SoCal Autograph Odysses

 This card came neither by private signing, public signing, nor a through the mail request. I tend to lump these acquisitions into one post to avoid having to do so too often, but felt this player deserved his own standalone post. Dan Marino, former Dolphins QB and easily one of the greatest of all time, has been added to my autograph collection finally. I found a moderately priced modern card (2021 Prizm) and bought it. The card looks real clean and in person really pops. The light blue cracked ice really comes close to a team color match as well. This card is numbered 01/75. This is the type of card that would be awesome to hit out of a sealed box, and I've been wanting to add Marino to my collection for quite some time. I do keep an eye on his private signings but determined it was actually much cheaper to go the modern card route (albeit with sticker auto). Needless to say, this one is already in my case. 

 A couple of months ago, I found a good price on a Wander Franco Prizm rookie autograph card /99. For those that aren't aware, Franco has come under some legal scrutiny due to an alleged relationship with a minor, and the case and investigation are ongoing from both a legal and major league baseball perspective. This guy was one of the hottest, most sought after baseball players in the market but with the allegations came a huge cratering of his value. Ignoring the potentially scummy feeling of dipping my toe into that market, I found such a cheap card that I felt compelled to pull the trigger. The range of outcomes here is pretty straightforward. It is entirely plausible (perhaps even probable) that he will be found guilty of his discretions and his market and career will forever be sunk. In that case, I'm out a very tiny bit of money. However, in the unlikely scenario that his name is cleared and all is forgiven, what happens? When I say forgiven, I mean beyond the obvious le...

 I'd previously sent a request to Pirates and Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Bill Mazeroski back in the beginning of 2021, and it was successful as I got a card back signed from him. That original request was an Upper Deck modern card, and over time I've changed to wanting older players on cards from their era. As such, I decided recently to send a 1965 Topps To Mr. Mazeroski, as it was more representative of the era in which he played. It came back in the mail signed yesterday, along with his HOF 01 inscription. I am much happier with this result.  For comparison, here was the last one I was chose to send;

 I actually sent to a request to Bernie Federko, but for whatever reason, it wasn't successful. Sometimes mail gets lost on the way there or the way back. Sometimes mail gets stolen (which I've documented before). Many things can happen. Thankfully, my second request was successful and I got this back earlier this week.  As you can see, he was also kind enough to include his HOF 2002 inscription, which is always a nice bonus. 

 I did not put any of my through the mail autograph collection in the Top 10 list I posted a couple days back so it got me thinking. I wanted to try and formulate a list of  my ten favorite requests I've had returned to me over the years via the through the mail process. That means everything on this list was sent by me directly to the athlete, and I did not use a third party and participate in a signing. Much like the last list, the criterion I used to come up with this list can vary due to provenance or the story behind it, and it could also just come down to frankly what I thought my chances of getting my item back or the status of the athlete themselves.  Please check my Through the Mail Tracker  on this very blog to see every success I have ever had.  To date, I have 141 successes. I have six failures. I had to pare those 141 successes down to the list below. Let's get to it! 1. Peyton Manning This autograph was a slam dunk to make my list because Peyton M...

 I got my fourth, and last, return from private signings I was participating in mailed back to me recently. Keith Tkachuk, likely future Hall of Famer and someone I grew up watching, signed a 1991/92 Upper Deck World Juniors rookie card I sent in.  Keith is the father of two current NHL players, Matthew and Brady. As a Kings fan, I can say I cannot stand Matthew Tkachuk, who plays a power forward style of hockey that is a page right out of his dad's book. 

 As we creep toward the 50,000 page views mark on this blog, I thought I'd take the time to contemplate what my personal favorite pieces of my collection are. This is going to be a list consisting of items that are not necessarily ranked by value (though some of them are among the priciest items I have), but ranked as my favorites because of different factors. These factors can include things like the provenance of how it was obtained, my like of the athlete, their ranking among the world greats, etc.  Without further ado, here is my list in no particular order. Each name will have a link to their original blog post. 1. Lionel Messi Of course I have to start the list with one of the all time greatest players in their sport. When you are talking about a GOAT among the GOATS, that guy is going to make the list. This is a numbered /100 art piece signed by Leo for Icons, the foremost soccer/futbol associated autograph company in the world. Signed by both Messi himself as well as t...