Al Kaline - 1956 Topps

The 1956 Topps set isn't always great for autographs but this Kaline card came out pretty nice I think.  I received this back today after sending to him just seven days ago.

I have a few other Hall of Famers in this set:

Mike Cubbage Return

Today I received three cards back from Mike Cubbage who signed his 1976, 1978 and 1979 Topps.

I remember buying packs in 1978 and hoping to get cars of Twins players.  I seemed to only get Mike Cubbage and Butch Wynegar cards, and had a bunch of each of them.

Once I discovered TTM autographs, Butch Wynegar was one of the first I sent to.  I also sent to Mr. Cubbage, but not his 1978 card for some reason.

Tommy Brown - 1952 Topps

90 year old Tommy Brown signed his 1952 Topps for me in a little over two weeks.

His signature is very nice for his age, and way better than most of the current players, who have unrecognizable signatures.

Ryne Sandberg - 2008 Goudey

Ryne Sandberg signed his 2008 Goudey for me in 10 days.

I really like this set, and have been trying to get some of the retired players from it.

I've been working on it for quite a while but hadn't gotten any signed lately.

I was fortunate enough to have Harmon Killebrew and Rod Carew sign their cards in-person at TwinsFest in 2009.

Jim Kaat - 1964 Western Oil Nicholas Volpe Print

I don't know why I waited so long to send this out to Mr. Kaat, but he signed it nicely in just 11 days for his $25 fee.  He also included a nice handwritten note thanking me and letting me know that the donation would be used to support youth baseball and softball.

This is the seventh print I have signed from the 1964 set.  I also have 12 signed from the 1963 set.  All of the portraits in the 1963 set have black backgrounds, whereas the 1964 set has various colors.  I think I like the 1963 set a bit better, not because of the black backgrounds, but because they have a portrait as well as an action image of the player, whereas the 1964 set has two portraits. 

I had Mr. Kaat sign his 1963 portrait via a mail-in signing a few years ago.

I also have a 1970 John Wheeldon print that was a Super Valu giveaway signed by Mr. Kaat.  This was signed at an in-person signing in 2010.

Al Downing Finished Off The 1964 Young Aces Card

After getting Jim Bouton to sign the card a few weeks ago, I sent it off to Al Downing.  Mr. Downing signed and returned it in just under two weeks.

I missed watching the Twins over the weekend.  An unusually late snowstorm hit Minnesota, which postponed three of the four games against the White Sox.  I was mostly indoors over the weekend, except for snow blowing the driveway.  This was the view from my front door.

Another Bat Display Case

After a bit of a wait for the seller to get this back in stock, I bought another 5-bat display case for the wall.

I moved the other bat case to display right below it.

I normally hate to spend money on display items, as I'd rather buy more autographs!  But without these I have no good way to display my bats and they just sit in a corner gathering dust.  These cases are pretty affordable too, especially compared to other options I've seen.  I could use one or two more, but I don't have the wall space to put them.

Phil Garner Return

Today I received four cards back from Phil Garner in just nine days.  He was generous enough to sign his 1976, 1978 and 1979 Topps as well as his 2000 Fleer Greats of the Game.

I have a handful of requests still outstanding, so hopefully they'll come back soon.

Goodwill Find

I stopped in a Goodwill store today and came across a very used-looking baseball but decided to take a closer look.  It had a couple black sharpie autographs on it that I didn't recognize, but for 99 cents, I decided to take a chance. 

The ball isn't an official Rawlings Major League ball, but any leather-covered ball has to be worth 99 cents just as a baseball, right?

After looking online and trying to find players with the jersey numbers listed on the ball, I gave up and posted a picture of it on sportcollectors.net.  In just a few minutes, another member identified the signatures as Tommy Hanson and Jonny Venters, who played for the Atlanta Braves from about 2010 through 2012.

Unfortunately, Tommy Hanson passed away in 2015 due to issues with cocaine and alcohol.

I have no idea how an Atlanta Braves-signed ball made its way to Minnesota, but it made for an interesting find.

Jim Bouton Return

Today I received a couple cards back from Jim Bouton after about 12 days.

