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In Person collecting is a great method of autograph collecting. Many people prefer it over
TTM collecting, because you know your signtures are authentic. On this page you will find tips to enhance your collecting
expeience.
Where to Collect
- At games. Often Baseball players will sign by the dugouts after batting practice and before
the start of games.
- Outside stadiums. Most stadiums have player parking lots, which are great spots for autographs
collecting before and after games.
- Hotels. During the season, visiting teams stay at team hotels. These are great places to collect,
however rooms go fast, so you should make reservations ahead of time.
- Training camp/Spring Training. Most players are more willing to sign in person at training
camps/spring training than at any other time of the year. Before games is good for spring training, and most training camps
have schedued autograph signings for the fans.
- Promotions/Events. Always check local newspapers and other such resources for local events
featuring player signings. Many times a player will sign at the grand opening of a store or shopping center. A good resource
to find such signings that I use frequently is signingshotline.com.
- Random places. If you live in a bigger city, more so one with a national sports team, keep
an eye out in public places, and keep a stack of index cards in the car. You may just see your favorite hometown hero on your
next trip to the mall.
What To Bring
-
Always have something to be signed. Trading
cards are my favorite, however many other things can be signed. Items from the sport, such as a ball or bat
work fine, as well as photos of the player. Shirts, hats, jerseys and other types of clothing also work decently, as long
as there is a solid surface for signing.
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Always have a marker, and make sure it works. I've heard of many people
missing a great autograph because their pen wasn't working, or they didn't have one. Having a marker also allows
you to designate what color the player signs in. I HIGHLY RECCOMEND bringing more than one marker, as markers will occasionally
run dry, or tips can be damaged. Better be safe than sorry.
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A camera. This is more of a personal preference, as I usually like to get a photo
of the athlete or of myself with the athlete. Also, getting a photo is a sort of certificate of authenticity for those
friends who don't believe you.
How To Bring It
For trading cards, its a good idea to make a book like pictured above to carry your cards. To
make one, you will need:
- A spiral notebook of index cards. 3x5 fits 1 card per page, 4x6 will fit 2 per page.
- Some photo corners. These are usually used for scrapbooking, and are available at
most department stores.
- Your cards. If your collecting at a game you never know who will sign, so its a good idea to
have something for every player on the team. Topps Total team sets are a great way to go, you can usually find them on ebay
from $2-$8, and they are the only sets I know of that have cards of pretty much every player, instead of just star players.
If there are any obsolete players on the roster that you can't find cards for, make a CIC.
Follow the directions on the photo corner package for their use. I highly reccomend
organizing the cards in the book in a certain manner, either by the players number or alphabetically by
name, depending on how well you know the faces of the players. The benefits ofthis method of storage are endless, as it
eliminates the need to flip through a stack of cards, it offers a sturdy signing surface, its small and easy to carry,
and it makes an athlete much more willing to sign multiple cards, as they don't need to waste time flipping
through a stack since both cards are presented at the same time. Another benefit is that a marker will clip into
the coil for easy storage.
With photographs, its best to keep them inside of 3 ring binders. There are full sheet
pockets made specifically for 3 ring binders that will house photos up to 8 and a half by 11 inches in size.
With larger items, such as helmets and bats, its easiest just to carry them. You can use a bag
or something, however many stadiums will not allow bags above a certain size inside, and if it is of permittable size, you'll
have to wait around as attendants sort through the contents.
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