TTM Success - Jeff Branson

Here are some nice cards that came back signed TTM by Jeff Branson. The above 1988 Topps Traded showing Branson in a Team USA uniform was pretty cool. 

He also signed a 1993 Topps and a 1994 Topps. Both of these also look nice.

Branson (b. 1967) played in the majors from 1992 to 1998, 2000 and 2001 for the Reds, Indians and Dodgers. He had 383 hits, 34 home runs and a .246 batting average. 

I mailed to Branson on January 3 and got the cards back on February 6, for a 34-day TAT. 

TTM Success - Jim Campanis Jr

Here are a couple cards that I got signed TTM by Jim Campanis, Jr.  I had gotten his dad a while back and then found these to send off.  The above 1988 Topps turned out nicely.

I also got this 1992 Topps signed.  I doubt I will be able to finish the card, but I may give it a shot.

Campanis (b. 1967) was a 3rd round pick by the Mariners in the 1988 June Amateur Draft out of the University of Southern California. He played in the minors from 1989 to 1994 in the Mariners and Angels systems.  He reached AA.  He had 478 hits, 56 home runs and a .254 batting average. 

I mailed to Campanis on February 7 and got the cards back on March 25, for a 47-day TAT. 

TTM Success - Joe Slusarski

Some late 80s/early 90s cards came back signed TTM when I got these cards back from Joe Slusarski.  I had this 1988 Topps Traded that turned out nicely.

I believe most of these cards came out of the boxes of cards that my Aunt Karen gave me. All of these turned out great, as well.

Slusarski (b. 1966) played in the majors from 1991 to 1993, 1995 and 1999 to 2001 for the A's, Brewers, Astros and Braves.  He had a record of 13-21 with 173 strike outs and a 5.18 ERA.

I mailed to Slusarski on November 15 and got the cards back on May 23, for a 189-day TAT.

TTM Success - Steve Peters

A couple of late 1980s cards were added to my autograph album when I received these two cards signed TTM from Steve Peters.

Getting rid of 1988 Topps Traded or 1989 Topps cards is tough, as times, since they seem to multiply, but they aren't bad sets to get signed.  Each looks really nice, and they are abundant, so if one gets lost in the mail, it isn't too big a deal.

Peters (b. 1962) played in the majors from 1987 to 1988 for the Cardinals.  He had a record of 3-3 with 41 strike outs and a 5.25 ERA.

I mailed to Peters on October 12, 2020, and got the cards back on May 15, 2021, for a 215-day TAT.

TTM Success - Scotti Madison

this 1988 Topps Traded of Scotti Madison turned out really well when I got it signed TTM.  I had a couple partial sets I found at a Goodwill, so I actually got two cards signed.  I'll probably give the other to Chris.

Madison (b. 1959) played in the majors 1985 to 1989 for the Tigers, Royals and Reds.  He had 27 hits, 1 home run and a .163 batting average.

I mailed to Madison on December 16 and got the card back on January 9, for a 24-day TAT.

TTM Success - Tom Filer

I had a ton of Tom Filer cards, and finally got around to mailing to him to get a few of them signed.  I picked Topps stuff, as usual, since I like getting those signed the most.

Filer signed a 1986 Topps, 1983 Topps, 1988 Topps Traded and a 1989 Topps.  All of them turned out great.

Filer (b. 1956) played in the majors in 1982, 1985, 1988 to 1990 and 1992 for the Cubs, Blue Jays, Brewers and Mets.  He had a career record of 22-17 with 115 strike outs and a 4.25 ERA.

I mailed to Filer on September 16 and got the cards back on December 15, for a 90-day TAT.

Another TTM Success From Glenn Hubbard

I had forgotten to send the 1987 Topps Braves Leaders card to Glenn Hubbard when I sent to him TTM a while back, so I sent to him again.  It wasn't like I didn't have a ton of his cards to send again (I had a TON).  So, I was glad to try for him again.  Now, I need a signing to come up for Rafael Ramirez, and I'll be set.

I sent off cards for Hubbard that I hadn't already gotten, and one of them was the Topps Fan Favorites reprint of his 1983 Topps card.  Some of the reprints look cool signed (like this one) and others, I can take them or leave them.

I mailed to Hubbard on July 23 and got the cards back on August 10, for an 18-day TAT.

TTM Success - Mark Parent

I took some cards out of my junk wax boxes and got them signed with this TTM success from Mark Parent.  I don't think I have any other 1994 Topps Team Stadium Club cards signed, so getting this one done by Parent was nice.

He also signed these - a 1990 Donruss and a 1992 Stadium Club.  These cards have been buried in a box in my closet for a very long time.  I was glad to be able to get them out and into my newest autograph album.

