Another TTM Success From Jay Bell

There have been quite a few TTM success recently where I went back and got guys I had gotten before.  This was a result of going through a bunch of boxes during the playoffs and amassing a huge stack of guys to send to.  One of them was Jay Bell.  Bell signs a bunch, and has a ton of cool cards.  The above 1992 Donruss Diamond King was a definite highlight.

The above 2000 Bowman and 2001 Upper Deck were some pretty cool cards.  I like how Bowman updated the classic 1955 Bowman TV Set design.  That's one of my all-time favorite sets and adding this with the updated (now, not so updated) design to the autograph album. 

I also got a 1993 Triple Play, 1995 Finest, 1998 Topps and 1999 Topps signed during this TTM request to Bell.

I mailed to Bell on October 11 and got the cards back on November 15, for a 35-day TAT. 

2023 National Paid Signer - Jeff Bagwell

Jeff Bagwell was my next paid signer, and I had been waiting since last year's National to get the above 1992 Donruss Diamond King card signed.  I had gotten a Topps Finest insert signed by Bagwell last year; the decision came down to the wire.  Thankfully, Bagwell was there again this year, so I added this awesome card to the album.

I didn't get to say much to Bagwell, since I was being shuffled through his line and had to move on to my next signing, but he was nice enough. 

The card turned out great.  I've got one more Bagwell card put aside that I may get signed another time. We'll see how next year shakes out. 

Another TTM Success From Juan Gonzalez

This was a very colorful TTM success from Juan Gonzalez.  I found all of these cards in my boxes that I got from the LCS when it closed.  This 1992 Diamond Kings turned out well, and I really love this set.  I want to add some more to my collection.

I also enjoy the 2001 Fleer EX set, and have gotten a few of these signed.  This is a really nice hidden gem of a set and the cards look great when signed.

Finally, here are the other 4 cards that made the cut from what I sent.  I sent a 2000 Bowman Chrome Teen Idols (top left), 2000 Fleer Gamers (top right), 1994 Stadium Club chrome (bottom right) and a 1999 Upper Deck SP Authentic (bottom left).  

I mailed to Gonzalez on March 11 and got the cards back on April 3, for a 23-day TAT.

Surprise Find In A Cheap LCS Lot

I picked up a stack of used albums from my LCS for $5 and in one of the albums was this signed signed 1992 Donruss Diamond Kings of Nigel Wilson.  I wasn't sure if the auto was real or not, but when I googled it, it looks like the card came out of an autograph deal that folks could buy that was a little booklet.  The person who had the card must have gotten rid of the booklet and put it in their album.  Now, it will go in my autograph album.

Second TTM Success From Will Clark

I sure didn't intend to post two repeat TTM successes in a row, but that is how it worked out with my returns.  This is another case of having a card that I really wanted signed, then taking the chance and sending it out.  I'm glad I did!

This is a 1992 Donruss Diamond Kings Will Clark that I have had in the collection since it was pulled from a pack in 1992.  It has survived being put in binders and boxes and multiple iterations of my collection.  I'm reall glad that I will have a '92 Diamond Kings represented in my album, and it is a great player pictured on the card.

I mailed to Clark on November 7 and got the card back on January 17, for a 71-day TAT.

Non Orioles From Joey

I got a nice package in the mail the other day from my buddy, Joey.  He sent me a ton of Orioles cards, but some of the stuff in the package that stood out the most was the Non Orioles cards.

I have worked over the years to include cards and PC players who aren't Orioles so I can add some diversity to my collection.  One of the Hall of Fame players I loosely PC is Ralph Kiner.  Since we met him in 2013, I have been picking up stuff of him here and there.  This 2012 Gypsy Queen is a good example of one of his cards that I would grab when I saw it.

Eddie Murray is known largely as an Oriole.  This 1992 Donruss Diamond Kings card shows him as a Met, obviously, but still looks awesome.  I still to this day love these cards.  I love how it pops when scanned.

Finally, Joey included this dual relic of Bobby Crosby and Eric Chavez as a surprise in the package.  UD Reflections was a decent product and this dual relic is pretty nice.  I thought it was cool of Joey to throw it in to surprise me, and it did!

Thanks so much for the package, Joey!

Today's Random Ripken Part 2 - The Sequel

I challenge anyone to tell me that this is not a beautiful card. In today's world, you have something like eleventeen different inserts and then you have the parallels of the inserts, the printing plates, the original conceptual drawing of the insert, the inside out version of the insert, the sine/cosine/tangent of the insert... you get my point.

Way back when, you could get a pack of cards for say, 99 cents. In this pack you got either a 50-year old piece of gum, a puzzle piece or a team sticker, depending on your brand of choice. You were lucky to get any kind of insert. Maybe a 'gold parallel' or Diamond King.

I remember pulling the above 1992 Cal Ripken Donruss Diamond King. I wish I had an amazing story to go with it. I do not. However, after 17 years, this card is still beautiful and I kind of wish sometimes we could go back to a more simplistic approach to inserts.

The 1992 Diamond King subset was definitely groundbreaking. It may very well have started the 'insert craze' of the early to mid 90s... The Dick Perez paintings were vastly different from the previous year's offerings.

With all the retro-themed sets going around now, I wouldn't mind a higher end product sporting nothing but these painting like cards... moreso than the Goodwins and Allen & Ginters. You guys see where I'm coming from, right? These cards were and are amazing. I love this one. What do you think??