Autographed baseball cards

Aspie_Rocco · April 5, 2019 8:02AM

Greetings!
Part of my renewed “special interest “ in collecting cards has been a desire for autographed cards.
Obviously the “ROA” cards like in 2019 heritage authenticate them, but what about regular cards signed by players?
I bought a group of Pat Neshek signed cards on eBay, and just risked it.
I also got a Hoskins ROA (wow expensive) which I really like.
This morning I found a a few other Phillies autographed cards I want, but the suspicious side of me worries about;

How much should I pay for each?

Are they legit/ authentic?

Why are so many autos in blue pen/marker/ink?

The things I collect, I get because I like and want them. Re sale Liquidity is not always paramount but it is always a consideration when I am making purchases. Most items I get I keep long term, but occasionally interest fades, trades arranged or funds are needed. In my opinion this creates a necessity for a general established value which I apply to all collectibles from rare old coins to 2019 baseball cards.

Is there such a thing as spending like a frugal drunken sailor? (rhetorical humor, sort of...)

Thanks for reading
Rocco

AFLfan · April 5, 2019 8:10AM

Hard to say what you should pay. I collect autographed cards, but I opt for vintage football. I can say that the hobby generally prefers cards signed in blue Sharpie, so that is likely why you see them so frequently. I have read posts saying that blue Sharpie is preferable over black to the point that cards signed in black are difficult to even sell, but I don't know that to be true. I have never minded black Sharpie.

poppincurbs · April 5, 2019 8:37AM

Go for "pack pulled" autograph cards, i.e. they came out of the pack signed directly from the manufacturer. Your Hoskins is an example of this, and usually somewhere on the card it is stated "Certified autograph issue". If you compare that to your Neshek Heritage, that is not there...meaning that was a simple base card that someone got signed IP (in-person).

Now Pat is one of the most gracious signers/TTM signers (through the mail) so those are authentic IMO, but for most other players you would need to be way more careful if buying cards that were signed IP.

Blue usually pops best and is the preferred color for most people on most cards. The prices will be all over the place pending the player/card/etc. Also pay attention to whether the autograph is "on-card" (like your Hoskins) or some companies/products use "sticker autos" which are literally stickers they put on the cards that the players have signed. (Many only prefer "on-card" autos.)

My advice with all collecting is to narrow it down and be pretty specific on what you want, otherwise it can get overwhelming. So if you like the Phillies, maybe go for only "Phillies on card autos"...or if you wanted to narrow it down even more, you have 2 "Heritage" products already and could just shoot for "Phillies Heritage autos", etc. Good luck!

doubledragon · April 5, 2019 9:25AM

These days if you want anything nice, then you have to spend some money for it. Buy whatever makes you happy Rocco. I Also have spent a lot recently on cards, but they make me happy. Trust me its worth it.🤗

Aspie_Rocco · April 5, 2019 1:15PM

Thank you everyone!

@poppincurbs thank you for the ttm comment. I inferred the abbreviation, googled it, then the Phillies address lol.
Great idea!
I went through my duplicates then I
Just mailed out a small group of letters with sase, card, personal letter, and a coin from my raw collection with each request.
Lol a bunch of Phillies will (hopefully) open up a letter and see an uncirculated 1939 Nickel. Perhaps it will make an impression worthy of an autograph. If not maybe it will inspire a new coin collector.

depcs · April 5, 2019 3:03PM

Check out this site for TTM. Well worth the $15 a year.
http://www.sportscollectors.net/default.aspx

depcs · April 5, 2019 3:03PM

Check out this site for TTM. Well worth the $15 a year.
http://www.sportscollectors.net/default.aspx

CdnOsfan · April 5, 2019 3:19PM

Be careful, I recently had to return a Mike Mussina autograph 8x10 photo (rejected by JSA) and next is a 1969 Topps Earl Weaver autograph RC rejected by PSA. Not a lot of money but Earl was $48 and $10 for PSA. Both sellers insist they were good and I think Earl might be, but I would like my $48 bucks back. I wasn't going to get the Mussina authenticated but it looked suspicious when I got it. I have bought a few IP autograph cards on eBay for a couple dollars each. At that level they are probably safe and I have got several slabbed with no issues.....Doubt many people are forging $2 or $3 autograph cards.

Aspie_Rocco · April 25, 2019 9:16AM

@poppincurbs
Thank you again for the TTM idea! I have sent out 31 requests as of yesterday.
The only reply so far was from the AWESOME Pat Neshek (and he is the only one I did not ask for an auto)

I have bought a few more autos, all 2019 Gypsy Queen though, as prices are lower.

I had my youngest daughter pick a blaster

And she pulled this Bazooka back numbered auto!
So the next day I had her select a heritage blaster and she pulled this!!! She is good luck!

