Jim Geddes and Roger Metzger Returns

I received two returns today to close out the month.

Jim Geddes signed his 1973 Topps in just nine days.  I believe this is his only card, and it's in the high number series for the set.  I added this card to my collection when I bought the near-complete set a few weeks ago.

And Roger Metzger signed his 1975, 1976, 1979 and 1980 Topps after a six-week wait.  My previous request to Mr. Metzger was in 2010, when he also signed four cards for me in a couple days shy of six weeks. 

I still have about 30 requests out from the last two months that I could reasonably expect to receive back any day, including some more unusual items from a couple Hall of Famers.  I'm also waiting on some cards back from mail-in signings that were originally scheduled to be complete a few months ago but were delayed.   I'm anxious to get those back as there are some Topps All Star Rookie cards included in those signings.

I hope to have some time tomorrow to write a few requests to get a good start to the month of August.

I overloaded a couple shelves in the Ikea armoires I use in my basement to store my cards.  The shelf pegs sort of stripped out of their holes and the shelves collapsed.  I ordered some shelf pegs that were a bit longer but required me to make the holes a bit bigger as well.  I completed that last night so hopefully it won't be a problem again.  It's surprising how heavy a few binders and boxes of cards can be! 

Jim Palmer Return

Just one return today.

Jim Palmer signed his 1975 Topps for my set.  I had enclosed $10 with my request. 

I also received a bunch of returns on Monday that I forgot to post, so I'll just picture them here:

Mike Shannon - 1965 Topps World Series

Despite there being two of my SASEs in my Informed Delivery email, only one of them made their way to my mailbox today.

The return I received was from Mike Shannon in care of the St. Louis Cardinals, who signed the 1965 Topps commemorating game one of the 1964 World Series.  He signed it in black ballpoint pen, which is nearly invisible against the busy background.  I wasn't sure at first if he had signed it or not.  

Mr. Shannon hit a two-run home run against Whitey Ford in the sixth inning to help the Cardinals tie the game, which they eventually went on to win.

For some reason I have it in my mind that he's tough to get ttm, but he has a success rate of about 73% on SCN.  I may be confusing him with Bill White, who has a 27% success rate.  Mike Shannon will typically sign just one card, sometimes two, and doesn't always return the other cards so there is some risk in sending to him.  I recommend just sending the one card you want signed, unless you have a couple and no preference if he were to sign just one of them.

He also seems to just use whatever pen he has handy.  Black, blue, even red is some cases.  Sharpie, ballpoint, etc.  So, you get what you get, which is fair considering he signs for free.

Last summer he signed his 1965 Topps for me, which turned out nicely in blue sharpie.

I believe I have his 1964 Topps rookie card around here somewhere.  His card-mate, Harry Fanok, appears to be a reliable signer but can take a while to return requests.  I may send that card off to Mr. Fanok, and by the time I receive it back, enough time may have passed to send to Shannon again.

I am quite curious about the SASE that was in my Informed Delivery email this morning but didn't arrive in the mailbox.  It is my typical SASE but had two stamps on it.  I don't recall adding an additional stamp to any of my requests.  The postmark is illegible in the image, so I have no clues as to where it is coming from.

My best guess is that it is from Jim Kaat, who signs via another person (his agent?), and that they put my card in a toploader, even though I didn't send it in one, and assumed it would need another stamp to make it back to me.

It is a "special" return, which means I put a little tick mark on the SASE so I know when I see it in the Informed Delivery email that it is a good one.  A "good one" means it's from a Hall of Famer, another special player to me, or a tough signer that would be surprising to get back.  

I had enclosed a check with my Jim Kaat request which was cashed a few days ago, which is another reason I think it might be from him.  Hopefully it will show up in my mailbox Monday.

Darrell Evans TTM Return

The ever-generous Darrell Evans signed four more cards for my collection, including his 1973, 1980, 1985 and 1987 Topps.  I'm surprised I hadn't sent the 73 sooner, as I'm running out of free signers to send to from that set, but better late than never,

I bought Juan Marichal's 1961 Topps rookie card on eBay last night.  I've been wanting one for a long time, but the cost was holding me back.  I decided I'd regret it if I never got this signed, like I regret not getting Kaline on a 54 Topps.  This one was much cheaper than Kaline's, and I used some credit card points to lower the cost some more.  I'll probably sent it ttm rather than wait for a signing, which should save me even more money, but adds a bit of risk to it getting done correctly.  He is a reliable signer and has always used a blue sharpie on my ttm requests, but maybe I'll send him one just to be sure.

