't numbered, but that's ok.  I like getting the different colored parallels signed, and this one turned out great.

I also got the base card signed.  Sanford doesn't have much of a signature, but the cards still look great.

Sanford (b. 1997) was a 3rd round pick in the 2019 June Amateur Draft.  He played in 60 games for Low A State Island last season, and had 55 hits, 7 home runs and a .238 batting average.

I mailed to Sanford on June 10 and got the cards back on August 15, for a 66-day TAT.

A Couple Trades With Drake

I've been talking with a guy named Drake (awesome name, by the way) lately, and we got a couple trades completed in the last few months.  I have been sending him some extra IP autos that I have gotten over the years, and in turn, he has done the same.  Except, of course, for the above 2004 Just Minors auto of Joey Votto.  I think Votto is a great player, and I was glad to add this early-career auto to my collection.

I also got some prospect autos of Alex Kiriloff, Alec Bohm, Thomas Beal and Hunter Renfroe.  All of the cards are great, and I've really enjoyed my chats with Drake.  We agree on a lot of things, so that has been nice.

Thanks for the deal, Drake!

TTM Success - John Valentin

I waited a long time for successes to come back up for John Valentin before I sent to him.  I had seen successes in the past, but as I built up a stack of cards to choose from, he stopped signing.  When he popped back up again, I went ahead and sent several cards to get signed finally.

The above 1996 Bowmans Best turned out really well.  These are some really nice cards, and I was glad to get one in my album.

Valentin also signed some other cards like the 1995 Score Season Highlights - unassisted triple play (top left), which looks really cool.  I got a Topps base issue in (top right, 1995 Topps), a 1996 Leaf Preferred (bottom left) and a 1993 Toys R Us Stadium Club Rookie Stars (bottom right).

Finally, there was this 1996 Select Certified that I had found at my LCS a few years ago.  This one also turned out great.

Valentin (b. 1967) played in the majors from 1992 to 2002 for the Red Sox and Mets.  He had 1,093 hits, 124 home runs and a .279 batting average.  He was a Silver Slugger Award winner in 1995 and finished 9th in the AL MVP race that season.

I mailed to Valentin on June 9 and got the cards back on August 15, for a 67-day TAT.

TTM Success - Andre Pallante

I added another 2019 Bowman Draft to my album with this TTM success from Andre Pallante.  He doesn't have much of a signature, but it still counts.

Pallante (b. 1998) was a 4th round pick by the Cardinals in the 2019 June Amateur Draft out of the University of California - Irvine.  He pitched in 11 games for Low A State College in the NY-Penn league last year and had a 1-0 record with 38 strike outs and a 2.78 ERA.

I mailed to Pallante on August 6 and got the card back signed on August 15, for a 9-day TAT.

TTM Success - Gary Varsho

I got some nice-looking cards back from Gary Varsho.  The above 1992 Leaf turned out pretty great, I think.  I think his signature in black really fits well with this card.

Varsho also signed a 1990 CMC AAA, 1993 Topps and a 1989 Topps.

Varsho (b. 1961) played in the majors from 1988 to 1995 for the Cubs, Pirates and Reds.  He had 204 hits, 10 home runs and a .244 batting average.  He also managed two games for the Phillies in 2004 and went 1-1.

I mailed to Varsho on July 31 and got the cards back on August 14, for a 14-day TAT.

TTM Success - Mike Fiore

I got a couple cards back signed from former infielder, Mike Fiore.  This 1972 Topps turned out pretty well.  I've still got a good stash of 72s that I can send out, so I'll be trying to get those out in the near future.

I did send out a few more 1991 Crown Orioles cards, and getting them out of my box is always nice.

Fiore (b. 1944) played in the majors from 1968 to 1972 for the Orioles, Royals, Red Sox, Cardinals and Padres.  He had 126 hits, 13 home runs and a .227 batting average.

I mailed to Fiore on August 3 and got the cards back on August 11, for an 8-day TAT.

TTM Success - John Mizerock

I added another card to my 1987 Topps set with this TTM success from John Mizerock.  I'm getting down to where there aren't a whole lot of guys left who sign TTM themselves, and I'll have to rely more and more on private signings.  I guess that's a good thing, considering how many cards I've gottn back, so far.

