Another TTM Success From Ray Crone

This 1955 Topps Ray Crone card was in a box of rough vintage at the Chantilly show.  I searched the box for some nice vintage stuff to send TTM.  The card has the team scratched odd and "Giants" hand written on it in pencil.  Probably some kid keeping track of player movement at the time. 

I was glad to add another 55 to the autograph album. Crone signed it nicely in ballpoint pen, and it looks cool.

I mailed to Crone on October 24 and got the card back on November 7, for a 14-day TAT. 

2023 National - A Couple Random Auto Pickups

Navigating the National is often like looking for a needle in a haystack.  Especially when the show is so crowded, you can barely get to any tables.  Fast forward to the last day of the show, and I finally had time and access to a table with albums of signed cards by set.  There were maybe 3 different dealers at the show with this setup, and the other two had very slim pickings for 1987 Topps.  One of them has a very helpful checklist of signed cards by year; I buy from that guy all of the time, it seems.  This year, his list said he had a signed 1987 Topps Orel Hershiser.  When I asked about it "oh that sold already, I need.to cross that out." Darn.

Well, on Sunday, this table DID have an 87 Topps that I needed, the above Eric King.  So, it took all show, but I did knock an 87 Topps off of my list.

I looked through their other albums and found a couple other vintage Topps cards to add to the album, just for fun.  I missed an opportunity to send to Spook Jacobs before he passed away, so I was glad to find this one, and picked it up.  I also saw the 1956 Topps Enos Slaughter at a good price, and added it to the album, as well.

I probably could have added a lot more vintage cards to the album, but I had to meet up with someone prior to heading over to the autograph pavilion for the list signers at the show.  Still, I'm happy with what I got, and I'm one card closer on my 87 set.

TTM Success - Joey Jay

More vantage cards were added to my autograph album with this TTM success from Joey Jay.  The above 1955 Topps turned out really nicely.  I didn't have to raid my completed set to get the card, either.  I bought it knowing I was sending to Jay, and sent it along when the purchase came in. 

I also got this 1964 Topps signed.  The card came from the box of 64s that I got from Conrad.  I sent off a bunch of them, so there will be a wave of 64s coming back TTM for a while. 

Jay (b. 1935) played in the majors from 1953 (at the age of 17) to 1955 and 1957 to 1966 for the Braves and Reds.  He had a record of 99-91 with 999 strike outs and a 3.77 ERA.  He won 21 games twice in his career (1961 and 1962).  He finished 5th in the NL MVP race in 1961 and was an All Star twice that season.

I mailed to Jay on January 17 and got the cards back on January 26, for a 9-day TAT.  I paid his fee of $5/card.

TTM Success - Mel Roach

Another 1955 Topps came back signed recently; this one is from Mel Roach.  I had seen that he was signing, so I used a 1955 that I had, and it turned out ok.  Roach's pen seems to be drying up, but the card is still signed.

Roach (b. 1933) is days away from turning 90 years old.  He played in the majors from 1953 to 1954 and 1957 to 1962 for the Braves (Milwaukee), Cubs and Phillies.  He had 119 hits, 7 home runs and a .238 batting average.  He won the World Series with the Braves in 1957, although he didn't play in the series.

I mailed to Roach on November 2 and got the card back on December 5, for a 33-day TAT.

TTM Success - Joe Amalfitano

These two vintage cards that I sent Joe Amalfitano TTM really turned out nicely.  I always enjoy adding 1955 Bowman and 1955 Topps to the autograph album. 

Amalfitano (b. 1934) played in the majors from 1954 to 1955 and 1960 to 1967 for the New York and San Francisco Giants, as well as the Colt .45s and Cubs.  He had 418 hits, 9 home runs and a .244 batting average.  He won the World Series in 1954 with the Giants.

I mailed to Amalfitano on November 1 and got the cards back on December 1, for a 30-day TAT. 

