A Couple Old 50-50s From Gerard

Oof. These Christian Vazquez signed cards were sitting in a team bag, in a box that I had put aside a while back and forgot about. The cards were taken as a 50/50 by Gerard some time ago, and I never scanned them.  Above is a 2019 Topps Heritage. Below is a 2008 Bowman.

If I had to guess, I probably sent these to Gerard in 2021.  I'm sure he will tell me.

I feel bad that they sat for so long without being scanned and added to the autograph album.  However, this has been rectified and the cards are safely locked in the album.

Thanks for getting these done, Gerard.  As always, I appreciate it, even though it took me so long to get them posted.

TTM Success - Greg Golson

Here are some late 2000s cards that I was able to get signed TTM by Greg Golson.  I had his cards pulled for a few years, and finally got some out of the box.

There are some nice cards; the 2009 UD Goudey turned out nicely.  There were also a 2008 Bowman. 2009 UD A Piece of History and a 2009 Topps 206 that all turned out great.

Golson (b. 1985) played in the majors from 2008 to 2011 for the Phillies, Rangers and Yankees.  He had 8 hits, no home runs and a .195 batting average. 

I mailed to Golson on February 10 and got the cards back on April 1, for a 51-day TAT. 

2021 National - Phil Hughes Autographs

Since he retired, Phil Hughes has been very involved in the card collecting hobby.  His Youtube channel, Phils Pulls, is very popular, as is his Twitter account.  Hughes had a table set up at the National this year, and when Andrew and I found out that he was going to be there, I pulled a couple cards to bring along with me, just in case.

We ended up meeting Hughes, and I got him to sign two of the four cards that I brought; I gave the other two to Andrew, which he got signed.  Phil charged $15.00/card, which wasn't a problem for me.  I figured it was so he could keep the lines small around his table.

The above 2007 Topps Turkey Red chrome turned out great.  I was glad I was able to find that one and bring it along.  It is numbered 529/999.

This 2008 Bowman blue parallel is  numbered 279/500 and also turned out well.

Hughes (b. 1986) played in the majors from 2007 to 2018 for the Yankees, Twins and Padres.  He had a record of 88-79 with 1,040 strike outs and a 4.52 ERA.  He was an All Star in 2010, and his best Cy Young Award finish was 7th in 2014.  He won the World Series with the Yankees in 2009.

TTM Success - Anthony Claggett

This 2008 Bowman that I found in a box from the former LCS of Anthony Claggett turned out really well when he signed it for me.  I used to have a bunch more 2008 Bowman, but I let them go over the years when I was cleaning out boxes and selling cards at shows.  Now, I am building back an inventory of older Bowman cards that I'll pull from for TTMs.  The cards look pretty nice when signed, and a good many of the players are happy to sign them.

Claggett (b. 1984) played in the majors in 2009 for the Yankees and Pirates.  He didn't score a decision in the three games he played.  He did have three strike outs and an ERA of 27.00.

Originally drafted by the Tigers in the 11th round of the 2005 June Amateur Draft, he was traded to the Yankees along with Umberto Sanchez and Kevin Whelan in November 2006 for Gary Sheffield.

I mailed to Claggett on November 19 and got the card back on December 22, for a 33-day TAT.

TTM Success - Lance Broadway

I got some nice cards back signed TTM from former pitcher, Lance Broadway.  I really liked the above 2009 Topps Update.  I wish I had kept all of my 09 bulk, but I had let it all go at a card show years ago in order to make room in my boxes.  Making room is great, but I do like to have options to choose from when looking for cards to get signed.

I also sent off a 2008 Upper Deck Rookie Debut (left) and a 2008 Bowman.  Both of these really look great when signed.

Broadway (b. 1983) played in the majors from 2007 to 2009 for the White Sox and Mets.  He had a record of 1-1 with 39 strike outs and a 5.24 ERA.

I mailed to Broadway on November 16 and got the cards back on December 4, for an 18-day TAT.

TTM Success - Dusty Coleman

I got a few more cards out of my older Bowman box recently when I got these cards signed by Dusty Coleman.  The above 2008 Bowman gold turned out really well.  I don't have many 08 Bowmans in my album, so it was nice to add this one.

He also signed a 2008 Donruss Elite Extra Edition (above left) and a 2008 Razor (above right).  I remember when Razor was a thing, and they had Matt Wieters signed to an exclusive contract.  That's why I have so many 08 Razor cards in the box.  I'm glad I got one signed, and it turned out really well.

Finally, I got this dual 2015 Topps Update signed that I had previously had signed by Rey Navarro.  I think Chris and I saw Navarro at an Independent League game last season.  I may have another of these signed by Navarro, so I probably should see about getting Coleman on it as well.

Coleman (b. 1987) played in the majors in 2015 and 2017 for the Royals and Padres.  He had 15 hits, 4 home runs and a .211 batting average.

