Here are the long awaited photos from last week. Look Tuesday for a recap of the last few days (which includes signings with Jed Lowrie, Brandon Jacobs and a few others) Enjoy the weekend!

Last night was our appearance at Last Licks Armonk with Oliver Perez and Fernando Tatis. It was an interesting event considering Ollie started yesterday's game (not his finest of the season but kept us in the game...the ironic thing is a line like he had is practically Cy Young worthy in the AL..but that is a discussion for another time). I don't think, in all my years doing this, I have ever had an appearance with a pitcher right after a start. Perez and Tatis arrived together about two hours after the game. One quick note- when we have a signing with current players after a game, despite what the tentative time says on this site, generally players show up somewhere between an hour and two hours after the game. Most guys ice up or have treatment or media obligations after a game ... so it isn't like they hop into a car in uniform as soon as they leave the field. We are going to try to address this better when we announce these appearances but figured I would give a little insight into this. Anyway , both guys were great (and I am not just saying that). While I have met Ollie before (and he is undoubtedly my favorite Mets pitcher..I even wear a Perez authentic road jersey to games) this was my first time meeting Tatis. I must say he is one of the most geniune athletes I have ever met. After talking to him for awhile towards the end of the signing it is clear that he is just so happy to be playing baseball (after being out of the game) and truly does appreciate every day on the field...it is not an act whatsoever and was really nice to see. Both Ollie and Fernando were amazing with the fans. They took photos with everyone were happy to talk with the excited fans. After the public portion both guys signed some resplendent product (new adjective) including MLB baseballs, Shea Stadium commemorative balls and a handful of photos. Check out the site for images of these must-have Mets pieces.
We are about to embark on another exciting week so try to check back daily for update. I know I say that every week but, with the Red Sox in town, this will definitely be a busy one. Also, we are having a hard time uploading photos so sometime in the next few days (when the problem is fixed) I will post all the photos from the past week.

I just returned home from our appearance at Last Licks Manhattan with Bob Feller. To be quite honest I did not feel great about this going into it. Feller does sign a lot and, even with this being free autographs, I did not expect a big turnout. I was happilly 100% wrong. Not only did Bob do great in Massapequa (where he signed earlier in the day) but he absolutely rocked in the city. There was a huge line of people awaiting his arrival (almost all of which are too young to have even seen Feller pitch). Overall the day was an absolute success...not only because of the awesome turnout and happy customers, but also because I was able to get an extraoridnary new item signed. Right before the public began Bob signed a limited amount of game model gloves. They look unbelievable so be sure to check them out on the site. Bottom line is- the guy is a legend- and the glove is one of the more unique pieces I have ever seen signed by him.
Tomorrow I will be finishing off the weekend strong at Last Licks Armonk with Mets stars Fernando Tatis and Oliver Perez. Hope to see you all there! Enjoy what is left of this beautiful weekend.

