TTM Success - Brian Allard

My 1980 Topps Rangers Future Stars card is now 2/3 of the way complete now that it came back signed from Brian Allard.  I don't mind that it was signed in a different t color than what Jerry Don Gleaton used.  I think it adds character.

Allard (b. 1958) played in the majors from 1979 to 1981 for the Rangers and Mariners.  He had a record of 4-6 with 44 strike outs and a 4.23 ERA.

I mailed to Allard on March 25 and got the card back on April 12, for an 18-day TAT. 

April 13, 2024, Graphing of the BlueClaws at Crawdads

This past weekend, Jesse, Chris and I went to Hickory to catch some former Wood Ducks and see Phillies High A team, Jersey Shore.  I hadn't seen them before, so it was nice to pull some High A Phillies guys (and get everyone I pulled).

I had pulled a bunch of Anthony Gutierrez when I busted 2023 Pro Debut and 2023 Bowman Draft.  I got them all done; Anthony remembered us and was super nice.  Yeison Morrobel also remembered us and didnt sign a thing.  That was disappointing. 

Mitch Bratt also remembered us; he was ready to keep walking outside of the stadium when I called his name, but then he looked up and realized it was us, so he stopped and talked to us for a little bit.

Ian Moller may have been the most excited to see us, as we were able to tell by his reaction when he saw Chris.  "Oh sh*t!"  He was legitimately happy to see us and it felt good.

Sebastian Walcott had a terrible game, and didn't seem to want to stop, but Ian kind of helped us get his attention.   Walcott still skipped Chris, because Chris was still talking to Ian.  That made us miss a couple cards for some 50/50s, but none of them were shut out, so it should still be ok.

I had a good many of the Jersey Shore guys in my boxes, so it was good to move some cards.  Everyone we needed was really nice and signed all we had.

Finally, we got Adam Lind.  I had met up with my friend, Aidan, at the game, and ge got an extra Lind signed for me.  I was also glad to get some Brad Bergesen cards out of my Orioles boxes, which was great.  He was really nice, as well.

In all, we got the following autographs:  Mitch Bratt x 1, Cam Cauley x 5, Yosy Galan x 3, Anthony Gutierrez x 14, Ian Moller x 1, Julio Valdez x 3, Sebastian Walcott x 2, Brad Bergesen x 8, William Bergolla x 7, Emaarion Boyd x 5, Justin Crawford x 9 and Adam Lind x 4 (62 total autographs). 

Joe West Signed Baseball

My friend, Gerard, sent me this signed baseball that he got done for me recently of Joe West.  West is a former umpire who likely will be elected to the Hall of Fame at some point.  He missed out during the most recent veterans committee voting, but is likely to be the next unprecedented to get in at some point. 

West (b. 1952) umpired from 1976 to 2021, for a record 43 seasons.  He resigned during the 1999 Umpires strike, but was rehired in 2002.  Born in Asheville, NC, West later moved to Greenville, NC and attended ECU and Elon College.  He was part of the inaugural ECU football team, but transferred to Elon after that first season when the then ECU coach was fired.  He is a graduate of JH Rose High School in Greenville.

West umpired for a record 43 seasons and a record 5,460 games.  He umpired three All Star games (1987, 2005 and 2017) and six World Series (1992, 1997, 2005, 2009, 2012 and 2016).

Thanks for getting this ball done for me, Gerard.

Hall of Fame Signed Baseball - Peter Gammons

My good friend, Gerard, got this baseball signed for me by Hall of Fame sportswriter, Peter Gammons.  Gammons was a signer at a show near Boston, so Gerard took the ball for me and dropped it off so I could add another Hall of Famer to my collection.  My 173rd Hall of Famer on a baseball came as a result.  The ball turned out great, and Gammons added the HOF inscription for free.

Gammons (b. 1945), after graduating from UNC Chapel Hill, joined the Boston Globe in 1969, covering the Red Sox and/or penning national baseball coverage from 1969 to 1975 and 1978 to 1986.  He worked for Sports Illustrated from 1976 to 1978 and 1986 to 1990.  He joined ESPN as an on-air baseball analyst, and worked there until 2009.  He was selected for the J. G. Taylor Spink Award for outstanding baseball writing given by the Baseball Writers Association of America in 2005, enshrining him in the Hall of Fame.

Thanks for getting my ball signed, Gerard!

Another TTM Success From Casey Blake

While going through my boxes, I pulled some more Casey Blake cards to hit him TTM again.  The above 2004 Bowman Chrome refractor turned out great.  The card must have come out of the boxes from the former LCS, because I don't remember opening any 04 Bowman.  It's a nice one, though, and I'm glad it is now in the album. 

I also got a 2007 Topps Allen & Ginter, and a 2009 Upper Deck signed.  I don't have very many 2009 Upper Deck anymore, but that is a nice looking set.  I was glad i at least had one of someone who signed TTM.

I mailed to Blake on November 27 and got the cards back on April 11, for a 136-day TAT.  I had originally gotten Blake to sign TTM back in 2017.

TTM Success - Dave Matragna

Something I've learned is that these early 2000s thicker Bowman cards do not do well in the mail. The machinery seems to put crease lines on the cards.  Oh well.  This 2003 Bowman Dave Matragna card still looks cool, even if the USPS beat it up.  I'll probably get myself a sheet of non-machinable stamps and use those when I send out these thicker cards.

Matragna (b. 1977) played in the majors in 2003 and 2005 for the Astros and Angels.  He had 1 hit, 1 home run and 1 RBI.  His career batting average was .167.

I mailed to Matragna on February 6 and got the card back today (April 11), for a 65-day TAT.

TTM Success - Stefan Bailie

Here is a random 2005 Topps Update that I got signed TTM by Stefan Bailie.  He doesn't have much of a signature, but the card is signed, anyway.

Bailie (b. 1980) was a 4th round pick by the Red Sox in the 2001 June Amateur Draft out of Washington State.  He played in the minors from 2001 to 2005 in the Red Sox system, reaching AA.  He had 126 hits, 32 home runs and a .260 batting average. 

I mailed to Bailie on March 18 and got the card back on April 9, for a 22-day TAT.