Another TTM Success From Joe Cowley

Here are two cards from 1986 that I got back signed TTM; one is a 1986 Topps, the other is a 1986 Topps Traded.  Both are.signed by Joe Cowley, who I had gotten a while back on his 1987 Topps.

I had a partial Traded set in with my 1986 base cards, and I found both Cowleys.  I figured it was a good time to send to him again. 

I mailed to Cowley on October 26 and got the cards back on November 7 for a 12-day TAT. 

TTM Success - Mickey Mahler

Here are a couple nice cards I got back signed TTM from Mickey Mahler.  The above 1986 Topps Traded is a nice looking card.

I also got Mahler to sign a 1979 Topps.  It turned out great, as well.

Mahler (b. 1952) played in the majors from 1977 to 1982 and 1985 to 1986 for the Braves, Pirates, Angels, Expos, Tigers, Rangers and Blue Jays. 

He had a record of 14-32 with 262 strike outs and a 4.68 ERA.  I mailed to Mahler on November 10 and got the cards back on July 10, for a 242-day TAT.

2021 National Free Signer - Wally Joyner

Wally Joyner's 1987 Topps card was already taken care of via a private signing, but that didn't keep me from going through his line a couple times in order to get a few other cards signed when he was at the VIP party for the National on Wednesday.  I had his 1986 Topps Traded, which will look great in my album.

I also had this really cool 1988 Donruss Baseballs Best in one of the boxes from the old card shop that I got signed.  It appears that Jack Howell is on the card with him, so if I want to complete that one, I need to see what Howell is up to these days.

I have a ton of these mini Topps Leaders cards sitting on the corner of my desk, so I was really glad to get this one (and a couple others) signed this past week.

Finally, I got Joyner's 1993 Topps and 1994 Upper Deck Home Field Advantage card signed.  I had busted a box of 94 Upper Deck a while back, and stashed them in a box.  It was nice being able to find those cards and get a few signed at the show.

Joyner and Fielder were the two baseball guys I was able to get at the VIP party for free.  Fielder was only one per, so I had to have a couple of my friends get a few extra cards done for me.  Joyner, on the other hand, signed 3 at a time for me, so I went through his line twice, and Andrew got some signed as well.  I held one card of Joyner's back from my album in order to help my friend Jackson out with a set, but the rest are going into my autograph album.

TTM Success - Mike Laga

I already had him in my 1987 set, but I saw that Mike Laga was signing TTM finally, so I got one of my own cards signed to take the place of the one I bought a while back at the National.  I also got the above 1986 Topps Traded signed, which turned out well.

The 87 turned out well, as did the 1987 Donruss that I sent.

Laga (b. 1960) played in the majors from 1982 to 1990 for the Tigers, Cardinals and Giants.  He had 84 hits, 16 home runs and a .199 batting average.

I mailed to Laga on January 28 and got the cards back on February 7, for a 10-day TAT.

TTM Success - Roger Mason

Here is another TTM success that helped me cross a name off of my 1987 Topps checklist.  Obviously the above card is not an 87 Topps; it is a 1986 Topps Traded, but I have a ton of cards and was happy to take this one out of the box and get it signed.  The Topps Traded sets from the mid-to-late 80s all have a different feel to them, than the Topps flagship sets.  They were printed on different card stock, and as a result, the photos seem to pop a little more.

Here is the signed 1987.  It is now in my 87 album, as I await to fill more pages (it takes a lot of work just to fill a page, I've learned).

Mason (b. 1957) played in the majors from 1984 to 1987, 1989 and 1991 to 1994 for the Tigers, Giants, Astros, Pirates, Padres, Phillies and Mets.  He had a career record of 22-35 with 286 strike outs and a 4.02 ERA.

I mailed to Mason on September 17 and got the cards back on January 24, for a 129-day TAT.

TTM Success - George Wright

For some reason, I haven't fully looked through the entirety of my 1985 and 1986 Topps boxes and pulled out every played who is currently signing TTM.  I kind of look through those two years to find guys who I saw were signing from other sets.  I did see that George Wright was signing, so I was able to pull him, and I got a few cards of his signed.

He signed the 1985 Topps that I had, along with a 1983 Topps, 1983 Donruss and a 1986 Topps Traded.