Mizerock (b. 1960) played in the majors in 1983, 1985, 1986 and 1989 for the Astros and Braves.  He had 43 hits, 2 home runs and a .186 batting average.

I mailed to Mizerock on July 20 and got the card back on August 10, for a 21-day TAT.

TTM Success - Toby Hall

I got this really nice 2006 Topps Allen & Ginter back signed TTM from Toby Hall.  The card turned out pretty well, for the most part.  His Sharpie kind of bailed at the beginning, but in the end, I'm happy with the card.

Hall (b. 1975) played in the majors from 2000 to 2008 for the Devil Rays, Dodgers and White Sox.  He had 616 hits, 46 home runs and a .262 batting average.

I mailed to Hall on July 9 and got the card back signed on August 10, for a 32-day TAT.  He kept my 2002 Topps.

TTM Success - Mike Witt

I messed up with this private signing.  I completely missed that Mike Witt was on the Angels leaders card in the 1987 Topps set.  It may have been a blessing in disguise, because the fee for this signing was super high.  Witt doesn't sign often at all, so on one hand, I saved some money, and on the other, I'll have to wait forever to finish the Angels leaders card.

Witt (b. 1960) played in the majors from 1981 to 1991 and 1993 for the Angels and Yankees.  He had a career record of 117-116 with 1,373 strike outs and a 3.83 ERA.  He was an All Star in 1986 and 1987.  He finished 3rd in the AL Cy Young and 12th in the AL MVP voting in 1986.  He appeared on the 1999 Hall of Fame ballot, but received no votes.

I mailed to the signing on May 30 and got the card back signed on August 10, for a 72-day TAT.  I paid a fee of $50.00.

A Long Awaited Trade With Sam

What can I say about Sam?  I've known him for a long time.  A very long time, really.  I finally got to meet him in person back in 2018 when Chris and I went to Texas, and that was a really nice time.  We used to talk every day, now I may hear from him once a year.  Maybe.  It's a common thing, really.  You become friends with someone, get pretty close, then start drifting apart, until you finally realize that you hardly talk at all.  Or you get a text message from them, and realize their number isn't even in your phone anymore.

I liked Sam so much, I took all of the photos he had sent me over time that had him with baseball players, and I made him a shutterfly book that he could share, and maybe get signed by said players.  It took a lot of work, but I felt like it would be a nice thing to do.  I hope he liked it.

I got a message out of the blue from Sam a few months ago, asking me if I would trade him an extra DL Hall autograph that I had gotten IP for some cards that Sam had gotten himself over the years.  I wasn't sure what all he would send, but it made for a nice "blind trade".  Those can be fun, really.

I thought I would maybe get one auto back, but Sam, in fact, sent 4.  None of which I had, which was even better!  The above Mike Nikorak 2015 Bowman refractor is especially nice, since I missed out on him when I saw Asheville a couple years ago (it's ok, I got Riley Pint on EVERYTHING I had).

Sam also included these three cards.  I had sent to DJ Peters TTM, but it got returned to sender, so that helps.  I also was glad to get a Sean Murphy auto back, since I tried to 50/50 on him, but the person missed him.  I sent TTM to Logan Allen, and those cards are out somewhere, hopefully coming back sometime.

So, it was nice to hear from Sam, finally.  I don't hold out any expectation that more trades are in our future, but I do wish him the best.  I hope his knee heals, and he can continue to pitch in college and realize his dream.  He has all of these players he met who he holds in high regard, and I know he aspires to achieve success like they have.

Thanks for the deal, Sam.  Hope to hear from you soon.

Another TTM Success From Glenn Hubbard

I had forgotten to send the 1987 Topps Braves Leaders card to Glenn Hubbard when I sent to him TTM a while back, so I sent to him again.  It wasn't like I didn't have a ton of his cards to send again (I had a TON).  So, I was glad to try for him again.  Now, I need a signing to come up for Rafael Ramirez, and I'll be set.

I sent off cards for Hubbard that I hadn't already gotten, and one of them was the Topps Fan Favorites reprint of his 1983 Topps card.  Some of the reprints look cool signed (like this one) and others, I can take them or leave them.

