A Quick 50-50 With Patrick

My friend, Patrick recently took a couple Grant Gambrell cards that I found in my boxes.  I was glad to get them signed and into the autograph album. Patrick took two of them at his share of the 50/50.

Patrick sees Worcester, and Gambrell is there this year.  He signed a 2020 Heritage Minors and a 2020 Pro Debut. 

Gambrell (b. 1997) was a third round pick by the Royals in the 2019 June Amateur Draft out of Oregon State.  He has played in the minors since 2019 in the Royals and Red Sox systems, reaching AAA.  He has a record.of 14-23 with 255 strike outs and a 4.65 ERA.

TTM Success - Jonathan Stiever

Another TTM success came in that had been out for a while when these cards came back from Jonathan Stiever.  I was glad to get thr above 2021 Mosaic orange parallel, which looks great.

I also got the 2021 Mosaic base and a 2020 Heritage Minors. 

Stiever (b. 1997) played in the majors from 2020 to 2021 for the White Sox.   He was 0-1 with 3 strike outs and a 14.21 ERA.

I mailed to Stiever on March 9, 2022, and got the cards back on January 26, 2024, for a 690-day TAT.

50-50 Returns From Isaac

This season's 50/50 returns are coming back in, and I am pretty happy with what I was able to get signed this year.  When I went on my road trip in July, I made contact with some folks ahead of time to find out about graphing habits at some of the ballparks I was scheduled to go to.  One of the folks I had reached out to was a guy named Isaac, who graphed the Tennessee Smokies.  He wasn't able to meet up at the game, but was willing to take the stuff that I missed out on while we were there and get some of those cards signed.  One of the cards I really wanted back was the above 2019 Topps Pro Debut Cole Roederer.  He skipped over this card when we saw him in person.  No issues, though, Isaac took care of me.

I missed Jamie Vermilyea completely when we were there, so I was glad to get all of the cards of him that I had pulled signed.  I have a ton of 2007 Bowman, and I really didn't want to have to put those back in the box.  Isaac also helped me with the team set cards, so getting them done was nice, as well.

I also missed Riley Thompson completely, but Isaac came in behind me and got these knocked out.

I don't think I saw Alexander Canario when I was there, but Isaac got this 2020 Heritage Minors done.  I know I saw Peyton Remy when he was with Myrtle Beach, but getting this 2017 Bowman Chrome signed was still nice.

Finally, here are some of the other team set cards that I missed.  I was glad to not have to put these back with the set, and can add them to my album.  I don't know if I will be able to complete the set, but I know I have a few cards knocked out already.  I can try again necxt season, depending on where the guys I'm still missing are assigned.

Thank you so much for taking these cards for me, Isaac.  I'll have to get up with you again next season and get some more cards out of my boxes.

Autographed Card Dump Post

The term "card dump" might sound like it has a negative connotation, but I assure you it is only used as a description of what I felt I had to do with these cards, since my stack got mixed up a while back.  I had no idea who sent me these, and I imagine some of them will come forward at some point and let me know that they sent these to me.  Anyway, the cards that went unaccounted for, so to speak, were some decent ones.  I mean, I really should have known who sent me this Anthony Volpe.  I thought it was my friend, Patrick, but I was mistaken.  Still, it is a great autograph, and Volpe stuff is hot right now.

I do know that these four cards came from an early 50/50, because of the labels on the back.  I originally used to use those tape tabs, but I have since switched to small post it tabs.  I remember tryig to get Ian Krol when he was with some team I was set to see, but missed him.  I wish I could remember who I sent these to.  They all turned out great.

These were in random penny sleeves and/or top loaders, so I think these came in various trades.  I feel like the Groshans and possibly the Gabriel Moreno were from a trade I did with someone for a signed 1986 Topps that they needed.  I probably should log this stuff better.  Anyway, these all are pretty cool, as well, and are now finally in my album.

Thank you so much for all of the trades and 50/50s the past couple of years.  That stack has now been taken care of and I can start fresh with some of the 2022 stuff that is still set to arrive now that the milb season is over.  I also misspoke earlier when I said I was almost caught up.  I have a few birthday items that I want to get posted, so those will be falling in line, as well.

TTM Success - Max Lazar

TTMs have been trickling in recently; mostly ones that have been out for a while.  I finally have had time the last two weeks to go through a few boxes and start prepping to send some waves of TTMs out.  Hopefully some will be coming in over the next few weeks.  As it stands, after this TTM success post, I have two others in the wings to post and one 50/50 card dump of stuff I forgot who sent from where.  After that, I will be all caught up.

This TTM success from Max Lazar was out for a while, and finally came back with a couple nice 2020 cards.  I was glad to see them come back.  He signed a 2020 Heritage Minors and a 2020 Pro Debut.

Lazar (b. 1999) was an 11th round pick by the Brewers in the 2017 June Amateur Draft out of Coral Gables High School in Florida.  He has played in the minors from 2017 to 2019 and 2021 to 2022 (missing the COVID season in 2020, of course).  I missed him when he was at the Mudcats; he only pitched in 3 games for them.  So far, he has a record of 11-10 with 214 strike outs and a 3.53 ERA.

