TTM Success - Mike MacDougal

Here is a nice TTM success that came in that added a few mid-2000s cards to the autograph album.  I had seen that Mike MacDougal was signing, so it gave me the opportunity to get this 2006 Topps signed.

I also sent out this 2005 Topps (left) and a 2007 Upper Deck (right).  All of the cards turned out well.

MacDougal (b. 1977) played in the majors from 2001 to 2012 for the Royals, White Sox, Nationals, Cardinals and Dodgers.  He had a record of 18-23 with 325 strike outs and a 4.00 ERA.  He was an All Star in 2003.  

I mailed to MacDougal on April 22 and got the cards back on May 9 for a 17-day TAT. 

TTM Success - Brandon Backe

Some fairly recent cards (more recent than some TTM subjects) came back signed TTM from Brandon Backe.  I'm seeing more and more returns from guys that played in the mid-to-late 2000s, so I have been searching boxes over the last few weeks for more cards like these.

I got a 2006 Topps (top), 2008 Upper Deck (above left) and 2009 Topps (above right) back signed from Backe.

Backe (b. 1978) played in the majors from 2002 to 2009 for the Devil Rays and Astros.  He had a record of 31-29 with 360 strike outs and a 5.23 ERA.

I mailed Backe on October 24 and got the cards back on January 11 for a 79-day TAT.

TTM Success - Ron Gardenhire

When these cards came back signed from Ron Gardenhire, I had thought I had gotten him previously.  It turns out, no, these were the only cards I had sent him.  They are now signed, and it looks like I don't have anything else out to him.   I got his 1982 Topps rookie card done.  I may have to finish the card off by taking advantage of some private signings at some point.

I also got a 1983 Donruss, 2004 Topps and a 2006 Topps signed.  All of them turned out well.

Gardenhire (b. 1957) played in the majors from 1981 to 1985 for the Mets.  He had 165 hits, 4 home runs and a .232 batting average.

He managed the Twins from 2002 to 2014, to a record of 1,068-1,039 and the Tigers from 2018 to 2020 to a record of 132-241.  His overall managerial record was 1,200-1,280 (.484 win %).  He was the AL Manager of the Year in 2010.  He finished second five times (2003, 2004, 2006 2008 and 2009).

I mailed to Gardenhire on March 31, 2022, and got the cards back today (April 8, 2024), for a 739-day TAT.

TTM Success - BJ Surhoff

For some reason, I thought BJ Surhoff didn't sign TTM. It hadn't really occurred to me to check, but I saw he had signed for someone recently, so I pulled a few cards quickly and sent them out. I was happy when they came back fast, and looked great.  The above 1999 Circa was an interesting random card that I found in my box. 

I also sent out a 2003 Topps Chrome and a 2006 Topps.  They all turned out great.  I had several more cards I'd have wanted to get signed, but stopped at 3.

Surhoff (b. 1964) played in the majors from 1987 to 2005 for the Brewers, Orioles and Braves.  He had 2,326 hits, 188 home runs and a .282 batting average.  He was an All Star in 1999, when he also had his only MVP votes; he finished 18th in the AL MVP race that season.

He appeared on the 2011 Hall of Fame ballot, but received only 0.3% of the vote.  I mailed to Surhoff on February 27 and got the cards back on March 11, for a 13-day TAT. 

TTM Success - Rondell White

Thanks to PastPros, I finished this 2006 Topps by getting Rondell White to sign it TTM.  I had gotten Lew Ford on the card early this season when Long Island was in High Point. That feels like forever ago.

White (b. 1972) played in the majors from 1993 to 2007 for the Expos, Cubs, Yankees, Padres, Royals, Tigers and Twins.  He had 1,519 hits, 198 home runs and a .284 batting average.  He was an All Star in 2003.

I mailed to White via PastPros on May 1 and got the card back on May 22, for a 21-day TAT. 

TTM Success - Luis Matos

When I saw that there was going to be a private signing with former Oriole, Luis Matos, I was excited.  I was never able to get him when he was an Oriole, and he hadn't been to an past Fan Fests that I had been so, so I would finally be able to get a few of his cards signed.  I couldn't settle on just a couple; I ended up sending out 6 cards.  The above 2005 Donruss Diamond Kings was the first card I thought of when I saw the news of the signing.  This card turned out nicely, even though the scan doesn't show Matos's signature as well as it looks in person.

