My latest TTM autograph return came from White Sox Spring Training in Arizona. Gordon Beckham signed my 2010 Allen & Ginter in 41 days. The signature is in black Sharpie and it looks great. There are no smudges or blemishes. The signature itself looks like what it’s supposed to look like. The “G” and “B” are definitely present. Beckham is actually off to a pretty hot start with the White Sox. I still hope to get a few more ST returns throughout the year.
Pack 19 of my 2011 Topps Box yielded the following cards:
Andrew McCutchen
Mariano Rivera – 60 Years of Topps
Starlin Castro
RBI Leaders – Cabrera, ARod, Bautista
Gaby Sanchez – Diamond
Brian Bogusevic
Gaby Sanchez
C.C. Sabathia
Brett Anderson
Matt Garza – ToppsTown
This was a great pack for the Yankee fan as it yielded a Rivera, ARod, and Sabathia card. This was also a good pack for the Gaby Sanchez collector. But look closely. The two Sanchez cards have different photos and alas different card numbers.
Let’s see what came in Pack 20.
Clayton Kershaw – Kimball Champions
Paul Konerko
Cristian Guzman
Jose Ceda
Omar Vizquel
Paul Molitor – 60 Years of Topps
Chris Narveson
Melvin Mora
Jon Niese
Carlos Gonzalez – ToppsTown
OK, so this pack was a little less impressive. The inserts were decent, but the base cards were so-so. But it was a decent haul between both packs.
Pack 17 of my 2011 Topps Box contained base cards of Brad Lidge, Daniel Hudson, Chase Headley, Matt Lindstrom, John Danks, Pablo Sandoval, and Felix Hernandez. I might send the Hudson card off to get autographed TTM. The inserts were pretty decent. I got a Mark Teixeira 60 Years of Topps, Robinson Cano ToppsTown, and Michael Brantley Diamond card.
Pack 18 contained a Ryan Howard ToppsTown, History of Topps card, and a nifty Diamond Duos card of Jeter and Cano. That History of Topps card is the biggest waste of cardboard I’ve ever seen. I’ll trade that for 3 magic beans. The base cards included David Aardsma, Andres Torres, Tom Gorzelanny, Tim Hudson, Hunter Pence, Max Scherzer, and Michael Brantley. The Gorzelanny and Scherzer cards may be destined for a TTM auto. BTW, Scherzer really stunk it up today but so did Phil Hughes. Also, how did I wind up with 2 different Michael Brantley cards? Also, who is Michael Brantley?
I think that Pack 16 may have been even better. I’ll start off with a Kimball Champions card of Pujols. Then, I’ll add in a Diamond Giveaway card. There are also base cards of Ichiro and Ryan Braun. The ToppsTown card was Jose Reyes. Other base cards included Russell Branyan, Luke Scott, Brewers Team Card, Ronny Cedeno, and Johnny Cueto. I may try to have the Luke Scott card autographed TTM.
Between both packs, this was a pretty good haul. I ended up with Pujols cards in back to back packs and scored a Diamond Giveaway card.
My latest TTM autograph return comes from Orlando Hudson at San Diego Padres spring training in only 9 days. I received two cards back with a signature in blue Sharpie. The cards are a 2007 Upper Deck and 2010 Allen & Ginter. Hudson has been signing a lot during this spring training. This is a great looking return. Thanks to Mr. Hudson!
Pack 14 was much better. Inserts included a Ty Cobb Repro, Keith Hernandez Topps 60, and ToppsTown card of Ubaldo Jimenez. Hernandez is a broadcaster for the Mets these days after a great playing career so I’m keeping that card. That alone would beat pack 13. But wait, there’s more. The Ike Davis card is pretty cool, but the ARod card is the big grab in this pack. I’ll get to the end of this box eventually. I promise.
My latest spring training TTM autograph return comes from Jon Rauch of the Blue Jays. He sent my 2007 Topps card back in 16 days with a beautiful signature in blue Sharpie. 2007 Topps cards can be tricky to get signed but this one came out fine. This is one less Blue Jay to get during the regular season which means I have saved money by not having to send cards to Canada. Also, I don’t quite understand how to send international mail. Anyway, this is a great looking return. I hope to get a few more back in the next couple of weeks.
My latest TTM autograph return comes from Nyjer Morgan. This card came back from Nationals Spring Training in only 9 days. The card is a 2010 Allen & Ginter signed in blue Sharpie. I already owned a certified autograph of Morgan, but I wanted a TTM autograph also. Overall, the card is beautiful with no smudges or dinged edges. As an added bonus, the stamp on the return envelope was not canceled by the post office.
Pack 12 was almost as good. I got a Roger Maris card and a Trevor Hoffman Diamond card. Also, I got a Mariano Rivera card. The photo is pretty cool with Jorge Posada coming out to the mound. The ToppsTown card was Josh Johnson.
