TTM Success - Kendal Volz

Another 2010 Topps Pro Debut came out of my box and got signed TTM recently, when I got this one back from Kendal Volz.  He signed it in super thin black pen, but it looks cool anyway.

Volz (b. 1987) was a 9th round pick by the Red Sox in the 2009 June Amateur Draft out of Baylor University.  He played 3 seasons in the minors in the Red Sox and Royals systems, reaching AA.  He had a career record of 12-9 with 180 strike outs and a 3.43 ERA.

I mailed to Volz on January 23 and got the card back on February 25, for a 33-day TAT.

TTM Success - Clyde Wright

Some older Topps cards came back signed via TTM from Clyde Wright recently.  I got a 1976 Topps signed (above) which turned out nicely.

The 1972 and 1973 Topps turned out great, also.  I'm glad to get some of these out of my box and into my autograph album.

Wright (b. 1941) played in the majors from 1966 to 1975 for the Angels, Brewers and Rangers.  He had a career record of 100-111 with 667 strike outs and a 3.50 ERA.  He was a 20-game winner in 1970, when he went 22-12.  He finished 6th in the AL Cy Young race and 21st in the AL MVP race that season.  He was also an All Star that year.  He was also a 20-game loser in 1974, when he went 9-20 for the Brewers.

I mailed to Wright on December 3 and got the cards back on February 25, for an 84-day TAT.

TTM Success - Stuart Fairchild

Some really nice prospect cards came back signed TTM from Stuart Fairchild.  This 2017 Bowman Chrome sky blue refractor turned out great.  It is numbered 62/399.

I also got a 2017 Bowman, 2018 Heritage Minors and a 2018 Pro Debut signed.  All of them look great.

Fairchild (b. 1996) was a 2nd round pick in the 2017 June Amateur Draft out of Wake Forest University.  He has played in the minors in the Reds and Diamondbacks systems since 2017.  He has reached AAA.  He has 298 hits, 25 home runs and a .271 batting average.

I mailed to Fairchild on October 15 and got the cards back on February 24, for a 132-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 - Michael Toglia

Here are some nice prospect cards I got back from Michael Toglia.  The above 2019 Panini Prizm turned out great.  I didn't have a lot of them, so it was nice to add this one to the autograph album.

I also got a 2019 Bowman Draft and a 2020 Bowman Draft signed, and I like how they turned out.

Toglia (b. 1998) was a first round (23rd overall) pick by the Rockies in the 2019 June Amateur Draft out of UCLA.  He has played two seasons in the Rockies system, reaching High A.  He has 71 hits, 19 home runs and a .236 batting average.

I mailed to Toglia on January 27 and got the cards back on February 24, for a 28-day TAT.

TTM Success - Trent Palmer

This 2020 Bowman Draft Chrome purple refractor was the reason I looked Blue Jays prospect Trent Palmer up to see if he signed TTM.  He does sign TTM, so I sent the card off with a base one to get them signed.

Both of the cards came back looking great.  I was super happy to get them back, and I couldn't be happier.

Palmer (b. 1999) was a 3rd round draft pick by the Blue Jays in the 2020 June Amateur Draft out of Jacksonville University.  He has pitched at Low A Dunedin this season and is 0-1 with 14 strike outs and a 5.79 ERA.

I mailed to Palmer on January 6 and got the cards back on February 23, for a 48-day TAT.

Another TTM Success From Raisel Iglesias

A TTM Success with cards I sent out, as well as one that Gerard had sent as a mystery TTM both came back from Raisel Iglesias, recently.  I sent this nice 2020 Topps Fire blue foil that I wanted to send out, as well as the 2015 Bowman Ice parallel below.

My friend, Gerard, sent out a 2021 Topps Heritage and a 2021 Topps.  Both look great.

I believe both of these TTM requests were sent to Spring Training.  Not a whole lot of stuff came back from Spring Training this season, so getting these back was very welcome.  I'm glad Gerard sent the two he sent, as well.

I mailed my cards to Iglesias on February 9, via Angels Spring Training and got the cards back on February 23, for a 14-day TAT.

TTM Success - Colby Ward

A couple 90s Junk Wax Era cards came back signed TTM with this success from Colby Ward.  I really liked this 1991 Donruss.  I don't have nearly as may as I used to, but I like sending the ones I have off and having them come back signed.

I also got this 1991 Topps back, and it turned out well.  I always enjoy 1991 Topps; it is an underrated set and I love getting them signed.

Ward (b. 1964) played in the majors in 1990 for the Indians.  He had a record of 1-3 with 23 strike outs and a 4.25 ERA.

I mailed to Ward on December 1 and got the cards back on February 23, for an 84-day TAT.