I liked these two (a 2001 Fleer Futures and a 2005 Donruss Champions), and they turned out great.

Finally, I wanted a Topps card in the album, and settled on the 2006 (middle), but I really liked the 2004 Topps Chrome (left), so I added it to the pile.  When I went to scan the cards, I forgot why I had included the 2003 Upper Deck (other than the fact that I have very few 2003 Upper Deck anywhere) and I realized I had sent it because the card features Matos in a St. Louis Browns jersey.

Matos (b. 1978) played in the majors from 2000 to 2006 for the Orioles and Nationals.  He had 410 hits, 30 home runs and a .255 batting average.

I mailed to the signing on October 14 and got the cards back on December 8, for a 55-day TAT.

TTM Success - JD Closser

There aren't a whole lot of 2006 Topps left in my bulk Topps boxes, since I accidentally dumped a lot of them in the gutter as I was moving into this house way back when.  I was really upset, since, of course, it was raining at the time and a lot of those cards were ruined.  Still, I have a few left, and I enjoy it when some of them finally come back signed.  This 2006 Topps JD Closser turned out nicely after it came back TTM.

Closser (b. 1980) played in the majors from 2004 to 2006 for the Rockies.  He had 107 hits, 10 home runs and a .239 batting average.

I mailed to Closser on March 26 and got the card back on April 9, for a 14-day TAT.

Some Signed Cards From Chris Ray

This shouldn't count as a TTM success, and also shouldn't count as IP graphing; this is somewhere in between.  My friend, Ryan, and I went to Chris Ray's brewery outside of Richmond a couple weeks ago.  We both thought we may get lucky, and that Chris Ray would be there.  We each brought a few cards, and were disappointed to learn that he wasn't there.  Thankfully, the staff there was willing to let us leave the cards.  Ryan planned ahead and brought stamped envelopes with him.  So, we left the cards and envelopes, and today, the cards came in.

I left a 2009 Topps gold parallel (top), 2006 Topps (above left) and 2007 Topps (above right).  Each came out great.

Ray (b. 1982) played in the majors from 2005 to 2007 and 2009 to 2011 for the Orioles, Rangers, Giants and Mariners.  He had a record of 18-19 with 230 strike outs, 51 saves and a 4.10 ERA.  He and a player to be named later (Ben Snyder) were sent to the Rangers in the trad that brought Kevin Millwood to Baltimore.

TTM Success - Craig Counsell

This 1998 Topps Finest that I got signed TTM by Brewers manager, Craig Counsell, turned out great.  The card was in one of the boxes I got from my former LCS, and was one of those that used to have the protective film on it.  The card looks sharp, and I am glad that I was finally able to get it back signed by Counsell.

I had sent the TTM request to Brewers Spring Training and finally got the cards back, almost a year later.  This 2006 Topps was the second of the two cards that I sent.

Counsell (b. 1970) played in the majors in 1995 and from 1997 to 2011 for the Rockies, Marlins, Dodgers, Diamondbacks and Brewers.  He had 1,208 hits, 42 home runs and a .255 batting average.  He won the World Series in 1997 with the Marlins and 2001 with the Diamondbacks.  He was the NLCS MVP in 2001.

Counsell has managed the Brewers since 2015, reaching the postseason in four of those seasons.  His overall managerial record is 529-479 (.525 win %).

I mailed to Counsell on February 9 and got the cards back on December 14, for a 308-day TAT.

TTM Success - David Newhan

All of a sudden, I've added several Topps Total cards to my autograph album, when I previously had none.  I busted packs of Topps Total a while back, but the cards seem to have disappeared.  I probably either gave them away or sold the lot at a show or something.  Anyway, I added another Topps Total card to my album with this TTM success from former Oriole, David Newhan.

I also added this 2006 Topps, which turned out great.  2006 is an underrated set, and I think, at some point, I'm going to find the Alex Gordon card and add it to my completed set.  I've seen them around, but I haven't been too serious about looking for them.

Newhan (b. 1973) played in the majors from 1999 to 2001 and 2004 to 2008 for the Padres, Phillies, Orioles, Mets and Astros.  He had 249 hits, 23 home runs and a .253 batting average.

