SoCal Autograph Odysses

 I opened quite a bit of sealed product during the course of 2022, so I wanted to do a recap of what I think my five best autograph pulls were. To be on this list, it has to be a signed card. I of course pulled cool rookie cards and numbered cards, etc. but those don't count towards the making of this list.  5 Honorable Mentions: Juan Marichal - Any time you pull a Hall of Famer it's a bonus. I also like Topps Heritage autos. Tony Oliva -The exact reasons as Marichal. Fabio Cannavaro - Getting one of the all time great soccer defenders is always a plus. World Cup champ, etc. Travon Walker -Pulling the first overall pick in the NFL draft's auto out of retail is fun. Camilo Doval /50 - High upside closer in MLB numbered /50, which puts him slightly over the other cards that just missed being mentioned.  1.  David Beckham This was quite the easy choice. This is probably my biggest pull of all time, as it as an easy four figure card. It came out of a retail box, which makes the

 Darrell Green was one of the first elite cornerbacks I remember growing up and watching in the NFL, and he was also one of two through the mail autographs returned to me right after Christmas.  This time I sent a 1999 Topps card, and I had to include a donation to his charity. I did the extra minor fee and asked for him to include the HOF 08 inscription as well. One thing I appreciated a bit more on this return is the fact that this is a player I actually saw play while he was active, unlike many of my recent returns with players who played before my time. 

 Arguably the biggest name of my recent through the mail batch is former Lions linebacker and member of the NFL's Greatest 100, Joe Schmidt. This return came back yesterday and was probably the oldest card I have ever sent through the mail. It was a 1959 Topps card, and came back with a very clean signature and the HOF 73 inscription. His signature is very clean for a man that is 90 years old. 

 I'm going to knock these posts out before Christmas, so the next card I'm going to post about is actually two  cards that came back from me from Hall of Fame lineman Joe DeLamielleure. No, I don't know how to pronounce it either.  Anyhow, I sent him one card and he sent me two back, both inscribed with his HOF 03 inscription. The former Bills and Browns lineman came through.

 The recent batch of through the mail requests I sent out over the last few weeks has been having successes come think and fast prior to the holidays. I have had returns coming back for three consecutive days and four times this week. The second of the returns was from former Chiefs safety and football Hall of Famer, Johnny Robinson.  This is another clean autograph with the HOF 2019 also inscribed, which is always a bonus. As you can see, it's yet another card from the 1970 set. I still don't know if it's a coincidence that I pick this set a lot or it's just the fact that it makes for easy autographs. Either way, I'm happy with this one. 

 A couple of autographs were also added in the last six weeks via purchases on eBay, including one of the best soccer players on the planet, Robert Lewandowski. This autograph was from the Bundesliga set I actually opened hobby boxes of and posted about around a month ago. It is a gold chrome autograph numbered /25 so I am happy to add this big card to my growing soccer collection. The other card I added around the same time was more of the bargain bin Hall of Fame variety, former NBA star and Hall of Famer Elvin Hayes. Any time I can add a Hall of Famer for the same cost it would be to buy a blank card and send it through the mail, or participate in a private signing, I'm more likely to partake in just buying it flat out for a good value on eBay. 

I recently got another through the mail request returned to me, this time from 49ers Hall of Fame linebacker Dave Wilcox. I chose a 1970 Topps card, which looking back I realize I have picked quite often for getting cards signed from the guys from that era. That was not a conscious choice so I assume I keep picking them since they make for good autographs. 

 Thanks to  Sports Collectors  as usual, I was able to partake in a pretty cool signing for a current superstar in the NFL, Minnesota Vikings receiver Justin Jefferson. When Jefferson was drafted I purchased a couple of is Panini Optic rookie cards to see if they would go up in value. News flash: they have.  As you can see, this is a chrome card so I had to prep it a little bit before sending it to make sure it wouldn't bleed with ink on it. Looks like it still did slightly, but I am overall pretty happy with how this turned out. I picked yellow as the autograph color since it is a Vikings accent color and thought it would look good on when contrasted to the purple and white of the Vikings' uniform. In my opinion, the yellow pops and makes this card look good.

 I recently made a couple of budget buys of two possible (probable?) NFL Hall of Famers in former Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers as well as former Rams receiver Torry Holt. I bought both of these on eBay, and for what in my opinion was a value, as I think both will likely end up in the Hall someday, bumping up their value.  The Rivers card is Upper Deck, which in and of itself drives the value down. Upper Deck is just really no longer a coveted company as it was in the mid to late 90's. The Holt is on the opposite end of the spectrum. This is from the Flawless set, the autograph is on the card itself, and it's numbered 6 of 25. Despite these facts going for it, this card was about $30, as was the Rivers. I'll take a beautiful card like the Holt and a probable future HOF QB for $30 many times over. 

 The second in my late November batch of through the mail requests came back recently, this time in the form of hockey Hall of Famer Bob Pulford.  As you can see, at what point Mr. Pulford was a player for the Los Angeles Kings, whom he later went on and coached, but his playing days were more known for his long stint with the Toronto Maple Leafs. He also later became the architect of the Chicago Blackhawks as well as their head coach. He was kind enough to sign this card with the HOF 91 inscription. It's a very clean autograph for a man that is currently 86 years old. 

 I was able to find another small batch of Hall of Fame athletes that I have yet to include in my autograph collection who also return through the mail requests. I sent these items out a couple of weeks ago, and the first one came back in just one week. Former Chargers offensive lineman and football Hall of Famer Ron Mix, returned a signed card with his HOF 1979 inscription.  This has aesthetic appeal to me because I absolutely love the Chargers old uniforms. The fact that Mr. Mix still lives in the San Diego area is also what helped get the return back so fast.