TTM Success - Pete Daley

A couple more vintage cards came in signed TTM recently with this success from Pete Daley.  I was glad to add another 1955 Topps to the autograph album.  This may be a sentimental favorite set of mine, since it was the first true vintage set that I put together.  I've got a lot of fond memories of building it, and adding a couple signed versions to the autograph collection helps.

I also sent off this 1958 Topps for Daley to sign, and it also turned out nicely.  I enjoy the 58 set, as well, since it has the bold colors.  I plan to build the 1958 set sometime in the future, but it probably will be a few years down the road.

Daley (b. 1930) played in the majors from 1955 to 1961 for the Red Sox, A's (Kansas City) and Senators.  He had 259 hits, 18 home runs and a .239 batting average.

I mailed to Daley on November 2 and got the cards back on November 26, for a 24-da TAT.

TTM Success - Art Swanson

This 1956 Topps that I got signed ttm by Art "Red" Swanson recently turned out nicely.  I had seen that he signed TTM, so I picked the card up and sent it along.  It got back fairly quickly, and I was happy with the signature.

Swanson (b. 1936) played in the majors from 1955 to 1957 for the Pirates.  He had a record of  3-3 with 34 strike outs and a 4.90 ERA.

I mailed to Swanson on October 31 and got the card back on November 8, for an 8-day TAT. 

TTM Success - Camilo Pasqual

My TTM stack is building back up again, thanks in part to my raiding of my vintage box to add some older cards to my album.  This also has caused me to raid my 1955 set, in order to add a couple more of those guys to my album.  Camilo Pasqual was someone I was surprised that I hadn't sent to TTM in the past.  I'm glad I did, this time around.  He signed my 1955 Topps that I pulled from my set (and upgraded with a less off-centered version).

I also got these two; a 1962 Topps and a 1963 Topps 1962 AL Strikeout Leaders card.  The 1963 was pre-marked before I even had the card, so it would have been something I would have upgraded anyway if I ever went to build that set.

I was surprised that Pasqual added the above 1955 Topps that he inscribed to the package.  That was a really nice gesture, and I will gladly add it to the album.

Pasqual (b. 1934) played in the majors from 1954 to 1971 for the Senators, Twins, Reds, Dodgers and Indians.  He had a record of 174-170 with 2,167 strike outs and a 3.63 ERA.  He was a 7-time All Star (1959 to 1962 and 1964; with two selections in 1960 and 1962).  He won 20 of more games twice (1962 - 20; 1963 - 21).  His best finish in the MVP voting was 12th (1963; AL).He appeared on the Hall of Fame ballot in 1977 and 1978, but only received a high of 0.8% (1977).

I mailed to Pasqual on October 17 and got the cards back on October 25, for an 8-day TAT.  I paid his fee of $10/card and got one card from him for free.

Another TTM Success From Don Ferrarese

I had gotten Don Ferrarese TTM back in 2017 on a 1956 Topps.  I wanted to get him again, this time on my 1991 Crown Orioles, as well as a couple other cards that I had.  I actually raided my 1955 Topps completed set to get his card to send.  I was a bit disappointed that the signature was smudged a bit, but it is still signed.  I was even more disappointed when I went to put it in my album and realized that I had run out of 8-card pages that fit these vintage cards.  I need to get some more.  I actually upgraded this card in my set once I mailed this one off; I found a better-condition one on Ebay the same day I mailed this off.

I got the 1991 Crown signed, and it turned out well.  The end of his signature got a little smeared, as well, though.

Finally, the best card of the bunch turned out to be this 1957 Topps that I had in a random box of vintage cards.

I mailed to Ferrarese on October 28 and got the cards back on November 9, for a 12-day TAT.

TTM Success - Ted Kazanski

When I looked for older players who signed TTM, I saw that Ted Kazanski signed, and that he had some nice cards in 1954 and 1955 Topps.  I went ahead and bought the 54 and 55 to add to my album (and also a 1957 Topps).  I didn't pay a whole lot, which was great.  I feel like the 1954 Topps (above) came out the best of the three cards.