I mailed to Newhan on October 15 and got the cards back on November 22, for a 38-day TAT.

TTM Success - Rich Harden

I was really excited when I saw that Rich Harden signed TTM.  I had a ton of his cards, and he didn't seem to really have much of a limit of what he would sign, so I sent 5 cards along.  The above 2008 Masterpieces really turned out well.  I always enjoy Topps, but Upper Deck did have some great offerings, and Masterpieces was one of them.

Harden also signed a 2002 Topps Prospects card (above left), 2006 Topps (above right), 2008 Upper Deck Heroes (bottom left) and a 2008 Stadium Club (bottom right).

Harden (b. 1981) played in the majors from 2003 to 2011 for the A's, Cubs and Rangers.  He had a career record of 59-38 with 949 strike outs and a 3.76 ERA.

I mailed to Harden on March 16 and got the cards back on September 26, for a 194-day TAT.

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.

TTM Success - Sam Perlozzo

I had these cards of former Orioles manager, Sam Perlozzo, in my Orioles box for years.  I finally got them out of the box and out in the mail last month.  Perlozzo signed everything I sent, and the cards turned out pretty well.

I got Perlozzo to sign a 2006 Upper Deck, 1979 Topps, 2006 Topps and 2007 Topps.  I had the 1979 Topps since I picked up my partial set back in '06, and saved the extra Perlozzo that I found in the box.  It has floated around my Orioles boxes for a long time, and now it will reside in my autograph album.

Perlozzo (b. 1951) played in the majors in 1977 and 1979 for the Twins and Padres.  He had 7 hits, no home runs and a .269 batting average (he only got into 12 games).

He managed the Orioles from 2005 to 2007.  His overall managerial record was 122-164 (.427 win %).  Those were some pretty bad Orioles teams.  Perlozzo even lobbied for his longtime best friend, Leo Mazzone, to come on board as the Orioles pitching coach.  The Orioles pitchers were pretty brutal during that time, and Mazzone was ineffective as pitching coach.  I just remember all of the hype, and then poof, Mazzone was gone.  I knew it wasn't going to end well when Mazzone showed up at Spring Training with a new Orioles logo tattoo on his arm.

I mailed to Perlozzo on March 9 and got the cards back on March 20, for an 11-day TAT.

TTM Success - Rob Mackowiak

I saw a lot of posts on Instagram showing that Rob Mackowiak was signing TTM, so I jumped on board and send a few cards out, myself.  This is what actually prompted me to spend much of the MLB playoffs by going through my card boxes.  I went through a bunch of years of cards and pulled a ton of guys who are signing, so I should have enough subjects to send to for quite a long time.

I sent some pretty nice Mackowiak cards, like the 2007 Topps at the top of the page, or the above 2007 Upper Deck, 2006 Topps or 2008 Topps Update.

Mackowiak (b. 1976) played in the majors from 2001 to 2008 for the Pirates, White Sox, Padres and Nationals.  He had 603 hits, 64 home runs and a .259 batting average.

I mailed to Mackowiak on September 30 and got the cards back on October 11, for an 11-day TAT.

Some 50/50s From Cal

I sent some cards to my buddy, Cal, a while back so he could graph the Lond Island Ducks and Scranton-Wilkes Barre Railriders.    Cal wasn't able to get much done, as he didn't get to as many games as he had hoped, but he still got a few cards done for me, like the above die cut Edgardo Alfonzo from 1005 Upper Deck SP.

He also got a 2006 Topps Alfonzo and a 2007 Fleer Delwyn Young.

Thanks for getting these cards done for me, Cal!  I'll be sending you some more next season.

TTM Success - Lance Niekro

I have been working non-stop lately to repopulate my TTM box, and I feel like I have found a ton of guys that I can send cards to.  One of them was former Giant, Lance Niekro.  I got three cards signed, and they all were sets that I don't have many cards of.

The above 2006 Upper Deck looks really cool.  I don't have much at all from this set, and I am glad that I sent this one in.

I found the above 2001 Bowman Heritage at my LCS.  The period of 1997 to 2003 holds a ton of stuff that I never opened.  I was out of the collecting game, and missed out on some gems.  The card looks awesome, and I was super excited to find it at the shop.

