This will be my last posting until the week of July 11th. I am going on , what I hope you would all agree is a well deserved, vacation. There are no public appearances until the weekend of the 15th. I will get you all up to speed on upcoming signing when I return. In the meanwhile check out the rest of the site. There are incredible new items and some awesome old ones that sometimes get overlooked. Also look at our online auction. I have been getting these guys unbelievable unique pieces that can't be found anywhere else. So enjoy the holiday and I will be back soon. If any of you are going to be at any and all of the Phil Lesh/Trey Anastasio shows next week come by and say hello. I will be the one wearing the "Thank You Jerry" t-shirt and a Mets hat (hard to miss me). Again, have a great holiday!

I just returned from Bridgeport where I did a signing with Goose Gossage. As you know I was with Goose earlier in the week. I didn't really have a chance until today to talk to him. Gossage is awesome. The guy knows so much about pitching. Everyday I realize more and more that, as fans, we don't fully understand why a certain pitch is thrown and when. Goose and I spoke in length about Mariano Rivera. The game has changed a lot since Gossage's era but Mo stands as a true throwback pitcher. Goose had nothing but great things to say about Rivera. We got some amazing product signed including a new photo of Gossage on the mound with Thurman Munson. I also added him to our 1978 team project. The pieces are coming out unbelievable. I am really looking forward to completing it soon. Check back tomorrow as there may be a few more surprises.

I told you guys that there would be a few surprises this week. Here is the first. I just got back from a small private signing with the Captain, Derek Jeter. I headed over to the signing towards the end of today's game. I set up and waited for Jeter as the game went into extra innings. Derek arrived about an hour after Alex Rodriguez won the game for the Yankees with a walk off home run. Jeter still stands as the fastest signer I have ever worked with (Danica Patrick is a close second). We completed the signing in less than hour but got some great baseball talk in. He is looking forward to seeing his old teamate El Duque this weekend as part two of the Subway Series begins Friday. I told Derek I am pretty confident in getting 2 out of 3 from them. We got some great items signed including game used baseballs from this season. Tomorrow morning I am off to Bridgeport where I am doing a signing with Goose Gossage. Check back tomorrow for an update.

I just got back from Staten Island where I had an appearance with Goose Gossage. Goose was brought in to sign autographs for the public and throw out the first pitch at the Staten Island Yankees game. I had not been to Staten Island since I was a kid and had no idea how far it is. I was literally in every boro today. Anyway, the stadium is awesome. It is right on the water and past the outfield, you can see the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, Brooklyn and the Manhattan skyline. Goose flipped for the view. He signed for fans for an hour before the game. We then went on to the field. I was in the S.I. Yankees dugout with Gossage where he met their manager and a few of the players. They were all so excited to meet the legend (who deserves to be in Cooperstown). There was a short video tribute to Goose before throwing out the first pitch. Once the game began we headed to a few of the corporate suites to meet some fans. Goose probably enjoys hanging out with fans more than any other athlete I have encountered. I even had a hard time getting him to leave one suite to go to the next. We finally took off at about 7:45. I dropped Goose off in Manhattan and headed home. I was glad to drive into Manhattan so I would be able to say I hit every boro today. I will be meeting up with the Goose again on Thursday for a private signing. There may also be a few surprise signings later this week so keep checking back for new updates.

I finally got caught up on the blog. Here are a few more photos from the past week. Keep checking back as I am meeting up with Goose Gossage later today in Staten Island.