After the expenses of postage and materials it is almost easier to buy the lower cost autographed cards on eBay, but there is something thrilling about TTM! I wrote to all my favorite players so far, and then began to sort through doubles and triples of my Heritage / Gypsy cards, and have been mailing those out also. I have even worked on my Japanese writing for the players native to Japan requests.

The first few requests I only added one card. Now I include 2-3 cards for the players to keep an extra or two.

Do they GIVE free baseball cards to the players depicted on the cards? I always wondered about that.

DBesse27 · April 25, 2019 3:50PM

Hi Rocco, awesome stuff. I have hundreds upon hundreds of signed cards, but I’ve started to weed some out, beginning with sticker autos. I think all the advice you got earlier in this thread is spot on. It will be a lot of fun following your growing auto collection!

Quick question: as I begin selling off parts of my auto collection, will you want me to keep you appraised of any Phillies on-card autos I’m parting with? If so, just drop me a pm.

poppincurbs · April 26, 2019 10:22AM

@Aspie_Rocco congrats on the TTM response from Pat! He is literally THE BEST when it comes to TTM signing. I typically only send 1 card, sometimes 2 if I know it's a guarantee return and want to push my luck. Players rarely want extra, so I wouldn't waste space in the envelope. (Btw I hope you aren't sending these all First Class in bubblers as that will add up very quickly.)

You just need 1 large white envelope, 1 small envelope (the small one is the "SASE" with your return address on it), 2 stamps total, 1 handwritten note, and the card! I usually check this site for addresses, it's free but you have to register:

https://www.sportscardforum.com/

It is very important not to waste your time/$ on players who you have no chance with. (I.e. Jeter/Bonds/Pujols/etc). So I recommend looking up players you are interested in on that TTM Baseball section, and seeing what the % return rate is. You can see the success rate/most recent success. Obviously most the current big time stars you won't have much luck with, but some young guys or retired guys sign quite a bit. Good luck.

Aspie_Rocco · April 26, 2019 10:51AM

I joined that site but I am not sure what to do next. Looks like the TTM thread is closed? Unsure how to navigate there. Everything I opened was closed years ago.

I have been sending envelopes with 2 first class stamps on outside and one inside on the sase with an extra 15¢. Or some fun stuff like these

I got some static from the local post office on a few letters I took in personally, they had top loaders in them, so I began adding more stamps just in case they tried “postage due”
I did stop sending top loaders after a while.

I tried a lot of newer players, rookies, non-all stars, and all the Phillies except Harper.

@poppincurbs said:
@Aspie_Rocco congrats on the TTM response from Pat! He is literally THE BEST when it comes to TTM signing. I typically only send 1 card, sometimes 2 if I know it's a guarantee return and want to push my luck. Players rarely want extra, so I wouldn't waste space in the envelope. (Btw I hope you aren't sending these all First Class in bubblers as that will add up very quickly.)

You just need 1 large white envelope, 1 small envelope (the small one is the "SASE" with your return address on it), 2 stamps total, 1 handwritten note, and the card! I usually check this site for addresses, it's free but you have to register:

https://www.sportscardforum.com/

It is very important not to waste your time/$ on players who you have no chance with. (I.e. Jeter/Bonds/Pujols/etc). So I recommend looking up players you are interested in on that TTM Baseball section, and seeing what the % return rate is. You can see the success rate/most recent success. Obviously most the current big time stars you won't have much luck with, but some young guys or retired guys sign quite a bit. Good luck.

poppincurbs · April 26, 2019 11:03AM

@Aspie_Rocco you just need 1 forever stamp on each envelope, def don't use a toploader. In my experience it does more harm than good, either by causing the USPS automatic sorter to rip your envelope, the signer signing the top loader (face palm), and most often the signer shoving the signed card back in too quickly and causing smearing. (Which I can't really blame them, they are in a hurry, it just sucks when it happens)

Go to the "TTM Manager" at the top, then the "Baseball' tab, and you can see "Recent Successes" or search individual names you are interested in sending to. Fanmail.biz is the other site I use, but here is the direct link for SCF that should get you there, if you have registered on the site, and approved by a mod: https://www.sportscardforum.com/scfttmm/ttmm/recentsuccess/1/2

Aspie_Rocco · May 2, 2019 4:02PM

Does anyone know how much $ Pat Neshek needs to facilitate Phillies team autos, like one for each player?
I heard he does this at times and I want to try.

mrmopar · May 3, 2019 7:01PM

If you want autographs in bulk and are not too picky about not getting any of the better players, TTM is probably a great option for retired players and a lot of the lesser known current players.