Of course, I had to get a Topps base card in there, and 2006 Topps is one set that I have very little of, as far as bulk cards are concerned.  I had a box of them that turned over and fell out of my truck in my move, and the cards ended up in the gutter just after a rainstorm.  Needless to say, most of the cards were ruined.

Niekro (b. 1979) is the son of the late Joe Niekro and the nephew of Hall of Famer, Phil Niekro.  He played in the majors from 2003 and 2005 to 2007 for the Giants.  He had 123 hits, 17 home runs and a .246 batting average.

I mailed to Niekro on September 30 and got the cards back on October 8, for an 8-day TAT.

TTM Success - David Eckstein

I was really excited to get this TTM success from David Eckstein.  I had found this 2005 Bowman Heritage at a card show, and thought it would look great when signed.  I was right!

I also added a couple nice Topps cards, a 2006 and a 2010.  Both turned out well.

Eckstein (b. 1975) played in the majors from 2001 to 2010 for the Angels, Cardinals, Blue Jays, Diamondbacks and Padres.  He had 1,414 hits, 35 home runs and a .280 batting average.  He was an All Star twice (2005 and 2006) and finished a career-best 11th in the AL MVP voting in 2002.  He won the World Series with the Angels in 2002 and Cardinals in 2006 (he was the World Series MVP that season).

Eckstein appeared on the 2016 Hall of Fame ballot and received 0.5% of the vote.

I mailed to Eckstein on March 22 via the Pirates and got the cards back on April 12, for a 21-day TAT.

TTM Success - Jason Frasor

I added some more recent cards to my autograph album when I was able to get a TTM success from Jason Frasor.

I was especially excited to get the above 2013 Topps Update Emerald Parallel back signed.  I have been working on the Topps Flagship (series 1 and 2) set of emerald parallels, and it is a lot harder to complete the set than it looks.

I also added these to the album, a 2006 Topps, 2007 Topps Update and a 2010 Topps.  I have a ton of 2010 Topps, so it was nice to be able to get one out of my box.

Frasor (b. 1977) played in the majors from 2004 to 2015 for the Bue Jays, White Sox, Rangers, Royals and Braves.  He had a career record of 35-35 with 615 strike outs and a 3.49 ERA.

I mailed to Frasor on March 26 and got the cards back on April 4, for a 9-day TAT.

TTM Success - Gary Matthews Jr.

I was really excited when this TTM success from Gary Matthews, Jr. came in because I wasn't sure that it would.  I had to ask a friend for his Harvey book, because Matthews's address wasn't shown anywhere.  The address he hoked me up with worked, and I got a few really cool cards to show for it.

The above 2007 Turkey Red Chrome was my favorite of the bunch.  I prepped the card before I mailed, and that really made it pop.  Matthews has a nice auto that shows up really well on this card.

The Ticket To Stardom (left) card will be a first for my autograph album.  It looks really nice.  That wasn't the greatest of all sets, but it also wasn't terrible either.  I also don't have many cards from that set left over, so this may end up being the only one that gets signed for my album.

Matthews (b. 1974) played in the majors from 1999 to 2010 for the Padres, Cubs, Pirates, Mets, Orioles, Rangers and Angels.  He had 1,056 hits, 108 home runs and a .257 batting average.  He was an All Star in 2006, a season where he also finished 30th in the AL MVP voting.  For some reason, the Angels signed him to a 5-year, $50 million contract after the 2006 season, and Matthews didn't really live up to it.  At that time, the Angels must have had money to burn.  Nothing against Matthews, but that contract was crazy from the beginning.

I mailed to Matthews on February 5 and got the cards back on October 18, for a 255-day TAT.

TTM Success - Chris Demaria

I added a few more recent cards to my album with this TTM success from Chris Demaria.  I was disappointed, though, that he kept my 2006 Topps Chrome and 2006 Topps Opening Day, and swapped me out for the two Upper Deck below.

Not that they're bad cards by any means, I just would have rather had my Chrome.

Demaria (b. 1980) is only a few days younger than I am.  He played in the majors in 2005 and 2006 for the Royals and Brewers.  He had a 1-1 record, 22 strike outs and a 7.15 ERA.

I mailed to Demaria on March 12 and got the cards back on April 23, for a 42-day TAT.