I mailed to Lazar on January 14 and got the cards back on September 19, for a 248-day TAT.

Another TTM Success From Taylor Trammell

There haven't been many, but I have received a few TTM success from this year's Spring Training.  Every year, I optimistically send TTM to guys at Spring Training, thinking that this will be the year that players start to sign their mail again.  I have been disappointed the past three seasons, but I still hope that once we return to a normal Spring Training (finally), TTMs will come back.

This TTM success from Taylor Trammell was nice in that I got this 2020 Topps Heritage Minors signed, along with the 2020 Topps 1986 insert.  Both of the cards look great.

I mailed to Trammell on March 12 via Mariners Spring Training and got the cards back on July 12, for a 122-day TAT.

Some 50/50s Back From Gerard

My good friend, Gerard, went on a trip this past week to Asheville, and took a few 50/50s to help move some cards out of my boxes.  These were mostly guys that I missed who either didn't come through Fayetteville, or didn't have these cards when they did.  

The above 2020 Panini Prizm Zach Daniels turned out nicely.  I'm pretty sure he just didn't play in Fayetteville; I don't remember him there, at least.  I also don't remember how I got this card, but I like it and am glad it is being added to my album.

Gerard got me several Daniels cards signed, which was great.  I have added so many 2021 Topps Heritage Minors cards to the album recently.  It is a nice set, and the cards look great signed.

J. C. Correa didn't have cards when he came through Fayetteville, so it was nice to get a couple of his cards signed and into the album.

Jordan Brewer did come through, and I had gotten his 2020 Heritage Minors signed before.  I don't remember seeing Colin Barber, however.

Gerard also got a few cards signed by Greenville Drive's Matthew Lugo.  These cards turned out nicely, as well.

Thanks for taking the 50/50, Gerard.  I hope you had a great trip!

Another TTM Success From JJ Bleday

Here are some great cards I was able to pull from my prospects boxes and get signed TTM from Marlins prospect, JJ Bleday.  The above 2019 Bowman Chromw Draft Pick Breakdown card was one I absolutely wanted to get signed, so I sent it out to Bleday, along with the below inserts from 2020 and 2021 Heritage Minors.

I got a full sig on the Chrome and a short sig on the two Heritage Minors cards, but they all look really cool.

Bleday (b. 1997) was a first round (4th overall) pick in the 2019 June Amateur Draft by the Marlins out of Vanderbilt.  He has played in the Marlins system since 2019, reaching AA.  He has 120 hits, 15 home runs and a .224 batting average.

I mailed to Bleday on January 3 and got the cards back on January 18, for a 15-day TAT.

August 24-29, 2021, Graphing of Woodpeckers at Wood Ducks

This series between the Woodpeckers and Wood Ducks was the first one I caught all games of in quite some time.  The season is winding down, and the Wood Ducks are in the middle of the playoff picture, so I wanted to catch as many games as I could.  There were only 2 guys on Fayetteville with cards, so I didn't have a whole lot to prep for this trip.  Add in the fact that I didn't have many guys on the Wood Ducks that I needed, I ended up going for a couple days and not graphing at all, which was kind of weird.  On Saturday, though, my boxes of Pro Debut came in, and I had a few more cards stocked up in my autograph book.  I was able to finally get a certified card of Luisangel Acuna signed; something other than a custom or a team set, which was really nice.

My dude, Cody Freeman, was back in action, so I was able to get my team set card done, as well as a couple customs my friend Dugan made for me.  Cody liked them so much, he requested that Dugan make him some.

I got my Alex Santos and Jordan Brewer cards signed; the only Fayetteville guys who's cards I could find.  I also had a lot of 10 cards of Brady Smith come in, and found a few cards of roving instructor, Roy Silver.  I was excited when I saw that I had Silver's cards in my 1990 ProCards AAA box.

My friend, Ben, came for the Saturday game; his first game all season.  We graphed together a bunch in the past, and he has been missed this year.  He gave me some blank Rangers signature cards, so I got Gavin Collyer on one of them.  Gavin talked to Chris and I bunch this series, and has become one of our favorite guys on the team.

On Saturday night, Jayce Easley stole his 60th base of the season, which leads all of professional baseball.  I called it pregame, and Jayce was more than happy to sign and inscribe my ticket stub from last night.

We had a really good time this series.  The Wood Ducks won the series 4-3 (they finished a suspended game on Tuesday, followed by their regularly scheduled game) and as of last night, were tied with the Mudcats for the second playoff spot.  I'm hoping to catch all of the remaining home games as the Woodies continue to fight to keep the season going past that last series in September.

August 22, 2021, Graphing Recap of Dash at Crawdads

A last minute trip t Hickory yesterday yielded a few autographs to put into my binder after I did a little pregame graphing with Chris.  We had gone to one of my dad's races in Mooresville, and I figured I would try to get a few cards from the Wood Ducks team set taken care of while I was in the general area.  Unfortunately, most of the former Wood Ducks I needed were pitchers, and I learned that it is really hard to get pitchers to sign in Hickory with their COVID restrictions.  You can hardly get near any of them if they hang in the bullpen area.

