TTM Success - Orlando Cepeda

When a Hall of Famer signs his mail as a decent price, I enjoy taking some cards of his and sending thiem off to be signed.  There are a handful of Hall of Famers who have been very prolific at signing, but one of them that I wasn't aware of was Orlando Cepeda.  It looks like Cepeda has signed a decent amount of mail recently, so when I saw that was the case, I dug out this awesome 2016 Stadium Club and sent it out.  Cepeda has been charging $20/card, which I believe is a great price for him.

Cepeda (b. 1937) played in the majors from 1958 to 1974 for the Giants, Cardinals, Braves, A's, Red Sox and Royals.  He had 2,351 hits, 379 home runs and a .297 batting average.  He was an 11-time All Star (1959 to 1962, when players could be chosen twice a year, 1963, 1964 and 1967).  He was the NL Rookie of the Year in 1958 and the NL MVP in 1967.  He won the World Series in 1967 with the Cardinals.  He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1999, when he was selected via the Veterans Committee.

I mailed to Cepeda on October 8 and got the card back on October 24, for a 16-day TAT.

TTM Success - Guy Sularz

Here is a 1983 Topps that I was able to get signed TTM from Guy Sularz.

Sularz (b. 1955) played in the majors from 1980 to 1983 for the Giants.  He had 45 hits, 1 home run and a .218 batting average.

I mailed to Sularz on December 18 and got the card back on January 26, for a 39-day TAT.

TTM Success - Robby Thompson

Robby Thompson is a fariyl tough autograph to get, these days, so when I saw him pop up on a private signing, I jumped on board and got my 1987 Topps signed.  I had tried to send to him in the past, but have had no luck.

Thompson (b. 1962) played in the majors from 1986 to 1996 for the Giants.  He had 1,187 hits, 119 home runs and a .257 batting average.  He finished second in the 1986 NL Rookie of the Year voting (second to Todd Worrell), was an All Star in 1988 and 1993 and won the Gold Glove Award in 1993.  His best best MVP finish was 15th in 1993.

I mailed to the signing on November 20 and got the card back signed on January 26, for a 67-day TAT.  I paid a fee of $15.00.

TTM Success - Tyler Fitzgerald

More and more Bowmans have come back TTM, which has been nice, since I have a ton of them to send.  This Tyler Fitzgerald 2019 Bowman Draft bubbled the signature just a bit, but the card still looks ok.

Fitzgerald (b. 1997) was a 4th round pick by the Giants in the 2019 June Amateur Draft out of the University of Louisville.  He played at three levels in the Giants system in 2019 (Rookie League, Low A and A ball) and had 51 hits, 1 home run and a .276 batting average.

I mailed to Fitzgerald on November 17 and got the card back on December 3, for a 16-day TAT.

TTM Success - Jim Duffalo

It took two tries, but I finally got this beat up old card signed by Jim Duffalo.  This is a pretty rough 1965 Topps, but it will still look cool in my album.  I've shifted my focus a bit, as of late, to early-to-mid 2000s Bowmans, just to get them out of my box.  I still enjoy getting vintage cards signed, and will probably shift back to some of those sometime soon.

Duffalo (b. 1935) played in the majors from 1961 to 1965 for the Giants and Reds.  He had a career record of 15-8 with 210 strike outs and a 3.39 ERA.

I mailed to Duffalo on October 30 and got the card back on November 13, for a 14-day TAT.

TTM Success - Bob Bolin

I'm not the biggest fan of the Topps buyback cards, only because they're perfectly good vintage cards that I could possibly use in sets, but Topps insists on stamping them.  Yeah, I don't want that in a completed set, so I had a couple buybacks that I wanted to put to use.  I sent this 1966 Topps Bob Bolin buyback out for TTM, along with a plain 66 that I already owned, and got both signed by Bolin in blue ink pen.

Bolin (b. 1939) played in the majors from 1961 to 1973 for the Giants, Brewers and Red Sox.  He had a career record of 88-75 with 1,175 strike outs and a 3.40 ERA.

I mailed to Bolin on January 2 and got the cards back on February 6, for a 35-day TAT.

Another TTM Success From Jim Barr

I had been told in the past that Jim Gott was on the 1987 Topps Giants leaders card, so a friend of mine had gotten one signed by Gott in Arizona this past summer.  When I posted the card, I was told that it wasn't actually Gott on the card, but Jim Barr.

I had gotten Barr TTM back in 2017, and had no idea he was on the 87, so that card got left out.  Thankfully, I had another, so I sent it off.  It came back signed and now I just need to get Bob Brenly.

I mailed to Barr on October 15 and got the card back on October 4, for a 9-day TAT.

TTM Success - Lance Niekro

I have been working non-stop lately to repopulate my TTM box, and I feel like I have found a ton of guys that I can send cards to.  One of them was former Giant, Lance Niekro.  I got three cards signed, and they all were sets that I don't have many cards of.

The above 2006 Upper Deck looks really cool.  I don't have much at all from this set, and I am glad that I sent this one in.