They all turned out really well, though.  Adding more 1955 Topps to my album was my ultimate goal, and I was really glad to add this one.

This 1957 Topps also looks really nice.

Kazanski (b. 1934) played in the majors from 1953 to 1958 for the Phillies.  He had 288 hits, 14 home runs and a .217 batting average.

I mailed to Kazanski on March 5 and got the cards back on March 28, for a 23-day TAT.

TTM SUccess - Jim Bolger

I added a couple more 50s cards to my autograph album with this success from Jim Bolger.  I wanted another 1955 Topps represented, so I picked this one up.  It turned out nicely with Bolger's signature.

I also liked this 1959 Topps, and thought the green card would pop pretty well in the album.  I'm really glad that I completed both of these sets, and am now adding some of them to the autograph album.

Bolger (b. 1932) played in the majors from 1950 to 1951, 1954 to 1955 and 1957 to 1959 for the Reds, Cubs, Indians and Phillies.  He had 140 hits, 6 home runs and a .229 batting average.

I mailed to Bolger on March 5 and got the cards back on March 21, for a 16-day TAT.

Another TTM Success From Wally Westlake

I'm back from my 2019 graphing road trip, and left a bunch of stuff unposted due to how hectic our schedule was.  I need to get caught up yet again, but I think I have a plan.

Anyway, I had gotten some vintage Topps back from Wally Westlake a while back, since I had been wanting to add to some of those years on my ledger before these guys pass on.  Westlake is 98 years old (99 in November) and is still signing nicely.

I added to 1952 and 1955 Topps, and both cards turned out great.  I had picked them up on Ebay and sent them out immediately when they came in.

Westlake also sent some signed photos, which turned out really well.  I added those to my signed postcard album.

I mailed to Westlake on March 5 and got the cards back on March 19, for a 14-day TAT.

Another TTM Success From Bob Skinner

I was drawn to send another TTM request to Bob Skinner since I got this Father/Son 1985 Topps signed by Joel Skinner.  I have wanted to get one of these completed for quite a while, and finally was able to get one done.  I also have the Schofield one pending.

I also added this 1955 Topps to the request, since you can never have enough of these signed.  There is a limited number of cards in the 1955 set, and an even smaller number of players still alive who sign.  I actually raided my 1955 set so I could get these in the mail, and replaced the card with an upgrade off of EBay.

I originally received a return from Skinner, on a ball, back in May 2012.

I mailed to Skinner on June 4 and got the cards back on June 14, for a 10-day TAT.

A TTM Success From Billy O'Dell and a Trade

I had already gotten Billy O'Dell via TTM a while back on a ball.  It was actually in 2012 while I was away at the National.  You can read that post and his stats here.

My purpose of sending to O'Dell a second time was because he is the only Oriole left in the 1955 Topps set that still signs TTM.  So, since I wanted to make sure I had an Oriole from each Topps set, I sent out a 1955 Topps for him to sign.

When I got my return, there were these two really nice signed post cards, but no 1955 Topps anywhere in the envelope.

I'm not sure what happened with the card, but I was happy to get something back.  The post cards are really nice.  When I posted them on my Instagram, a fellow Orioles collector commented that he had an extra 1955 Topps signed by O'Dell and was wondering if I could trade him something in return.

So, we worked out a deal that had me send him an Anthony Santander signed post card from Fan Fest and he would send me the O'Dell signed '55.  In the end, we are both happy and we both got what we wanted.

I sent to O'Dell on February 10, and got the post cards back on March 9, for a 27-day TAT.

TTM Success - Alex Grammas

Here are some nice vintage cards that I was able to get signed by Alex Grammas recently.  This is a 1955 Topps that he signed very shakily beneath the faux autograph.  I believe I picked these cards up from the Raleigh card show in February, but I honestly don't remember.