Wright (b. 1958) played in the majors from 1982 to 1986 for the Rangers and Expos.  He had 529 hits, 42 home runs and a .245 batting average.  He finished 24th in the 1983 AL MVP voting.

I mailed to Wright on October 28, and got the cards back on November 5, for an 8-day TAT.

TTM Success - Steve Farr

I waited a while but finally got these cards in from Steve Farr.  He signed some Topps cards for me, including this 1985 Topps.

He also signed a 1986 Topps Traded, 1987 Topps, 1988 Topps and a 1989 Topps.  All of the cards look really nice, and turned out well.

Farr (b. 1956) played in the majors from 1984 to 1994 for the Indians, Royals, Yankees and Red Sox.  He had a career record of 48-45 with 668 strike outs and a 3.25 ERA.  He won the World Series with the Royals in 1985.

I mailed to Farr on February 24, 2018, and got the cards back on September 11, 2019, for a 564-day TAT.

TTM Success - Bob Tewksbury

I had a TTM request out to Bob Tewksbury back in 2016 or so, but never got the cards back.  I saw that he was signing, so I tried again, and this time, the cards came back with no problem.  I got this 1986 Topps Traded signed, which turned out really well.

I also got these 1987 Topps done.  If you look closely, the one on the right is actually a buyback that I pulled recently.  I figured that I woud give it a shot and see if I could get both of them signed.  He did, and I am happy.

Tewksbury (b. 1960) played in the majors from 1986 to 1998 for the Yankees, Cubs, Cardinals, Rangers, Padres and Twins.  He had a record of 110-102, 812 strike outs and and ERA of 3.92.  He was an All Star in 1992 and finished third in the NL Cy Young voting that season.

I mailed to Tewksbury on October 22 and got the cards back on December 15, for a 54-day TAT.

TTM Success - Juan Beniquez

I entered another private signing on SCN, this time for former Oriole, Juan Beniquez.  I needed him on an 87 Topps, of course, but I also sent in this 1986 Topps Traded card.  I ended up with a bunch of 1986 Topps Traded, almost a full set, and figured I should add an Orioles card from there to my album.

Here is the 1987 that I got signed.  It looks really nice, and I'm glad to cross it off of my list (which is now posted as a link on my Wishlist tab).

Beniquez (b. 1950) played in the majors from 1971 to 1972 and 1974 to 1988 for the Red Sox, Rangers, Yankees, Mariners, Angels, Orioles, Royals and Blue Jays.  He had 1,274 hits, 79 home runs and a .274 batting average.  He was a Gold Glove Award winner in 1977 and finished a career-best 25th in the AL MVP voting in 1984.

I mailed to the private signing on October 25 and got the cards back on November 30, for a 36-day TAT.  I paid a fee of $15/card.

TTM Success - Billy Jo Robidoux

Billy Jo robidoux was one of those players, who when you pulled one of his cards, you went, "cool name!"  At least I did.  I saw that he signed TTM, so I sent to him so I could add a 1987 Topps to my set.  I also added this nice 1988 Score, which looks really great.

I also sent along this 1986 Topps Traded, along with the 87, of course.

Robidoux (b. 1964) played in the majors from 1985 to 1990 for the Brewers, White Sox and Red Sox.  He had 98 hits, 5 home runs and a .209 batting average.

I mailed to Robidoux on January 22 and got the cards back on April 5, for a 73-day TAT.

TTM Success - Mike Bielecki

Here is a TTM success I received from former pitcher, Mike Bielecki.  I got some 80s and 90s cards done by him.  The above 1993 Topps turned out really nicely.  The card being a horizontal card really helped the signature.

I got my 1987 taken care of with this success, and a 1986 Topps Traded.

I added a few Cubs cards with these from 1989, 1990 and 1991.

Bielecki (b. 1959) played in the majors from 1984 to 1997 for the Pirates, Cubs, Braves, Indians and Angels.  He had a career record of 70-73 with 783 strike outs and a 4.18 ERA.  He finished 9th in the 1989 NL Cy Young Award voting.

I mailed to Bielecki on January 11 and got the cards back on March 19, for a 67-day TAT.