June 15-17, 2021 Graphing of Cannonballers at Wood Ducks

This past week's graphing was between the Kannapolis Cannonballers and Down East Wood Ducks.  I had bought a couple lots of Perfect Game cards of Cody Freeman and Jayce Easley.  Freeman has been super nice when we have gone to the games.  He has walked up to us a few times and talked to us before games.  The Perfect Game cards look really nice when signed.

Easley has a really nice signature, and his cards look great.  I also bought a green parallel 2020 Bowman Draft of Thomas Saggese, which turned out really well.  The card is numbered 20/99 and didn't cost me a whole lot.

The Jared Kelley cards I got signed turned out really well.  He wasn't on the roster, but was traveling with the team.  I was able to get everything I had signed, and was really happy about it.

I took some 50/50s and these two Panini Prizms were part of my take.  They both turned out great.

I really like these 2019 Bowman Chrome Franchise Futures signed by Matthew Thompson really looks great.  I love these cards, and wish I could complete this one.  I'm hoping I can get someone who will get me Andrew Vaughn cheaply so I can get it done.

I got every Matthew Thompson I had signed, and mixed in a couple other guys who limited.  James Beard was one per, while Lency Delgado was 2 per.

I had gotten John Ely before, but these 2007 Bowmans came out of my card shop boxes.  I also got all of the Andrew Dalquist cards that I had signed.

I even got a Patrick Leyland card that was in my 2019 Delmarva set signed.  I just happened to remember that he was in that set.  He is now a coach for Kannapolis, and was really nice.

Finally, my buddy Dugan let me know that Keyvius Sampson was with Kannapolis on a rehab assignment.  I was able to find a bunch of his cards really quickly, which was nice.  They turned out great.  Sampson was really cool, and signed everything I had.  I was glad to get these cards out of my boxes.

It was tough, since Chris was out of town, but I got some help from Dugan and my buddy Tyler.  I ended up with:

James Beard x 7, Andrew Dalquist x 7, Lency Delgado x 8, Pat Leyland x 1, Bailey Horn x 8, Keyvius Sampson x 10, John Ely x 4, Jared Kelly x 13, Matthew Thompson x 28, Cody Freeman x 10, Leury Tejada x 4, Thomas Saggese x 10, TK Roby x 10, Antonio Cabello x 10, Jayce Easley x 4 and Evan Carter x 1, or 135 autographs total.  Not bad for having limited help and missing 3 games of the series.

TTM Success - Zach McCambley

Another 2020 Bowman Draft came in signed TTM when I got this success from Zach McCambley.  The card looks pretty nice, even though his signature is just a big loopy thing.

McCambley (b. 1999) was a 3rd round pick by the Marlins in the 2020 June Amateur Draft out of Coastal Carolina University.  He has pitched at High A this season.  He is 2-2 with 58 strike outs and a 3.07 ERA.

I mailed to McCambley on January 15 and got the card back on February 22, for a 38-day TAT.

TTM Success - Casey Haerther

The boxes I got from my former LCS when it closed had a whole bunch of Pro Debut cards from 2010 and 2012. So, periodically, I have taken some cards from those years and sent them off TTM.  I got a few back recently, and this one from Casey Haerther was one of them.

Haerther (b. 1987) was a 5th round pick by the Angels in the 2009 June Amateur Draft out of UCLA. He played in the minors from 2009 to 2012, all in the Angels system. He had 465 hits, 26 home runs and a .298 batting average. He reached AA in 2012, then moved on to the independent league from 2013 to 2015.

I mailed to Haerther on January 21 and got the card back on February 22, for a 32-day TAT.

TTM Success - Alex Blandino

When I pulled this card out of a pack of 2014 Bowman, I knew I wanted to get it signed.  I held onto it for a long time, until I saw that Alex Blandino was signing.  I sent it along, and it came back signed in red Sharpie.  The card was damaged a bit in the mail, which sucks, but the card is now signed and in my album.

Blandino (b. 1992) has played in the majors for the Reds in 2018, 2019 and 2021.  He has 53 hits, 2 home runs and a .226 batting average.  He was a first round (29th overall) pick in the 2014 June Amateur Draft by the reds out of Stanford University.

I mailed to Blandino on October 1 and got the card back on February 20, for a 142-day TAT.

TTM Success - Duane Ward

Another 1987 Topps was scratched off of my list when I got this one back from a private signing with Duane Ward.

Ward (b. 1964) played in the majors from 1986 to 1993 and 1995 for the Blue Jays.  He had a career record of 32-37 with 679 strike outs and a 3.28 ERA.  He was an All Star in 1993 when he saved 45 games for the Blue Jays.  His best Cy Young (5th) and MVP (22nd) came that season.  He won the World Series with the Blue Jays in 1992 and 1993.

I mailed to the signing on January 4 and got the card back on February 20, for a 47-day TAT.  I paid a fee of $10.00.