I think I started with the below 1955 Bowman, checked to see that Grammas signed TTM, then picked up the 1955 and the above 1956 so I could add a few more tick marks to the Topps Autograph Project.

I've been wanting to add more 1955 Bowman (and other Bowman cards for that matter) to the autograph album, so this will be a nice addition, even though Mr. Grammas's signature has seen better days.

Grammas (b. 1926) played in the majors from 1954 to 1963 for the Cardinals, Reds and Cubs.  He had 512 hits, 12 home runs and a .247 batting average.  He was involved in three different transactions between the Reds and Cardinals in a span of almost 5 years.

Grammas went on to manage in the majors in 1969 for the Pirates, and 1976 and 77 with the Brewers.  His managerial record was 137-191 (.418 win %).

I mailed to Grammas on February 13 and got the cards back on February 21, for an 8-day TAT.

TTM Success - Gene Conley

I got a few more 1950s-era cards signed TTM recently when I received these from Gene Conley.  This beat up 1953 Topps turned out really nice.  He charges a fee of $5 per card, which was ok.

This 1955 Topps card also looks really nice.  I am surprised at how many of these 1950s cards I was able to get done after my April visit to the Columbia antique shop.

Conley (b. 1930) played in the majors from 1952 and 1954 to 1963 for the Boston and Milwaukee Braves, Phillies and Red Sox.  He had a career record of 91-96 with an ERA of 3.82 and 888 strike outs.  He won the World Series in 1957 with the Braves.  He was an All Star three times, finished 3rd in the 1954 NL MVP voting and finished as high as 22nd in the NL MVP voting.

I mailed to Conley on May 2 and got the cards back on May 14, for a 12-day TAT.

TTM Success - J. W. Porter

I got a really awesome TTM success from J. W. Porter recently that came with a really nice full page letter.  I got this 1955 Topps from the Columbia antique shop back in April, along with the 1959 below.  The '55 is beat up, but it still looks cool signed.

Porter's letter was really awesome.  I'll try my best to decipher his handwriting:

Dear Wm.
Thanks for your nice letter.  I will try my best to answer your questions as best I can and throw in 2 extra cards as well.

I live 5 miles from the stadium where the Cards and Marlins share their training camp and until my legs went bad and couldn't work, I worked there.  That was from 1998 until 2012.  I'm still there 3 or 4 times a week as a fan since both sponsor class A teams.  They and the Tigers are my favorite teams.

My favorite players are Miguel Cabrera and Giancarlo Stanton, probably because I saw them up close and personal on their way up and 6 weeks every spring training.  My favorite pitcher is Jose Fernandez.  I expect all 3 to make the Hall of Fame.

I grew up in Garland when I was in AAA ball, there was no TV of Major League games, so Coast Leagues were my favorites including 2 who shoes I shined as their club house boy and later roomed with with them in the Majors.  They were Gene Bearden and Ferris Fain.

Hard to answer about which pitcher I would have wanted to catch the most as I did catch Satchel Paige, Jim Bunning, Billy Pierce, Lew Burdette and Warren Spahn.  Cy Young at his best I guess would be high on the list!  I caught Bob Gibson, too.

Thank you for the nice letter and God bless.

JW.

Here are the two cards that Porter threw in.  I thought that was a really nice gesture!

Porter (b. 1933) played in the majors from 1952 and 1955 to 1959 (missing 53 and 54 for military service) for the Browns, Tigers, Indians, Senators and Cardinals.  He had 124 hits, 8 home runs and a .224 batting average.

He, along with Owen Friend and Bob Nieman, were traded by the Browns to the Tigers in 1952 for Virgil Trucks, Johnny Groth and Hal White.

I mailed to Mr. Porter on April 18 and got the cards back on May 9, for a 21-day TAT.