I mailed to Hubbard on July 23 and got the cards back on August 10, for an 18-day TAT.

TTM Success - Luke Waddell

I added another Stars and Stripes auto to my album when I got this card back signed from Luke Waddell.  The card looks a lot better in person; these foil Stars and Stripes don't scan all that well.

Waddell (b. 1998) was a 32nd round pick by the Diamondbacks in the 2019 June Amateur Draft out of Georgia Tech.  He didn't play in any pro games after being drafted.

I mailed to Waddell on July 23 and got the card back on August 10, for an 18-day TAT.  He kept the other two cards that I sent.

TTM Success - Rheal Cormier

It is kind of fun when a player covers a wide range of years and cards.  It also can be a pain, because that means I have to go through a ton of boxes to get a representative sampling of cards to choose from to send TTM.  I was able to get a bunch of cards out of my boxes of Rheal Cormier to send out (and I'm still finding some).  I needed more 1994 Topps in my autograph album, so this one was an easy choice to send out.

I also sent a 1993 and 2006 Topps (top row above) and 1994 and 1995 Leaf (bottom row, right to left).

Cormier (b. 1967) played in the majors from 1991 to 1997 and 1999 to 2007 for the Cardinals, Red Sox, Expos, Phillies and Reds.  He had a career record of 71-64 with 760 strike outs and a 4.03 ERA.

I mailed to Cormier on July 31 and got the cards back on August 10, for a 10-day TAT.

Incoming Cards From Doug Flynn

I finally got around to posting the cards I got back from Doug Flynn after meeting him a couple months ago.  He sent several cards, but a few of them were duplicates that I gave Chris.  These are the ones that I didn't yet have in my album.  The above card is a custom with the 1975 Topps design.  It look pretty sharp, I think.

He also sent a 1983 Topps that I didn't have.  Both cards look great, and I'm glad Flynn sent them along.  I wish he had written a note, but I honestly can't complain.

TTM Success - Bill Stoneman

I've been pulling from a box of 1973 Topps for cards to send TTM.  I've gotten a bunch of them back, and they kind of serve as filler for when I don't know who else to send to on a given day.  I randomly picked from that lot, and sent off this 1973 Topps Bill Stoneman.  I got it back signed in blue, and it looks pretty nice.  You also can never have too many Expos logos in the autograph album.

Stoneman (b. 1944) played in the majors from 1967 to 1974 for the Cubs, Expos and Angels.  He had a career record of 54-85 with 934 strike outs and a 4.08 ERA.  He was an All Star in 1972 and finished 8th in the NL Cy Young race in 1971.

Stoneman also was the GM of the Angels when they won the World Series in 2002.

I mailed to Stoneman on July 30 and got the card back on August 8, for a 9-day TAT.

TTM Success - Brian Dorsett

When the 1995 Score set came out, I really enjoyed the design.  I remember picking up a few boxes of it and I think I even had collated most of the set back then.  Most of those cards are gone now; victims of being bricked by the super gloss on them.  I have a few left, and really wanted to get some in my album.  I saw that Brian Dorsett signed TTM, so I sent one out, along with the 1995 Ultra below and came back with some nicely signed cards.

Dorsett (b. 1961) played in the majors from 1987 to 1991, 1993 to 1994 and 1996 for the Indians, Angels, Yankees, Padres, Reds and Cubs.  He had 92 hits, 9 home runs and a .224 batting average.

I mailed to Dorsett on July 27 and got the cards back on August 8, for a 12-day TAT.

Surprise Find In A Cheap LCS Lot

I picked up a stack of used albums from my LCS for $5 and in one of the albums was this signed signed 1992 Donruss Diamond Kings of Nigel Wilson.  I wasn't sure if the auto was real or not, but when I googled it, it looks like the card came out of an autograph deal that folks could buy that was a little booklet.  The person who had the card must have gotten rid of the booklet and put it in their album.  Now, it will go in my autograph album.

TTM Success - Beau Allred

The cards I got back signed from Beau Allred all turned out pretty well.  There was a lot of orange to go around, but that's ok.  The cards all look sharp, and scanned well.  The above 1990 Score Traded is pretty cool, and will stand out in my album.