TTM Success - Charlie Kerfeld

I'm moving right along with my 1987 set.  This time is a TTM success from Charlie Kerfeld.  I mailed to him, but got a RTS, then I found a better address and immeidately tried again.

I also received these cards signed, a 1986 Topps Traded and a 1988 Topps.

Kerfeld (b. 1963) played in the majors from 1985 to 1987 and 1990 for the Astros and Braves.  He had a career record of 18-9 with 155 strike outs and a 4.20 ERA.  He finished 4th in the 1986 NL Rookie of the Year voting.

I mailed to Kerfeld on February 12 and got the cards back on February 24, for a 12-day TAT.

TTM Success - Gene Walter

Here is another TTM success facilitated by my need to add to my 1987 set.  This one also landed me another card from 1986 Topps Traded.  This Gene Walter card turned out really well.  Traded cards always turn out nicely, possibly because of the different material used for the cards.

I also added the 1987 and 1989 versions of Walter's cards.  He signed two of them in blue Sharpie, and the 1987 in black.  The 1986 Traded got a biblical inscription, as well.

Walter (b. 1960) played in the majors from 1985 to 1988 for the Padres, Mets and Mariners.  He had a career record of 4-7 with 140 strike outs and a  3.74 ERA.

I mailed to Walter on October 26 and got the cards back on February 8, for a 105-day TAT.

TTM Success - Randy Niemann

It took me two shots, but I was able to get a TTM success from Randy Niemann.  This 1983 Topps is really cool, with the pillbox cap of the Pirates.  I like the old Pirate uniforms, and this is a great example of them.

I also got Niemann on an 80 Topps in an awesome Astros uniform.  He is also in the 1987 set, so this was another card to knock off of the list.

Niemann (b. 1955) played in the majors from 1979, 1980 and 1982 to 1987 for the Astros, Pirates, White Sox, Mets and Twins.  He had a career record of 7-8 with 102 strike outs and an ERA of 4.64.

I mailed to Niemann on January 8 and got the cards back on January 31, for a 23-day TAT.

TTM Success - Ken Schrom

Here is a nice TTM success from Ken Schrom that came in a couple weeks ago.  The above 1988 Score turned out really nice.  This is an underrated set, and the cards really look great in my album.

Here are the other cards that Schrom signed for me.  One of which is a 1987 Topps for my set.  The 1986 Topps is actually a Topps Traded.

Schrom (b. 1954) played in the majors from 1980 and 1982 to 1987 for the Blue Jays, Twins and Indians.  He had a career record of 51-51 with 372 strike outs and a 4.81 ERA.

I mailed to Schrom on January 8 and got the cards back on January 27, for a 19-day TAT.

TTM Success - Pete Ladd

This was a really nice TTM success, and one where I really couldn't decide on which cards to send.  I wanted to make sure I sent this 1986 Topps Traded, because one of the things I tend to look for in a card to send is hairstyles of the times.  That and awesome poses, or amazing uniforms.  Since Pete Ladd looked a lot like Weird Al in this shot, I had to send this one off.

Conrad from the Columbia antique shop gave me a partial set of 1980 Topps, so I have been reluctant to drop any of those cards off of the requests.  I'm not the biggest fan of having players sign cards with other folks on them; mainly because I don't want to lose one that has already been signed, and I don't want OCD to take over when there is only one signature on the card.  Still, I wanted one of Conrad's cards to go on the journey.

Again, here is a cool hairstyle and uniform on this 1984 Fleer.  I also wanted to make sure I used one of the cards from my FLeer box, especially since I don't have a whole lot of mid-80s Fleer anyway.

I also added some Topps cards, as usual.  I had to add a 1987, of course.  I also liked the 84, 85 and 86 that I sent along.  I almost dropped the 86, since I sent the Topps Traded, but I wanted them both, side by side, in my album.  Luckily, Ladd signed everything.

Ladd (b. 1956) played in the majors in 1979 and from 1982 to 1986 for the Astros, Brewers and Mariners.  He had a career record of 17-23 with an ERA of 4.14 and 209 strike outs.

I mailed to Ladd on October 9 and got the cards back on October 21, for a 12-day TAT.