I found the above 2001 Bowman Heritage at my LCS.  The period of 1997 to 2003 holds a ton of stuff that I never opened.  I was out of the collecting game, and missed out on some gems.  The card looks awesome, and I was super excited to find it at the shop.

Of course, I had to get a Topps base card in there, and 2006 Topps is one set that I have very little of, as far as bulk cards are concerned.  I had a box of them that turned over and fell out of my truck in my move, and the cards ended up in the gutter just after a rainstorm.  Needless to say, most of the cards were ruined.

Niekro (b. 1979) is the son of the late Joe Niekro and the nephew of Hall of Famer, Phil Niekro.  He played in the majors from 2003 and 2005 to 2007 for the Giants.  He had 123 hits, 17 home runs and a .246 batting average.

I mailed to Niekro on September 30 and got the cards back on October 8, for an 8-day TAT.

2019 National Pickup - Frank Williams Signed 1987 Topps

One of the cards I got at the National is also one of the tougher signed 1987s that I could have gotten.  This came from the first seller that had the signed 87s, and he had just recently broken up his signed set.

Frank Williams (b. 1958 - d. 2009) played in the majors from 1984 to 1989 for the Giants, Reds and Tigers.  He had a record of 24-14 with 314 strike outs and a 3.00 ERA.

After his playing career was over, Williams suffered from a string of misfortune.  His marriage had ended and his twin brother had passed away; Williams battled alcoholism and was in a serious car accident.  Williams passed away in 2009 following complications from pneumonia.

TTM Success - Juan Marichal

It is really nice when you can find a Hall of Famer who signs TTM.  I saw that Juan Marichal was signing, and even though I already had him on a ball in my Hall of Fame collection, I wanted to send off a card.

I got this 1962 Topps that had been in my collection for a long time signed.  It will look great in my album.

I mailed to Marichal on March 28 and got the card back on July 25, for a 119-day TAT.  I paid a fee of $10.00.

This post officially catches me up (for now) on all of the TTMs that I was behind on.  I'm hoping I have some waiting on me when I get home from the National.  Of course, I have a whole slew of posts coming from my trip, so maybe I don't want too many TTMs waiting on me...

TTM Success - Scott Garrelts

Another 1987 Topps came off of the board when I got this card back signed from Scott Garrelts.

Garrelts (b. 1961) played in the majors from 1982 to 1991 for the Giants.  He had a career record of 69-53 with 703 strike outs and a 3.29 ERA.  He was the NL ERA leader in 1989 with an ERA of 2.28.  That season, he finished 6th in the Cy Young Award race, and 20th in the NL MVP voting.  He was also an All Star in 1985.

I mailed to Garrelts on October 25, 2018, and got the card back signed on Ma 6, 2019, for a 193-day TAT.

TTM Success - Dereck Rodriguez

Another Spring Training TTM success came in recently; this one from Giants pitcher, Dereck Rodriguez.  I liked how this card came out, and I have encouraged Chris to send a couple of his own cards to Rodriguez, as well.  He has yet to do so, but I think he will once the season starts.

Rodriguez (b. 1992) played his rookie season last year in the Majors for the Giants.  He went 6-5 with 99 strike outs and a 3.34 ERA.  He was a 6th round pick out of high school by the Twins in the June 2011 Amateur Draft.

I mailed to Rodriguez on February 5 and got the card back on February 25, for a 20-day TAT.

TTM Success - Matt Williams

This was a TTM request that I had high hopes for, and I ended up with a nice success.  The autographs from Matt Williams didn't turn out like I had hoped, but the cards are still signed, and they have moved from being buried in my TTM box to my autograph album.  I can't complain a whole lot about that.  This 1996 Pinnacle Essence of the Game is an acetate card, and it looks a lot better in person.  I had prepped the card, but I think Williams used an old Sharpie on it.

This 1994 Fleer Ultra Homerun King card also looks a lot better in person.  I had this card floating around several piles of cards in my office/card room.  It seemed to be jumping out at me every time that I looked through cards, so I finally put it aside in my TTM box and ended up including it with my TTM request.  I am actually really happy to see this one make its way into my autograph album.

Williams (b. 1965) played in the majors from 1987 to 2003 for the Giants, Indians and Diamondbacks.  He had 1,878 hits, 378 home runs and a .268 batting average.  He was an All Star five times (1990, 1994, 1995, 1996 and 1999).  He led the NL in home runs in the strike-shortened 1994 season with 43 homers.  He was a four-time gold glover and a four-time silver slugger.  His best MVP finish was 2nd (NL), in 1994 (to Jeff Bagwell).  He won the World Series in 2001 with the Diamondbacks.  Williams appeared on the 2009 Hall of Fame ballot, but only received 1.3% of the vote.

I mailed to Williams on February 15 via A's Spring Training and got the cards back on February 25, for a 10-day TAT.

On a personal note, Williams was a huge name in our house back in the 90s.  My older brother, Philip, was a huge Giants fan.  He loved Will Clark and Matt Williams.  Maybe Philip will send some cards off on his own and get back a few autos.  Maybe?