Yesterday morning (extremely early- was still dark when I left) I headed down to Baltimore for a signing with the recovering ace of Yankees pitching staff Joba Chamberlain. This was a last minute signing so we spent much of Thursday prepping the product and loading up for the drive. I must say- I hate that drive. I did it (and another 45 minutes) for five years while attending University of Maryland (at College Park..go Terps! 4216 Knox Road!). It is awful and would take the Boston drive anyday over the pains of the New Jersey Turnpike. For once I made great use of the ride...for the past few weeks I have feebly attempted to learn Spanish. I have wanted to for years (after making the wrong decision to take Italian in High School) and, with the all the spanish speaking players I am surrounded by, felt it was time to start studying. With that in mind (aside from the books I have been reading) I bought a few CD's to learn from on the ride. That actually made the drive go quicker and I think I retained a lot of what I heard...if anyone wants to help me learn let me know....at some point I plan on doing one blog in Spanish (hopefully is right after the Mets win the World Series...I will be using the term Los Mets a lot)
I finally arrived in Baltimore just in time to set up for the morning's signing. After unloading the product and laying it out I was left with less than an hour until Joba's arrival. Strangely enough this was my first time meeting Chamberlain. Somehow every time we have had something with him I was either on the road or stuck at another signing in New York. I must say, after spending some time with him, he really is a nice guy. He is extremely easy to talk to and , while he is a fast signer, takes the time to question the particulars of how something is signed (rather than grab the first marker he sees and signing the first open spot). Joba cranked through the signing in less than two hours and I was left with a mess of a room filled with some seriously potent product. Over the course of the session Chamberlain signed some ridiculously hot game used pieces (including bases and balls with inscriptions), Yankee Stadium commemorative baseballs, MLB baseball and some awesome photos (including an image of Joba's first pitch in his first start)
After packing up for about an hour I finally hit the road at a little before 3:00.
I popped back in my Spanish discs and was excited about the prospect of being home by 6:30....of course, as always, that was not the case. I hit a ton of traffic in Delaware where there was construction (I do not see the need for construction in that state whatsoever), and got caught in a 90 plus minute stand-still in northern New Jersey. I finally arrived at home after 9:00. Despite the agonizing ride home I did learn a fair amount of espanol before switching to Los Mets game once I was able to get reception on the Fan.
All in all not too bad a day's work to be able to get you guys the most prodigious product imaginable. Later today I have an appearance at Last Licks Manhattan with the legendary Bob Feller (he is also signing at Last Licks Massapequa prior to the Manhattan one). Hope to see you there!

Yesterday morning I headed out to New Jersey for a small signing with my boy Michael Strahan. Stra seems incredibly excited about making the move to television. Personally I think he will become the focal point of the Fox show within no time...he will be that good. Michael, even after retiring, remains one of - if not the- most popular Giants of all-time. I have been doing stuff with him for years but since winning the Super Bowl the demand has been overwhelming for Strahan product. With that in mind Michael was nice enough to give me a few minutes of his time to knock out some backordered items (his pieces are as hot as ever, very hard to keep in stock). After signing some of these staple items we tried a few new pieces...multi inscription ones with many of Stra's ridiculous career statistics. These are truly unique pieces (only 9 in existence and no more than 2 of a particular item)...very cool.





Anyway, we have a ton going on over the next few days. Saturday we have appearances at both Last Licks Massapequa and Manhattan with the legendary Bob Feller. Then on Sunday (after the game) we have Mets stars Fernando Tatis and Oliver Perez (my favorite pitcher not named Pedro on the team) signing at Last Licks Armonk. Between now and then there may be a few surprises so keep checking back for updates.

Saturday night was our appearance at Last Licks Manhattan with Yankees pitcher Darrell Rasner. As you all know Saturday's afternoon game went pretty late (took the underachieving Yanks 13 innings to overcome the perennial last place Royals) so there was quite an anxious crowd awaiting Rasner's arrival. In all honesty I could not believe the fans (and Zev) stuck it out and waited as Darrell did not arrive until about 7:30. In the meanwhile our gracious Last Licks staff kept everyone busy with some raffles, games and ice cream. Anyway, Rasner did not disappoint (once we finally got underway). He chatted with everyone on line and took photos with all. Once the public portion concluded he autographed a plethora of phenomenal product including MLB baseballs, Yankee Stadium Commemorative baseballs and a few remarkable game used pieces. I don't normally push Yankees product on here but, with this being the last year at Yankee Stadium, a game used piece from this season truly is a must-have for any fan (especially on a reasonably priced autograph like Rasner's).