The 1990 Topps in the middle of the next scan is actually a Rediscover Topps buyback card that I pulled.  I've never been a fan of the foil stamps on cards, but when I'm getting them signed, they're pretty cool.  I also got Allred's 1990 CMC AAA and a regular 1990 Topps.

Allred (b. 1965) played in the majors from 1989 tom1991 for the Indians.  He had 38 hits, 4 home runs and a .230 batting average.

I mailed to Allred on July 24 and got the cards back on August 7, for a 14-day TAT.

TTM Success - Kip Yaughn

With my constant searching through boxes for cards to send TTM, I have learned that there are certain types of cards I rather enjoy.  The series of Marlins cards in the 1993 Topps set are actually pretty cool.  These were the first mainstream Topps cards showing Marlins, and a lot of the photos used were from Spring Training.  There are some cool shots of a lot of the guys in the set.  There are also some guys in there who never actually made it to the majors to play for them.  Kip Yaughn was one of them.

Yaughn (b. 1969) was a 13th round draft pick by the Orioles in the 1990 June Amateur Draft out of Arizona State University.  He played three seasons in the Orioles system, then was picked up by the Marlins in the expansion draft in November 1992.

In all, Yaughn pitched 5 seasons in the minors (1990 to 1994) and amassed a record of 28-27 with 406 strike outs and a 4.25 ERA.  He reached AAA, but just couldn't crack the majors.

I mailed to Yaughn on July 31 and got the card back on August 7, for a 7-day TAT.

Another 87 Team Leaders Card Complete Via TTM

My quest to complete the signed 1987 Topps set has been a tough task.  Originally, I was ok with just getting ink on every card; not necessarily getting every single autograph possible.  It sounds like a cop-out, but some of the team leaders cards are going to be near impossible to finish.  I've talked with Mike Valic, a guy who actually has completed the set, and the team leaders cards represent the toughest of the tough projects to take on inside the set itself.  For example, the White Sox leaders card has the deceased Eddie Brinkman; Reds has Bo Diaz, Red Sox has John McNamara and Tom Seaver.  All of those, I'll have to find with signatures of the deceased folks, and also probably will have to find a way to ass the living guys on the cards (I have a Red Sox one with Rich Gedman; Reds with Pete Rose, etc).

However, I have been able to complete a few of the team leaders cards, and the Mariners version was just completed with two different TTM successes in the last few months, Phil Regan and Bob Kearney.  I had already gotten Matt Young on the card a few years ago, then when Regan was signing recently, I sent off to him.  Kearney was last, and now the card is complete.  It feels good to get these done and put away in the album for good.

TTM Success - Rymer Liriano

A private signing with Rymer Liriano came up and I probably would have skipped on by it, except for the fact that I had this really nice green parallel from 2015 Topps Chrome.  I kept seeing it when I would go through my boxes, so I decided to go ahead and get it signed.  I had a 2015 Topps base of Liriano right behind the chrome in my box, so I sent that out, too.

Both cards look great, and will be added to my autograph album.  I haven't gotten a signed 2015 Topps back in a bit, so getting this one done was nice.

Liriano (b. 1991) played in the majors in 2014 and 2017 for the Padres and Mets.  He had 33 hits, 2 home runs and a .220 batting average.

I mailed to the signing on July 1 and got the cards back on August 6, for a 36-day TAT.  I paid a fee of $10/card.

Some Great Signed Cards From Jackson

My friend Jackson, in Arizona, took a 50/50 for me and also sold me a signed card.  The card he sold was the 2004 Cracker Jack Dotrelle Willis shown above.  I really like the Cracker Jack set, and have contemplated picking up a box.  The cards look great when signed.  Jackson did a private signing with Willis, which I missed.  Thankfully, he had some extras, and I picked this beauty up.

Jackson also sees Will Morris and Harvey Monte locally over there, so he got some cards out of my boxes and had them signed for me.  We split the Morris cards, and since I had only one Monte, he gave me that one.

I was afraid that I wouldn't have any Monte, but I had the single card in my "rookies" box, so it was good to get that one out.

Thanks so much for taking the cards and selling me the Willis, Jackson!

