SoCal Autograph Odysses

 Anyone that denies that opening cards is essentially gambling is wrong.  It is gambling.  Most unopened cards cost quite a bit of money, and even if you're guaranteed one autographed card, there is a good chance it will be a player that hardly covers the cost of one pack.  My mom asked me what I wanted for Christmas a few weeks back so I told her I wanted a Hobby Box of the 2019 Panini Diamond Kings.  She gave me a budget to spend so I couldn't go picking Bowman and cards at that level.  Plus, as I have mentioned before I do kind of like the DK cards since I'm a fan of the artwork.  A DK Hobby Box guarantees one auto card and one memorabilia card per box.  A few packs into the opening, I found my auto "hit".  Luis Ortiz of the Baltimore Orioles?  I literally had no idea who this guy was and he actually came up as the second Luis Ortiz listed when I Googled him.  It is very, very rare for me not to know the name of a player.  M...

 My son was given three different boxes of baseball cards for Christmas.  Two of the three boxes guaranteed an auto and the other was 2020 Bowman Chrome, which was a blaster box.  The blaster box did not provide any hits, and the Panini Contenders was a bit of a dud as well, with Austin Shenton the auto hit.  He's a prospect I had never heard of.  The most expensive box was the hobby box of 2020 Panini Diamond Kings, and this box had a couple cool pulls.  The first pack had a Dale Murphy DK Originals autograph numbered to 50. Dale has a nice auto and as always I enjoy the artwork on the DK cards.  The second hit in the hobby box was a quad relic (four pieces of game used jerseys) Buster Posey hit.  Memorabilia cards are rarely worth anything but it's still cool to pull a future hall of famer when you can.  Overall, a bit of an underwhelming day of pack opening but the whole thing is about enjoying time with my son and getting him into the hob...

 The second of my most recent through the mail requests came back today.  NBA Hall of Famer Lenny Wilkens, who made the hall both as a coach and a player.  He was kind enough to sign the card with the HOF '89 inscription.  I sent three cards out a couple weeks ago and a few days ago received the first hit, HOF NFL lineman Bob Lilly.  Two successes in a three day span is a good omen for perhaps being three for three on this go around, though the third is definitely the least likely to get back.

 In the last couple weeks I sent three more through the mail requests to Hall of Fame athletes.  The first one came back in about ten days, and it is former Cowboys defensive lineman and member of the all time NFL 100 greatest players, Bob Lilly.  Mr. Lilly was kind enough to add the HOF 80 inscription that I requested as well.  This one will be going in my displayed cards case.

 It was Black Friday a couple of weeks ago.  In the past, that would mean a good chance of adding a few items to my collection, but since I have added so many players both through Ebay and through the mail, as well as some high ticket items in Trout, Mantle, and Hank Aaron, I went the cheap rout this year. As such, I only bought a photo of my favorite player on my favorite team, Anze Kopitar of the La Kings.  Fanatics was having an up to 70% off sale, so I pulled the trigger on this beauty.  This will go nicely with my Kopitar signed puck and Upper Deck card.

I found what I thought was a good price on this Eloy Jimenez Topps Museum Collection Archival Rookie Card auto.  Jimenez seems undervalued right now, and I got this card for around $25. Other comparable cards I am seeing are closer to $45-50.  Jimenez was a bit forgotten since the White Sox have so much young talent, but I think he has the talent to be a perennial all star and push this card to a higher valuation. 

 A few weeks ago I saw that Steve Martin was going to be joining a Zoom conference call to market and discuss a new cartoon book he released with former New Yorker cartoonist Harry Bliss called "A Wealth of Pigeons".  As this is an autograph blog, it wont surprise you to find out that as part of joining the Zoom call, I received a free autographed copy of the book.  The autographs were dual signed by both Martin and Bliss, and were actually on signed stickers they put in the book.  I should mention that Henry Winkler actually hosted the event and asked all of the questions.  It was done in almost the exact way as the Jim Carrey one I attended and got his signed book from.  My plan is to cut the Martin auto and combine it with my Martin Short auto and make an ensemble similar to the Tom Hanks and Carrey autos I now have. Thank you for reading. 

