2009 Topps Attax J.J. Hardy

Who is this? J.J. Hardy, former Milwaukee Brewers shortstop

What is this? An autographed card from the 2009 Topps Attax set

Where'd I get it? I wrote to Hardy and asked him to sign it last April. I got it back today.

How much did it cost? Around a dollar for the card plus postage

Why is this so special? J.J. Hardy was an All-Star in 2007, hitting .277 with 26 home runs and 80 RBI. In 2008, he had another good year, hitting .283 with 24 home runs and 74 RBI.

Last year, Hardy had a terrible season and he was traded to Minnesota during the offseason. Hopefully he can turn things around and be a productive player for the Twins.

J.J. Hardy has something funky going on with his autograph. The "ardy" part is easy enough to read, but the first part almost looks like he's trying to use two "J"s to make one funky "H"

2009 Topps Attax Jorge Cantu

Who is this? Jorge Cantu, first baseman for the Florida Marlins

What is this? An autographed card from the 2009 Topps Attax set

Where'd I get it? I ended up with way too many Topps Attax cards last year, so I mailed some out to players for autographs. This one went out last April to Dolphin Stadium and came back today.

How much did it cost? About a dollar for the card and postage.

Why is this so special? Jorge Cantu is one of the Marlins' better hitters. He hit .289 with 16 home runs and 100 RBI last season.

Cantu was a nice story the year before. The Tampa Bay Devil Rays and Cincinnati Reds had both given up on him, but the Marlins gave Cantu a shot to be a full-time player. He hit .277 with 29 home runs and 95 RBI.

Cantu has an unusual signature. It seems to hint at "J Cantu," but the letter "C" is the only unambiguous one.

This autograph looks a bit different from ones signed for Topps used in 2007 and 2008 baseball sets, but I'm still hopeful that it's authentic. The 2007 and 2008 Topps autographs distinctly different from ones Cantu signed for the 2000 Bowman set, so it's not as if Cantu has had a single autograph style for his whole career.