It has been raining for close to four straight days. I think yesterday may have had the heaviest rains of any of the days. Sunday morning I headed out in that rain towards Last Licks in Armonk where Tino Martinez, Lou Piniella and Mickey Rivers were appearing. Tino and Lou do not sign very often so there was a huge line awaiting them. Mickey and Piniella arrived together and immediately started signing the 77/78 team items. Those guys have signed together so many times and flew threw those pieces. Once Tino arrived we started the public. I can't believe the number of fans that waited outside in the rain to meet Tino. As a Met fan, I never realized how loved Martinez is by the Yankee faithfull. I was impressed. Tino was amazing with his fans. He hugged people and took photos with everyone. I was anxious to talk baseball with Martinez and Piniella who both cover the game for ESPN. As the signing wound down I was able to get into it with them a little. Both guys agree that the Mets are probably the only team in the NL that can compete with the AL. Mickey was awesome, as usual. He is still one of the most fun guys to ever do a signing with. Check out the photos as I convinced Rivers to wear a Mets hat for a picture with me.
Keep checking back all week for updates. We have a lot going on. Tomorrow I will be with Goose Gossage at the Staten Island Yankees game where he is throwing out the first pitch.

Old timers day weekend is always crazy for me. We usually have a ton of Yankee signings and sometimes try to start a new great project around it. This year was no different as we had Reggie Jackson and Roy White signing at Last Licks in Scarsdale. It's sick how Reggie always does great at these appearances. We have him a few times a year and, regardless of where he is, there is always an awesome turnout. Roy arrived a little before Reggie (Reggie is great but punctuality is not his thing). I immediately began working on our private items with Roy. We are in the middle of this great 1977/1978 Yankees team project so it was good to knock out two guys in one day on the items. Reggie came shortly after I finished up with Roy and we started a marathon four-plus hour signing. Jackson signed in public for almost two hours. He took photos with all the customers and even sat and had ice cream with a few. After that we got to work on the team pieces and later on to some new, great Reggie items. Check the website later for some amazing web exclusive pieces including inscribed jerseys commemorating Reggie's three home run world series game. The signing came to a close at about 9:00 Saturday night. I had some ice cream and then packed up my van for Sunday's appearances. Much to my displeasure it was still raining. I am not sure why but weather has become a big theme on the blog. Check back later for the exciting conclusion of my weekend. Yesterday we had Tino Martinez, Lou Piniella and Mickey Rivers appearing at Last Licks in Armonk.
...Jose Reyes and the Mets are really rolling right now. (Had to throw that in there)

Saturday we had Cardinals legends Stan "The Man" Musial and Bob Gibson appearing at Last Licks in Huntington. Despite the torrential rains we had a great turnout for both. Both guys did interviews for our show on the YES network. I think you will all enjoy watching them. Stan signed photos, hall of fame inscription baseballs and bats. I always enjoy talking with Gibson. The guy knows so much about pitching and has a lot to say about the current state of the game. Bob and I were discussing those classic battles between him and Tom Seaver. He said every matchup was a 1-0 complete game win by one or the other. It's amazing how much the game has changed. Now we have a specialist for every late inning and situation. The complete game has actually become a special thing. The highlight of the day was definitely when someone asked Bob if Musial would have gotten a hit off of him. Gibson's answer was simply "No...he barely ever saw a slider." After the signing I headed back out in the rain towards Last Licks in Scarsdale where we had Reggie Jackson and Roy White appearing.

Friday I did a small private signing with Robinson Cano at his home. He is having an all-star season and is definitely becoming an elite player. I have known Robinson since he first got brought up to the Yankees. It is great to see him have so much success this year. He is one the biggest reasons why the Yankees have almost kept pace with Boston despite injuries. Robinson Cano autographed baseballs as well as some great game used items.
Check back later as I am slowly getting caught up.

Here are some more photographs from the Danica Patrick autograph signing.