TTM Success - Taylor Walls

When I can get a 2013 Perfect Game card signed, I get pretty happy.  I bought a couple boxes of 2013 Perfect Game at the National a few years ago, and still have a bunch of base cards left over.  I have been able to get a few of them signed, and when I saw that Taylor Walls was signing TTM, I sent this one, and a few other cards out to him.  He doesn't have much of a signature, but hey, they're signed.

I also got a 2019 Stars & Stripes, 2020 Stars & Stripes, 2017 Bowman and 2018 Pro Debut signed by Walls.

Walls (b. 1996) made his major league debut this season for the Rays.  He was a 3rd round pick by the Rays out of Florida State in the 2017 June Amateur Draft.  So far, he has 16 hits, 1 home run and a .246 batting average.

I mailed to Walls on January 2 and got the cards back on February 19, for a 48-day TAT.

TTM Success - Jeff Hardy

Chris got another TTM success from a wrestler recently, and gave the duplicate to me.  This one is signed by former WWE Champion, Jeff Hardy.  It even came back with a note on the envelope that said "Please do not mail to my house anymore..."  Oops.  Sorry, Jeff.

Hardy (b. 1977) has wrestled since 1994, and made his WWE debut in 1998.  Prior to that, Hady and his brother, Matt, had started their own wrestling organization, Trampoline Wrestling Federation, and wrestled all over North Carolina.

He is a 2-time WWE World Heavyweight Champion, a WWE Champion, 5-time Intercontinental Champion, and 8-time Tag Team Champion in WWE (once Smackdown Tag Champ, once RAW Tag Champ and 6-times WWE Tag Champ; all with his brother, Matt).

Thanks, Chris, for giving me the duplicate card that you got signed.

TTM Success - Teddy Long

Chris sent off some TTMs recently, and one of the ones that he got back was former WWE personality, Teddy Long.  He sent to of the same card, and gave one of the duplicates to me, which was really nice.

Long (b. 1947) was a referee, manager and executive in numerous wrestling organizations since 1985.  He got his start in Jim Crockett Promotions and would then go on to work for WCW and WWE until his retirement.  He still appears sporadically on WWE programming and was inducted into their Hall of Fame in 2017.

June 12 Graphing of Drive at Dash

What started off as a decent graphing experience at the Winston-Salem Dash went a bit downhill as my cousin, Alejandro, and I were shut down inside and outside by Dash personnel.  They cited MLB's COVID protocols as the reason why NO ONE could sign autographs.  I found this to be ridiculous, as three people I spoke to got autographs there earlier in the week with no problems.  Regardless, Ale and I were able to get a few autographs before being shut down, so that was a plus.  It was also nice to get Ale, who is 12 (and pronounced Al-E, or Allie), accustomed to graphing.  He showed some interest in going to the game with me, so, Chris hung back and spent some time with my brother, while I took Ale on our first excursion together.  Chris missed out, though, because one of his favorite former Wood Ducks was playing for the Drive, and asked where Chris was.

Tyreque Reed would always fist bump Chris as he came onto the field at Grainger Stadium, until he got injured.  He must have been picked up by the Red Sox organization, so I was able to get our team set cards signed.

Ale and I got Kole Cottam easily, with no issues.  It was when Cole Brannen was signing for us that a Dash employee informed us that Brannen couldn't sign.  It was news to Brannen, so he told the guy "I'll stop after this one..."  So, it was disappointing, to say the least.  Still, Ale and I had a good time together, and my sister and her husband also showed up in the first inning, so we turned it into a little family time.  Ale got a hat, which he loved.  We tried to graph outside after the game, but were shut down again by a different dash employee.  We complied, but Ale was a bit disappointed there, too, as was I.  He, now, wants to come out here to visit, where I can show him how things are really done, in Kinston.

TTM Success - Nick Loftin

Here are a few really nice cards that I was able to get signed TTM by Nick Loftin. The above card is another 2020 Donruss American Pride. I really enjoy getting these signed.

I also got a 2020 Stars and Stripes and a 2020 Bowman Draft signed. 

Loftin (b. 1998) was a first round (32nd overall) draft pick by the Royals in the 2020 June Amateur Draft out of Baylor University. He has played this season at High A Quad Cities. He has 23 hits, 4 home runs and a .221 batting average.

I mailed to Loftin on January 19 and got the cards back on February 17, for a 29-day TAT.

TTM Success - Danny Espinosa

Some really nice cards came back signed TTM from Danny Espinosa a few months ago.  The above 2013 Topps Opening Day foil really looks great.  I couldn't believe that I found the card when I needed it, but I did.

The 2015 Topps I sent Espinosa also turned out well.

Espinosa (b. 1987) played in the majors from 2010 to 2017 for the Nationals, Angels, Mariners and Rays.  He had 644 hits, 98 home runs and a .221 batting average.  He finished 6th in the 201 NL Rookie of the Year voting.

