TTM Success - Fred Norman

Finally a couple TTMs have come in, tye first one being this one from Fred Norman.  I added a nice 1972 Topps to the album. I've always loved this design, and this one came out ok.

I also got this 1973 Topps signed, which has a nice empty stadium action shot.  The auto blends into the photo, but still looks nice.

Norman (b. 1942) played in the majors from 1962 to 1964, 1966 to 1967 and 1970 to 1980 for the Cubs, Dodgers, Cardinals, Padres, Reds and Expos.  He had a record of 104-103 with 1,303 strike outs and a 3.64 ERA.  He won the World Series with the Reds in 1975 and 1976.  He finished 6th in 1973 NL Cy Young Award voting.

I mailed to Norman on June 12 and got the cards back on June 24, for a 12-day TAT. I paid his fee of $10/card.

A Signed 1987 Topps From Jackson

Finally, another signed 1987 Topps has cone in, this one being a long-overdue Juan Bonilla from my friend, Jackson.  He arranged a private signing with Bonilla last year, and my friend, Aidan, signed up for this as a Christmas gift to me.  Signed 87s have been really slow lately, as I am down to just a left that I need for the set.

Bonilla (b. 1956) played in the majors from 1981 to 1983 and 198t to 1987 for the Padres, Yankees and Orioles.  He had 375 hits, 7 home runs and a .256 batting average.

Thanks for helping me with the set, Jackson and Aidan!

June 22, 2024, Graphing of Shorebirds at Woodpeckers

My good friend, Jesse, and I were discussing placed to graph this past weekend, and he noted that the Fayetteville Woodpeckers were doing a bobble head giveaway on Saturday.  It worked out for me because I am going to miss Delmarva when I head to the National.  A few of the Shorebirds that I missed earlier in the year were back off of the IL.  I finally was able to get Maikol Hernandez, which was great.  He did 4 of 6, which knocked enough out for me.

Leandro Arias and Jake Cunningham were finally with the team, so I got a few of them done.

Chase Jaworsky didn't have time to stop pregame and after Fayetteville lost, he wasn't signing for anyone post game.  I did get Kenni Gomez, which helped.  There were only two Fayetteville guys with cards, so I didn't have a whole lot in the first place.

The bobble head was pretty awesome, so I'm glad Jesse told me about it. I have already added it to the China cabinet.  I had a great time at the game.  Jesse brought his little brother, Landon, who we had helping us graph.  Then, we met a guy from Instagram who was on a graphing road trip down in NC, which was really cool.

In all, we got the following autographs:  Kenni Gomez x 3, Leandro Arias x 3, Carter Baumler x 1, Jacob Cravey x 1, Jake Cunningham x 7, Anderson De Los Santos x 1 and Maikol Hernandez x 4 (20 total autographs).

TTM Success - Jake Peavy

Finally, another TTM success came in.  They reaply have gotten dry, even guys who normally return pretty well are slow for me right now.  I got this one from a private signing with Jake Peavy today, and it turned out great.

I picked two really nice cards; the above 2008 Upper Deck is just a great shot.

This one is a 2007 Topps Wal Mart card that was much like their Trading Card History insert set that they put out in 2008.  I was glad I found this one before I sent off to the signing, so it got included.

Peavy (b. 1981) played in the majors from 2002 to 2016 for the Padres, White Sox, Red Sox and Giants.  He had a record of 152-126 with 2,207 strike outs and a 3.63 ERA.  He was the NL Cy Young Award winner in 2007.  He was an All Star in 2005, 2007 and 2012.  He was a Gold Glove Award winner in 2012. Peavy won the World Series with the Red Sox in 2013 and with the Giants in 2014.  He appeared on the 2022 Hall of Fame ballot, bit received no votes.

I mailed to the signing on March 4 and got the cards back today (June 21), for a 109-day TAT.  I paid a fee of $25/card.

Another TTM Success From David Lough

Last month, I got a TTM success in from David Lough because I had heard he was now signing his mail.  I had completely forgotten about the TTM request I had sent him back in 2020.  Well, it came in on Monday. I got the above ruby red foil parallel from 2014 Topps signed, and it turned out greqt.

He also signed a 2013 Pinnale, 2013 Topps, 2014 Topps Heritage and a blue parallel from 2014 Topps.  I never give up on a TTM request, and this one took almost 4 years to come in.

I mailed to Lough on July 15, 2020, and got the cards back on June 17, 2024, for a 1,433-day TAT.

RIP Willie Mays

One of the greatest to ever play the game, Willie Mays, passed away today at the age of 93.  Mays passed just days before MLB was to have a game at historic Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama.  The Negro League Birmingham Black Barons played at Rickwood, where Mays would make his professional debut in 1948.