I arrived in Richmond shortly after midnight last Wednesday. I was supposed to get up at seven to head over to the Richmond International Speedway to meet up with Danica Patrick. Unfortunately I was awoken at about 5:30 to the hotel's fire alarm. So I quickly grabbed all my belongings and headed out to the track early. I know nothing about racecar driving so I was shocked to see how big the speedway is. I was dropped off at the front gate of the track and then realized I needed to be on the other side. I was meeting Danica at her motor home which was parked by all of the other drivers. So I started walking to the actual track. By the time I reached her I had walked close to 2 miles (carrying photos). I forgot to mention that is was over 100 degrees at the speedway.
Anyway, Danica and her father had set up tables outside of their motorhome. I began setting up mini-helmets, replica cars and photos. The heat was brutal. After about ten minutes I was drenched. It was definitely a Ted Striker moment for me as you can see from the photos. The signing itself went great. Danica was really interesting. She explained a little bit about racing and the preparation that goes into it. There was an entire crew working at the track Thursday preparing the cars and the speedway for a Saturday night race. All the product came out awesome especially the mini-helmets (which she signs in silver on the visor). After boxing up the product I cooled off for a few minutes and then headed to the airport. As I was leaving I noticed the temperature posted at a nearby bank. It was 105 degrees. I couldn't wait to get back to New York where my air conditioned apartment and an exciting weekend of signings were awaiting me.

I am going to be backtracking all day today and probably into tonight. I have had so many signings in the past week and am finally able to sit down and tell you all about them.
Last Wednesday Bronson Arroyo came up to our office for a small signing. We have had a great relationship with Bronson since the 2004 World Series. He has been so great for the Reds all year (since coming over from the Red Sox) and has a chance to start the All Star Game for the National League. A day earlier I was with Reds coaches Chris Chambliss and Bucky Dent. Both guys could not stop raving about the job Bronson has been doing. Bronson is also an accomplished guitarist. He was really interested in hearing about my experiences with Kiss and shared some of his own. He told me about meeting Eddie Vedder and playing "You've Got To Hide Your Love Away" with him. It always goes back to the Beatles. Shortly after Bronson left I headed for LaGuardia and was off to Richmond to see Danica Patrick.

I am sorry for the lack of posts the past few days. I have been on the road with no way to update the blog. My next stop is a signing with Robinson Cano later this morning. Check back tonight for a complete recap of the Danica Patrick signing as well as Cano and a few others.

We just began a few great new projects with the 1977 and 1978 Yankees championship teams. Bucky Dent and Chris Chambliss were the first to sign these pieces. They came up to our office this morning. Both guys are now coaches with the surging Cincinnati Reds and seem to be extremely excited about their team. We spoke, in depth, about the Reds and the National League in general. My Mets were shut down last night by our buddy Bronson Arroyo (Bronson will be signing for us tomorrow). The coaches are really high on Arroyo and their great young players. If Griffey stays healthy those guys have a real shot of doing some damage down the stretch. Despite their new home, Chambliss and Dent will forever be remembered as Yankees. Bucky signed photos of his legendary home run against Boston in the one game playoff in 1978. Dent later went on to be the World Series MVP that year. Chambliss had a huge home run for the Bombers two years earlier in the ALCS. We have a new image of the aftermath of that home run that Chris signed today. You guys need to check out the photo and look all the way to the right. If you look carefully enough you will see none other than Mets manager Willie Randolph in the middle of the mob. I have definitely become a little desensitized to some images but this one really blew me away. Check back later as I am off to Shea Stadium for a small signing with Endy Chavez.

This past Saturday we had Endy Chavez at Last Licks in Massapequa. There was a such a great turn out for Endy that we were unable to complete our private autograph signing. Those circumstances led me to the Mets offices at Shea Stadium earlier today. I met up with Chavez to finish up the signing at a small conference room at Shea. As a Met fan, it was so awesome to walk through the offices. The walls were decorated with some great classic photos as well as old programs and yearbooks. Anyway, Endy completed the signing and we are now stocked with some great photos and baseballs. This guy has and will play a huge role in the team's success this year. He can field, hit and (most importantly) run. The old baseball saying is that speed never goes into a slump and , with Endy and Reyes, we should be fine all year on the base pads.
I am off to Virginia tomorrow for a signing with Danica Patrick so check back Thursday night for an update.

