TTM Success - Brett Oberholtzer

My friend, Michael, hosted a private signing recently with Brett Oberholtzer. I bought in and sent a couple cards; Michael also added a couple. The above 2015 Topps is one that I could have sworn that I had already gotten signed, but I don't see it anywhere.

I'm pretty sure Michael added the (above, left) 2009 Bowman since I sent extra cards. I didn't want any duplicates, but I was happy to provide some extras, in case Michael needed them. 

Oberholtzer (b. 1989) played in the majors from 2013 to 2016 for the Astros, Phillies abd Angels. He had a record of 14-23 with 220 strike outs and a 4.36 ERA.

I mailed to the signing on January 8 and got the cards back on February 10, for a 33-day TAT. 

TTM Success - Declan Cronin

Here is a nice recent card that I got signed TTM; a 2024 Topps Heritage Mini of Declan Cronin. I loved this year of Heritage, and the minis were a lot of fun.

Cronin (b. 1997) played in the majors in 2023 and 2024 for the White Sox and Marlins. He had a record of 3-5 with 80 strike outs and a 4.98 ERA.

I mailed to Cronin on January 24 and got the card back on February 9, for a 16-day TAT. 

May 24, 2026, Graphing of the Delmarva Shorebirds at Wilson Warbirds

Sunday, Chris and I jumped up and headed to Wilson to check out the new ballpark. Wilson is about 45 minutes from the house, and is now the closest affiliated team to me. I had waited to go to Wilson, as there aren't many guys on the team with cards, and the tickets aren't cheap.

I paid the $20/ticket and headed to the stadium. It is in an area in Wilson that will need a lot of work. We didn't have to walk too terribly far from out parking spot to get into the stadium. We got in and got one of the two Wilson guys I had cards of, Brady Ebel. He did one per for us, but I'll take what I can get. Graphing by the ramp to the dugout is tough there, and i can see there being huge issues when a bigger name is there. I also think it's crazy that this is a Low A team, and they charge as much for tickets as the AAA Bulls. Oof.

Chris and I did have a good time. We didn't stay for the whole game, as I was still tired from Durham the night before. I took my two Ebel autos and left in the 5th inning, went home and took a nap.

Sadly, the only autographs we got were: Brady Ebel x 2. Two total autographs. 

May 23, 2026, Graphing of the Nashville Sounds at Durham Bulls

Last night, I flew solo and went to Durham to catch the Nashville Sounds while they were in town. I was afraid the weekend would be a washout, weather-wise, but all we got were cooler temperatures and some fog.

I was prepared for a pretty stacked roster, and did fairly well on my own. With all the one per guys, it would have been nice to have another pair of hands with me to help, but it's all good, since Nashville visits Durham again in August, and they will be in Norfolk too.

I finally got JB Bukauskus, a guy that I've missed so many times. That Greg Jojes card at the middle of the bottom row is actually a foil card; the scan makes it look like it is a base card.

The Nashville guys were pretty nice, for the most part. I got ignored by Junior Fernandez, which sucked because I had a really cool red foil Topps Fire card I wanted to get signed. I really liked the foil card I picked up of Drew Rom (bottom, far right). He's a really cool guy, and always seems happy to sign.

I dod get several of the Brewers' top guys, like Jett Williams, Cooper Pratt and Brock Wilken. Tyler Thornburg didn't seem all that happy to sign, but he did. It was nice seeing a 2010 Bowman show up in my recap.

I also chipped away at the Durham Bulls team set. I got a couple of the staff guys, and also Raynel Delgado and Evan Reifert.

I also had no shame in getting Wool E Bull again.

I graphed alongside an older guy named Bo who sat with me during the game. The crowd was light, with most folks scared off by the cloud cover. I did have a great conversation with a kid who had a bunch of questions about graphing toward the end of the game. A nice kid named Judah who was visiting the area from Southern Maryland with his family. I hope they enjoyed Durham and made it home safely.

In all, I got the following autographs: JB Bukauskas x 6, Greg Jones x 2, Reiss Knehr x 1, Luis Lara x 3, Luis Matos x 2, Easton McGee x 2, Ethan Murray x 1, Cooper Pratt x 2, Drew Rom x 2, Jett Williams x 2, Brock Wilken x 2, Tyler Thornburg x 3, Craig Yoho x 1, Raynel Delgado x 2, Mason Englert x 2, Dominic Keegan x 1, Evan Reifert x 2, Dalton Payfer-Lockling x 2, Lucas Grennan x 2, Homer Bush Jr x 2 and Wool E Bull x 2 (50 total autographs).

TTM Success - Trevor Cohen

Here is another 2025 Bowman Draft TTM success, this time from Trevor Cohen. I like that Draft comes out in kind of the dead period of the offseason and gives me something to focus on with TTMs during that time. Cohen's cards turned out nicely.

Cohen (b. 2003) was a 3rd round pick by the Giants in the 2025 June Amateur Draft out of Rutgers. He has played in the Giants system since 2025, reaching High A. He has 76 hits, 1 home run and a .288 batting average across the two seasons, so far.

I mailed to Cohen on January 21 and got the cards back on February 9, for a 19-day TAT.

TTM Success - Andy Phillips

Here is a 2008 Topps Update that I got signed TTM by Andy Phillips. The card turned out nicely.

Phillips (b. 1977) played in the majors from 2004 to 2008 for the Yankees, Reds and Mets. He had 139 hits, 14 home runs and a .250 batting average. 

I mailed to Phillips on December 19 and got the card back on February 9, for a 52-day TAT. 

TTM Success - Alan Page

This 1976 Topps football card of Alan Page came back signed TTM recently. I picked him to send to TTM because I had read that along with being a football player, he also was a drag racer. I thought that was pretty cool, so in the letter I sent him, I mentioned who my dad is and how he has drag raced for a long time. I did get the signed card back, but nothing else. Maybe he read my note. Maybe he didn't. Oh well. I tried.

Page (b. 1945) played professionally from 1967 to 1981 for the Vikings and Bears. He was an 9-day pro bowler (1968-1976), and was an All Pro five times (1970, 1971, 1973, 1974 and 1975). He was the NFL MVP in 1971. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1988.

I mailed to Page on November 14 and got the card back on February 9, for an 87-day TAT. I paid his fee of $30.00.