TTM Success - Bob Oldis

Some of the best cards to get signed are 1954 Topps, in my opinion.  The above Bob Oldis turned out really great.  I bought it because of the color, and I liked the glove shown on the card.  I have a decent collection of older gloves that my mom has picked up for me, and I always accept others.  I just like how they look.  Oldis's signature is quite modest, but fits nicely on the card.  It doesn't take away anything else from the card and will look really good in my album.

I also had to get this 1955 Topps because it featured Oldis in full catcher's gear (at least, it's supposed to be him, or an artist's rendering).  I like the "old school" gear and also the old Washington Senators logo and hat.

Oldis (b.1928) played in the majors from 1953 to 1955 and 1960 to 1963 for the Senators, Pirates and Phillies.  He had 56 hits, 1 home run and .237 batting average.  Oldis appeared in two games during the 1960 World Series, but didn't register a plate appearance.  No matter, the Pirates won that Series and Mr. Oldis has a ring to show for it.

I mailed to him on April 18 and got the cards back on April 30 for a 12-day TAT.

TTM Success - Wally Moon (Second Success)

My Topps Autograph Project is really coming along nicely.  I have been working on racking up certain years of Topps, while also making sure that I have good representatives of each year.  I have gotten quite a few early 50s cards already.  Surprisingly, though, I have only gotten one 1955 Topps so far.  I got this Wally Moon autograph TTM on March 29 after paying his fee of $6.00 for a card.  I included an additional $4 for two inscriptions ($2 each).  He inscribed it with the 1954 NL ROY and 3x All Star inscriptions.

Moon (b. 1930) played in the majors from 1954 to 1965 for the Cardinals and Dodgers.  He had 1,399 hits, 142 home runs and a .289 lifetime batting average.  Like the inscriptions say, he was the 1954 NL Rookie of the Year and a 3-time All Star.  He won the World Series in 1959 and 1965 with the Dodgers and was also on the 1963 World Series Champion Dodgers, but did not make the playoff roster.

I mailed to Moon on March 18 and got the card back 11 days later.

The Foulbunt Top Ten - No. 3

I've covered rookie cards, amazing vintage and set building in the previous Top Ten posts.  There was no card I was more excited to receive that the next one on the list.  I was working really hard on building a major vintage set at that time, but I had told myself that I wouldn't ever be able to afford the key rookie card, so my set would likely be incomplete.

It took a cursory look on Ebay one afternoon at the card shop, some nudging from my friend, and I put a bid in.  Little did I know at the time that the card would be one of the crown jewels of my collection.  Card No. 3 in my top ten is:

My 1955 Topps Roberto Clemente rookie card.  I placed the bid on the computer at the card shop, but the auction was ending about 30 minutes after closing time.  I raced to my parents' house and begged my mom to let me use her computer so I could watch the end of the auction (since I was still winning).  She let me, but said "If your dad comes in, he's going to want to get on the computer and you'll have to get off."  I took my chances and signed into Ebay.  With about a minute to go, my dad walked in, wondering why I was on his computer.  I told him I was winning an auction and really wanted to make sure I won.  He walked over and saw it was for a baseball card; then he saw the price.  I figured he would tell me how silly it was that I was bidding so high for a piece of cardboard.  What he said next really surprised me, though.  He chuckled and said "I guess we all have our things, don't we?  You should see what I paid for the engine I just bought..."

He walked away, saying he would be back in about five minutes, to which I told him that would be fine.  I ended up winning the auction for this card for about $150.  That was a complete steal, since the book value on the card is exponentially higher.

It isn't mint, but it looks great.  The card now resided with my 1955 Topps set, which I was able to finish about a year and a half later.  I still think it is really cool that my dad got to see me get it, and he understood the importance of my collection to me.  I'll always remember that about this card.  I have met a lot of collectors over the years who's parents either didn't understand or support their hobbies.  I am lucky to say that both of my parents not only understand, but they support it and they each have their own hobbies as well (Dad actually collects a great number of things, from fishing reels to trains to Johnny West figures and more).  This card reminds me just how lucky I am.