Reds legend and ESPN commentator Joe Morgan was in town yesterday for a great cause. We brought him in for a local Little League event. Before leaving for the field Joe stopped by our offices for a small private signing. I had a great time talking baseball with him. He has such insight into the game and I made sure to pick his brain about the Mets. It gives me a lot of confidence knowing that Joe is also high on the team. He feels that El Duque was a huge pickup and that his influence will really help Soler. If the back end of the rotation holds up I think the Mets will cruise right into the playoffs and hopefully the World Series. No one has a better rotation in the National League. Joe and I also spoke extensively about the X- Files. Morgan and I are both huge fans and have been rediscovering the show through the DVD's. We agreed that season six was , by far, the strongest. Joe signed baseballs as well as a Big Red Machine project (which we will be unveiling later this year). Later today I will be doing signings with Chris Chambliss, Bucky Dent and Endy Chavez. Check back for new postings.

Today we had Mets stars Endy Chavez and Cliff Floyd signing at Last Licks in Massapequa. Both players are extremely excited about the team. We all should be excited considering New York has a 9.5 game lead in the division. This was Endy's first public signing and I still cannot get over the great response he got from our customers. He has been so huge for the team this year in the field as well as at the plate. The signing was practically sold out. Cliff also got a great turnout. He has been one of my favorite Mets over the past few years. Even when he is struggling Cliff always seems to battle and has incredible 12,13 pitch at bats. We are going to need his veteran presence down the stretch. All the fans wished him well and can't wait to have him back in left field. He should be back in the lineup later this week. Both guys really seemed to enjoy interacting with the fans. We got some great new product including a new Floyd photo and some awesome game used items.
This should be another busy week for me. I am going down to Virginia to do a signing with Danica Patrick. I will also be with Joe Morgan, Chris Chambliss and Bucky Dent. (And that all takes place before Friday!) Keep checking back for updates on these signings as well as a preview of the upcoming weekend.

I just got home from our appearance with Cleon Jones ,Jerry Koosman and Tom Seaver at Hall of Heroes. It was great to see Cleon. I see him about once a year and am glad to see he is doing so well. I was able to re-up on the classic "Last Out" photo and baseballs with the "Last Out" inscription. Cleon is really high on the team this year, especially Lastings. This was the first time I had worked with Koosman. Jerry is really good guy. He doesn't sign often so there were a ton of fans out with multi signed pieces that needed Koosman . Tom arrived a little after Cleon and Jerry. I am always amazed at the number of people who come out for Seaver's autograph. We just had him a few months ago but, none the less, there was huge line of fans awaiting The Franchise.
We have an incredible new photo of Seaver , Koosman and Nolan Ryan. The piece is now signed by Tom and Jerry (which happened to be one of my favorite cartoons) and Nolan will be completing them later this week. I am extremely excited about tomorrow's appearance with Cliff Floyd and Endy Chavez. Check back tomorrow night for a new posting.

Congratulations to Amy for winning the Mets trivia contest yesterday. The correct answer was Carlos Almanzar. Hope to see you all out at Hall of Heroes tonight for Seaver, Koosman and Jones and tommorrow for Floyd and Endy at Last Licks.

The first person to email me back the correct answer will receive a VIP ticket for the Cliff Floyd signing on Saturday. This will entitle you to get to the front of the line at Massapequa and receive an unsigned 8x10 photo to be signed.

On June 17, 2001 the Mets fell behind 7-2 to the Yankees. The Mets rallied for 6 runs off the defending champs. The Mets took the lead with a monster home run by Mike Piazza. Who was the Yankees pitcher who gave up the home run? (The starting pitchers were Ted Lilly and Rick Reed)

Good luck.

