TTM Success - Chris Davis

I wonder if Chris Davis's hoffiric season last year prompted him to revive his TTM signing habits.  He used to sign a while back, but stopped.  Now, he has picked up again, and folks all over are benefiting from it.  I couldn't resist, so I sent three cards that I had earmarked for Fan Fest, and they all came back signed.  My son, Chris, even sent some that he is waiting to see come back.

The above 2018 Topps Chrome blue shimmer refractor was a card that I really wanted to get signed, ever since I pulled it from my box.  I am not planning on trying another rainbow with Davis, but these cards are really nice.

I also got the above 2017 Topps Gallery and 2014 Allen & Ginter Pastime's Pastimes signed and they both look great.

Davis (b. 1986) has played in the majors since 2008 for the Rangers and Orioles.  He holds a career batting average of .238 with 1,099 hits and 283 home runs.  Last season was abysmal for him; he batted .168 and had a -2.8 WAR (if that stat is important to you).  My hope is that the new analytically-minded regime in Baltimore can help fix what ails Davis.  Unfortunately for him, they didn't sign him to his contract, so they could be more inclined to release him if he starts off the 2019 season poorly.  It's sunken money anyway, so it will be interesting to see what happens.

That being said, let's not take away from the fact that Davis is human.  He is a husband, father, son, brother, friend, so I truly wish he gets it together.  I know being booed in his own ballpark has to hurt.  My hope is that he can fix his swing and get back to being the productive first baseman that we as Orioles fans grew accustomed to back in 2012 to 2016.

I mailed to Davis on December 11 and got the cards back on December 26, for a 15-day TAT.

A Couple Trades With Cal

My friend Cal made a couple trades with me recently.  He and I have been talking about TTMs and autos lately and made a few deals.  He just busted a box of Topps Gallery and sent me these two that I needed for my PCs.

I really like this product.  I haven't seen any that I could open, so getting these from Cal was pretty nice.

The above Trey Mancini is an Artist Proof, which is pretty cool.  It's not numbered, but I like it.  I may take it to Fan Fest in January to get it signed, but I do already have a few Mancinis that I had planned on taking with me, so we will see.

Finally, here is a purple chrome refractor of Derrek Lee.  I always forget that Lee was an Oriole.  I remember when he was traded to the Pirates.  I think I saw his first game with the Pirates, but I could be wrong.

Thank you so much for the deals, Cal.  I hope we can do some more in the future.