Mays's career.ledger shows 3,293 hits, 660 home runs, a .301 career batting average, a 24-time All Star, 1954 World Series Champion, 2-time NL MVP, 12-time gold.glove award winner, Rookie of the Year and Hall of Famer.  His 3,293 hits rank 13th all-time and his 660 home runs rank 6th.

Truly, one of the greatest ever, Mays will be mourned by baseball fans for quite some time.

June 11-16, 2024, Graphing of the Riverdogs at Wood Ducks

Another series is in the books at the Wood Ducks as they inch their way toward their final game at Grainger Stadium. Arch rivals (I said it), the Charleston Riverdogs came into town for a 6-game set. The series had me go after 4 different Charleston guys, and I came really close to running out of stuff to get done by Sunday.  This was also without a good bit of help all week.

Chris was only able to accompany me to one game, and Jesse was only able to make a couple. I spent a few of the games sitting by myself for a good bit, but it was kind of relaxing.  I resigned myself to the fact that I may not get a lot done, then still finished off a couple guys.

Adrian Santana was super nice, as well as TJ Nichols.  Carlos Colmenarez (rightfully so) got tired of seeing me, so I stopped trying for him by Saturday.  The Wednesday game was a camp day, so Chris went with Jesse since I had to work.  I didn't send him with any cards to that one.  The Wood Ducks played Charleston well; they won the series 4-2, with three walkoff wins in a row.  It was a nice week, honestly.

Finally, Jojo Blackmon came back off of the IL, so I got another team set card out of the way.

In all, we got the following autographs: (Carlos Colmenarez x 16, TJ Nichols x 18, Jojo Blackmon x 3, Alejandro Rosario x 1, Chris Villamon x 3 and Adrian Santana x 33 (74 total autographs). 

Another TTM Success From Herschel Cobb

The 1994 Upper Deck Ken Burns Baseball set is a really awesome-looking set.  I've been able to add a few of those cards to the autograph album; the most recent one being this TTM success from Ty Cobb's grandson, Herschel Cobb.  He signed the card with Ty's green fountain pen, and it turned out well.

Cobb also sent me this index card that he signed and also stamped with Ty's ink stamp.

I'm glad I could add a couple more autographs from him to the collection. 

I mailed to Cobb on April 30 and got the card back yesterday (June 13), for a 44-day TAT.

Some More 50-50s From Aidan W

My buddy, Aidan in Asheville, took a few cards for me recently to do a 50/50 on Bowling Green.  He got this 2024 Bowman Top 100 Colton Ledbetter signed, which looks pretty cool.

Aidan also got me Tre Morgan, Hunter Haas and another Colton Ledbetter; these three were 2023 Bowman Draft. 

I didn't send Aidan a whole lot, just a few cards to see if he could get them out of the box, and he nailed it. 

Thank you so much, Aidan, for getting these done for me!

The Biggest Return From Max Yet

My friend, Max, has helped me tremendously with getting cards out of my boxes and into my autograph album. He was the person who first helped me set up my graphing book back in 2017 and I haven't looked back.  His latest return of signed cards to me had to have been the largest one so far, and it had some really cool stuff that I was excited to file into the album pages.  The above Curtis Mead parallel was something that I wanted to get signed ever since I pulled it.  Mead is a tough graph these days, so I'm glad this one is done.

Max likes to take these Topps team cards to cover for guys he has no cards of.  Thankfully, he always labels them so i know who he got.  These cards are, left to right then top to bottom: Colten Brewer, Shawn Armstrong, Austin Shenton, Ronel Blanco, Ben Brown, Garrett Cooper, Declan Cronin, Calvin Faucher.

I try to send him the older ones, too.  The 1994 Score stadium cards are also helpful.  These are, from left to right and top to bottom: Logan Porter, Jhonny Peralta, Sean Doolittle, Carson Spiers, Trevor Megill, Pat Murphy.

Max completed a 2018 Topps Heritage that i had gotten signed by Heath Hembree when he got it signed by Ildemaro Vargas.  He also got Yuki Matsui, Matt Wise, JR House, Bryan Hoeing, Tanner Scott, Sam Hentges and Ricky Gutierrez.

This Alika Williams Jumbo relic card is pretty cool.  I was disappointed that I couldn't find my other Williams cards in time.  I had him pulled in the past, and couldn't remember which box they got put in.  I did find them, but I'm afraid Max won't see him again.  Let's hope he does.