Buying cheap certified autos can really fill in collections as well. For example, I collect Dodger autographs and have gone and bought a ton of cheaper certified autos in the $1-5 range. When I first dove into the project of trying to get a signature from every LA Dodger player, I was finding guys who only had brief appearances with the team in sets like 96 Leaf or Signature Rookies and this was a great way to get a certified autograph as most of these would never be found on a Dodger card. You can find all star level players for only a few bucks each on ebay and COMC sites in many cases. Don't expect star players, but if you shop wisely, you can even find some decent stars and HOFers for under $10 at times too.

Now, as soon as the Dodgers sign a new player, I look for their cheapest (or nicest cheapie) certified auto and grab it, regardless of the team shown, then I can look for a Dodger card or something better later and not risk missing a guy's signature because I was waiting for the right card.

Aspie_Rocco · May 4, 2019 11:35AM

That is a clever approach @mrmopar

Aspie_Rocco · May 12, 2019 10:05AM

So far, of the 60 TTM requests I mailed out, Pat Neshek is the only reply in 35 days.
One letter came back with the postage ripped off the front, note to self do not use old or supplemental stamps?
Maybe I am doing something else wrong in the process or presentation of my letters and requests?
Or perhaps all the players are busy playing lol.

mrmopar · May 12, 2019 12:09PM

The season is getting into swing. If you just sent to active players, then you'll probably need to be more patient. Depending on who you picked, you may even only get a handful back. Retired players are probably best during the season and I suspect you'll have more success after the season or during spring training with active roster players. Only assuming, as I have not sent to an active player since I sent one to Steve Garvey back in 1980-81 time frame.

poppincurbs · May 13, 2019 6:08AM

That's why doing your research on who actually signs TTM is well worth it, that way you don't waste your time, and $ on cards/postage... On that site I tried to sent you to, you can even get an idea of how quickly they sign by the turnaround time.

CdnOsfan · May 13, 2019 1:03PM

A few of my faves...

DBesse27 · May 13, 2019 2:22PM

@poppincurbs said:
That's why doing your research on who actually signs TTM is well worth it, that way you don't waste your time, and $ on cards/postage... On that site I tried to sent you to, you can even get an idea of how quickly they sign by the turnaround time.

This, a thousand times over! Join sportscollectors.net at the cost of only $15 per year. Using their database of addresses and return results, I’ve never NOT had a card returned!

Aspie_Rocco · May 14, 2019 5:15AM

@DBesse27 said:

@poppincurbs said:
That's why doing your research on who actually signs TTM is well worth it, that way you don't waste your time, and $ on cards/postage... On that site I tried to sent you to, you can even get an idea of how quickly they sign by the turnaround time.

This, a thousand times over! Join sportscollectors.net at the cost of only $15 per year. Using their database of addresses and return results, I’ve never NOT had a card returned!

Yes I joined that site when you first mentioned it, but I had already mailed out about 20-30 requests at the time. I now use it to more carefully select candidates.

DBesse27 · May 14, 2019 5:56AM

@Aspie_Rocco said:

@DBesse27 said:

@poppincurbs said:
That's why doing your research on who actually signs TTM is well worth it, that way you don't waste your time, and $ on cards/postage... On that site I tried to sent you to, you can even get an idea of how quickly they sign by the turnaround time.

This, a thousand times over! Join sportscollectors.net at the cost of only $15 per year. Using their database of addresses and return results, I’ve never NOT had a card returned!

Yes I joined that site when you first mentioned it, but I had already mailed out about 20-30 requests at the time. I now use it to more carefully select candidates.

Good!

baseballfan · May 16, 2019 9:03AM

Nice O's !!!

frankhardy · May 19, 2019 6:20AM

Sportscollectors.net is an absolute must.

Aspie_Rocco · November 1, 2019 8:25PM

Finally got another one back! Max Muncy of the Dodgers signed and returned a 2019 heritage card this week. Thanks Max!

BriYo79 · November 2, 2019 12:10AM

I hate to be a freeloader, but I really only need info on one player, Brian Downing. Are there any recent successful TTM from him?

mccardguy1 · November 2, 2019 6:08PM

@Aspie_Rocco said:
Finally got another one back! Max Muncy of the Dodgers signed and returned a 2019 heritage card this week. Thanks Max!

Very nice return.

You do have to remember many current players let their mail stack up and answer it during the off season when they have more time. I would not be surprised to see you get more returns here soon. And as a FYI, you want to make the autograph process as easy as possible for the player. When I was doing through the mail autographing, I used to just put the card in the envelope with a nice handwritten letter without a top loader or penny sleeve. Without any card protection it just makes it so much easier for the player to sign your card and stuff it back in the envelope. Remember, the easiest you can make it on the player the better.

As for my best return when I was doing TTM back in the day...I would have to say these two.....

Autographed baseball cards

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