TTM Success - Travis Adams

A signed 2026 Topps came back TTM from Travis Adams after I sent it to him at Spring Training. There isn't a whole lot going on with his signature, but it is signed and in the album now.

Adams (b. 2000) had played in the majors since 2025 for the Twins. He has a career record of 2-4 with 63 strike outs and a 6.94 ERA.

I mailed to Adams on February 14 via Twins camp and got the card back on March 25, for a 39-day TAT.

TTM Success - Doug Jennings

This 1989 Topps that I got signed TTM by Doug Jennings turned out great. The A's cards in the 1989 set always looked cool. I guess it's how the green and yellow team name and player name ribbon really pop on the card. 1989 will always be a good-looking set in my opinion. 

Jennings (b. 1964) played in the majors from 1988 to 1991 and 1993 for the A's and Cubs. He had 65 hits, 5 home runs and a .202 batting average. 

I mailed to Jennings on October 30, 2024, and got the card back on March 24, 2026, for a 510-day TAT.

TTM Success - Scott Ruskin

This 1993 Topps card of Chris Ruskin came back signed looking nice from a TTM submission I sent out not too long ago. I'm surprised that I'm still finding new guys who sign TTM out of some of those Junk Wax Era cards. 

Ruskin (b. 1963) played in the majors from 1990 to 1993 for the Pirates, Expos and Reds. He had a record of 11-9 with 146 strike outs and a 3.95 ERA. 

I mailed to Ruskin on March 7 and got the card back on March 23, for a 16-day TAT. 

TTM Success - Mike Hartley

A couple more Junk Wax Era cards came back signed TTM; these.were from Mike Hartley. He signed the above 1993 Topps and the below 1994 Donruss.

Hartley (b. 1961) played in the majors from 1989 to 1993 and 1995 for the Dodgers, Phillies, Twins, Red Sox and Orioles. He had a record of 19-13 with 259 strike outs and a 3.70 ERA.

I mailed to Hartley on February 6 and got the cards back on March 20, for a 42-day TAT. 

Another TTM Success From Mark Parent

Some more Junk Wax Era cards were added to the autograph album when I got these three cards back from Mark Parent. He signed the above 1990 Topps, and the 1990 Fleer and 1989 Topps below.

He also signed a 1996 Fleer for me, but I sent that along to my friend, Max, for his Cubs collection. 

I had gotten Parent before back in 2020. He had actually signed a 1989 Topps in that return, as well, but that one was in black Sharpie. This one is in blue, so I'll take that as an upgrade.

I mailed to Parent on February 25 and got the cards back on March 19, for a 22-day TAT. 

TTM Success - Mike Harkey

Some older cards from the Junk Wax Era were added to the autograph album when I got these back signed TTM from Mike Harkey. He signed the above 1989 Topps and the three cards below: a 1992 Topps, 1994 Score and 1993 Fleer Ultra. 

Harkey (b. 1966) played in the majors in 1988, from 1990 to 1995 and 1997 for the Cubs, Rockies, A's, Angels and Dodgers. He had a record of 36-36 with 316 strike outs and a 4.49 ERA. He finished 5th in the 1990 NL Rookie of the Year voting. 

I mailed to Harkey on January 31 and got the cards back on March 19, for a 47-day TAT.

TTM Success - Ralph Garr

This 1971 Topps Braves Rookie Stars card is now complete, since I added Ralph Garr. I was able to send to him TTM after getting Rick Kester back in March. The card came in, and I turned it right around to Garr.

Garr (b. 1945) played in the majors from 1968 to 1980 for the Braves, White Sox and Angels. He had 1,562 hits, 75 home runs and a .306 batti g average. He was the NL batting champ in 1974 with a .353 average. He was an All Star that season. He had 200 or more hits 3 times in his career (1971, 1973 and 1974). His best finish in the MVP race was 12th in 1974 (NL). 

I mailed to Garr on March 2 and got the card back on March 17, for a 15-day TAT. I paid his fee of $5.00.

Another TTM Success From Mo Vaughn

Mo Vaughn has taken up signing his mail again, so I sent a couple mid-90s Topps cards out, and got them back signed. I like this 1997 Topps (above) due to the landscape position of the photo. 1997 had been a tough set to add to the autograph album, mainly due to the small size of the set and my having very few extra cards from it.

I also sent this 1996 Topps that turned out well. The design is basically, but 1996 is still a decent set.