Here are skme recent cards that he got signed by Alec Marsh, Jordan Lyles, JP France, Hunter Brown, Harold Ramirez, Kyle Farmer, James Karinchak, Dylan Floro, Jake Irvin.  I was glad to get these added to the Topps ledger.  I have already gotten several 2024 Topps done, which is nice.  Hopefully my Series 2 come in soon, so I can go for some more.

Here are some 2022 cards signed by Scott Barlow, Stuart Fairchild, Emmanuel Rivera, Triston McKenzie, Martin Perez, Rene Pinto, Jhoan Duran and Angel Zerpa.  I especially like the holiday parallels.  Those are always fun to get signed.

This next group, signed by Zack Littell, Luke Maile, Skip Schumaker, Rod Barajas, Mike McCoy and Doug Waechter go farther back in time for Topps flagship sets.  There is also a Bowman Chrome Rod Barajas and a 2008 Upper Deck First Edition of Skip Schumaker.

Even more older cards signed by Jeremy Guthrie, Matt Capps, Jayce Tingler, David Bell, Miguel Cairo, Jody Reed, Bob Scanlan and Rod Allen go as far back as 1989 Fleer (Allen).  The 1995 Fleer Bob Scanlan is also awesome.  You know, because 1995 Fleer is great!

Here is a Kyle Farmer 2021 Topps Update, a Garrett Hampson 2019 Topps, Gabriel Arias 2021 Heritage Minors, a cool Thyago Viera Diamond Kings that I kept seeing during several passes through my boxes, a Bryan Abreu 2019 Heritage Minors, a Quintin Berry 2012 Bowman, a Collin Cowgill 2012 Bowman, a Chris Johnson 2009 Bowman (which is crazy because I've heard he never signs), and Rays manager Kevin Cash on a 2002 Bowman Chrome. 

The above Tanner Scott turned out awesome.  I like this Bowman insert set. There are two Gaby Sanchez parallels, a JR House 2001 Bowman Chrome, an upgraded Garrett Cleavinger signed in blue, an upgraded 2022 Topps Chas McCormick and a few more Ildemaro Vargas cards.

Max hooked me up with a few team set cards signed by Jacob Young, Rene Pinto, Bryan Abreu.  I've made good progress on the giveaway set from when we went to Fredericksburg last season.  There may be one or two left that I need to get signed (I didn't go by the card shop and get the two special ones they offered).  I was also happy to see the 2019 Carolina League Top Prospects card get signed by Bryan Abreu.

Finally, here are a couple old.team set carda signed by Zach Rosscup and Alec Zumwalt.

Max really hooked it up, and is still.goi g strong on the season.  Hopefully, he can keep knocking out these cards and I can keep finding stuff for him.

Thanks so much, Max!

TTM Success - Jim Fuller

When my friend, Ryan, told me that Jim Fuller was signing TTM, I struggled to figure out where I had sat my cards.  I had Fuller pulled to send to last year, but he wasn't signing.  I put the cards somewhere and forgot where.  Somehow, they got separated, and I still haven't found the other two cards.  Thankfully, I found my 1991 Crown Orioles card, and sent it out.  It came back signed in black pen and looks nice. 

Fuller (b. 1950) played in the majors in 1973, 1974 and 1977 for the Orioles and Astros.  He had 61 hits, 11 home runs and a .194 batting average. 

I mailed to Fuller on May 24 and got the card back on June 10, for a 17-day TAT.

Mom Goes Graphing

Our trip to Winston-Salem this past week got a little interesting after Chris and I sat with Mom Friday morning during her chemo treatment.  We had planned to sit with her since she would be missing Chris's graduation.  After the treatment, we dropped Mom off so she could nap, and Chris and I went and sat with Grandma again for a little aver an hour and a half.  We went back to Mom's after, and my dad suggested that I tale Mom with us so she could go to Chris's graduation anyway, as she was feeling pretty decent after the chemo.  

There was one catch, Chris and I already had tickets to High Point to see them take on the Staten Island FerryHawks and try to get Pablo Sandoval on a couple cards.  Mom said she'd go with us to the game, so I jumped online and found a ticket right behind the two we had already purchased. 

Mom ended up taking a Sandoval card and got it signed.  Sandoval was doing one per, so it was nice to get an additional card done.  She hung with Chris and I for a bit until she got Sandoval, then she found our seats and rested.  Boy, did she rest...

Chris snapped this picture to me of Mom dozing off as he and I racked the FerryHawks.  Still, it was fun for her to see us in action.

I had spent a good bit of time searching cards for this game; I also picked up (most) of the Drew Maggi cards shown above, as well as the above William Kirwan card showing him on the Frederick ?s.

