2025 National Pickups - 1964 Topps Set Needs

My trip to the National this summer wasn't only about getting autographs.  I also wanted to pick up some PC stuff and also chip away at a few of the sets I've been working on.   It turns out that I focused on the 1964 Tipps set solely this year.  It was unintentional, but the 28 cards I bought for the set made a huge sent in the needs list.  By the time I left the show, I realized that I hadn't worked on my 1955 Bowman, 1962 Topps or 1967 Topps sets at all.

One of my main goals for the show was to right the wrong of last year where I failed to pick up the 1964 Topps Pete Rose.  I had a dollar amount in mind for what I was willing to spend on the card and came in well under that amount.  The only issue I see with the card is that the back is a bit faded.

Because I saved so much on the Rose, I went ahead and added the above cards (Tommy John rookie, Roger Maris and Sandy Koufax).

I was glad to cross the cards off of the needs list.  Maybe next year I'll hit a couple of the other sets harder.

Another TTM Success From Jimmie Schaffer

Another card from Conrad's boxes came back signed TTM, this 1964 Topps Jimmie Schaffer.  He signed the card in pen.   

I had gotten Schaffer TTM back in 2017 on a 1963 Topps, so this is a nice addition to the autograph album to go along with it.

I mailed to Schaffer on December 4 and got the card back on February 1 for a 59-day TAT.

Another TTM Success From Russ Snyder

My stack of vintage cards from Conrad's boxes has gotten a lot smaller. I am pretty much done sending those cards out, save for maybe a few.  One that hung around longer than I would have liked was this 1964 Topps of Russ Snyder.  Snyder used to be a prolific TTM signer, but had tapered off as of late.  It appears that age (he is 90) may be taking its toll.  His normal signing address appears dormant, so I took a chance and sent the card to his son's address.  The card came back signed, which is great.  I hope Snyder is doing well and is enjoying time with his family. I'm glad the card got done, and don't plan to bother him anymore. 

I mailed to Snyder on January 4 and got the card back on January 27 for a 23-day TAT. 

TTM Success - Chico Cardenas

Another signed 1964 Topps was added to the autograph album when I got this card back TTM from Chico Cardenas. The card looks great, as most 1964s do.

Cardenas (b. 1938) played in the majors from 1960 to 1975 for the Reds, Twins, Angels, Indians and Rangers.  He had 1,725 hits, 118 home runs and a .257 batting average. He was a five-time All Star (1964, 1965, 1966, 1968 and 1971) and a Gold Glove Award winner (1965).

I mailed to Cardenas on May 3 and got the card back on May 11, for an 8-day TAT.  I paid his fee of $5.00/card.

Another TTM Success From Carl Warwick

Back in 2016, I had sent to Carl Warwick abd got him to sign two cards.  He had signed and personalized a 1964 and 1966 Topps.  This was well before I picked up the complete 1991 Crown Orioles set.  Since then, I've been trying to get some of them signed, so I went ahead and sent to Warwick earlier this month.

He signed the 1991 Crown, and three other cards that I sent.  I had found extra 1964 and 1966 Topps, and Warwick signed them without personalizations now.  I also sent off a 1962 Topps, and Warwick inscribed that one with the 1964 WS Champions inscription.

I mailed to Warwick on May 1 and got the cards back today (May 11) for a 10-day TAT. I paid his fee of $5/card.

TTM Success - Felipe Alou

These Felipe Alou cards have been waiting a long time to get signed.  I had a couple that I sent off TTM to Spring Training a while back, but they haven't come in.  Alou usually serves as a guest instructor at Giants Spring Training, but hasn't been there the last couple of years.  So, I'm not sure those sill come back.  I sent the above 1964 Topps and below 1974 Topps to a private signing a d got them back signed.  They turned out great.