Another TTM Success From Doc Gooden

I pulled this gold parallel numbered to 50 out of the silver packs that came with my 2020 Topps Jumbo Boxes.  Right when I pulled it, I saw an announcement for a private signing with Doc Gooden, so I went ahead and signed up for the signing.

The card turned out awesome; I'm glad I went ahead and sent the card in.  I think this one was one of the very first ones I did through the private signings page on Facebook.

I mailed the card on July 6 and got the card back on August 4, for a 29-day TAT.  I paid a fee of $20.00.

TTM Success - Rick Miller

I moved some 70s and 80s cards out of my boxes when I got this TTM success from Rick Miller.  The above 1975 Topps looks great, and I really wish I had more bulk 75s to send out.  I had sent a ton of 75s out as a Christmas gift to a fellow blogger, and never got a thank you.  I regret sending those out, now, because I could use them for TTMs.

I also got a 1980, 1981 and 1985 Topps signed by Miller.  All of them look great.

Miller (b. 1948) played in the majors from 1971 to 1985 for the Red Sox and Angels.  He had 1,046 hits, 28 home runs and a .269 batting average.  He was a Gold Glove Award winner in 1978.

I mailed to Miller on January 30 and got the cards back on August 3, for a 186-day TAT.

TTM Success - TJ Sikkema

I got some cards signed by TJ Sikkema that I would have liked to get signed in person this season, but there was no graphing to be had, at all.  So, I have been stuck sending out TTMs to damn near everyone that I can.  I have sent out more TTMs this year than in any year in the past, and there are still 2 and a half months to go.

I got a 2020 Pro Debut and a 2019 Bowman Draft signed, and they both look awesome.

Sikkema (b. 1998) was a first round (38th overall) draft pick by the Yankees in the 2019 June Amateur Draft out of the University of Missouri.

He pitched in 4 games at Low A Staten Island last season and went 0-0 with 13 strike outs and a 0.84 ERA.

I mailed to Sikkema on June 29 and got the cards back on August 3, for a 35-day TAT.

TTM Success - Karson Bowen

I added some autographs on a couple 2020 Stars and Stripes when I got this TTM success back from Karson Bowen.

Bowen (b. 2004) has played on Team USA 15U (2018 and 2019) and the 12U team (2016).  He played 8 games in 2019 and had a .381 average with a homer, and 4 games in 2018 with a .400 average and no homers.

I mailed to Bowen on July 14 and got the cards back on August 3, for a 20-day TAT.

TTM Success - Jose Tabata

I got some cards from the 2010s out of my boxes with this TTM success from Jose Tabata.  The above 2012 Topps turned out really well.  I like the scoreboard backdrop behind Tabata, and how it matches up with the Pirates colors on the card.

Tabata also signed a 2010 Topps Update and a 2013 Topps for me.  His Sharpie of choice was a light blue, but I think it still looks good on the cards.

Tabata (b. 1988) played in the majors from 2010 to 2015 for the Pirates.  He had 438 hits, 17 home runs and a .275 batting average.

I mailed to Tabata on July 21 and got the cards back on August 3, for a 13-day TAT.

TTM Success - Greg Jones

I added another prospect's autograph to my collection with this TTM success from Rays prospect, Greg Jones.  I was able to get him on a 2019 Bowman Draft and a 2020 Pro Debut.  Both cards look great.

Jones (b. 1998) was born in Cary, NC and was a first round draft pick (22nd overall) by the Rays in the 2019 June Amateur Draft out of UNC-Wilmington.  He had previously been drafted by the Orioles in the 2017 draft (17th round).  So far, he has 64 hits, 1 home runs and a .335 batting average at Low A Hudson Valley.

I mailed to Jones on July 20 and got the cards back on August 1, for a 12-day TAT.

Another TTM Success From Dave Fleming

I had gotten Dave Fleming TTM a few years ago, but I found a bunch more of his cards in various boxes, so I sent to him again.  The cards are spectacular or anything, just random stuff that I had and wanted to move into my albums.

This was pretty much a card dump; get some stuff out of the way so I could clear room in the boxes for other stuff.

I mailed to Fleming on July 20 and got the cards back on August 1, for a 12-day TAT.