TTM autographs received: Albie Pearson

I got my first success with Pearson back in 2014, but still had a couple of loose straggler cards I probably should send out sooner than never - I added $5 to my request and got my cards inscribed [rookie of the year and all-star] and signed about a week.

It seems kind of odd that he used two different pens - but I do like how he signed the vintage Topps card in a darker blue ink while he inked up the old-school retro 1978 TCMA The 1960's with a lighter ballpoint pen.

Featured autograph - Bob Bolin

The former MLB pitcher from the 1960s and 1970s signed my card in black ink - like my recent featured autographs, this was a TTM request I sent early in the year and got back as part of the mail that piled up when I wasn't home for 5 months.

"Post office sent this back to us. Hope everything OK."

This was sort of an odd success where my self-addressed stamped envelope was returned to Bolin even though I only use my address on the 'from' part of my SASE - someone must have put their address over mine instead of my mail being sent to me outright with postage due [if that was the problem in the first place].

For what it's worth, my SASE was re-sent in its own envelope, postage paid as well - I appreciate that gesture from the 81-year old and presumably whoever helps him sort through his mail.

Some TTM autographs received in 2020

I got the bug to put together some autograph requests through the mail after writing exactly one TTM request in 2019 - I like getting stuff in the mailbox and tend to believe there will always opportunities to get successes even if the idea of writing someone and expecting an actual response is a little quaint and old fashioned.

John Verhoeven signed my Topps buyback card in about 6 days, giving me a new 'old-school' Angels autograph for my all-time collection - he also returned my letter with some responses, so sending him a request turned out pretty good, when the card was kind of just 'loose' in my collection.

Al Spangler signed my 1978 TCMA The 1960s card in about a couple of weeks giving me a new 'vintage' [considering the player, not the card] Angels autograph for my all-time collection - a couple of years ago, I set aside some cards I’d picked up as part of a couple of loose team sets [Angels and Giants] picturing some old-timers still living at the time.

I’d planned to send off the cards to be autographed but simply forgot about them - while former Angel Jim Coates passed and Del Crandall is now in a assisted living facility, I finally wrote to the other players that are still living at the moment.

- Bob Bolin - 1978 TCMA The 1960's - no response yet

- Eddie Bressoud - 1959 Topps and 1978 TCMA The 1960's - took a couple of weeks

- Jim Duffalo - 1978 TCMA The 1960's - took a couple of weeks