Another TTM Success From Melvin Mora

A private signing with former Oriole, Melvin Mora popped up back in October that I wanted to join.  I had this 2004 Fleer Inscribed and a 2004 Topps Chrome gold parallel that I had put aside in the event that Mora started signing TTM again.  Apparently, he has been in Venezuela for quite some time, so these cards sat in my box. 

Finally, they got sent off for the private signing, then sat sone more.  The signing was delayed for months, until it was finally completed in July.  I got my cards back, and they look great.  I had heard that there were a lot of problems with the results of the signing but mine loom great.

I mailed to the signing on October 11 and got the cards back on July 15, for a 278-day TAT.  I paid $15/card.

TTM Success - Melvin Mora

Sometimes it's tough to send a TTM request to a former Oriole.  Tough in that I have so many cards to choose from, I often have a hard time deciding what to send out.  When I saw that Melvin Mora was signing TTM, I went through both Orioles boxes and pulled out mostly Topps base cards of his to send.  I then saw this 2006 Flair Showcase and remembered that I didn't have any of these in the autograph album, and how it would look cool when signed.

I got my return from Mora, and was really excited to see that he signed the cards in gold Sharpie!  I figured it would be blue or black that he would use, but Mora used gold.  Man, the gold Sharpie really looks awesome, too.  The card scanned so nice, I couldn't believe it.

He also signed this 2004 Topps in gold.  I picked this one over the other Topps base cards of Mora because I have very few 2004 extras lying around, so I figured this would be a good one to add another tick mark in my Topps Autograph Project.

Mora (b. 1972) played in the majors from 1999 to 2011 for the Mets, Orioles, Rockies and Diamondbacks.  He had 1,503 hits, 171 home runs and a .277 batting average.  He batted .340 during the 2004 season, earning himself a spot on the AL MVP ballot (18th overall) and a Silver Slugger Award on a really bad Orioles team.  Mora was a two-time All Star (2003 and 2005) and was a bright spot in a dark period of Orioles baseball.

Mora was traded to the Orioles in 2000, along with Mike Kinkade, Leslie Brea and Pat Gorman for Mike Bordick and spent ten seasons with the O's.  His time there, and steady play, earned him induction into the Orioles Hall of Fame in 2015.  He appeared on the Baseball Hall of Fame ballot in 2017, but did not receive any votes.

I mailed to Mora on March 2 and got the cards back on March 10, for an 8-day TAT.

Care Package From Nick H.

Still catching up on posts, here are a few cards that I got in a care package from my friend, Nick H. way before Christmas.  Nick is a really good guy who I have been talking to for a while now.  He sent me a few Orioles, highlighted by this 2006 Flair Showcase Brian Roberts relic.

Nick also included this Melvin Mora relic from 2008 Upper Deck.  I'll have to organize my Orioles box soon and add these to the collection.

Thanks for the care package, Nick!

Care Package From Tom

I got a surprise care package in the mail recently from fellow blogger, Tom.  He writes the blog, The Angels, In Order, and the two of us have interacted a bit here and there via the blogs and Instagram.  Tom was making some room in his collection for more Angels stuff, and sent me a few Orioles goodies for my collection.

The above 1993 All Star ballot was something really awesome that I wasn't expecting to see.  1993 was the year when Camden Yards hosted the All Star Game, and having one of the ballots, in mint condition, is a really cool piece to my collection.  I think it was really awesome of Tom to include it!

Tom Also included a few Orioles post cards and these three signed baseball cards.  I recently sent to Leo Gomez, but thankfully, I didn't send this one.  I always enjoy a nice 1988 Topps signed and the Melvin Mora Cracker Jack is one I really would have loved to have gotten TTM if I had some of the cards available.  Thankfully, Tom hooked me up, and I can have one of these in my album!

Thank you so much for the care package, Tom!  I really appreciate it!

A Look at the Signed Baseballs I Got at Fan Fest

When the autograph vouchers were announced for this year's Fan Fest, there weren't a lot of surprises.  Nor were there too many guys left that I hadn't met, yet, so I picked up only a select few vouchers.  I wanted to see Nolan Reimold again, so I bought the session that included him, Brady Anderson and Dylan Bundy.  Melvin Mora was making his first appearance there in a long time, so I wanted to meet him, so I got the Mora, Tim Berry and Dylan Bundy session (so two meetings with Bundy) and finally, I wanted to meet Tyler Wilson, and that session also had Jim Palmer and Christian Walker.  For each voucher I bought, I got a second, so Chris could go through the line with me.

I decided that I really liked signed specialty balls.  I was able to find a real cheap 1996 All Star baseball for Brady Anderson to sign.  As you can see above, the ball looks really good, even though Brady's signature is pretty bad.  Chris also got a plain OMLB signed for me, which was nice.  He knows that all of my stuff will eventually become his, so he did a really good job at Fan Fest in helping me find stuff, and also getting things signed.

For the people that I didn't necessarily need second signed balls of, I let Chris have an OMLB, which he got multi signed by a bunch of the guys there.  I had only taken 14 balls to Fan Fest, then sold two to Ryan, so I needed a way for Chris to enjoy the signings as well.  Also, in a rush to leave on Friday, I had forgotten the large photo that Chris had been getting signed by former Orioles.

I was able to find another specialty ball on Ebay, a 2005 All Star ball.  This one was for Melvin Mora.  I actually got complimented from a fellow O's fan on the ball, which was pretty cool.

The ball turned out really nice, I think.  I really like the different colored seams on the All Star balls.

I was able to meet Hall of Famer, Jim Palmer again, which is always a treat.  I can't count how many times I have gotten his auto at Fan Fest, but I try to every chance I get.  I also traded for a signed Palmer ball from Ryan, then also ended up with Chris's ball.  I had a pending deal with my good buddy Max for one of the Palmer balls in exchange for an upgrade to another one of my Hall of Famers (which I will show another time).  The other, I ended up making a deal with my good friend, Sam for that.  So, of the three I got, I have deals pending for two of them.  The last one I will hold onto for now.

I think, other than Nolan, I was most excited about meeting Orioles pitcher Tyler Wilson.  He just completed his rookie season, and had a pretty decent showing.  He struggled, for sure, but I think he has a bright future with the Orioles.  I had seen him (with Ryan, of course) pitch for Bowie a couple years ago, and really was impressed (much more than I was with the next day's starter, Eduardo Rodriguez),

Wilson was very nice when we signed, and I wished him well for the 2016 season.

I got another ball signed by Christian Walker as well.  His signature has changed since last year, which is interesting.  Walker has a chance to break camp with the O's, unless something drastic happens, and Chris Davis re-signs.  I doubt Davis will be back, so maybe Walker gets his shot.  Who knows.

I'm sure some folks are wondering if I got something signed by Nolan.  I did, but since I have a ton of stuff signed by him that I absolutely love, I decided to do something nice for a friend of mine.  So, I had Nolan sign a ball with a message, and I dropped it in the mail today.  I hope my friend loves it!

So, of all of the baseballs I took with me to Fan Fest, I have one left.  I will likely hold onto it for now, unless I decide to get it signed TTM by someone.