 I have previously made mention that I've gone to a few second hand stores in my area recently to see if I could find some signed books.  I bought a Dan Brown signed Origin book.  I saw a Jenny McCarthy signed book but left it on the shelf.  These books cost only a couple bucks.  One stop I made was to the Disabled American Vets store in downtown Oceanside a couple months ago and found a signed Billie Jean King. It is a pre-signed sticker, meaning she signed X amount of stickers and then the publishers stuck them into the books.  This was a $1 purchase.

 I found some signed NFL cards on Ebay, a couple of them costing only a couple bucks a piece.  The most expensive card, understandably so, was an autographed relic Antonio Gates card, with a little bit of the Charger's notorious powder blue jersey slabbed in the card.   This Gates card is numbered 37/50 and is from 2020 Panini Illusions.  It actually looks better than this in person, because the colors really pop on it.  The second card is from current Washington Football Team rookie back Antonio Gibson, who has arguably been the top rookie back from the 2020 class up to this point.  This is a 2020 Panini Elite card numbered 142/199.  This kid just tore up the Cowboys on Thanksgiving day so I wonder if it would have cost me more than $3.99 plus shipping if I had purchased it now instead of a couple weeks ago.  I considered this to be a cheap way of prospecting without having to deal with the exorbitant prices that the rookie QBs always fetch....

 I am going to work on a mini project, but to start off this project I needed to somehow find a Martin Short autograph, so I settled on a signed book.  If you follow along on this blog, you can probably see where this project is headed but this time there is a twist.  I'm going to cut the auto from the book, and then combine it with a Steve Martin signed book I'll be getting soon as part of a Zoom meeting I sat in on and watched in which Steve talked about a new book he has coming out. I want to do a joint cut signature ensemble with the two buddies, Martin and Short.  I will post photos from the auto I end up with from Steve Martin as well as photos of the Zoom call itself.  It's always fascinating to get glimpses into the mind of some of these celebrities.  I of course will follow up with a picture of the completed project too.

 My dad is in town, and since he happened to come in from Middle of Nowhere America, he was able to find some retail baseball card boxes for us to open at a Walmart he visited.  Here in San Diego county, there is almost never anything of importance on any retail shelves, and it makes me think the Panini Diamond Kings 2017 box I found (and pulled an autographed David Wright materials card from) was just a complete and utter fluke.  Unfortunately, the Ebay sellers know when the product is stocked on the local shelves and swoop in and buy everything so they can make a profit on Ebay.  It is frustrating as all hell if I'm being honest. Anyhow, my dad bought one blaster box of 2020 Topps Gallery, two boxes of 2020 Panini Contenders which guarantees one auto box, and two mega boxes of 2020 Bowman Platinum, which also contains one auto.  Going into the pack openings, we were well aware that the autograph check list is quite large, so it was likely we'd end up with some...

 In the last ten days I've hit big on my through the mail send out three times.  The first was NBA Hall of Famer and Lakers/UCLA legend Gail Goodrich.  The second was the greatest NFL wide receiver of all time, Jerry Rice.  The third was arguably my happiest hit.  I've tried sending to NFL QB (and great TV commercial guy) Peyton Manning three times.  The first time was a couple years ago and the second time was earlier this year around the time the pandemic first hit.  Every time I have found a cheap card on Ebay that lends itself to a better signature if he were to sign in black sharpie, which he tends to do.  This third time I sent the letter to his foundation again, with the requested donation again, and on a Colts card in which he is wearing the away whites for autograph purposes.  I sent my third attempt around ten weeks ago so did not know what to expect.  Needless to say I was excited to see that in the mailbox one of my letters h...

 Much like the Tim Raines autographed card, I found another bargain bin Hall of Fame buy for under $10.  I did not have anything signed at this point for the former starter/reliever Dennis Eckersley, which is a bit odd since he isn't stingy on signing.  Eventually I'll also get a baseball signed by him as well to add to that collection.  I like the look of the Topps Museum collection. #69/199

 I'm going to file this into the cheap, but a Hall of Famer nonetheless category.  I recently went on an Ebay binge where I was finding cheap auto cards left and right, and one of those was a Tim Raines auto for eight bucks.  Tim Raines isn't considered one of the elite Hall of Fame members, but despite his autograph being pretty saturated in the market I didn't have anything signed by him.  I missed him in person at the 2016 All Star Fan Fest (recap  here ), where he signed for a couple of people but quickly left an area where he was accessible.  I found a cheap alternative, and the on card auto looks good.  This one will go into my Hall of Fame card case, which is rapidly expanding via through the mail successes and cheap Ebay finds.