Here are some photos from the past week that I haven't been able to post yet.
We have some great appearances coming up this weekend. Tomorrow evening Tom Seaver, Cleon Jones and Jerry Koosman are signing at Hall of Heroes. We have some awesome photos to be signed including an amazing image of Koosman, Seaver and Nolan Ryan. We will be getting Nolan on them soon after. I am looking forward to seeing Cleon as we havea mutual friend in Hank Aaron. Both of them grew up in Mobile. Then on Saturday Cliff Floyd and Endy Chavez will be appearing at Last Licks in Massapequa. Unfortunately due to his rehab in AAA Xavier Nady has been postponed until 7/22 at Hall of Heroes. Chavez has been so huge with both Floyd and Nady out. Cliff should hopefully be back in the next few days to help the Mets build on their lead in the NL Beast. It should be an exciting weekend. Later today I will be posting another trivia contest so keep checking in.

As you all know we had Lenny Dykstra, Darryl Strawberry and Ray Knight signing at Hall of Heroes. Darryl and Ray arrived right on time to a huge line of fans. Knight does not sign very much so there was more of a demand for him than anyone else. People have been waiting a long time to complete their 86 Mets pieces. Ray obliged them all by signing, inscribing 1986 World Series MVP and taking photos with the loyal fans. He really takes his time with each signature and, while most MVPs abbreviate world series, writes out the entire inscription. We were lucky enough to get some baseballs for our inventory. Is is a must have for any Mets collector.
It was great to see Darryl. I know him for a few years now and am glad to see him doing so well. He is one of the nicest people you will ever meet. We are both looking forward to his son DJ bringing Maryland basketball back to the top of the ACC this upcoming season. Lenny arrived a little after the other two athletes. He stayed late and signed for everyone. There were plenty of Phillies fans there to get an autograph from "Nails". He was one of my favorite players growing up. You got to love the guys that play hard and leave it all out there. This year's team plays that way.
After leaving Hall of Heroes I headed up to Last Licks in Thornwood for a signing with Baby Bomber Andy Phillips. Andy arrived about an hour after the Yankees lost (had to throw that in there). I did not realize how popular he is. I really enjoyed this signing. There were a lot of kids there and it's always great to see an athlete having a good time interacting with young fans. We got some great product signed including a photo of Andy's home run against the Red Sox last week.
We have a really exciting week coming up so keep checking back for updates. I will also be posting a Mets trivia contest tomorrow.

We just completed our first signing with Yankees outfielder Melky Cabrera. Melky had that incredible catch earlier in the week against the Red Sox. He robbed Manny Ramirez of a home run and, in the process, won the game for New York. The catch will definitely be the web gem of the week, if not the year. Cabrera signed an amazing image of the catch and also some baseballs.
Tomorrow we have Darryl Strawberry, Lenny Dykstra and Ray Knight signing at Hall of Heroes. Nails was one of my favorite players growing up. I am really excited for this one. Also, after the Yankees game, Andy Phillips is signing at Last Licks in Thornwood. Check back all weekend for updates as well as another Mets trivia contest.

Here are a few photos from the past weekend. We have a lot of exciting things coming up in the next few days. Mets greats Darryl Strawberry, Lenny Dykstra and Ray Knight are signing at Hall of Heroes. I am looking forward to seeing Darryl. His son D.J. plays basketball at my alma mater University of Maryland. I am hoping for a big season out of him at the point guard position.
Later in the day the NFL's newest Hall of Famer Harry Carson is signing at Hall of Heroes. This is Carson's first appearance as a football immortal and should get a huge turnout. Also on Saturday Yankees reserves Bubba Crosby and Andy Phillips are signing at Last Licks in Thornwood. Phillips has been unbelievable since stepping into the injury depleted lineup a few weeks ago. He is a huge reason why the Yankees have overtaken first place in the AL East.
I encourage you all to come out. Keep checking back for updates as there may be a few surprises coming up between now and Friday.

