Rick Kester, Dave Baldwin and Justin Morneau Fan HQ Signing Return

Today I received a very nice return from Rick Kester, despite having sent to him just a few weeks ago.  I ended up with several 1972 Topps Braves Rookie Stars when Jimmy Britton returned an old request I had given up on as well as a more current request.  Both requests had two 1972 Topps in them, so I ended up with four.

I split those four into two requests of two cards each to Kester and House.  House returned one request, and I sent those on to Kester.  I still have one request out to House to finish the other two.  Confused?  Yeah, me too.

Anyway, Mr. Kester was very generous and wrote me a nice note as well.  He also completed a 1971 Topps already signed by Ralph Garr.

I received a sad return from Dave Baldwin.  I sent three cards and received a note that he's been very ill and will be focusing on his health and no longer signing autographs.  However, one of my cards was signed, in a similar style that he has signed in the past, but much more fluid and legible.  I'm guessing a family member thought they were doing a fan a favor, but I would have preferred they not sign the card.

I can't imagine it was actually signed by him.  Here's his signature from a request I sent five years ago:

I received a lot of items back from Fan HQ that I sent in for a Justin Morneau signing.  I have three bobbleheads I haven't unpacked yet, but I did unpack and scan the cards.  I sent seven cards.  Unfortunately, one was smeared, but they are going to get it signed by him again soon.  They were kind enough to include the 2013 Archives for free.

The two 2010 Topps Heritage cards completed my Twins team set for that year.  Here are the other cards in that set.

I'll post the three bobbleheads once I get them unpacked and photographed.  Hopefully tomorrow.

Luis Arraez Mail-In Signing and Vern Law TTM Returns

Things are pretty slow because I just haven't sent out many requests.  Just a couple here and there.

Today I received a nice return from ever-reliable Vern (Vernon Law), who signed a 1962 Topps Pirates team card as well as a 1966 Topps on which he added a ton of inscriptions.  I included $20 with my request.

The team card was previously signed by Roy Face, Bobby Shantz, Bill Mazeroski and Bob Skinner.  All good players and all great ttm signers.

I also received a 2020 Allen & Ginter signed by Luis Arraez back from a Fan HQ signing.  I thought it was steep at $49, but I guess it's appropriate for a three-time batting champ, with a .354 average in 2023 and a decent .334 for the Twins in 2019.  It came with a Beckett Witness Authentication sticker at no extra charge.  

I was disappointed when the Twins traded him.  I wonder if they thought his hitting was a fluke and wanted to cash in on his "luck".  Carew was a big fan of his, and he's probably a decent judge of hitters.  Luis is barely 28 years old, so he could win a few more batting titles before he's done.

I never met Arraez in person at TwinsFest or any other event.  I have added some of his signed cards through purchases though.

Pete Hamm and Tony Kubek TTM Returns and a Mill Creek Purchase (Carew and McMahon)

I got a little greedy and sent to Pete Hamm again.  I just couldn't resist another opportunity considering he has been such a hard autograph for the 22 years I've been collecting autographs.  I'll use this duplicate 1971 Topps to attempt to get Nettles to complete it and if I lose it, I won't be as upset.  I'm glad to have him on a team card as well.  Unless he continues to sign ttm reliably for a long time, there probably won't be many team cards with him on them.

I'd really like to know the story of how someone who hasn't signed for over 20 years all of a sudden not only starts signing but also signs and returns 20+ year old requests.  I wonder if I asked him in a letter if he would reply.  Maybe I'll give it a shot.

I still see his autograph listed online for over $100, and even at $250.  Maybe I'll get one of the 1972 Topps I have authenticated as well.

I also received a return from Tony Kubek, who signed a 1972 Topps Rookie of the Year award.  Mr. Kubek was overwhelmingly voted the 1957 A.L. Rookie of the Year, with 96% of the vote compared to 4% for second-place Frank Malzone.

Mr. Kubek's signing fee is $35, which he requests be paid to his church, so my check was made out to "WELS".  He also wrote a short thank you note on my letter and said the fee would go towards helping those in need.

Some players charge, but don't say where the money goes.  But assuming some keep it, which is totally reasonable, I wonder how much money these guys make per year.  I have to assume it's definitely an amount well above that which should cause them to claim it on their taxes.  Take guys like Boggs, Rice, Sandberg, Baines, etc.  Hall of Famers that charge $10 to $20 per card.  Boggs had about $820 of signings listed on SCN for May.  I have no idea what percentage of ttm'ers use SCN, but let's say 25%.  That would mean he got about $3,280 in May.  If May is representative of the year, that would be close to $40k per year.  Add-in signings at shows and he's still making a not-insignificant amount of money just signing autographs.

Let's see, if $40k annually is consistent, that would cover the mortgage payment (principal and interest only, not taxes or insurance) of about $550k.  That's no mansion, but a typical house in many non-coast parts of the country.

Anyway, it's not a bad work-from-home job for these guys.  Good for them.  Especially the older players that didn't make the salaries that some of the above-mentioned guys made, and certainly not the salaries of today's players.  If you're Juan Soto, making $51,000,000 per year, what would you have to receive per autograph to make it worth your while to go sit at some hotel conference room and sign items handed to you by the unwashed masses.  I can't imagine there's a price point that anyone would pay that he'd think was worth his time.  In 2021, there was a signing posted on SCN where he charged $179 per.  If he signed 500 items, that's about $90,000.  I guess you can buy a decent car for that, but his taste in cars may be more expensive based on his salary.  I'm thinking Dodge Challengers, Ford Mustangs and Chevy Camaros or low-end Cadillac Escalades.  He's probably thinking Ferrari, Lamborghini, and McLarens.   I'd be thinking 1966 Shelby Mustang GT 350.

But I digress.

I received yet another Don McMahon slabbed autograph from Mill Creek, but this time it was a 1971 Topps instead of another 1972 Topps.  

I also ordered a nice 1974 Topps Rod Carew which is slabbed and graded.  I don't really understand the autograph grading.  It's not hard to get a grade of 10 on an autograph, but extremely hard to get that grade on a card itself.  Anyway, this card didn't seem to have much, if any of a price premium.  It's one of Mr. Carew's signatures post-heart transplant, which is actually a bit more readable than his previous signature but looks a bit more labored.

Here's a signature of his I got in person in 2010.

Dalton Jones and Rene Lachemann TTM Returns

Both of these requests were sent in bubble envelopes with the intention of including a pen, but it appears I forgot to actually include one with Dalton Jones request.  Either that, or something happened to the package along the way.

He was kind enough to sign five cards for me and used a great pen anyway.  He wrote on my note that he used a pen that he uses at card signing shows, so probably a sharpie or Staedtler.  Regardless, they look great.  I had enclosed $20 with my request, due to the number of cards and bubble envelope hassle, despite him not having a fee.

Rene Lachemann signed three cards I sent and also included an extra 1966 Topps.  He returned my pen as well as the $10 I sent.