TTM Success - Stephen Drew

The last signing that my friend Jack hosted recently was with Stephen Drew.  It was an easy decision to send the above 2010 Topps National Chicle.  The card turned out great.

Drew (b. 1983) played in the majors from 2006 to 2017 for the Diamondbacks, A's, Red Sox, Yankees and Nationals.  He had 1,109 hits, 123 home runs and a .252 batting average.  He finished 26th in the 2008 NL MVP race. 

I mailed to the signing on December 30 and got the card back on January 29 for a 30-day TAT. 

TTM Success - Billy Butler

This return took a long time, but was well worth it.  I had a ton of Billy Butler cards, and took a shot at getting a few of them signed, and it paid off.  The above 2010 Topps National Chicle turned out really well.  I like these cards, and have now gotten a few of them signed.  The Sharpie he used seems to have been dying, but this card turned out ok.

Some of the other cards turned out better than others, solely based on the Sharpie.  Still, I was glad to get the cards back signed after waiting for so long.

Butler (b. 1986) played in the majors from 2007 to 2016 for the Royals, A's and Yankees.  He had 1,479 hits, 147 home runs and a .290 batting average.  He was an All Star and Silver Slugger Award winner in 2012.  

I mailed to Butler on March 26, 2020, and got the cards back on October 25, 2021, for a 578-day TAT.

TTM SUccess - Reid Gorecki

Topps had a pretty nice product come out in 2010, National Chicle, which ended up being a one-off set, but it has yielded some nicely signed cards when I have been able to send some TTM.  This one I got back from Reid Gorecki is pretty nice, in my opinion.

I was also able to get a 2010 Topps signed, and this also turned out well.

Gorecki (b. 1980) played in the majors in 2009 for the Braves.  He had 5 hits, no homers and a .200 batting average.

I mailed to Gorecki on January 23 and got the cards back on March 9, for a 45-day TAT.

TTM Success - Tobi Stoner

The 2010 Topps National Chicle cards look really great when they are signed.  I had this Tobi Stoner card since that set came out, and was glad to finally get it signed and into my album.

I also got Stoner's 2010 Topps signed.  Some folks don't like the "fish eye" design of the set, but I don't mind it.  What I don't like is the soil lettering. It is definitely hard to read, especially in a scan.

Stoner (b. 1984) played in the majors from 2009 to 2010 for the Mets.  He had a record of 0-1 with 5 strike outs and a 3.97 ERA.

I mailed to him on December 22 and got the cards back on February 24, for a 64-day TAT.

TTM Success - Josh Thoele

Here are some nice cards from the early 2010s that I was able to get signed TTM by Josh Thoele.  The above 2010 Topps has a nice shot of Thoele sliding.  I like these kinds of shots on cards.  His signature is kind of clunky, but hey the card is signed.

The above 2010 Topps National Chicle (above left) and 2013 Topps Update (above right) both turned out well.

Thoele (b. 1986) played in the majors from 2009 to 2016 for the Mets and Blue Jays.  He had 323 hits, 9 home runs and a .242 batting average.

I mailed to Thoele on May 6 and got the cards back on June 6, for a 31-day TAT.

TTM Success - Josh Hamilton

A commonly known fact about TTM signing is that if you send something to Josh Hamilton, you will get your item back after Christmas.  Hamilton always signs items around Christmas time for his fans, so I wanted to make sure I got something to him in time for Christmas 2016.  I had a lot of items to choose from, but ultimately, I settled on this 2010 Topps National Chicle.  I didn't have any of these signed, yet, and I also liked the horizontal card.

Hamilton (b. 1981) has played in the majors from 2007 to 2015 for the Reds, Rangers and Angels.  He was a former #1 overall pick by the Rays in the 1999 June Amateur Draft.  His career was seemingly derailed due to substance abuse issues until he was claimed in the 2007 Rule V draft by the Reds.  Since that time, he has been selected to 5 All Star teams, won the 2010 AL Batting Title and the 2010 AL MVP Award.  Also, a three-time Silver Slugger Award winner, Hamilton has suffered multiple injuries which have limited his playing time (and caused him to miss all of the 2016 season).

Hamilton has 1,134 hits, 200 home runs and a .290 batting average across the 9 seasons in which he has played.  He has had 100 or more RBI in three seasons and hit 30 or more home runs in three seasons, as well.

I mailed to Hamilton on October 25 and got the card back on February 11, for a 109-day TAT.

2010 Topps National Chicle

When I saw the previews for National Chicle, I thought Uggh, those look AWFUL. I'm glad I was wrong (for the most part).

I opened something like 7 packs of the cards, and I helped Pete open maybe 10 more. I saw some AWESOME relics in Pete's box (I'll let him tell about what he pulled). There are some awesome cards as well... This Johnny Bench is the best looking card I have seen. Wow. The person who painted this one did an awesome job. This is one of the best looking cards I have seen in a while.

Another good portrait, and it is a relic of an Oriole!! Eddie Murray, woo hoo. Looks like some dirt may be on the jersey, which is cool.

Max and Pete both pulled Roberts, so I got 2 of him already. Never a bad day when I get new Roberts cards. Hopefully he will come off the DL soon.

I pulled this and was like oh cool, on card auto... but it is of the artist who designed the card. It is numbered 4/10 which is good, I guess, but I was really underwhelmed with the auto.

I was very satisfied with the cards I saw. I saw some not so good ones though. I wish I had a scan of the Tim Wakefield I saw though. It was a weird looking card. Looked like he was eating the ball.