So here was my first big break- Hammacher Schlemmer put my baseballs on the cover of their catalog in 1995.  I think my mom ordered like 10 catalogs!  It was my first real lesson in the ways of the world- not 3 months before this happened I had contacted HS myself to see if they were interested in my baseballs...

I got responses from their sales team that they were not interested and going to pass- then I joined with another company that had a salesman who knew people at HS and BAM I'm on the cover!  (don't believe anyone who says contacts don't help :)