I mailed to Vaughn on November 24 and got the cards back on March 16, for a 112-day TAT. I had also sent his 1991 Donruss The Rookies card, but he sent that back unsigned.

TTM Success - Bryan Rekar

Here are a couple Topps cards of former pitcher, Bryan Rekar that came bacl signed TTM recently. He signed a 1996 and a 2002 Topps.

Rekar (b. 1972) played in the majors from 1995 to 2002 for the Rockies, Devil Rays and Royals. He had a record of 25-49 with 383 strike outs and a 5.62 ERA.

I mailed to Rekar on November 25, 2024, and got the cards back on March 13, 2026, for a 473-day TAT.

TTM Success - Tony Richie

A nice 2004 Topps of Tony Richie came back signed TTM recently. I found the card in my broken 2004 set that I got from the former LCS and sent it out. Not much to his autograph, but Ruchie did sign it, so that's fine.

Richie (b. 1982) was a 4th round pick by the Cubs in the 2003 July Amateur Draft out of Florida State. He played in the minors from 2003 to 2008, all in the Cubs system, reaching AAA. He had 287 hits, 17 home runs and a .260 batting average. 

I mailed to Richie on February 28 and got the card back on March 10, for a 10-day TAT. 

TTM Success - Trevor Bauer

He's controversial. However, when I saw a private signing pop up with Trevor Bauer, I jumped on the chance to add him to my autograph album. I picked out a 2011 Bowman Chrome to send out... and he missed the card during the signing. I got my card back unsigned, but the promoter sent me two replacement autographs. One was the above 2013 Bowman and the other was the below 2021 Topps.

I would have been fine with just one card, but the promoter went above and beyond to keep me happy.

Bauer (b. 1991) played in the majors from 2012 to 2021 for the Diamondbacks, Indians, Reds and Dodgers. He had a record of 83-69 with 1,416 strike outs and a 3.79 ERA. He won the NL Cy Young Award in 2020. A polarizing figure even before the allegations levied against him, he probably will never pitch in the majors again.

I mailed to the signing on February 11 and got the cards back on March 9, for a 26-day TAT. The promoter also offered me a refund, which I declined. The extra auto was more than enough. 

TTM Success - Mike Dyer

This 1995 Topps of Mike Dyer came back signed TTM in March after waiting for a while. However, the card turned out nicely. I still rather like the 1995 Topps set; that was definitely in my heyday of collecting as a teenager.

Dyer (b. 1966) played in the majors in 1989 and from 1994 to 1996 for the Twins, Pirates and Expos. He had a record of 14-18 with 154 strike outs and a 4.60 ERA.

I mailed to Dyer on October 4 and got the card back on March 9, for a 156-day TAT.

TTM Success - John Parrish

Another former Oriole signed some cards for me TTM. John Parrish signed three cards for me: a 2001 Upper Deck, 2001 Topps and a 2007 Upper Deck. The above 2001 Upper Deck is a really sharp card. I really like this set, and when the cards get signed, they usually turn out great.

Parrish (b. 1977) played in the majors in 2000, 2001, 2003 to 2005, 2007, 2008 and 2010 for the Orioles, Mariners, Blue Jays and Royals. He had a record of 14-14 with 225 strike outs and a 4.51 ERA.

I mailed to Parrish on November 26 and got the cards back on March 5, for a 99-day TAT.

June 20, 2026, Graphing of the Jumbo Shrimp at Bulls

On Saturday, Jesse and I made the trip to Durham to try and get a few more Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp out of my boxes. We also wanted to get more Durham Bulls done as well, but it was a tough night, since there weren't many people there graphing who knew the faces of players on either side.

Still, we did really well. We were able to get a couple guys on rehab, Griffin Conine and Graham Pauley. We also got Karson Milbrandt, who wasn't with Jacksonville the last time they came.

We missed most of the Durham guys we needed, but it was ok, we had a good time and will head back up there soon.

Something sweet happened to me, too. I was wearing my Alien Face hugger shirt that says "Free Hugs" that Mal got me a while back. A woman walked by us as we were graphing outside and saw it and said "I'm going to put your shirt to the test." Of course, I had forgotten what shirt I was even wearing, and as I realized "oh yeah, that shirt", she had pulled her little boy aside and told him to read it. He read it out loud "Free Hugs... oh!" and threw himself at me, much like my niece Ada does. It made my night. Little guy was probably her age, 4 or so. It was a pretty cool moment. All I could say was "Aww, thank you buddy".