He signed his 1965 Topps Young Aces card, which I'll send off to Al Downing next.  He also signed his 1965 Topps World Series card.

Long Shots Returned!

I guess Ron Guidry shouldn't really be considered a long shot as he appears to be signing just about everything via the Yankee's spring training this year.

He was kind enough to sign his 1978 Topps and 2000 Fleer Greats of the Game cards for me.

The other return is really a long shot.  Solly Drake signed his only two Topps cards for me.  Mr. Drake has been a tough signer for a long time and doesn't typically do autographs shows.  I saw a return from a collector I follow on Instagram and he was kind enough to confirm the address he used was the one I had available.

Mr. Drake signed his 1957 and 1959 Topps cards.

Another Spring Return - Brandon Kintzler

Today I received another ex-Twin return from spring training.

Brandon Kintzler signed two 2017 Topps Heritage cards.  I had sent one for him to keep, but he signed and returned them both.

I have just two more requests out but they are both long shots.

Spring Training Return - Craig Breslow

I only sent out three requests to spring training.  The return rates for spring training have really dropped so I don't bother sending too many out.

Today I received my first return.  Craig Breslow signed his 2017 Topps Heritage in ballpoint.  I had included an extra for him to keep but he returned it unsigned.

Breslow signed from the Toronto Blue Jays spring training address.

Harmon Killebrew - 1964 Sport Magazine

I took advantage of the 20% off sale on Ebay last Friday and bought this Harmon Killebrew-signed Sport Magazine from 1964.  It is JSA authenticated.  It wasn't very expensive, so the 20% off amount to roughly free shipping.

I didn't have a magazine signed by Killebrew yet, so I"m happy to add this to my collection.

Joe Adcock - 1958 Topps

I received my other Ebay purchase today: a 1958 Topps signed by Joe Adcock.

There are a few other authenticated 1958 signed cards on Ebay that I have my eye on.  I may try to dig up some other stuff to sell to pay for those.

Harry Anderson 1958 Topps

I few weeks ago I sold a couple Brett Favre signed 8x10 pictures on Ebay and used the money to buy a few other things.

One of the things I bought was a 1958 Topps signed by Harry Anderson.

I have another signed 1958 Topps coming in the mail any day.  I still have over 100 to go to complete my set, but they're getting harder to come by and much more expensive.  Only a small number of the players I still need are still living.

Brooks Robinson - Again

Last time, I said it would be the last time I sent to Mr. Robinson, but I came across a 1972 Sport magazine with him on the cover and decided it would be a good time to upgrade my 1958 Topps, which he signed in black the first time I sent to him back in 2005.

This time I included a blue sharpie for him to use and he was kind enough to sign them both for me in nine days with $20.

Another Return After a Long Wait

After receiving a return from Jack Fisher after over 1000 days earlier this month, today I received another surprise in the mailbox.

Gene Alley signed his 1968 and 1972 Topps after 875 days.  The 1972 Topps is a little smudged, but not too bad.

It's fun to get these back after such a long time and after assuming they're never coming back.

This weekend is TwinsFest but I've decided not to go.  It's a lot of work and pretty exhausting, not to mention it can be expensive depending on how many autographs you get. 

The only autograph I will probably regret not getting is Jim Kaat.  I have a 1964 Western Oil print I"d like to have signed by him.  But it was announced that he's joined the Twins' organization as a special assistant or something, so maybe I'll have more chances coming up.

If you went to TwinsFest, please comment and let me know how it went.  I have missed my annual opportunity to say hi to Steve, Randy and Zane.

Bobby Shantz Return

I actually sent out a request! I wanted to do something other than just cards so I sent a 1953 Sport Life Magazine and 1958 Topps to Bobby Shantz.

He signed them nicely and returned them in just 6 days!

A Return After 1061 Days

I received a huge surprise in the mail today.  I haven't sent out a request since June of last year, so I didn't expect to receive any returns.

I received three cards signed by Jack Fisher after 1061 days.  I sent the request on February 9th, 2015.

Mr. Fisher signed his 1960, 1961 and 1963 Topps.