Since I have started this blog I haven't had an opportunity to really talk about Hank Aaron. I have been doing signings with Hank for almost four years and have gotten close with him over that time. I go down to Georgia a few times a year to do private signings. We usually sign a little each day for 2 days because Aaron is so busy. As well as Hank did in baseball he has accomplished even more outside of the game. He has several car dealerships in Atlanta as well as some resturants. When Hank comes to New York I always pick him up the airport versus getting a towncar to meet him. This time was no different.
I picked up Aaron at the aiport Saturday morning and was immediately bombarded with questions about the Mets. Hank and I have been going back and forth on Mets/Braves for a few years and , the way I see it, it is now my time. We talked business and National League East baseball for the entire ride to Last Licks in Huntington. We were greeted by over 300 fans when we arrived at the store. Hank signed for them all as well as some private items for us (including bats and batting helmets). About a half hour into the appearance Pete Rose arrived. Pete and Aaron talked for a while about the current state of the game. The highlight of the day was definitely Rose telling us that there were over 8000 hits at the table. I responded by saying that I get quite a few hits of my own on this blog. No one else thought it was funny. Pete was great, as usual. He takes photos with everyone and loves talking baseball with the fans. Hank and I left at about 1:30 so, unfortunately, I was unable to see Cal Ripken. I would like to thank Paul Gesualdi and Brendan Herlihy for helping out with Pete and Cal. I will be doing a private signing with Ripken later in the month so check back for the post on that one.
Hank and I got to talk a lot on the ride to the airport as we were trapped in the terrible storm that held up the Met game. I told him to expect a phone call in September when the Mets clinch the division and that I want his seats at Turner if we have a chance to win it there. Hank laughed and told me to be happy with the wild card. It was good to see my friend and am looking forward to my next trip to Georgia. Keep checking back for updates all week as well as photos from this weekend (we are experiencing technical difficulties with the image posting)

Just wanted to give you all a heads up that the two Mets appearances for tomorrow have been postponed. With the game getting rained out tonight there is a doubleheader tomorrow. We will be rescheduling Jose Reyes, Endy Chavez, Billy Wagner, Aaron Heilman and Duaner Sanchez. You will be the first to know once the new date is secured.
The Kings of Baseball appearance is still on for Last Licks Huntington. I'm picking up my friend Hank Aaron at the airport in the morning and heading over to the store where he is signing with Pete Rose and Cal Ripken Jr.. Hope to see you all there. Check back tomorrow evening for the exciting recap.

I just completed a small private signing with the Whitey Ford at his home. This was the first time I had been to Whitey's house. It was really cool. I saw his 1961 Cy Young award as well as some unbelievable photos and artwork. Whitey was awesome, as always, and we completed the signing in no time.
After leaving Whitey's I headed over to Shea for the rubber game with the Diamondbacks. Pedro pitched a gem and the game was won in the 13th by none other than Endy Chavez. And with that I will lead you into the weekend. Tomorrow we have the Mets hero of the moment Endy Chavez signing at Last Licks in Scarsdale with Billy Wagner and Jose Reyes. That is quite a triple bill. At the same time we also have Mets pitchers Aaron Heilman and Duaner Sanchez signing at Hall of Heroes. You should all come out for one of these. It's going to be great.
Tomorrow afternoon we have the Kings of Baseball signing at Last Licks in Huntington. From 12-1:30 Hank Aaron and Pete Rose are appearing and from 2:-3:30 Cal Ripken will be signing for the public. Check back tomorrow night for (to quote the great, late Bob Murphy) the happy recap.

Last Saturday I drove back up to Boston for a signing with "Big Papi" David Ortiz. Our marketing department set up a great baseball clinic for kids at the tennis center at Harvard. They really did an incredible job with it. I was able to observe the clinic before we did our private signing and could not believe how much fun David was having. He, quite possibly, may have even had an better time then they did. After the clinic there was a short Q&A session with Ortiz where he was asked questions such as what his most memorable home run was. Surprisingly, David's answer was his first Little League home run.
We knocked out the private signing right after the clinic. David signed some great product including some new 2006 photos. I am looking forward to seeing Ortiz again next week in New York.
We have a lot going on in the next few days so keep checking back for updates.