First TTM Autograph Success: Dallas Mavericks' Dirk Nowitzki

Checking the mail today did not suck. My mailbox only had one envelope in it... a letter processed through Dallas, TX.

I knew it was the Dirk Nowitzki card I sent out last month as my first TTM (through the mail) autograph attempt.  It really was a quick turn around...I sent the card out on 1/10/11 and received it back on 2/19/11. The signature looks great and Nowitzki included his number.

2011 SAP Open Tennis Matches & Autographs

Took a road trip yesterday to San Jose to catch the day session of the SAP Open's 2nd round at the HP Pavilion. I was ready to watch two or three matches, but the day session ended up being five. Ten hours later, we watched all five matches, had some overpriced food and got a few autographs. We had court side seats at the service line, so it was a lot of head-turning and it was easy to go over to the tunnel to ask for autographs.

The schedule was great and included matches featuring Denis Istomin of Uzbekistan, Lleyton Hewitt of Australia, Kei Nishikori (top ranked in Japan), and Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina. I got autographs from Denis Istomin, Juan Martin del Potro and Tim Smyczek. The losing players typically didn't stop to sign, and of the winners, only Lleyton Hewitt turned me down.

HP Pavilion, San Jose, California

 SAP Open Lobby

 Denis Istomin, Uzbekistan, #49 ATP

 Juan Martin Del Potro, Argentina, #484 (former #4)

 Ball signed by Denis Istomin

 SAP Open program signed by Juan Martin del Potro

Sacramento Kings Forward Omri Casspi Autograph Signing in Vacaville

Sacramento Kings Omri Casspi made another autograph appearance today at a Carls Jr. in Vacaville. I showed up a few hours early to make sure I got a Casspi autograph since he's likely on his way out of Sacramento. Casspi's on the trading block, and the Israeli-born forward has generated a lot of interest around the league. 

Omri got straight to signing. He signed various items (most notably a ukelele) and stuck around to take photos with fans. Omri's bodyguard kept things in order and his quote kind of summed up the event: "they don't pay me to be nice, they pay Omri to be nice." Casspi's probably my favorite player on the Kings, and if he does get traded, I hope that its to a contender. See pictures from this event and other Kings events here. 

New York Yankees Pitcher CC Sabathia Autograph Appearance for PitcchIn Foundation

New York Yankees starting pitcher CC Sabathia made an autograph appearance in his native Vallejo, CA on Monday 12/20/2010. CC has partnered with Toyota of Vallejo to support his "Pitcch In" Foundation. Over 500 fans showed up to donate toys to the Marine Corps Toys For Tots program, for which they would receive an autographed item by Sabathia. The first 100 fans in line received an autographed baseball and the rest of the fans received an autographed 8"x10" action photo.

My buddy and I arrived at the event about four hours early and set up our camping chairs in the dealership's showroom with the rest of the fans. There were roughly 70 people ahead of us at that point, so we knew we were guaranteed a ball. Well worth it.

Raiders QB Jason Campbell Autograph Appearance in Oakland

Jason Campbell made an appearance at Verizon Wireless in Oakland to sign autographs and take pictures with fans. He had a stack of quality action photos to sign for fans. I brought a football for campbell to sign, and he also signed a photo.

Sacramento Kings Beno Udrih and Samuel Dalambert Signing Autographs @ Roseville Barnes & Noble

Went to go meet Sac Kings Samuel Dalembert and Beno Udrih at Barnes and Noble in Roseville on 12/9/10. Both players signed items brought by fans brought and promotional photos. I showed up about half an hour early, not sure how many people would be there. The line was about 30 people, hopefully more people showed up over the course of the event.

Fans could also purchase books to donate money to Samuel Dalembert's Dalembert Foundation.

Sacramento Kings Francisco Garcia Autograph Signing @ Round Table

Francisco Garcia signed autographs this weekend at Round Table Pizza in Sacramento. Garcia came straight from practice in pouring rain, and he was a good sport about it. He cracked jokes, talked with fans, had black and silver sharpies ready to go, and posed for pictures.  Garcia has a great autograph and signed his full name on my basketball. This is one of the full-name autographs I have.

Matt Barnes Golden State Warriors Inscription

Went to Sports Gallery in Walnut Creek this week and picked up a Matt Barnes mini ball. The store has a mini-basketball blowout bin with balls signed by Barnes, Monta Ellis, Jason Richardson, among others.