I mentioned a couple months ago that I had sent some through the mail requests to some major stars in their respective sports.  Today, I received one of them back. It's always more fun when you aren't real optimistic you'll be getting a signature sent back and then one day you check the mail and something unanticipated is sitting there. I know Jerry Rice does send back, but he isn't a guaranteed hit. When I opened the envelope I noticed it was thicker than what I usually get in return. There was a note in there stating that Mr. Rice was thankful for all the support but that he couldn't sign the card I sent. Instead, he had pre-signed cards and sent those out. I don't care that he didn't sign my exact card! I was stoked to get a return from the great Jerry Rice. I harp on this all the time, but it deserves repeating. I don't sell my autographs. I am always thrilled to receive anything from these athletes who take the time to sign for their fans. I don...

 I saw that NBA Hall of Fame and Lakers retired number member Gail Goodrich had been recently returning some through the mail autograph requests.  I took a shot and sent a Fleer UCLA basketball card to his address and hoped for a return.  Last night, I had a returned envelope in the mail and found this; I actually now have a lot of the elite Lakers in my collection.  Goodrich goes with Kareem, Shaq, Magic, and Jerry West. The other four are all signed photos, but I am running out of room to display many of those so have pivoted to card recently. 

As previously mentioned on this blog, I got a Tom Hanks signed book "Uncommon Type" book and wanted to put it together in a way reminiscent of the Jim Carrey signed book I did this summer.  I brought the cut of the auto, as well as a Forrest Gump photo I found on Ebay, to Hobby Lobby to frame.  I picked the colors for the mats, told them where I wanted the cut to be, and in ten days they did their thing.  The result of the process was fantastic.  I'm not really a collector of celebrities, but the outcome of both my Carrey and now Hanks cut autos was so good that I wouldn't mind doing something similar for someone like Robin Williams.

 I purchased a couple more Topps Museum Collection Champions League cards because I really like the look of these cards.  It's the same set that Virgil Van Djik came from.  Added were Senegalese defender and current Napoli star Kalidou Koulibaly. This guy is being pursued by most of the elite clubs in the world, and turned down a move to Manchester City during the past transfer window.  As you can see, this card is also a relic auto, containing a piece of game used jersey.  This card was numbered to 126.  It's kind of a random number as usually they are of 10, or 25, or 35, etc.  The other player I added was Real Madrid winger Lucas Vazquez, who also plays for the Spanish national team. I mostly added the latter card because it wasn't expensive more so than any knowledge of the player himself.  The extent of my knowledge of most players outside the Premier League is based on playing against them in FIFA. Also, the little white napkin piece on card...

 I think my second soccer auto will probably be my best get for awhile, until someday I decide to pay for a signed Messi photo or something similar.  To make matters even better, Liverpool Football Club are my soccer team.  I was able to find what I believe to be a bit of a steal on a Virgil Van Djik signed triple relic card.  VVD is the best defender in world soccer.  The three pieces of jersey are I assume from one of his Champions League games but I'm not sure.  

 I have many contemporary stars of Major League baseball already in my autograph collection, but one of the guys I wasn't ever able to get in person at Petco Park was Max Scherzer.  I actually often had trouble trying to get any of the Nationals when they visited San Diego, and think I pretty much always got shut out in my pursuit of Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, Bryce Harper, et al.  They used to always stay at the Hilton which is right across from Petco Park, and I'd park myself along with a lot of other collectors between both edifices in hopes I'd had good luck but always got skunked.  I did end up getting Strasburg through a family friend who happens to be friends with the Strasburg family, which you can rehash  here . Harper and Juan Soto are going to eventually be my targets, but I was successful in adding a fair priced Topps Max Scherzer memorabilia auto card.   Numbered 15/25

 This post will be my first about venturing out into a new realm of sports autographs.  Soccer is far and away the most popular sport on the planet, and it isn't particularly close.  Over the last five years or so it has gradually morphed into my favorite sport to watch on tv, tied with hockey.  I've never purchased any soccer products because it isn't readily available in the US like the other major sports, and because a lot of the products I see are MLS related.  I'll preface the rest of this post by saying you won't find MLS related autos being added to my collection, as it is approximately the 8th best league in the world and I like to focus on the elite.  I have been eyeing soccer autos (from a card standpoint) for quite some time now.  I haven't yet made the leap into signed photos or jerseys and the like because many of these autographs come from across the globe and it makes me more hesitant to pull the trigger on something without the authenti...