Last night was our appearance at Last Licks Manhattan with the Yankees top prospect Austin Jackson. Going into yesterday I really did not know much about him other than his name has come up in numerous trade rumours. After doing a little research it is easy to see that he is the heir-apparent to roam center field at the Yankee Stadium. He has been raking in the minors for a while and, chances are, will be a September call up for the floundering Yankees. Obviously there is a definite buzz around the kid...that was abundantly clear after last night's appearance. There was nice crowd on hand to get a glimpse and an autograph from the future star (it was actually a larger line than we have had for some of the Yankees major league talent at signings). After the public part concluded Austin signed some great pieces in private including MLB balls, a handful of MLB balls with inscriptions, bats and some Yankee caps. This guy is a must have for any Yankees collector and I would pick up an item (or two or three) now while he is in somewhat obscurity and is reasonably priced.
...plus the guy is a Lakers fan. We commiserated for much of the signing over the embarrassment of the Finals but ended on a positive note talking about the possibilities for next season (with Bynum back and Gasol at the 4, Odom at the 3...should be just fine and poised to rule the West again).
Tomorrow I will be at Jones Beach for the Ratdog/Allman Brothers show so if anyone is going hit me up...haven't seen the Bros' in quite some time with the March run getting cancelled so I am as excited as ever to catch Gregg and Warren (not to mention Bobby's band which has been on fire as of late!). Then on Saturday we have another strong Yankees appearance at Last Licks NYC...Darrell Rasner will be appearing at Last Licks NYC following the afternoon game versus the Royals.
Hope to see you there!

Yesterday was our appearance at Last Licks Scarsdale with Mets young phenom pitcher Mike Pelfrey. This was my second signing with Mike in as many weeks and, even in that short span, his popularity seems to be rising by the day (despite a loss earlier today....just has a hard time with the Marlins). There was a serious crowd on hand to get an autograph from the star. People really do love Pelf...there is something about homegrown talent that is so much more special than a free-agent aquisition. There were even several people on line wearing "Go Big Pelf!" t-shirts (by the way if anyone knows where to get these let me know). Anyway, after the line dissipated Mike signed for a short period in private. Over the past two signing we have built an amazingly robust collection around the budding star...including blue and black Mets caps, MLB baseballs, Shea Stadium commemorative balls and even a handful of Shea Stadium subway signs.
There were a few people on line that even started team pieces. No matter what happens the rest of the way (and I am suprisingly optimistic) this is the final Mets team ever at Shea Stadium so a team piece is definitely pretty special. In a few weeks we have Oliver Perez (my favorite Mets pitcher since Doc...I actually own and wear an Ollie road jersey which is not easy to find) and Fernando Tatis signing at Last Licks Armonk. That is a great opportunity to start something or continue an already strong Mets multi-signed piece.
As you can see the dog-days of summer are ending and as the playoff pushs' begin I am starting to get quite busy again. While I have slacked (i'll be the first to admit it) on the blog over the past month there will be a lot to talk about from here on in.
Later today is our appearance at Last Licks NYC with Yankees future-star Austin Jackson. Check back tomorrow for a recap.

Last night was our appearance at the brand new Last Licks Rye Ridge with women's soccer legend Brandi Chastain. I have worked with Brandi countless times (the last being the World Cup team signing late last year) and she remains one of my all-time favorite people (let alone athlete/celebrity). Before heading over to the store Brandi popped in to knock out a bunch of the private items. I had worked this out a head of time as the last thing I wanted was a ton of soccer balls bouncing around our newest store. Chastain was as accommodating as ever and finished all the equipment over here before we rode over to Last Licks. She autographed a handful of USA jerseys as well as a new style Nike ball (strongest we have ever done) Anyway, this was my first time in the new location and I must tell you...it is an incredible store. It is the perfect size and just set up the right way...has the right balance neighborhood ice cream shop and and ESPN zone kind of feel...very cool, very strong.
I was not the only on impressed with our newest location as Brandi could not believe how nice the store is. It turns out that she has friends in the area that have been frequenting the location since it opened a few weeks ago. Aside from her friends that came to visit us there was a nice crown on hand to greet the World Cup and Olympic star. Brandi, as always, was amazing with her fans...especially the kids.
After the public portion concluded Chastain signed the balance of the private pieces which was two incredibly strong photos (in both 8x10 and 16x20). Overall the entire night was a huge success and we are already looking forward to doing more with Brandi in the future. By the way Brandi is doing commentary for NBC for this Olympics soccer. I have watched a little bit of it already and I recommend even the most casual fan to check it out.
Check back later for a recap of the Mike Pelfrey appearance.