TTM Success - Andruw Jones

When I take part in a private signing, they don't always have to be someone in the 1987 Topps set.  Sometimes, if I see one at a decent price and/or if I have a nice card I want done, I'll send in for the signing.  When I saw one come up for Andruw Jones, I decided that I would spend the money to get this 2003 Topps 205 done.  The card looks amazing.  It may be one of the best TTM signed cards that I have gotten back, and I have gotten some really good ones.  Jones has a great signature, and on this card, it looks amazing.

Jones (b. 1977) played in the majors from 1996 to 2002 for the Braves, Dodgers, Rangers, White Sox and Yankees.  He had 1,933 hits, 434 home runs and a .254 batting average.  He was a 5-time All Star (2000, 2002, 2003, 2005 and 2006) and a 10-time Gold Glove Award winner (1998-2007).  He led the NL in home runs in 2005 with 51 and his best MVP finish was 2nd, that season, behind Albert Pujols.

Jones has appeared on the last 3 Hall of Fame ballots (2018-2020) with this year's vote total (19.4%) being the highest he has received.  I'm sure his vote totals will increase in the coming years, but in the end, I doubt he is a Hall of Famer.  His drop off after his age-30 season was remarkable.  It really is a shame, too.  He was on pace for Hall of Fame numbers, for sure.

I mailed to the signing on May 30 and got the card back on July 17, for a 48-day TAT.  I paid a fee of $24.99 for the signing.

Amazing Mail From Ryan

I got a really cool package in the mail the other day from Ryan over at O No Another Orioles Blog who recently took a trip to Japan.  Among some of the Orioles cards that I definitely needed was the above 2003 Topps 205 Polar Bear mini.  This is a really awesome card that scanned so well.

Ryan included some Japanese cards as well, above you can see the back of the Koji Uehara card that I got.  I thought this was so cool!  He also included Tsuyoshi Wada, Dennis Sarfate, Sherman Obando, Davey Johnson and a couple other former Orioles.

One of the coolest-looking Japanese cards that Ryan sent was the below 2012 Genesis Dennis Sarfate.  This one looks so cool.  I'm really amazed by the stuff Ryan sent.  He's a really good guy and if you haven't traded with him before, you definitely should!

Thanks again, Ryan!  I really appreciated all of the stuff you sent!