2024 National Free Signer - Cory Snyder

Cory Snyder was a free signer at the 2019 National.  He is yet another guy who was brought back this year for another shot at signing.  I had a few more cards of his, including this 1988 Donruss Baseball's Best.  This was an easy choice to get signed.

I also had this 2003 Topps All Time Fan Favorites that came out of a box from the former LCS.

Snyder was cool again this year.  I had some cards remaining after the show, so I'll have to put them somewhere in case he shows up at another National.

Another TTM Success From Jim Gott

This TTM success from Jim Gott was another one of those TTM efforts to thin out a player's cards from my boxes.  I had been gathering Gott's cards again for some time and finally pulled the trigger on getting them in the mail.  The above 1988 Donruss Baseball's Best was the card that pushed me to send to Gott again. These are really nice cards; those orange and black borders New great.

I also got a 1994 Fleer Ultra, 1994 Donruss, 1993 Fleer and 1993 Score signed by Gott.  It's funny how similar the Fleer and Score cards are.

I mailed to Gott on January 8 and got the cards back on February 6, for a 29-day TAT. 

Another TTM Success From Terry Kennedy

When I sent to Terry Kennedy again, I picked a lot of parallels and oddballs.  The above 1988 Topps Glossy All Stars turned out great.  These are cool cards and look great when signef.

I also got a 1987 O Pee Chee, 1988 Donruss Baseball's Best, 1990 Donruss Baseball's Vest and a 1989 Score. All of the cards turned out great. 

I mailed to Kennedy on January 9 and got the cards back on January 30, for a 21-day TAT. 

2023 National Free Signer - Jim Gantner

Jim Gantner was the next free signer at the National.  I had gotten him a while back on my 1987 Topps, so I had to dig out some other stuff for the show.  I got the above 1989 Topps Big signed, and it turned out really well.

I also got a 1988 Donruss Baseballs Best (these look so cool with the orange border), a 1988 Topps and a 1990 Topps signed.

Gantner has a really nice signature.  I kind of wish I had brought an 87, just to upgrade it with the thinner marker he was using.

Another TTM Success From Jim Clancy

There were a bunch of Jim Clancy cards that I had found recently while searching boxes, so I thought it would be a good time to send some more cards out to him for signatures.  The above 1989 Bowman turned out nicely.  This set looks good, but the larger size of the card makes it hard to store with other standard sized cards.  So, I have a bunch of 1989 Bowman that are pretty beat up.  This one is fine, though, and will fit into the 8-card album page that I have for vintage TTM successes.

I also got these four Clancy cards signed: 1989 Topps, 985 Fleer, 1988 Donruss Baseballs Best and 1987 Donruss Highlights.  I like adding some of these oddball sets to the autograph album.

I mailed to Clancy on November 3 and got the cards back on November 21, for an 18-day TAT.

2021 National Free Signer - Frank White

Frank White was another of the free signers at the National this year who I had added to my 1987 Topps set via a private signing.  I did have several of his cards, so I picked a few nice ones to match the number of vouchers that I had, and added them to my autograph album.  The above 1990 Topps is a nice card; I have always liked this design.

White also signed a 1986 Topps and a 1988 Donruss Baseballs Best.  Those cards really look nice, and I have a bunch, still, that I can use for future signings, if the need arises.

I am getting close to wrapping up my recaps of the 2021 National; just two more free signers to go.  Then, I'll be back on the TTM recap train, as this has put me even farther behind than I was before.  It's a happy problem to have, though.  I won't run out of stuff to talk about for quite a while.

2021 National Free Signer - Darrell Evans

Darrell Evans played for a long time, and has a ton of cards.  I brought every card I could find with me to the National, hoping I could get a few of them signed.  After some wheeling and dealing, and the acceptance of Wild Cards through his line, I got every single Evans card I brought signed.

I had someone I chatted with in line who used a ton of Wild Cards, in conjunction with what I had left over; he kept only 3 or 4 of my cards and gave the rest back to me.  I think he was just happy the Wild Cards didn't go to waste.

I was disappointed that I couldn't find my 1981 Topps of Evans (or a 1980); I think those had gone out on an unsuccessful TTM request.  I did finish the two 1972 Topps, a 1978, 1983, 1984 and 1986 (along with the other Donruss, Upper Deck and Fleer cards that I found).

I had even found the mini 1986 and 1988 Topps Leaders cards (one of which was floating around on my desk for who knows how long).

Evans was super nice, and very accommodating, especially since I had found so many of his vouchers in my travels at the show.  I was so glad I was able to get all of these cards signed and not have to put them back in my boxes.  I just hope I don't have to dig for his cards any time soon.

Evans (b. 1947) played in the majors from 1969 to 1989 for the Braves, Giants and Tigers.  He had 2,223 hits, 414 home runs and a .248 batting average.  He was the AL home run leader in 1985 with 40 home runs; he had also hit 41 in 1973.  His best MVP finish was 12th (1987; AL) and was an All Star in 1973.  He won the World Series with the Tigers in 1984.  He appeared on the Hall of Fame ballot in 1995, but only received 1.7% of the vote.

2021 National Free Signer - Wally Joyner

Wally Joyner's 1987 Topps card was already taken care of via a private signing, but that didn't keep me from going through his line a couple times in order to get a few other cards signed when he was at the VIP party for the National on Wednesday.  I had his 1986 Topps Traded, which will look great in my album.

I also had this really cool 1988 Donruss Baseballs Best in one of the boxes from the old card shop that I got signed.  It appears that Jack Howell is on the card with him, so if I want to complete that one, I need to see what Howell is up to these days.

I have a ton of these mini Topps Leaders cards sitting on the corner of my desk, so I was really glad to get this one (and a couple others) signed this past week.

Finally, I got Joyner's 1993 Topps and 1994 Upper Deck Home Field Advantage card signed.  I had busted a box of 94 Upper Deck a while back, and stashed them in a box.  It was nice being able to find those cards and get a few signed at the show.

Joyner and Fielder were the two baseball guys I was able to get at the VIP party for free.  Fielder was only one per, so I had to have a couple of my friends get a few extra cards done for me.  Joyner, on the other hand, signed 3 at a time for me, so I went through his line twice, and Andrew got some signed as well.  I held one card of Joyner's back from my album in order to help my friend Jackson out with a set, but the rest are going into my autograph album.

Another TTM Success From Scott Bailes

I sent to Scott Bailes and got some cards back signed in 2018.  I had some nice stuff built up of him, so I decided to send again.  The above 1986 Donruss Rookies came out really well.  I always liked this set; I had the 1986 Donruss Highlights set (and still do around here somewhere).

My goal of getting an 86 Sportflics in my album kind of backfired, since he signed the back of the card.  That's ok, the front probably would have bled and smeared anyway.  It was worth a shot.  I also got a 1990 Score Rookies and Traded and a 1988 Donruss Baseball's Best, which turned out nicely.

I mailed to Bailes on December 22 and got the cards back on January 9, for an 18-day TAT.