Another TTM Success From Roger Craig

I had gotten Tony LaRussa on this 1990 Score "Lights Out Candlestick" card commemorating the earthquake during the 1989 World Series and thought it would be cool to add in the opposing manager.  So, I sent off to Roger Craig and paid his $5.00 fee.  I'm really glad I sent it off.  I doubt I will add any other signatures to the card, but you never know.

I mailed to Craig on January 23 and got the card back on February 23, for a 31-day TAT.

TTM Success - Ray Black

I got another Spring Training TTM back pretty quickly after I mailed it from Giants pitcher, Ray Black.  I had sent a wave of 2019 Topps out in the hopes of adding a couple to my Topps ledger.  I ended up getting quite a few back, which is a lot better than I did last Spring Training.

Black (b. 1990) has played in the majors since last season.  He went 2-2 with a 6.17 ERA and 33 strike outs.  He was a 7th round pick in the 2011 June Amateur Draft by the Giants out of the University of Pittsburgh.

I mailed to Black on February 6 and got the card back on February 19, for a 13-day TAT.

TTM Success - Bob Speake

I added another nice vintage card to my album with this TTM success from Bob Speake.  The old 1950s cards really scan well, especially the red ones.  I do enjoy the solid red backgrounds sometimes.

Speake (b. 1930) played in the majors in 1955 and 1957 to 1959 for the Cubs and Giants.  He had 170 hits, 31 home runs and a .223 batting average.  He was actually acquired by the Giants from the Cubs in exchange for Giants legend, Bobby Thomson.

I mailed to Speake on June 4 and got the card back on June 14, for a 10-day TAT.

TTM Success - Al Worthington

This TTM success from Al Worthington was really interesting in that he swapped out the cards I sent (1964 and 1965 Topps) for the above multi-signed 1959 Topps San Francisco Giants team card.  deceased guys on here, notably Daryl Spencer), so I was amazed that he swapped it out.  There is a possibility that this is someone else's card, but seeing the TTM returns of him, it could also be something he had.  He is known to add extras with TTM requests, and he is also known to lose stuff, so I don't know.  I looked at the list of TTM requests for him on SCN and sportscardforum and didn't see a missing 1959 Giants team card, so I assume he gave it to me on his own.

He also included two signed religious tract post cards, which look nice.  He seems to be a great guy, and I really appreciate him going the extra mile to send stuff out.

Worthington (b. 1929) played in the majors in 1953, 1954, 1956 through 1960 and 1963 through 1969 for the Giants (New York and San Francisco), Red Sox, White Sox, Reds and Twins.  He had a record of 75-82 with 834 strike outs and a 3.39 ERA.

I mailed to Worthington on May 24 and got the cards back signed on June 7, for a 14-day TAT.

TTM Success - Jim Howarth

Here is another TTM success that I received recently, a 1974 Topps card from Jim Howarth.  I didn't have much for him, but the card works, and I don't have a ton of 74s in my album.

Howarth (b. 1947) played in the majors from 1971 to 1974 for the Giants.  He had 49 hits, 1 home run and a .217 batting average.

I mailed to Howarth on March 26 and got the card back on April 10, for a 15-day TAT.

TTM Success - Ellis Burks

I participated in another private signing on sportscollectors.net when I sent off this 1999 Topps Ellis Burks.  Originally, I wanted to get Burks on a 1987 Topps, and could have sworn he was in that set.  BEFORE I checked the checklist, I searched my box, but couldn't find his 87.  It turns out, he has a card in 1987 Topps Traded, but not in 1987 Topps.  Instead of giving up on Burks altogether, I decided to go ahead and send a card anyway, so this 1999 Topps made the cut.

I always liked Burks.  I thought he was a really underrated player, and ususally could be counted on when playing baseball on Sega.

Burks (b. 1964) played in the majors from 1987 to 2004 for the Red Sox, White Sox, Rockies, Giants and Indians.  He had 2,107 hits, 352 home runs and a .291 batting average.  He was an All Star twice (1990 and 1996).  He finished 3rd in the 1996 NL MVP voting when he led the league in runs (142), had 211 hits, 40 home runs and batted .344.  He was aided by Coors Field, but those are still very impressive numbers.  He was also a Gold Glove Award winner in 1990.

I mailed to the private signing for Burks on February 16 and got the card back on March 22, for a 34-day TAT.  I paid a fee of $15/card.

TTM Success - Gary Lavelle

I received a nice TTM success of late 70s to early 80s cards from Gary Lavelle.  I had quite a bit to choose from for him, so I sent 6 cards.  Each came back signed in blue Sharpie.  The above 1976 Topps is pretty cool with the empty stadium shot behind him.

The backdrop for this 1978 Topps is an out of focus empty stadium.  He also is rocking a really nice retro Giants jersey.

We see more retro Giants jerseys and two more empty stadiums on these cards.  It is kind of funny that he has the same backdrop in four of the six cards.  Maybe its just me.

Lavelle (b. 1949) played in the majors from 1974 to 1985 and 1987 for the Giants, Blue Jays and A's.  He had a career record of 80-77 with 769 strike outs and an ERA of 2.93.  He was a two-time All Star (1977 and 1983).

I mailed to Lavelle on March 1 and got the cards back on March 12, for an 11-day TAT.