Still, we came away with a few signed cards, even though we left in the third inning so we could get home at a decent time.  I was really glad to get the above 2017 Panini Elite Extra Edition David Garcia signed.  I got this card when the 2017 Elite Extra Edition came out, and kept the card with my Rangers stuff, waiting for him to come to the Wood Ducks.  He never did, but thankfully, I noticed him on the Crawdads roster, and remembered exactly where I had the card.  It looks great, and it is one less card hanging out in my box, now.

I knocked out a couple Jonathan Ornelas cards; he signed 2 per for both Chris and I.  I also took a 50.50 from Gerard, and got a could Jared Walkers knocked out for him.  The 2014 Bowman was mine to begin with, and he provided a blue wave chrome version of that same card, and two of the 2014 Elite Extra Editions.

I dug deep in my boxes and came up with the 1998 Team Best Hiram Bocachica, which was a cool find.  He was really nice, and spoke with me and a nice lady who was beside me, a Crawdads season ticket holder who helped me identify the players as they walked by.  She saved me a ton of time from having to look at the roster and match up numbers.

I was able to get one former Wood Duck, Dustin Harris, which was nice, because he is tearing up High A pitching at the moment.  It was also nice to hit a couple 2019 Bowman draft, and also the 2020 Topps Heritage Minors Ezequiel Duran.

The season is winding down, and I doubt I'll be able to do many more away games at other stadiums, but I'm going to try.  I know I've knocked out more cards that I thought I would this season, and there's still 3 or 4 weeks to go.

TTM Success - Simeon Woods-Richardson

Simeon Woods-Richardson doesn't have much of an autograph, but that didn't keep me from sending two cards to him TTM and being excited when they came back.  The above 2020 Topps Heritage Minors looks great, as all of them tend to do.

The 2018 Bowman Draft looks pretty nice, also.  I just wish there was more to his signature than what is shown here.

Woods-Richardson (b. 2000) was a 2nd round pick by the Mets in the 2018 June Amateur Draft out of Kempner High School in Sugar Land, Texas.  He has pitched in the Mets and Blue Jays systems since 2018 (missing 2020).  He has reached AA ball so far.  He has a record of 9-14 with 219 strike outs and a 4.09 ERA.

I mailed to Woods-Richardson on January 19 and got the cards back on March 8, for a 48-day TAT.

Another TTM Success From Tyler Stephenson

Tyler Stephenson signed TTM for me last year, but I got some nice cards in afterward, so I sent to him again.  Both cards that I sent came out looking great.  I like the 1989 Topps design on this 2020 Topps insert.

I also got Stephenson on a 2020 Heritage Minors.

Stephenson has played in the majors since 2020, collecting 24 hits, 4 home runs and a .293 batting average.

I mailed to him on January 8 and got the cards back on January 29, for a 21-day TAT.  He even included a note.

Christmas Gift From Andrew - Sam Huff Autos

My stack of TTMs to be blogged has gotten so big, I took the stack down and put it in a box.  The stack was in danger of either falling over on its own, or being knocked over by a goofball cat who hasn't quite learned that my desk is not for him.  The huge stack also was kind of daunting.  Trying to pull from it and get blogs written has pushed back trades and gifts that I've gotten, just so I don't fall farther and farther behind on the TTM posts.  That's one of the drawbacks to sending out 1,001 ttms in 2020.  Thanks, pandemic!

Anyway, I do have a ton of trades and Christmas gifts to post, still, so I wanted to make sure one got posted, so I could put the cards away.  My awesome friend, Andrew, sent me these Sam Huff autos for Christmas.  They are really awesome cards, and I didn't have any of them in my collection.  The above 2020 Topps Heritage Minors auto/patch it a really amazing card.  It is numbered 3/25.

I hadn't seen any of Huff's Bowman Platinum autos, so this was a nice surprise.  This card isn't numbered.  I don't think I opened any Bowman Platinum in 2020.

The gift was delayed, according to Andrew.  He had the top two cards purchased and ready to mail, then he saw this 2019 Leaf Trinity numbered 1/10 Huff auto.  This card is awesome.  I'm really glad Andrew waited!

Thanks so much for the Christmas gifts, Andrew!  I hope you like what I sent you.  I may have forgotten to send you one thing I bought, so you'll be getting a Valentine's Day or Presidents Day gift soon.

Another TTM Success From Anothony Volpe

I wasn't planning on mailing to Anthony Volpe again, but when I pulled the above box topper out of 2020 Pro Debut, I wanted to get it signed.  It won't fit in my card album, so it will go into my signed post card album (yes, I have one of those, too).  The card looks awesome.

Volpe has a great signature, and it shows on all of the cards.  His 2020 Stars and Stripes looks much better than the scan shows.  I wanted to get some of the 2020 stuff signed in person, but I'll have to wait.

I mailed to Volpe on October 20 and got the cards back on November 3, for a 14-day TAT.