SDre31's TTM Success Thread

[SDre31]

My final Cyclones return from 2013 was from Kirk Nieuwenhuis. After being called up to the major leagues in early 2012, it looked like he would be a part of the Mets outfield for years to come. Unfortunately, his propensity for strikeouts has set him back (130 in 377 major league at-bats). He only played in 47 games for the Mets in 2013, and was not a September call up despite being healthy. However, he did sign this card for me in September after I wrote to him in Spring Training.

Kirk Nieuwenhuis
c/o Mets Spring Training
Sent: 2/19/13
Received: 9/23/13



Cyclones Career
Year: 2008
Games: 74
Batting Line (AVG, HR, RBI): .277, 3, 29

As stated above, this was the final Cyclones return that I received in 2013. I was 6 for 23 (26%) for the year. Overall, I have autographs of 11 of the 42 Brooklyn Cyclones players (26%) to have reached the major leagues. Five more Cyclones made their major league debuts in 2013.

[SDre31]

My final return from 2013 was a good one. It was from Billy Wagner, the Mets' closer from 2006-2009, a 7 time All-Star, and owner of 422 career saves. He played a huge role in the success of the 2006 Mets, piling up 40 saves. I was pleasantly surprised to see TTM successes from him, so I had to take a shot. He signed it beautifully in just over a month.

Billy Wagner
Address: See TTM Database
Sent: 11/6/13
Received: 12/16/13




Again, this was my last return of 2013. Overall, I was 24 for 56 (43%) for the year. Among my favorite returns were Pedro Beato (personalized, thanked me for being a great fan), Joe Hietpas (played one inning in MLB, never had a plate appearance), and Andy Pettitte. My favorite return was easily from Lenny DiNardo, who not only signed my card, but without prompt, got the player that he shared the card with to sign the card as well. I wrote about that return on this thread last July.

[indyreds]

Looks like you have had some amazing successes. Love all the Mets and I wondered how long I would look through your thread before we saw you roll over to another sport. Best of luck on another great TTM year!

[SDre31]

Looks like you have had some amazing successes. Love all the Mets and I wondered how long I would look through your thread before we saw you roll over to another sport. Best of luck on another great TTM year!

Thanks for the support, indyreds! Reading your posts on the TTM threads was definitely one of the reasons why I started sending out requests!

[SDre31]

My first return of 2014 is a Spring Training return that goes towards my Brooklyn Cyclones project. It's from Dillon Gee, a starting pitcher for the Mets. Dillon had a nice bounce-back year in 2013, winning 12 games and pitching a career high 199 innings after missing the second half of the 2012 season following surgery to repair a blood clot in his shoulder. In 2011, Dillon became the fourth Cyclone to have his number (#20) retired by the team. The third time was the charm here as I sent requests to him in Spring Training 2012 and 2013.

Dillon Gee
c/o Mets Spring Training
Sent: 2/3/14
Received: 2/19/14



Cyclones Career
Year: 2007
Games: 14
Pitching Line (W-L, ERA): 3-1, 2.47

[SDre31]

Here's a return that was a pleasant surprise to receive since I had pretty much given up on it. It's from Charlie Ward, a point guard with the Knicks from 1994-2004. Ward was a solid contributor to the Knicks in the late 90's-early 2000's, helping lead the team to the NBA Finals against the San Antonio Spurs during the 1998-99 season as its starting point guard. However, Ward may best be known as the 1993 Heisman Trophy winner as the quarterback of Florida State University. He left football behind after he went undrafted in the 1994 NFL Draft, but was selected in the first round of the 1994 NBA Draft.

Charlie Ward
Address: See TTM Database
Sent: 5/7/13
Received: 2/27/14

[biggsy2323]

Nice long return..

[SDre31]

Nice long return..

Definitely! I haven't been doing TTMs too long, but this one was my longest successful return.

[SDre31]

My latest return is from Bob Keppel, a pitcher in the Reds organization and a former Brooklyn Cyclone. Bob pitched parts of three seasons in the big leagues before playing in Japan from 2010-2013. Since he was in Japan when I started my Cyclones project, I was unable to send a request to him. However, before sending out my Spring Training requests this year, I noticed that he signed a minor league contract with the Reds in January. Luckily, he signed for me on my first attempt.

Bob Keppel
c/o Reds Spring Training
Sent: 2/3/14
Received: 3/6/14



Cyclones Career
Year: 2003
Games: 3
Pitching Line (W-L, ERA): 2-0, 2.51

[SDre31]

After a very quiet Spring Training in terms of returns, it was nice to see a success come in. This is from Mike Stanton, the primary left-handed specialist on the Yankees from 1997-2002. Mike was an American League All-Star in 2001 and was a key member of the 1998-2000 championship teams. Along with Jeff Nelson, he was part of the bridge to Mariano Rivera.

Mike Stanton
Address: See TTM Database
Sent: 4/9/14
Received: 4/21/14