Alou (b. 1935) played in the majors from 1958 to 1974 for the Giants, Braves (Milwaukee and Atlanta), A's, Yankees, Expos and Brewers.  He had 2,101 hits, 206 home runs and a .286 batting average.  He had over 200 hits twice in his career (1966 and 1968).  He was a 3-time All Star (1962, 1966 and 1968).  His best MVP finish was 5th (NL, 1966).  He appeared on the 1980 Hall of Fame ballot, but received only 0.8% of the vote.

Alou managed the Expos from 1992 to 2001 and the Giants from 2003 to 2006.  His managerial record was 1,033-1,021 (.503 win %).  He was the 1994 NL Mmager of the Year.

I mailed to the signing on March 26 and got the cards back on April 29, for a 34-day TAT.  I paid a fee of $25/card.

TTM Success - Joe Azcue

While I was out of town graphing in Richmond, one TTM came back on Saturday.  I had sent two Joe Azcue cards that I pulled from Conrads boxes, the above 1964 Topps and the below 1971 Topps.

Both of the cards turned out great.  I was glad to get a couple vintage cards back signed; I only have a small ha full left of stuff that I had pulled from Conrad's boxes, sk I need to get them out. 

Azcue (b. 1939) played in the majors in 1960, from  1962 to 1970 and 1972 for the Reds, A's (Kansas City), Indians, Red Sox, Angels and Brewers.  He had 712 hits, 50 home runs and a .252 batting average.  He was an All Star in 1968.

I mailed to Azcue on March 25 and got the cards back on April 27, for a 33-day TAT. I paid Azcue's fee of $5/card.

Another TTM Success From Tom McCraw

These cards took a whole to come in, and traveled a long way, but they got signed by Tom McCraw.  His address changed, but I was able to find a working one and added these to the autograph album. The above 1975 Topps Mini turned out nicely.

I also got a 1964 Topps, 1967 Topps and a 1974 Topps signed.  The 1967 is rough, but it is signed and locked into the album.  I also got an index card promoting McCraw's Instagram account: @TommyMcCrawBaseballFans.  I gave it a follow when I got the note.

I mailed to McCraw on October 11 and got the cards back on April 20, for a 192-day TAT.

TTM Success - Dave Morehead

A couple more vintage cards that Ryan provided came back signed TTM recently when the above 1964 Topps and below 1971 Topps came back from Dave Morehead.

Both cards look great.  I was surprised that I hadn't gotten Morehead before. He has a really nice signature.  I guess I just hadn't had any of his cards until now.

Morehead (b. 1943) played in the majors from 1963 to 1970 for the Red Sox and Royals.  He had a record of 40-64 with 627 strike outs and a 4.15 ERA.

I mailed to Morehead on January 8 and got the cards back on January 22, for a 14-day TAT. 

Another TTM Success From Bob Duliba

Here are a couple more vintage cards that Ryan gave me for TTM.  I sent these out to Bob Duliba and they came back signed nicely.

I had originally sent to Duliba back in 2016, so it was time to send to him again.  That time I got a 1960 Topps and a 1966 Topps signed.  The 1963 Topps and 1964 Topps I just got back were great additions to the album. 

I mailed to Duliba on December 5 and got the cards back on December 27, for a 22-day TAT. 

Another TTM Success From Pete Richert

Pete Richert was another former Oriole who I got TTM recently on his 1991 Crown, along with some nice vintage.

I got these two signed along with the 1991 Crown; a 1964 Topps and a 1973 Topps.  Each card looks really nice.   I especially was happy to get the 1964 Topps signed.

I mailed to Richert on October 26 and got the cards back on December 15, for a 50-day TAT.

Another TTM Success From George Altman

When I went to the Chantilly and Virginia Beach shows, I picked up set needs for each of the 4 card sets I am currently working on.  Some of the cards I picked up were upgrades for the rough filler cards that I had.  The above 1967 Topps George Altman was one of the filler cards that was upgraded.  Once that was done, I sent the rough card out TTM, along with one of Conrad's 1964 Topps that I pulled.

Both of the cards turned out great. The 1964 is very clean.  The 67, even though the condition is a bit rough, turned out nice as well.