Sacramento Kings' Rookie Hassan Whiteside Autograph Signing @ Bella Bru in Natomas

Hassan Whiteside signed autographs at Bella Bru in Natomas on Nov. 12, the same day as the DeMarcus Cousins signing in Roseville. I was late and there was only a short line ahead of me.

Hassan's entourage was relaxed, which was a nice comparison to how strict these events can be at times. Hassan signed items, shook hands with fans and posed for photos. I got to chat with him a bit.

One Of My First Autographs: Byron Scott

I went to the Byron Scott Basketball Camp in Orange, CA when I was in elementary school. I remember running a lot of lines and missing most of my shots.

  

 

Pablo Sandoval and Aubrey Huff, San Francisco Giants, Autographs at the Park

Pablo Sandoval and Aubrey Huff made an appearance at the Public House, outside of AT&T park on September 30, 2010. The event was with Sports Gallery, which has stores in Walnut Creek and Palo Alto. Pablo and Aubrey signed after a day game, so we got to enjoy a game, Irish Nachos and add a few more autographs to the collection. Things ran a little slower than some of the other signings I've attended. The line started about an hour and a half before the scheduled start, and they were probably about 15 minutes late coming out. All was good though, they signed items and posed for photographs. I had Aubrey sign a ROMLB and Pablo sign a Giants mini helmet.

Andres Torres, Center Field, San Francisco Giants

Andres Torres made an appearance at Lefty's Sports Cards in Burlingame, CA on August 25, 2010. The event was scheduled after an afternoon game that ended up going into extra innings.

Freddy Sanchez, Second Baseman, San Francisco Giants. Signing Autographs @ Embarcadero GIants Dugout Store

Freddy Sanchez made an appearance at the San Francisco Giants Dugout Store at the Embarcadero Center on August 10, 2010. Tickets were available for the first 250 fans to show up.

Oakland A's FanFest 2010

The Oakland A's held their annual FanFest on April 3, 2010. The event included player interviews, player autographs, games and contests, game used equipment for sale, and general merchandise at clearance prices.

My girlfriend and I were there for the autographs. We got there early, and the line was already long. There were two tents set up, and each had really long lines. We thought about splitting up and each taking a tent, but figured we might just end up with the same players as they switched around. We decided to stay in one line, and after the first round of signatures, just got right back into that line. We managed to get through it three times before the event ended.

Our most notable autographs at the event were Kevin Kouzmanoff, Ben Sheets, Landon Powell, Brad Ziegler, Cedric Bowers, Chad Gaudin, and Lenny Dinardo. Some of these guys were playing for the River Cats out in Sacramento a week after the event.

Definitely good times, will be back next year.

Kurt Suzuki, Oakland A's, Autograph Signing @ Sports Gallery

Kurt signed autographs at the Sports Gallery in Walnut Creek on August 5. 2010. 100 tickets were sold for eager A's fans to get jerseys, bats, photos, and the like signed by the A's catcher. Suzuki signed for about an hour and posed for photographs.

SF Giants Nate Schierholtz Autograph Signing @ Sports Gallery

Nate Schierholtz made an appearance at the Sports Gallery in Walnut Creek, CA on April 24, 2010. I had him sign an older Adirondack bat.  Around 100 tickets were sold for the event and Nate signed bats, balls, photos, etc.

Nate is a cool dude. Probably the friendliest athlete I've met at an event. He shook hands, stood up to pose for photographs, and was pretty amused by the old school bat I brought for him to sign.

Sacramento Kings Forward Omri Casspi Autograph Signing in Old Sacramento

       

    

Omri Casspi made an autograph appearance at Ten22 in Old Town Sacramento. About 150 people showed up for the event, bringing everything from basketballs to snowboards for Omri to sign. The event also featured a coupon for a future visit to Ten 22 Restaurant. This was the first Kings autograph event I attended in Sacramento.

Omri was drafted by the Kings in the first round of the 2009 draft, and is the first Israeli player in the NBA. Omri joins a young corps of players with the Kings, including Tyreke Evans, DeMarcus Cousins and Hassan Whiteside.

Carson Palmer, USC Trojans, 2002 Heisman Trophy WInner

 I try not to buy autographed memorabilia online. Like most collectors, my assumption is that if its not signed in front of me, its probably fake. I decided to take a chance and picked up a Carson Palmer autographed USC Trojans mini helmet. The helmet is from Hall of Fame Collectibles.