Finally, I got a few Topps issues done - a 1988 Traded, 1989 and 1991 Topps.

Parent (b. 1961) played in the majors from 1986 to 1998 for the Padres, Rangers, Orioles, Cubs, Pirates, Tigers and Phillies.  He had 279 hits, 53 home runs and a .214 batting average.

I mailed to Parent on June 8 and got the cards back on June 15, for a 7-day TAT.

TTM Success - Pat Combs

I was able to get some cards out of my boxes with this TTM success from Pat Combs.  The above 1988 Topps Traded had been in my box for forever, and now it is free from the box and in my autograph album.

He also signed a 1990 Donruss The Rookies, a 1991 Topps and a 1992 Topps.

Combs (b. 1966) played in the majors from 1989 to 1992 for the Phillies.  He had a career record of 17-17 with 190 strike outs and a 4.22 ERA.

I mailed to Combs on December 3 and got the cards back on December 24, for a 21-day TAT.

TTM Success - Ty Griffin

This was a nice TTM success that was facilitated by my randomly finding a card and checking to see if the player signed TTM.

The card was this 1989 Topps Ty Griffin, and of course, he was an active signer.  The cards came out nicely, and I ended up with an extra 1989 that I sent on to my buddy Max, since he is a Cubs fan.

Griffin (b. 1967) was a first round pick (9th overall) by the Cubs in the 1988 June Amateur Draft out of Georgia Tech.  He played in the minors for 5 seasons and the Independent League for another 4 seasons.  In all, he had 723 hits, 82 home runs and a .257 batting average.

I mailed to Griffin on January 7 and got the cards back on January 22, for a 15-day TAT.

TTM Success - Cookie Rojas

It took me two tries, but I got a few cards signed TTM from Cookie Rojas.  I had the cards for quite a while, and was happy to finally be able to add them to the album.

I was able to get signed a 1971, 1972, 1976 and 1988 Topps Traded.  The Topps Traded was a last-minute addition to the envelope, but it made it back signed.

Rojas (b. 1939) played in the majors from 1962 to 1977 for the Reds, Phillies, Cardinals and Royals.  He had 1,660 hits, 54 home runs and a .263 batting average.  He was a 5-time All Star.  His best MVP finish was 14th (1971 - AL).

Rojas managed the Angels in 1988 to a record of 75-79 and also managed the Marlins for one game in 1996 (they won that game).

I mailed to Rojas on May 25 and got the cards back on June 29, for a 35-day TAT.

TTM Success - Mackey Sasser

I received a TTM success from former catcher, Mackey Sasser on quite a few nice cards.  This 1990 Topps turned out really nice.  Some folks give this set a hard time because of the borders, but I enjoy that it is different.  I like it when Topps does that from time to time.

The folks who don't like the 1990 Topps likely enjoy these white-bordered versions.  The top left one is actually a 1988 Topps Traded, but is still typical of that year's design.

I also added a couple Score cards, since they tend to be under-represented in my album.  I liked both of them,  but the 1990 Score on the left is a really nice card.  The card on the right is a 1989 Score Rising Star, but looks eerily similar to the 1990.

Sasser (b. 1962) played in the majors from 1987 to 1995 for the Giants, Pirates, Mets and Mariners.  He had 317 hits, 16 home runs and a .267 batting average.

I mailed to Sasser on May 10 and got the cards back on June 26, for a 47-day TAT.

TTM Success - Brett Butler

I got a bunch of great 90s cards in this TTM success from Brett Butler.  The above 1998 Score is one of the best horizontal shots that I have been able to get TTM, and I am really happy about it.  I don't recall opening up very many packs of 1998 Score, but the more I see cards from that set, the more I appreciate it.

The 1995 Finest turned out really nice, even though it didn't scan all that well.  I'm also loving the Zach Morris phone in the 1997 Donruss.  I also believe this is my first Upper Deck Fun Pack card that I have been able to get signed.  Finally, the 1988 Topps Traded is one of the best of Butler's line of Topps cards.

I also got a 1982 Topps card showing the Braves Future Stars signed.  I don't know if I will go for the other two guys, but I do believe Bedrosian signs, so I may give it a shot.

Butler (b. 1957) played in the majors from 1981 to 1997 for the Braves, Indians, Giants, Dodgers and Mets.  He had 2,375 hits, 54 home runs and a .290 batting average.  He was an All Star in 1991 and received MVP votes in six seasons (finishing as high as 7th in 1991).  Butler appeared on the 2003 Hall of Fame ballot and received 0.4% of the vote.  His 558 career stolen bases rank 25th all-time.

I mailed to Butler on November 8 and got the cards back on January 13, for a 66-day TAT.

