TTM Success - Mike Ford

The box of shame is a box of cards that had been pulled and prepped for graphing, but for whatever reason, the cards weren't signed.  Maybe i didnt get the guy, maybe he did only a couple cards, or maybe he wasnt even there in the first place.  Those cards go in the box and I hope I get another chance to see said player.  Maybe I try them TTM.  The end goal is to get everything I had prepped signed.  Fair enough, right?  Well, Mike Ford is a guy I had gotten in person back when I saw Gwinnett in Durham a couple years ago. Two cards were missed and went in the box.  I saw them recently and remembered that Ford signs TTM, so I figured I'd finish the cards off.  I sent them out and they came back signed in red pen.

Both cards turned out nicely, even though i usually prefer blue.

Ford (b. 1992) played in the majors from 2019 to 2024 for the Yankees, Giants, Mariners, Braves, Angels and Reds.  He had 141 hits, 37 home runs and a .205 batting average. 

I mailed to Ford on September 18 and got the cards back on February 21 for a 156-day TAT.

August 12-13, 2023, Graphing of the Baysox at Flying Squirrels

This past weekend, I made the trip back up to Richmond to try to get Jackson Holliday again.  Spoiler alert, I didn't get him.  I'll stick with my one Jackson Holliday auto while he signs multiples for everyone else.

The trip was still a good one, as Chris and I spent time our friend, Ryan, and his family.  Ryan graphed with us on Saturday, where we got the bulk of our autos.

I finished off Jud Fabian and Dylan Beavers, so that was a plus.  We didn't get John Rhodes at all, even though he looked right at us on Sunday.

I got this 2022 Panini Prizm Draft card of Silas Ardoin signed while I was there.  He put me on the board early by singing it.  This was a nice pickup from the National. 

I was extremely happy to get John Means as he was leaving the parking lot.  He was stuck waiting for traffic to die down and was nice enough to roll his window down and sign for the last few of us who stayed after missing Jackson on Saturday. The 2022 Topps Stadium Club Chrome (top of post) was another National pickup.

Chris and I went on our own on Sunday and came away with only 4 autographs.  It was very hot, so instead of braving the heat and trying to be denied after the game, we left early.  I found out later from another grapher that he was able to get Jackson on multiples outside near the bus.  It just wasn't meant to be for me.

In all, we got the following autographs: Today's graphing recap of Baysox at Flying Squirrels: Dylan Beavers x 2, Jud Fabian x 4, Billy Cook x 1, Silas Ardoin x 1, Collin Burns x 4, Connor Gillispie x 2, John Means x 5, Max Wagner x 2 and Donta Williams x 1 (22).

Even though we didn't get Holliday, it was a nice trip.  It is always nice spending time with Ryan, and doing some graphing with him.

Another TTM Success FromChase Anderson

Another TTM success came in from Spring Training; this time from pitcher, Chase Anderson.  I had gotten him in the past, but had a few more cards I wanted to put into my album, so I sent to him when I had heard that Spring Training was a go this season.  The above purple parallel from 2014 Bowman is the card that I really wanted to get back.  It turned out nicely.

I also had Anderson sign a 2017 Topps, 2019 Topps, 2021 Topps Update and a 2020 Topps Heritage.

I mailed to Anderson via Tigers camp on March 15 and got the cards back on March 24, for a 9-day TAT.

TTM Success - Niko Goodrum

Here are some fairly recent (and one not so recent) cards that I got back signed TTM from Niko Goodrum.  The above 2020 Topps turned out really well.  They have to be prepped, but usually look really nice when signed.

I was also able to find Goodrum's 2010 Pro Debut, which was a nice card to get out of my box, and also a 2020 Topps Heritage.  The Heritage cards look really sharp, as always, and do well when signed.

Goodrum (b. 1992) has played in the majors since 2017, for the Tigers.  He has 375 hits, 37 home runs and a .233 batting average.

I mailed to Goodrum on October 7 and got the cards back on February 4, for a 120-day TAT.

TTM Success - Kolten Wong

I've really enjoyed getting current players via TTM lately.  A lot of them were signing during the baseball shutdown, and I was able to capitalize somewhat.  Kolten Wong is one of the players that I was able to get.  He signed some nice cards, like the above 2014 mini Future is Now card.

Wong also signed a 2014 Topps Chrome and a 2020 Topps Heritage.

Wong (b. 1990) has played in the majors since 2013 for the Cardinals.  He has 696 hits, 53 home runs and a .260 batting average.  He finished third in the 2014 NL Rookie of the Year voting, and 20th in the 2019 NL MVP voting.  He was also a Gold Glove Award winner last season.

I mailed to Wong on April 29 and got the cards back on July 3, for a 65-day TAT.