TTM Success - Buck Showalter

It has been quite a while since I got one of my mailers back from a TTM request.  Honestly, I hadn't sent any off in forever, but because some good friends kept asking me if I was going to send something to Spring Training, I figured, why not?

So, I got my 69th TTM success today from the lone request I sent to Spring Training (making me 100%!), Orioles manager, Buck Showalter.  I'm a big fan of Buck's work and was very pleased that the Orioles extended him through 2018.  I remember when the Orioles were conducting their managerial search and some folks speculated that the Orioles would get Bobby Valentine.  I'm so glad they got Buck instead.

He led the O's to a 93-69 record and a playoff berth last year.  Overall, he has a career record of 1,078-1,018 over 14 seasons.  He is a 2-time manager of the year and barely missed out in 2012 to the A's Bob Melvin.

I'm so excited about this TTM success, you have no idea!  So, I sent to Buck via the Orioles spring training home (Ed Smith Stadium, Sarasota, FL) on February 19 and got the ball back today, making it a 9-day TAT.

Another Trade With Michael

One of the many perks of having this blog is that it has helped me make some friends among fellow collectors.  One person I have met recently is a guy named Michael, whom I traded with at Fan Fest in January.  Michael had his eyes on some of the signed post cards as well as a few game used baseballs I picked up while at Fan Fest.  In return for some of the post cards, Michael sent me the above Dontrelle Willis signed baseball.  I had a chance to get Willis a couple years ago off of Ebay for $0.99, but I drug my feet and missed out.  Dang.  Oh well, I have him now.  I was always a fan of Willis and I hate to see that his career has been derailed like it has.

Another ball I got from Michael was this Mark Reynolds signed ball.  I hate that Reynolds left the O's to sign with Cleveland, but I feel like losing his 200+ strikeouts paired with a returning Nolan Reimold makes his loss not as bad.  Especially if Nolan can hit the 30+ homers and drive in 100 like I feel he  is capable; All while batting 50-60 points higher than Reynolds.  Anyway, I still like Reynolds and am happy to add his auto to my collection.

Michael also threw in some signed tickets that he had, the above Darren O'Day and the below Johnny Damon.  O'Day is probably my favorite reliever on the O's right now, and Damon, well, he is just a great player, even though he isn't an Oriole.

Thanks for the trade, Michael!  I am amazed at the awesome O's stuff you have and I hope we can match up again on a trade!

Drew Comes Through - Harold Baines Signed Baseball

This counts as a completed trade.  I sent Drew a Jim Palmer signed baseball for his new HOF signed ball collection and in return, Drew sent me a signed ball of one of my favorite players, Harold Baines.  I met Palmer again this year at Fan Fest, and since I already had him on a ball, I checked with Drew to see if he would want him for his HOF collection.  He told me he was about to meet Harold Baines at a card show, so I decided that would be a good swap.

Baines was a former #1 overall pick for the White Sox in the 1977 amateur draft.  He played in the majors from 1980 to 2001 for the White Sox, Rangers, A's, Orioles and Indians.  He had 2,866 career hits, a .289 batting average and 384 home runs.

Jerry Reinsdorf, owner of the White Sox, has apologized to Baines on numerous occasions saying that he traded Baines several times into situations that cost him at bats that he would need to eclipse the 3,000-hit mark.  I do think that if Baines had 3,000+ hits, he would be in the Hall of Fame by now.  I think he might get an extended look via the veterans committee, but I doubt he will be enshrined.

Thanks for the trade, Drew!  I really appreciate it and I know we will be doing a lot more trading in the future.

COMC Pickup - 1971 Topps

I sold a decent amount of cards on COMC recently and had almost $30 in store credit.  So, I decided to use most of that to knock some pieces out of my 1959, 1969 and 1971 set needs.  A big card I still needed from 1971 was the above Tom Seaver.  I got this one for $3.50.  As you can see, it is a little rough, but for what I'm expecting from this set, I'm ok with it.

I also got card numbers 117 (Ted Simmons), 154 (Cesar Gutierrez), 175 (Jim Hickman) and 200 (1970 NLCS Game 2).  Not bad.  I now need 120 cards to complete the set, but a lot of them are high numbers, so who knows how long that will take.

Trading With GCRL

Another trade package was received yesterday when a mailer arrived from Jim over at GCRL.  I will be sending him the 2013 Topps black parallel Andre Ethier and 2013 Topps Matt Kemp SP on Monday.  In return, he sent me one 1959 Topps (above), the below O's Win the 1966 World Series from 1967 Topps, 7 1969 Topps and a few 2013 Topps Emeralds.

I really like this 1967 Topps 1966 World Series Highlights.  This will count in my Brooks Robinson PC as you can see him to the left leaping in the air.  He looks like he is flying!

I like this 1969 Topps Manny Mota due to it being awesomely airbrushed, as you can see the logo in his hat has been airbrushed out, but he is clearly wearing a Pirates jersey.

I can take a few more Emeralds off of my wishlist.  I need to count them again and see how much closer I am to completing Series One.  I know I'm not doing too bad.  I need to keep it up, as far as trades go, though.

Finally, another Brooks Robinson to add to my PC.  This is a 2001 Topps Tribute, which, surprisingly, I did not have in my collection.

Thanks for the trade, Jim.  I hope to get by the Post Office tomorrow and send your stuff on its way.

Another Trade With Kalib

I completed another trade with my new friend Kalib over at "Cubs Cardboard" recently.  I sent him some random Cubs cards, including a couple vintage ones.  He recently posted some trade bait on his blog, so I had to ask for the above Tim Lincecum relic for my son, Chris, and the below Andrew McCutchen 2013 Topps Blue parallel for my own PC.

I think the blue and yellow on the McCutchen really pop off of the card as you may be able to see in the scan.  I think they go really well together.  I definitely need to get more parallels from 2013 Topps!

Finally, Kalib also included some random Orioles cards that he found in a few shoeboxes and one of which was the above 1992 Score No Hit Club featuring the combined no hitter that was thrown on July 13, 1991 (21 years ago!!!).  Bob Milacki, Mike Flanagan, Mark Williamson and Gregg Olson combined to no hit the A's that night.  I really like this card because it features Mike Flanagan.  Flanny is still sorely missed by all Orioles fans, since he took his own life in August of 2011.  To me, that was probably the darkest of days for any Oriole fan in recent memory and it still is tough to think about.  I always feel bad for him and his family whenever I see his cards.  I plan on creating a PC of him sometime soon.

So, thanks again for the trade, Kalib!  I enjoy kalib's blog and I, again, recommend you all to follow it!

Trade With Roy

I completed another trade today when I opened my mailbox and saw a mailer from Roy from Plain Gray Swatch.  I sent him several Blue Jays cards in exchange for several (11) 2013 Topps Emerald parallels.  The above Adam Jones is especially sweet.  I think it scanned really well, don't you?  Roy recently posted a Desert Camo parallel of Adam Jones that I must add to my collection, so it appears that he and I should be matching up on a trade again really soon... unless he sold the card already.  We'll see.

Thanks for the trade Roy!