I mailed to Espinosa on August 27 and got the cards back on February 16, for a 173-day TAT.

TTM Success - Gordon Beckham

This TTM success from Gordon Beckham was a pleasant surprise.  He had been signing, but that doesn't always mean I will have success.  So, I gave it a shot, and got 4 cards back signed.  I really like the 2012 Topps above; nothing wrong with a nice action shot on a landscape oriented card.

I also was able to get a 2010 Topps Chrome out of my box, which is always nice, especially since the curved cards take up the space of around 3 or 4 cards.  I also added a 2010 Topps and a 2015 Topps.

Beckham (b. 1986) played in the majors from 2009 to 2019 for the White Sox, Angels, Braves, Giants, Mariners and Tigers.  He had 807 hits, 80 home runs and a .237 batting average.  He finished 5th in the 2009 AL Rookie of the Year voting.

I mailed to Beckham on December 22 and got the cards back on February 16, for a 56-day TAT.

TTM Success - Reid Detmers

Here is another prospect that I was able to get to sign TTM earlier this year.  I had quite a few Reid Detmers cards, so, it was nice to be able to get some signed.  Especially a 2020 Panini Stars and Stripes (above).

I also got a 2020 Bowman and a 2020 Bowman Chrome done.  I have a lot more of his cards, so maybe I will send to him again, or maybe I can find someone who will 50/50 for me.

Detmers (b. 1999) was a first round (10th overall) pick by the Angels in the 2020 June Amateur Draft out of  the University of Louisville.  He had played this season at AA Rocket City (yes, the Trash Pandas).  He has a record of 1-2 with 40 strike outs and a 3.60 ERA.

I mailed to Detmers on January 12 and got the cards back on February 16, for a 35-day TAT.

TTM Success - Jeff Criswell

Here are some cool prospect cards that I got back signed TTM from Jeff Criswell.  The above 2020 Panini American Pride turned out nicely.  The card looks even better in person.

Criswell also signed a 2020 Stars and Stripes and a 2020 Bowman.

Criswell (b. 1999) was a second round pick by the A's in the 2020 June Amateur Draft out of the University of Michigan.  He had appeared in one game this season so far for Oakland's High A team in Lansing.  He is 0-0 with 1 strike out and a 0.00 ERA.

I mailed to Criswell on January 19 and got the cards back on February 16, for a 28-day TAT.

TTM Success - Chris Roberson

This TTM success from Chris Roberson featured this really nice 2005 Topps Turkey Red red parallel (Turkey Reds are usually gray).  The card turned out great, and I was happy that I had one to send along, as I don't have many of them in my boxes at all.

I also got a 2005 Topps signed, and it looks nice, too.  I got rid of a ton of 05s, so adding one to my albums isn't as easy as it may have been had I kept them.

Roberson (b. 1979) played in the majors from 2006 to 2007 for the Phillies.  He had 16 hits, no home runs and a .232 batting average.

I mailed to Roberson on January 26 and got the cards back on February 16, for a 21-day TAT.

TTM Success - Scott Cousins

These two Scott Cousins cards came back looking really nice when I sent them TTM to him a few months ago.  This 2007 Donruss Elite Extra Edition turned out really well.  I like these cards, and have been able to get a few signed.

I opened very little 2011 Topps Chrome, and still only have just a few cards from that set.  This one came out of the ton of card boxes that I got from my LCS when it closed.  The card turned out great, and I am glad I was able to find it before I sent.

Cousins (b. 1985) played in the majors from 2010 to 2013 for the Marlins and Angels.  He had 32 hits, 2 home runs and a .179 batting average.

I mailed to Cousins on January 28 and got the cards back on February 16, for a 19-day TAT.

Signed Aramis Ramirez Cards From Max

My good friend, Max, helped with a private signing with Aramis Ramirez where I sent him a ton of cards.  Max sent me a few back signed, and they all look great.  The above 1998 Topps New Breed was the one that I really wanted back, and it looks amazing.  I vaguely remembered I had it, and was so glad to find it when Max asked for Ramirez.  That made the whole thing worthwhile.  I am so glad he asked me for the help with the signing.

I really enjoy when Max asks me to look for certain players.  I am able to clear out some room in my boxes and help him with his signings.  Sometimes, I throw some money his way, as well, in order to see some of the cards come back signed and add them to my albums.  Ramirez isn't someone I'd come in contact with, so I definitely wanted to get a few cards back.

Ramirez (b. 1978) played in the majors from 1998 to 2015 for the Pirates, Cubs and Brewers.  He had 2,303 hits, 386 home runs and a .283 batting average.  He was an All Star 3 times (2005, 2008 and 2013).  He won the Silver Slugger Award in 2011.  His best finish in the MVP race was 9th (NL) in 2012.

Thanks for the signed cards and the huge box of other stuff you sent my way, Max!