TTM Success - Brian Finch

The sole purpose of me sending out this TTM request to former Orioles minor leaguer, Brian Finch, was to get the above 2004 Bowman Heritage signed.  I really love this design, and was glad to add another of these to my autograph album.

I also got this 2003 Bowman Chrome signed, even though he signed it in ballpoint pen.  The card is still signed and will still be in my album.  It took me a while to find a good address to send to Finch, but I was glad I found the right one.

Finch (b. 1981) was a 2nd round draft pick by the Orioles in the 2003 June Amateur Draft out of Texas A&M.  He pitched in the minors from 2003 to 2007 in the Orioles system, reaching AA.  He had a record of 22-37 with 314 strike outs and a 4.16 ERA.

I mailed to Finch on October 1 and got the cards back on October 14, for a 13-day TAT.

TTM Success - Josh Anderson

Here is another older Bowman Chrome card that I got signed TTM.  This card came back signed from Josh Anderson and is a 2003 Bowman Chrome.  The card turned out nicely, but scanned pretty dark.

Anderson (b. 1982) played in the majors from 2007 to 2009 for the Astros, Braves, Tigers and Royals.  He had 132 hits, 4 home runs and a .272 batting average.  I mailed to Anderson on October 3 and got the card back on October 11, for an 8-day TAT.

TTM Success - Jaime Bubela

One of the reasons I really enjoyed going through the boxes I got from my former LCS was because there was a lot of early 2000s stuff in there that I never opened.  I didn't get back into cards until 2005, so I didn't have a lot of cards prior to that.  So, in my search through the boxes, I found some nice cards from back then that I was able to send off TTM.  One of the successes that came back was from Jaime Bubela.  The above 2003 Bowman Chrome turned out better than the scan shows.

I was also able to get this 2003 Topps signed, and it also turned out well.

Bubela (b. 1978) played in the majors in 2005 for the Mariners.  He had 2 hits, no home runs and a .105 batting average.  

I mailed to Bubela on May 3 and got the cards back on June 19, for a 47-day TAT.

TTM Success - Jon Nelson

This 2003 Bowman Chrome refractor of Jon Nelson was found in one of the many boxes I got when my LCS closed.  It is a nice card, so I figured I would see if Nelson signed TTM.  He does, so I sent it off.  The card came back signed not too long after, and looks a lot like his faux auto shown at the bottom of the card.  It can be funny sometimes to see how their autographs change over time.

Nelson (b. 1980) was a 26th round pick by the Mariners in the 2001 June Amateur Draft out of Dixie State University in Utah.  He played in the Mariners system from 2002 to 2008, reaching AAA.  THen, he played in independent ball from 2009 to 2011.

In his 7 seasons in minor league ball, Nelson had 712 hits, 101 home runs and a .263 batting average.  I mailed to Nelson on January 22 and got the card back on February 26, for a 35-day TAT.

Christmas Gift From Michael - Set Needs and a Top 10 Card

Along with the Mickey Vernon baseball that I got yesterday from Michael, I also got my Christmas gifts from him.  The major pieces from the package are shown here.  What I haven't shown, though, was a good bit of stuff as well.  Inside the box were two signed baseballs (Pedro Viola and Chris Michalak), a game used baseball from one of Michael's baseball games, a Derek Jeter Turn 2 coin that I won in an Instagram contest, a few assorted baseball cards, 30 cards from 2012 Topps Update to help me work on that set and three t-shirts (one of which was signed by Jim Gentile).  Those in themselves were huge pieces that I really appreciated from him.

Michael helped me out tremendously by finding three cards that I needed for my 1948 Bowman set. As you can see, the condition on all of them is really good.  I actually appreciated Michael's picky way with cards, because these really turned out great.

The above card from 1948 Bowman is card number 11, Johnny Lindell.

This one is card number 39, Augie Galan.  With the three cards from Michael, I now only need 10 cards to complete this set.  Not too bad, and I believe I can finish this sometime this year.

This one is card number 44, Johnny Wyrostek.  I really appreciated Michael hooking me up with these cards.  He didn't have to, but chose to try to push me further along with this set, and now he has me really close to the finish line!

Michael wasn't done with the '48s, though.  He knocked out an Orioles PC card that made it onto my Top 10 Wishlist for 2015.  I had been looking for this 2003 Bowman Chrome RC auto of Nick Markakis for some time, now, and let a few opportunities to pick it up pass me by.  I finally have it in my PC, which is bittersweet, since Nick is now a Brave.  I will always love Nick as an Oriole, so this card will be untouchable in my PC.

Michael has always come through for me.  I might not tell him every day how much his friendship is appreciated, but I sure hope he knows.  He went above and beyond with these Christmas gifts, and my gratitude cannot be overstated.

Thanks so much, man!