Header - Baseball by the Letters

Year: 2015

Talking autographs, detective work with baseball author Brad Wax Pack Book Balukjian

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1986ToppsPackImagine the hurler on the mound unafraid of telling you what pitch is coming.

That’s Brad Balukjian. As he criss-crosses America seeking 13 men who appeared in his 1986 Topps wax pack, the author still made time to share his game plan.

I mentioned Brad’s epic project in an earlier blog post. Since then, I see many others are seeking him out on Twitter, Instagram and his website. 

Brad used online databases, collector sites and the Harvey Meiselman Baseball Address List to locate his 13 wax pack acquaintances. His two-page letter detailed the whole project, offering a link to the website that noted his many articles (including the sports features for the Los Angeles Times). 

One former player didn’t respond. Brad got crafty, and grabbed some old media guides from the 1980s. This man’s wife was noted as a teacher. One e-mail to the woman brought a response from her ball-playing husband.

Brad’s TTM pursuits gave him insights about collecting. “The men I’ve met honor by-mail autograph requests,” he surmised. “Some will save up letters for a couple of months, then answer everyone on a Saturday.” 

On an early Tweet, Brad photographed some envelopes from Jaime Cocanower. One had “Donation Enclosed” inscribed, with $2 in cash inside.

“He just laughed,” Brad said. “I don’t think he signed because of that.”

After several meetings with retirees, Brad added, “They seem suspcious when a letter has 5 or 6 cards. They think you’re going to sell the autographs.” For a persuasive letter, Brad advised keeping it simple, no more than a page. “Don’t be too cute. Be yourself.”

Brad said he discovered a “bit of a disconnect” in his first meetings. “How these men view their careers isn’t as romantic as we might think,” he said. “They are not that guy any more.” Brad’s meetings are detailing some of the struggles and life changes each man faced after retirement.

“In some ways,” Brad added, “I don’t even consider this a baseball book.”

I found Brad by phone in Naples, Florida. He was fresh from a meeting with Don Carman, his childhood hero. The pair played catch before Brad hit the road again.

“When I was nine years old, I went to the pharmacy and bought Don a birthday card,” Brad remembered. “I never got a response, but I didn’t know about a self-addressed, stamped envelope back then.” 

The pair joked about Carman’s admission that he found a shoebox of fan mail some 20 years later. “I wanted him to find a shoebox with my birthday card, too.” Brad said.

Carman confided to Brad that he found a new appreciation for baseball cards after retiring. “He said he could never master a change-up in his career,” Brad said. “After retiring and coaching, Don said he learned the grip by studying baseball card photos.”

Don’t fear Brad going silent when his road trip ends. To keep his readers-to-be ready for the book’s 2017 release, he says he’s considering podcasts. Conversations with other former players.

Yes, others depicted in the 1986 Topps set.

Once the book is out, I hope Topps will reward Brad with his own card. He’ll be one autograph worth waiting for.

 

Gerald Carpenter knows the ‘art’ of TTM baseball autographs

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CarpenterGeraldGiving, or getting?

I write about using maximum effort when contacting former players. Gerald Carpenter is a master collector, making everyone he writes to feel like a star.

How? By creating a gift for each player. A fun caricature. He’s sharing all that he creates on a art gallery blog, including all the autographs he’s receiving.

I asked Gerald to reveal more of his hobby game plan. He kindly replied:

“I use Crayola colored pencils, and heavy drawing/ watercolor paper. I used to use paper that was 12″x18″ but I switched to a smaller 8 1/2″ x 11” because it is less than a third of the price for paper, envelopes, and postage, and takes less time and pencils.

I used to send just one drawing in the mail, but in the last year or so I have always been sending two: one for them to keep and one to hopefully sign and return. I think I’ll keep with the practice of always sending two.
I think I have a fairly good success rate, especially with former baseball players, so there can’t be too many keeping them for themselves.

(Images courtesy of Gerald Carpenter)
(Images courtesy of Gerald Carpenter)

I like the personal written responses I get from the players, almost as much as getting the autographed drawing returned. It’s like a nice little bonus.”

Gerald shared some of the notes. Hall of Famer Goose Gossage wrote back that he got a kick out of the drawing. “Job well done!” None other than John Rocker added, “I never looked so good!” Phil Niekro praised Gerald’s artwork, also. 

Bravely, Gerald noted that Mrs. Bob Bailey had a tip for the artist. She felt her husband had “ice blue” eyes. 

“Eye color is really tough to see on a baseball card or old photo, but it shows up prominently in my drawings,” Gerald noted. “I appreciate any criticism, and my style has gradually changed over the years to accommodate repeat criticism. I also had one player, and only one, respond that he wasn’t signing the drawing because it didn’t look like him.”