Kyle Garlick and Tony LaRussa Returns

Today I received two returns from people active in the game.

Kyle Garlick signed two of his 2021 Topps Heritage cards for me.  I think this is the only Heritage card of his in a Twins uniform.  He is shown in a Phillies uniform in the 2020 set and didn't get a card in the 2022 set.

I also received a return from White Sox Manager Tony LaRussa, who signed his 2008 Topps Heritage All Star card.  This set copies the 1959 Topps design, and I've gotten a couple of these vintage cards back recently, including Bill Mazeroski and Orlando Cepeda.

Like my last request to Mr. LaRussa, it was postmarked from Minneapolis, which made me wonder if I'd actually get back a return from Justin Morneau, but then I remembered that the White Sox were just in town (and beat up the Twins pretty badly).  I'm impressed that he signs his mail.  He must be busy enough managing a team and all the travel associated with that.  He must have people to help him out with it especially if he takes his fan mail on the road.  It's pretty impressive and greatly appreciated!  Now what should I sent him? :-)

Hrbek and Tapani 1991 Playmakers Prints

Today I received two Playmakers prints from some FanHQ signings.

The Hrbek signing took place in the spring, (April, I think) which is when the Tapani signing was also supposed to happen.  There was some scheduling mix up though, so the Tapani signing didn't happen until recently.  I had sent both these prints in the same box, with the same return label, so I just got both of them back now,

I like these prints and plan on getting a few more done when possible.  I only have one box that they fit in well.  They can't be rolled, because the paper stock is too thick.  The box I've used to send them out is getting a few layers of tape built up, but it's still in decent shape.

These posters are hard to come by.  They aren't typically very expensive, but I just don't see them very often.  In addition to these two, I have Chuck Knoblauch and Shane Mack signed copies.  There are 14 different players available.  All of them are possible to get signed except for Puckett.  I believe these were made in 1991, so it's possible that there are some signed copies of Puckett out there somewhere, but I've never seen one.

Jose Cruz Jr. and Don Durham TTM Returns

I received two TTM returns to kick off the week.

I was surprised to see Jose Cruz Jr. successes being posted on SCN.  I had tried sending a couple cards to him back in his playing days, about 16 years ago, but never got them back.  He is currently head coach at Rice University, which is where I sent this request about a month ago.

Cruz played 12 years in the majors, winning a Gold Glove in 2003.

His father played for 19 years, earning a couple All Star selections and Silver Slugger Awards.

I also received a return from Don Durham, who signed his 1973 Topps, which is his only Topps card appearance, I believe.

Wilbur Howard Return

I received one return today to cap off the week. 

Wilbur Howard signed his 1975, 1976, 1978 and 1979 Topps in ballpoint.  The pen didn't work very well and there are several spots where it skipped and there is no ink at all.  The 75 is probably the worst.  I might send again if I see his returns coming back in sharpie.

Last time I sent to him, he signed one in ballpoint and the other two in blue sharpie.  I didn't get that lucky this time, I guess.

Some TTM and a Private Signing Return

I received four ttm and one private signing return today.

The private signing was with Rico Petrocelli.  I was really surprised that I ended up sending in six cards for this signing, but Mr. Petrocelli has a bunch of cards that fit in my collection.

He has a 1966 card with the Topps All Star Rookie Trophy on it, a 1968 card commemorating game six of the 1967 World Series, an All Star card in the 1970 Topps set, and individual cards from 1971 to 1973 for my sets.  I had sent in his 1965 Topps rookie card, but the promoter wasn't aware of the fact that Rico has an exclusive contract with someone to sign rookie cards.  To compensate me, the promoter refunded me the $12 per card fee, and also enclosed the 1971 Topps (which I already had).  I felt this was more than fair.

Rich McKinney signed his 1971 and 1973 Topps as well as the 1971 Topps White Sox team card.

I sent yet another card to Bill Mazeroski.  This time, it was a 1959 Topps All Star card.

I have a plan to send another item to Mr. Mazeroski, but I'm not going into detail in case it's a miserable failure.  I'm not sure what his reaction will be, but I'm hoping to save a lot in fees versus sending this item to a paid signing.

Davey Johnson signed his 1973 and 1975 Topps for his $5 per card fee.  I really like the action photos in the 73 set.  He also answered some questions in my letter and signed it.

Finally, Brent Strom signed his 1973, 1974, 1975 and 1977 Topps.