In all, we got the following autographs: Griffin Conine x 2, Braxton Garrett x 5, Karson Milbrandt x 7, Gage Miller x 9, Graham Pauley x 3, Jared Serna x 11, Josh White x 1, Henry Bonilla x 2, Mason Englert x 1 and Cooper Kinney x 4 (45 total autographs).

TTM Success - John Harris

Here are a couple early 80s cards that came back signed TTM by John Harris. He signed my 1982 Topps (above) and 1981 Topps (below).

Harris (b. 1954) played in the majors from 1979 to 1981 for the Angels. He had 31 hits, 5 home runs and a .258 batting average.

I mailed to Harris on February 23 and got the cards back on March 5, for a 10-day TAT. 

TTM Success - Dennis Werth

Here are a couple cool cards that I found in my box and sent out TTM. They are sugned by Dennis Werth. He has a nice signature, and both cards look good.

Werth (b. 1952) played in the majors from 1979 to 1982 for the Yankees and Royals. He had 29 hits, 3 home runs and a .209 batting average. He is the father of former major leaguer, Jayson Werth.

I mailed to Werth January 2 abd got the cards back on February 24, for a 53-day TAT.

TTM Success - Josh Butler

This is a random 2010 Topps that I found in box. I saw that Josh Butler signed TTM, so I sent it out. This is another card signed with a dying Sharpie. It isn't as bad as some autos I've seen.

Butler (b. 1984) played in the majors in 2009 for the Brewers. He had no record, with 3 strike outs and a 9.00 ERA. He got into 3 games.

I mailed to Butler on March 30, 2022, and got the card back on February 19, 2026, for a 1,422-day TAT.

TTM Success - Branden Florence

A random 2003 Topps that I found in my box came back signed TTM by Branden Florence. Normally, here is where I say the card tur ed out nicely. However, Florence needs a new Sharpie, as it seems his is on the way out. Still, the card is signed, and I can't really complain. I'm still appreciative that he took the time to sign for me.

Florence (b. 1978) was an undrafted player who played in the minors from 2001 to 2007 and 2009 in the Giants, Orioles, Phillies and Angels systems. He reached AA. He had 684 hits, 57 home runs and a .310 batting average. While his batting average was pretty good, he was generally one of the older players in each league he played in, which could have skewed his numbers.

I mailed to Florence on February 6 and got the card back on February 18, for a 12-day TAT. 

June 6, 2026, Graphing of the Knights at Bulls

Yesterday, Jesse and I made another trip to Durham, this time to see Charlotte. I hadn't seen the Knights in a long time, so it was nice to get some White Sox guys into my autograph album. 

Scott Aldred helped me get some older Topps cards out of my boxes. The 1992 Topps gold turned out great. I was also glad to finally get Dustin Harris on something other than team set cards.

Chad Pinder was one of the best "gets" we got. I had been told that he would be one per, but he did almost whole pages for us.

I had pulled almost every Pinder card I had last season when he was managing Kannapolis. I missed him, and had to dump his cards into the Box-of-Shame. 

It was nice to get almost all of his cards done. Now they don't have to go back in the box.

Hagen Smith was another guy who almost signed everything we had. I think I have one extra card of his left. Jesse impressed everyone when he was the only person who was able to get Everson Pereira to sign. He only signed for Jesse, but it was cool.

Finally, I chipped away at the Bulls team set. I also got a handful of other cards signed by the Bulls guys.

I was kind of disappointed that a good many Knights guys were on the IL. I have a lot of stuff left over. 

In all, we got the following autographs: Scott Aldred x 4, Dru Baker x 4, Dustin Harris x 4, Braden Montgomery x 2, Ben Peoples x 1, Everson Pereira x 1, Chad Pinder x 16, Hagen Smith x 10, Reid Brignac x 2, Bryan Broecker x 2, Michael Grove x 1, Brody Hopkins x 2, Cooper Kinney x 3, Austin Slater x 2, Chase Solesky x 2 and Owen Wild x 2 (58 total autographs).

A Signed Sammy Sosa From Max

My buddy, Max, reached out recently to let me know that a private signing was going on with Sammy Sosa for a really good price. The problem was, most of my Sammy Sosa cards were already at Max's house. So, he showed me several of them, and I picked this 1997 Topps to get signed. I have very few 1997 Topps cards in my autograph album, so it was an easy choice. 

The card looks great. I really appreciate how Max always looks out for me. Thanks for helping me get my card signed!