TTM Success - Rich Bordi

Here is another former Oriole that I was able to get TTM in Rich Bordi.  I like this 1987 Fleer that I got back, since it really matches with the blue Sharpie that Bordi signed with.

I also added some nice Topps cards, especially the 1986 Topps Traded Orioles card.  They all turned out really well.

Bordi (b. 1959) played in the majors from 1980 to 1988 for the A's, Mariners, Cubs, Yankees and Orioles.  He had a career record of 20-20 with a 4.34 ERA and 247 strike outs.

I mailed to Bordi on September 19 and got the cards back on October 5, for a 16-day TAT.

TTM Success - Billy Sample

This was a nice TTM success from Billy Sample that I got in recently.  He even included a note that said "From one William to another...", which I thought was a cool touch.  I enjoyed seeing this 1987 Fleer come back signed, as these are nice cards and look great in blue Sharpie.

I added these Topps cards to the album as well.  I found that I will have to audit my Topps numbers at some point, though, because the 1986 is a Topps Traded and I can't remember if I counted it or not in my numbers.  It shouldn't be included in the tally for 1986, but that doesn't mean that I remembered to leave it out.  That'll give me something to do on a rainy day, I suppose.

Regardless of the totals for other Topps sets, I know my 1987 count is accurate.  I have 70+ cards from that set signed, and have a few more out for signature.

Sample (b. 1955) played in the majors from 1978 to 1986 for the Rangers, Yankees and Braves.  He had 684 hits, 46 home runs and a .272 batting average.

I mailed to Sample on August 11 and got the cards back on August 18, for an 11-day TAT.

TTM Success - Franklin Stubbs

My incoming TTMs have slowed down tremendously.  I have a ton out there pending return, they just haven't come in as steadily, for whatever reason,  That has helped me knock my stack down some, but there still are a lot more to post.  Taking care of this TTM success from Franklin Stubbs does help, though, since he signed a ton of cards.

I got another 1987 Topps out of the return.  I never get tired of seeing these come in.  There was once a time where I was trying to put my huge 1987 box off on anyone who would take it.  Now, I have really enjoyed getting these signed.  I don't think I will ever pursue anything close to a set, but it is kind of fun to see what all I can get signed from it.

Lost in some of my posts is my admiration for Topps Traded cards.  Starting in the mid 80s, they used a different card stock, and the fronts of the cards seem smoother (but not over-glossed or anything) than a typical Topps Base.  I feel like it helps the colors stand out more on some of them, and the autographs definitely stand out.  Maybe that's just me.

Finally, I got four other Topps cards signed (1989, 1991, 1992, 1993).  I had a lot of Stubbs cards to choose from, but I put the Topps Traded in, ahead of some of his Fleer and/or Donruss.

Stubbs (b. 1960) is a North Carolina native, born in Laurinburg.  He played in the majors from 1984 to 1992 and 1995 for the Dodgers, Astros, Brewers and Tigers.  He had 602 hits, 104 home runs and a .232 batting average.  He won the Wotld Series with the Dodgers in 1988.

I mailed to Stubbs on Februart 27, and got the cards back on March 9, for a 10-day TAT.

TTM Success - Bobby Witt

I have gotten some really cool cards signed TTM since I started sending cards last year, but I seem to always amaze myself with some of the successes that have come in.  This success from Bobby Witt was a really good one, topped with the above 1994 Topps Finest.  This card looks awesome in person, Witt's A's jersey really matched well with the borders of the card.  I was really happy to get this one back.  The card was treated with an eraser prior to sending out for signature.

I had a bunch of Witt cards to choose from, so I picked the 1986 Topps Traded and the 1989 to represent some Topps series.

I also had to go with a 1993 Flair; you can never go wrong with getting those signed.  I also had this 1997 Pacific, which there aren't many of in my album.

Witt (b. 1964) played in the majors from 1986 to 2001 for the Rangers, A's, Marlins, Cardinals, Devil Rays, Indians and Diamondbacks.  He had a career record of 142-157 with an ERA of 4.83 and 1,955 strike outs.  He won the World Series with the Diamondbacks in 2001.

I mailed to Witt on November 9 and got the cards back on December 30, for a 51-day TAT.