TTM Success - Tony Saunders

This was a nice TTM success that came in, which caught me by surprise a little bit.  I had sent to Tony Saunders, seeing that he had been signing, then kind of forgot that I had sent.  When the (unsealed) envelope came back with my two cards still inside, I was pretty happ.

I got a 1998 Upper Deck (top of post) and a 1998 Pinnacle (above) signed by Saunders, and both turned out well.

Saunders (b. 1974) played in the majors from 1997 to 1999 for the Marlins and Devil Rays.  He had a record of 13-24 with 304 strike outs and a 4.56 ERA.  Saunders is significant (and I'll never forget it) because, during a game in May 1999, his arm broke as he was delivering a pitch to Juan Gonzalez.  The sound of the bone breaking could be heard throughout the ballpark.  Supposedly, it made Hall of Famer Wade Boggs nauseous enough to throw up.  Saunders attempted a comeback, getting into some minor league games in 2000, but his arm would break again in the same spot.  He attempted a comeback again in 2005 with the Orioles, but only pitched in one Spring Training game.  Saunders did win a World Series while with the Marlins in 1997.

I mailed to Saunders on November 8 and got the cards back on December 23, for a 45-day TAT.

TTM Success - Jose Rosado

When I sent these cards TTM to Jose Rosado, Betty White was sill alive (so was Chris Cornell), the card shop was still open in Greenville, the Wood Ducks had finished their first month of ball and I had no idea what social distancing was.  My point is, these cards were out there for a very long time.  Still, the cards finally came back, even though it looks like Rosado used a marker that may have been older than Betty White.

I had mailed the cards to the Trenton Thunder, back when they were still a team (thanks, Rob Manfred).  I was excited to see the super old stamp that I had used, and was happy to finally cross Rosado off of my TTM list.

Rosado (b. 1974) played in the majors from 1996 to 2000 for the Royals.  He had a record of 37-45 with 484 strike outs and a 4.27 ERA.  He was an All Star in 1997 and 1999.

I mailed to Rosado on May 3, 2017, and got the cards back on January 14, 2022, for a 1,717-day TAT.

TTM Success - Todd Greene

It took two attempts, but I got a TTM success from former catcher, Todd Greene.  This was a request I really wanted to push, because I had so many cool cards of Greene that I wanted to see come back signed.  This 1997 Stadium Club Millennium card was one that I really was excited about when I picked it up from the LCS.  The card looks great; even better in person!

I liked the old Angels logo on the 98 Pinnacle Performers card.  It was in one of the boxes that Mom picked up for me last year.  This is a really cool-looking set, and I have a fer others from it that I want to get back.

Here is a 2006 Topps, as well, so I can add another tick mark on my tally for Topps sets.  I used to have a ton of 2006 Topps, but offloaded a ton when I was selling Topps base at card shows.

Finally, here is a 1997 Flair Showcase Wave of the Future that Greene signed.  It also turned out nicely, I think.  I got this at my LCS, as well.  During a prior trip through that box, though, I found a really cool David Arias (Ortiz) that I was able to sell for a nice profit.

Greene (b. 1971) played in the majors from 1996 to 2006 for the California and Anaheim Angels, Blue Jays, Yankees, Rangers, Rockies and Giants.  He had 397 hits, 71 home runs and a .252 batting average.

I first mailed to Greene on November 1, but he sent the cards back unsigned with no explanation.  I saw that some folks had gotten him after, so I tried again on January 11.  The cards came back on January 21, for a 10-day TAT.

A Surprise Care Package From Michael

I got a nice surprise package in the mail last week from my friend, Michael, who lives in Texas.  He and I chat almost daily about all sorts of things and sometimes baseball.  Michael had told me that he recently went through some boxes of cards from his childhood and came away with a bunch of Orioles that he wanted to send my way.  In the package, Michael managed to include a couple Cals that I didn't yet have in my collection.  The above 1993 Upper Deck Fold Outs is a surprise, considering I was all over new Ripken cards back then.  This one must have eluded me.

Another card I didn't have was this 1998 Pinnacle Piece of the Game Ripken.  This one didn't scan nearly as good as it looks.  There is a ton of foil on the card, and my scanner doesn't pick it up well sometimes.

Among the other cards in the package, Michael included some Hall of Famers and some Conlon Collection cards, always a favorite of mine.

Thanks so much for the package, Michael!  Follow him on Instagram: texasbaseballcardz