I mailed to Coleman on June 8 and got the cards back on June 20, for a 12-day TAT.

TTM Success - Sean Danielson

I got a random Bowman card out of my box when I was able to send this 2008 Bowman off to Sean Danielson.  He returned it signed to me, and it now is in my album.  I have 5 more pages to fill before I can start a new album, by the way.

Danielson (b. 1982) played from 2005 to 2010 in the minors for the Cardinals, Red Sox and Reds systems.  He reached AAA, but never broke into the majors.  Across those 6 seasons in the minors, he had 435 hits, 7 home runs and a .272 batting average.

I mailed to Danielson on May 13 and got the card back signed on June 5, for a 23-day TAT.

TTM Success - Michael Aubrey

I was able to move some late 2000s cards out of my boxes with this TTM success from Michael Aubrey.  These are cards that I have had floating around in my boxes for over 10 years, and I was kind of getting tired of seeing them.  When I saw that Aubrey was signing, I was glad to get a few of these moving, and they all turned out great.  I don't have very many signed 2008 Bowman (above), but Aubrey did a great job matching the facsimile auto that is on the card.

I also got a 2008 Topps Update and a 2008 Stadium Club First Day Issue signed.

Aubrey (b. 1982) played in the majors from 2008 to 2009 for the Indians and Orioles.  He had 35 hits, 6 home runs and a .259 batting average.  He was the 11th overall pick by the Indians in the 2003 June Amateur Draft.

I mailed to Aubrey on September 30 and got the cards back on October 12, for a 12-day TAT.

May 2019 Graphing of the Pelicans at Wood Ducks

The Wood Ducks returned from a long road trip for a brief three-game series at home this past week against the Myrtle Beach Pelicans.  This was the last time that the Pelicans would come to Kinston this season, so I was eager to finish off what I had of them.  I had recently gotten my boxes of Bowman in, and pulled the above atomic refractor of Miguel Amaya.  The card is numbered 65/150, and looks really great signed.

I got all of the Aramis Ademan and Miguel Amaya that I had signed.  Ademan has such a nice signature, and it looks great on some 2019 Bowman.

I was glad to finally find some Steve Lerud cards.  I found them the day after the Pelicans left the last time, and got them into my book.  I also saw that Jake Stinnett was on the Pelicans roster for a rehab assignment, but realized that I had sent all of my Stinnett cards on to Max in Chicago.  Luckily, I had missed one, so I was able to get this 2014 Prizm signed.

There was a huge Rangers contingent on-hand during this series, so I was able to get a few rover cards signed.  I missed Dwayne Murphy last season because I had forgotten to put him in my book.  This year, I had him in there from Day One, and was able to get this 1979 Topps done, and also the A's Leaders card form 1986 Topps, below.

In addition to Murphy, Kenny Holmberg and Rick Strickland were on hand.  They had been here late last month, so I was able to Fins Holmberg's 2008 Bowman in my box, and I had found the above 1988 Cape Cod League card of Strickland on Ebay.  He was impressed that I had found the card and remarked that the card was "several pounds ago".  He also joked about how tight his pants were in the photo on the card.

I got a chrome 2019 Bowman done of JP Martinez, and this custom card of Bubba Thompson that my friend, John, sent me.

The Wood Ducks are on the road again, and will return home next weekend.

Picking Up Some Rookie Cards on Instagram

This is the last Instagram post for now, at least of stuff that I have gotten in recently.  I do have one more trade pending, which I think will be in sometime next week.  That being said, I completed a trade with a Dodgers fan names Javier in exchange for several rookie cards, three of which I kept (one obviously isn't a RC) and two I will flip on to friends.

I'm sure I probably owned the above 2008 Bowman Andrew McCutchen at some point, but I didn't make him a PC until a couple years ago.  The card doesn't sell for much, but it is still a RC, and I'll take it.

This Justin Verlander is one that I know I have, but it is part of my complete set.  So, I figured since Javier was offering it, it wouldn't be a bad idea to go ahead and pick up another and stash it with my RCs.  I also don't feel like I have shown enough 2006 Topps on here.  I remember the set being the first to come out after I jumped back into cards (2005 Topps was already out, of course) and I was just as excited when it was released and I saw it for the first time as I was when 1991 Topps came out. The feeling I got as a kid when the new set of cards came out is unrivaled, I think.  It kind of sucks now that we get the next year's design so early now.  I miss the days when you didn't know until you opened that first pack, and that's how it was for me when 2006 came out.  I do still have an empty box for 2006.

Finally, Javier had one 2013 Topps emerald parallel I needed for my set.  Yes, I'm still working on it.  I hope to have this set completed sometime soon, but it definitely has slowed down.  If anyone has Series 1 or 2 emerald parallels, please consult my wishlist and help me out!

Thanks for the trade, Javier.  I really appreciate it!