It's apparent to anyone that collects or likes to buy sports cards that the big name retailers (Target, Walmart, etc) are often pillaged of their sports cards by Ebayers.  It is almost impossible to find any type of good sealed products like hobby boxes or blaster boxes or even single packs.  People who sell the products on Ebay know when these stores are stocked and come in and wipe out their inventory before people like myself can come in and even buy one box of something.  On the rare occasion I do find something kind of cool, I may buy it.  On a trip to Walmart during the summer I found a Panini Playbook football blaster box.  I thought it was $20 but when I went through the register it was actually $30.  Walmart doesn't do a great job of keeping their card section organized. What made the box more enticing to me is that you are guaranteed one memorabilia (jersey patch cards most often) or better yet, autographed card per box.  When I opened the bo...

 I picked this beauty up on Ebay the other day.  A Panini Flawless Signatures Clayton Kershaw numbered to 25. This is my second signed Kershaw item, the first being the signed Major League Baseball with his Triple Crown inscription from 2011.  I ordered that ball from a public signing Clayton did in Houston in 2012 at the Tristar show.  That purchase ended up being a shrewd move, as this card nine years later cost me about the same to buy now as that ball did then.   To rehash from an older post, here is the Kershaw ball I am speaking of;

 This past weekend I was surprised to open the mail and find a package from the offices of Major League Baseball.  I had sent a letter of request to the commissioner of baseball Rob Manfred back in May, so after some time I stopped expecting to get this one back.  I realize he isn't exactly the most popular figure in sports with a lot of the decisions recently making controversial changes to the game, but I still think it's quite a significant add.  There aren't many commissioners over the history of the sport, and most if not all end up in their corresponding halls of fame.  

 Most of the signed cards I've been posting on this blog are relatively cheap, or acquired through the mail for free (or a small donation).  This one was not, but I see it more as an investment because I do think this kid is on the path to stardom and any memorabilia of his is only going to escalate to Mike Trout territory.  Trout signed cards can't be had without shelling at least a few hundred dollars, and that is extreme low end and lucky if you find it at that level.  

 As people who follow this blog know, I am a member of some Facebrook groups that specialize in different areas of the autograph game.  One of the groups is called Autographs 101, and I have been seeing some people posting in that group that they have been having some success in finding signed books at places like Goodwill or the DAV.  I was driving by one the other day, and for the first time in my life I stepped foot into one of the stores.  It was moderately successful, as I found a hard copy book of Origin, which is the recent book in the Davinci Code, signed by author Dan Brown.  The price point for these signed books by Mr. Brown are all over the place but apparently he's only had a few signing events in the US in his life, so it's not like he is a super common auto.  Either way, I paid the $2 for the book and brought it home.  I am not entirely sure what my plan is, as I don't really collect signed books.  You can't really display them....

 The second card I received as part of my last post is a Fleer card signed by Bobby Abreu in blue sharpie.  Both this card and the Todd Helton cost me less than $10 a piece.

 I jumped on another deal similar to the Joe Mauer card I posted about  here , and purchased a couple of signed cards of a pair of borderline MLB Hall of Famers.  I purchased these directly from a guy who has thousands of signed cards that he collects both in person and through the mail, and whom I see post items quite often on a couple of the Facebook autograph groups I am a member of.  The first card I am showing here is Todd Helton, and it's on an Upper Deck rookie card to boot.  

 I picked up a couple of signed Upper Deck cards of two of my favorite players in Kings' history. The first is a Jonathan Quick Artifacts card with two pieces of game used jersey included on it. This particular card is numbered 45/45.  Hockey people will know Quick has won two Stanley Cups with the La Kings, including winning the Conn Smythe as the Stanley Cup playoffs MVP in 2012.  He was the only one of the Kings' core four (Kopitar, Doughty, Brown, Quick) that I did not have an autograph of quite yet, so I was happy to spend a little more on this card than I anticipated.  Quick has made a pretty solid case as a potential Hall of Famer when he retires. The second card is a little bit of a throwback, to a multiple time all star from the late 90's early 2000's, Ziggy Palffy.  Ziggy was my favorite King during that era of team history even though by casual fan standards he is probably a bit obscure.  This card was available for under $10, so I thought what t...