TTM Success - Jim Poole

I received a TTM success today from former Orioles reliever, Jim Poole on some pretty nice cards.  The above 1988 Topps Traded Team USA card came out of a box of Topps that my mom found for me a while back.  The 1994 Flair came from another box that she picked up at the same time.  Those 1994 Flair cards turn out really nice when they are signed.  This one looks nice, as well, even though the signature bubbled up somewhat.

Here are two Topps cards (1992 and 1993) for the Topps Autograph Project.  I now have 5 each from those two sets (and am always looking to add more).

This last card comes from the Official 1987 USA National Baseball Team set.  The card was in a random box of cards that my wife picked up for me several years ago as a Christmas present.  I put the box up, and took a look through it some time ago for TTMs.  Realizing I had this card, but no real purpose for it, I figured it would be a nice add-in for some player who signed TTM.  Now, the card has a purpose and will reside in my TTM/IP Autograph album, as opposed to being just some random card in a box somewhere.

Poole (b. 1966) played in the majors from 1990 to 2000 for the Dodgers, Rangers, Orioles, Indians, Giants, Tigers, Phillies and Expos.  He had a career record of 22-12 with an ERA of 4.31 and 256 strike outs.

I mailed to Poole on October 24 and got the card back today for a 7-day TAT.

TTM Success - Jack McDowell

I opened up my mailbox a few days ago and was happy to see one of my envelopes in there from a TTM.  I haven't gotten nearly as many as I had earlier in the year.  This, however, has been by design.  I have learned that TTMs are a great winter hobby that can keep me busy while waiting for the season to start.  I have sent out a few this past week, just to get a few things off of my desk.

This return from Jack McDowell has reignited my interest in TTMs, though, because the cards I got back all turned out great.  The top card from 1994 Fleer Ultra looks great, as does the above 1988 Topps Traded.  The below 1993 Flair is from one of my favorite brands to get signed.  Also, I really like the mid-to-late 1990s Fleer because of the matte finish.  Autos really show up nicely on those as well.

McDowell (b. 1966) played in the majors from 1987, 1988 and 1990 to 1999 for the White Sox, Yankees, Indians and Angels.  He had a career record of 127-87 with an ERA of 3.85 and 1,311 strike outs.  His best season was 1993 when he went 22-10 with a 3.37 ERA on his way to the Cy Young Award that season.  He also won 20 games in 1992 *and finished second in the Cy Young voting).  McDowell was also a three-time All Star.  He appeared on the 2005 Hall of Fame ballot and received 0.8% of the vote.

I mailed the four cards to McDowell on March 4 and got the cards back on September 24 for a 204-day TAT.

TTM Success - Don August

During one of my many Skype sessions with my buddy, Max, he helped me with a list of guys who were currently doing TTMs.  We Skype quite a lot, and it always consists of the both of us looking through boxes and finding stuff for each other.  He told me about Don August, a former pitcher that he has met IP and has gotten a bunch of his autographs.

I went through the boxes that Mom had gotten me and found a ton of August's cards.  I was only going to send a few, but I saw that August will sign anything and everything you send him.  Not wanting to be greedy, I figured I would send some of the extras to a few of my friends who haven't fully embraced the TTM concept.

I was really happy to find the 1985 Topps Team USA cards of him, and the 1989 cards look really cool as well.

The top left card is a 1988 Topps traded.  Those always turn out nice due to the different kind of cardboard Topps was using for the Traded sets back then.  I was also happy to add signed versions from 1989 Fleer, 1988 Donruss and 1990 Donruss.

August (b. 1963) played for the Brewers from 1988 to 1991.  He had a career record of 34-30 with an ERA of 4.64 and 181 strikeouts.  He pitched really well in 1988 when he went 13-7 with a 3.09 ERA.  I imagine he ended up with some injuries that derailed his career after that.

After talking to Max, he told me that August was super nice in person.  He sat and talked to Max for about half an hour at this year's Brewers Fest.  I learned the other day when I posted the TTM success on Instagram that August substitute taught my friend, Bryce, a bunch of times last year.  Bryce also said Mr. August is amazingly nice in person.

After hearing those "testimonials" from my buddies, I have a whole new respect for Mr. August.  It reminds me of the way Virgil Trucks used to be with fans.  I really wish there were more current and former players who would go this far out of their way for fans.  Seeing kids like Max and Bryce be able to sit down and have a conversation with a former MLBer is something that I think will keep kids interested in the game and ultimately the hobby!

Thank you so much for the amazing TTM success, Mr. August.  I'm not sure if you will see this post, but maybe it will find its way to you.  Also, thank you for being so good with the young fans of the game.

I mailed to August on March 2 and for the cards back (all 8 of them) on Friday (3/11) making him a 9-day TAT.