I was able to rescue a bunch of cards from my boxes for this game.  The Joe Dunand cards above were last-minute finds right before we left town.

The Jimmie Sherfy cards I found were previously pulled last season in hopes of seeing him, but I didn't get to a game he was at.  The Mike Shawaryn cards came from an old team bag of cards sent back by Gerard.  I think I pulled them for him, then Shawaryn was let go by the Red Sox (I tbink).

Mom did wake up and enjoy the game.  She thought it was cool that she knew who Frank Viola was, so I sent her and Chris over to the High Point side post-game to try and get him while I figured out who Kirwan was.  They both cleaned up on my Violas.

I'm so glad Mom got to come and experience graphing with Chris and I.  She was able to get to Chris's graduation and got to see him walk, which was great.  She also made it to the party and met our friends, even a couple from our graphing group at the Wood Ducks.

In all, we got the following autographs: Frank Viola x 13, Joe Dunand x 2, Nate Griep x 8, Korry Howell x 2, William Kirwan x 1, Drew Maggi x 8, Pablo Sandoval x 3, Mike Shawaryn x 6 and Jimmie Sherfy x 3 (46 total autographs).

June 6, 2024, Graphing of the Long Island Ducks at High Point Rockers

The past few days have been a whirlwind.  Chris's graduation from high school was on Saturday, and we had planned a trip to High Point on Friday to see Pablo Sandoval. I had PDOs to burn, so I went ahead and took both Thursday and Friday off to prep for the trip.  We had some family stuff happen earlier in the week with my grandma, along with Chris getting off of work on both Thursday and Friday, so we went ahead and went up Thursday morning. I prepped some cards for the Long Island Ducks in case we could get by there Thursday night after sitting with Grandma for a bit.  We got to High Point and absolutely racked Long Island.

I was excited to see Wei-Yin Chen again; I had gotten him on a baseball a while back, but never on a card (as far as I can remember).

Another player I was excited to see was Josh James.  I had him pulled a while back, then missed him.  He was with Memphis earlier this year but was repeased before i could get him.  He had been elusive until after Thursday's game.  He signed everything Chris and I had as he was leaving the dugout.

It had rained off and on during the game, resulting in two rain delays.

I was glad to get Mike Montgomery because i had tracked him with a radar gun in Kinston back in 2009.  He was really nice and did two per for Chris and I.

Chance Sisco was another player I had wanted to get for a while, and finally cleaned out all of the cards I had pulled of him. 

I had gotten Ryan McBroom TTM a while back, but he signed my 2020 Topps in black. I upgraded that card with this one in blue.  I also cleaned out all of my Lew Ford cards, along with all of the Ford cards that Max sent me.

I split all of the Fords between Max and I.  I hope he likes the ones I sent him. 

My Wei-Yin Chen cards look cool signed in Mandarin Chinese.  I cleaned out some old cards when I pulled my Daniel Corcino and Hector Gomez cards. I also found an Ivan Castillo card at the last minute and was able to get it out of the box.

I had pulled a bunch of Alexi Casilla cards to try him TTM a few years ago.  I never got around to dropping those cards in the mail, but I knew exactly where to find them.  He signed everything we brought with us; another player who cleaned us out.

Finally, as we were walking out of the stadium, we ran into Colin Moran.  He was good for one per, so I got the 2013 Donruss Elite Extra Edition signed, while Chris got my 2022 Topps Heritage done.  Moran was the only High Point Rocker that we went for, so we wouldn't miss the Ducks guys that we needed.

In all, we got the following autographs: Colin Moran x 2, Alexi Casilla x 17, Ivan Castillo x 3, Wei-Yin Chen x 4, Daniel Corcino x 1, Lew Ford x 16, Hector Gomez x 3, Josh James x 16, Ryan McBroom x 3, Mike Montgomery x 4 and Chance Sisco x 9 (78 total autographs). 

TTM Success - Warren Moon

Thanks to my friend, Jesse, I picked up this Warren Moon Crack Kills card to send out TTM.  I had gotten an almost-complete set of 1991 ProSet football cards from Mom, but that card wasn't in there.  Jesse reminded me that the card existed; so I picked one up off of Ebay.

This checklist was in the album, so it became the second card I sent.  Both of the cards turned out great.

Moon (b. 1956) played professionally from 1984 to 2000 for the Oilers, Vikings, Seahawks and Chiefs. He had 49,325 yards, 291 touch downs and a QB record of 102-101-0.

He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2006. 

I mailed to Moon on April 26 and got the cards back on May 29, for a 33-day TAT.  I paid his fee of $10/card.