I mailed to Altman on November 22 and got the cards back on December 6, for a 14-day TAT. I paid his fee of $10/card.

Another TTM Success From Felix Mantilla

Here are some more nice vintage cards that were added to the autograph album. I picked up three of these Felix Mantilla cards at the Virginia Beach show, and the last one (the 1964 Topps) was picked up from Conrad's boxes. 

All of the cards turned out great.  I especially like the 1959 Topps.  All of of them were in great shape and didn't cost much. 

I mailed to Mantilla on November 17 and got the cards back on December 2, for a 15-day TAT.  I paid his fee of $5/card.

Another TTM Success From JC Martin

Even more vintage cards were added to the autograph album when I got this TTM success back from JC Martin.  I had found this 1961 Topps at a recent show and paired it with the 1964 Topps (below) that I had found in Conrad's boxes. Both of the cards look great.

I had held onto this 64 Topps for a while since I had gotten Martin before, and I didn't want to send the card by itself.  I was holding out until I found another card to send.  I found the 61 and went ahead with the request.

I mailed to Martin on November 16 and got the cards back on November 25, for a 9-day TAT. 

TTM Success - Tommie Sisk

Here is another 1964 Topps that I added to my autograph album when it came back signed TTM by Tommie Sisk.  The card is a bit rough, but still looks nice. 

Sisk (b. 1942) played in the majors from 1962 to 1970 for the Pirates, Padres and White Sox.  He had a record of 40-49 with 441 strike outs and a 3.92 ERA. 

I mailed to Sisk on October 17 and got the card back on November 9, for a 23-day TAT. 

TTM Success - Nelson Mathews

Another 1964 Topps came back signed, this one from a guy I sent to in 2016, but didn't get those cards back.  This time around, I got a success from Nelson Mathews.

He also included this cool player sample Topps Heritage.  I thought this was a pretty nice addition.

Mathews (b. 1941) played in the majors from 1960 to 1965 for the Cubs and A's (Kansas City).  He had 238 hits, 22 home runs and a .223 batting average. 

I mailed to Mathews on October 21 and got the cards back on November 3, for a 13-day TAT. 

TTM Success - Dick Stigman

Another 1964 Topps card was added to the autograph album when I got this one back signed from Dick Stigman.  The card is way off center, but that's ok.

Stigman (b. 1936) played in the majors from 1960 to 1966 for the Indians, Twins and Red Sox.  He had a record of 46-54 with 755 strike outs and a 4.03 ERA.  He was an All Star twice in 1960.

I mailed to Stigman on October 4 and got the card back on November 3, for a 30-day TAT. 

TTM Success - Dick Simpson

This TTM success from Dick Simpson was cool in that it allowed me to complete this 1966 Topps Reds Rookie Stars card that I had already had signed by Tommy Helms.  It is always nice to complete a multi-player card.

This 1964 Topps won't be completed, as Aubrey Gatewood has passed.  Still, it is a nice card and will be in the album.

Simpson (b. 1943) played in the majors in 1962 and from 1964 to 1969 for the Angels, Reds, Cardinals, Astros, Yankees and Pilots.  He had 107 hits, 15 home runs and a .207 batting average. 

I mailed to Simpson on September 28 and got the cards back on October 30, for a 32-day TAT. 

Another TTM Success From Dick Calmus

There have been a lot of 1964 Topps added to my autograph album as of late due to the boxes of cards I picked up from Conrad.  The next 64 added to the album was this card signed TTM by Dick Calmus.  I had gotten him before, several years ago, on a 1968 Topps.  The 1964 turned out nicely.

I mailed to Calmus on October 10 and got the card back on October 30, for a 20-day TAT. 

Another TTM Success From Jim Perry

When I got the boxes from Conrad, I pulled this rough Jim Perry to send to him and add another 1964 Topps to my autograph album. Even though it is beat up, it is still a cool card.

I mailed to Perry on October 11 and got the card back on October 18, for a 7-day TAT.  I paid his fee of $5/card.