(Of course, former players don’t have the smallest egos in the world. I’m guessing there may be more than one out there ready to object to a light-hearted, fanciful perspective.)

In my request letters to the players,” Gerald explained, “I express that I am a fan of baseball and the many interesting stars and personalities involved with the game. I ask him to please keep a drawing for himself, and to please sign and return the other. I include a self-addressed stamped envelope. I think it’s implied that I made the drawings myself. But maybe I should stress that more.

I get contacted from time to time from people wanting custom drawings. I will happily do any and all drawings people want me to do, whether it’s a favorite player or a family member. There’s a gentleman in Oklahoma who has me draw a lot of pro wrestlers, and he takes those to conventions to get signed. A nice lady in California has used my drawings in her book, Garlic Fries and Baseball, and website http://soundsofbaseball.com/sample-page/
There’s contact information on my website.”

Anyone wanting more information, or wanting to offer the artist some well-deserved applause, write to geraldscarpenter@yahoo.com

Meanwhile, think of what makes your letter stand out. We’re not all artists. However, we can paint pictures with words.

2015 Cincinnati All-Star auction features fascinating baseball correspondence

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Letters from umpire turned folk artist George Sosnak. (Courtesy Hunt Auctions)
Letters from umpire turned folk artist George Sosnak. (Courtesy Hunt Auctions and Invaluable.com)

The 2015 All-Star Game proves it. The “official” auction proclaims baseball letters as true collectibles.

Once, something like a cancelled check was seen only as a substitute way of getting a real signature.

Now, the world sees letters as proof that baseball personalities are people, too. Two people connecting over a team, a moment…a chapter of baseball history.

The first two lots come from the family of Herb Carneal. A Ford Frick-winning broadcaster, Carneal announced Minnesota Twins games from 1962-2006. 

Johnny Pesky’s military service, and his value to the Red Sox, are documented in a batch of signed correspondence.

The most fascinating lot surrounds minor league umpire and folk artist George Sosnak. Sosnak’s painted baseball’s are legendary. Here, collectors can see him big-name support for his art. A wonderful Facebook group of collectors of Sosnak art offers a great introduction to his creations.

Online pre-bidding ends tonight (Monday, July 13) at 10 p.m. EST. Check the site for prices realized.

And, realize that those baseball letters you’re getting will have lasting value, too!

 

Can’t get your minor league cards autographed? It may not be why you think, reveals former catcher Jim Campanis

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I found this at www.tradingcarddb.com. Before you assume no cards exist of someone, stop here!
I found this at the amazing  www.tradingcarddb.com. Before you assume no cards exist of someone, stop here!

Ask. Always ask.

Legends have lingered for years about which major leaguers may not autograph certain cards. They don’t like being linked to that organization, or remain peeved they got traded.

I’ve never heard of a collector failing to get a minor league card autographed by a retiree. However, I assumed any possible rejection might be because of the disappointment of not making it to the majors that year.

Or not.

When someone posted a retrospective of cards of Jim Campanis on Facebook, the former Team USA member (with five major manufacturer appearances) commented that minor league sets did not necessarily pay appearance fees.

Oops. Shades of 1976 SSPC! 

How does he feel about a card that may have brought him NOTHING during his playing career, especially when someone asks to get it signed? He replied:

“It’s not the card collector’s fault the card companies are run by opportunistic a-holes who have found a loophole in the MLB player contracts. Collecting cards is often a shared love between fathers and sons. How could I be a jerk and say no to that even though many of my signed cards end up for sale online?

It feels like its my responsibility to keep signing them.”

We need guys like “Campy” on all-star teams. I’d vote for him. Thank you, Jim!

Kal Segrist: former Yankee, overlooked signer, gone at 84

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In 2010, The Great Orioles Autograph Project blogger Ryan commented about Segrist's shaky signature.
In 2010, The Great Orioles Autograph Project blogger Ryan commented about Segrist’s shaky signature.

Don’t let the card companies tell you the players to write to.

Kal Segrist was another star signer in that quickly-shrinking roster of 1950s players. The only widely available card of Segrist came in 1991, the Baltimore Orioles Crown Oil retrospective set.

A former 1950s Yankee? I expected hundreds of contacts reported on www.sportscollectors.net. Nope. Just 39 attempts, with 33 successes. I blame the lack of a Topps card for why more never bothered writing him.

One of my favorite baseball writers, Nick Diunte, did an all-star job crafting a remembrance of Segrist.