This morning I received an e-mail from a reader that asked whether or not I made a post about the Albert Pujols 2001 Fleer Legacy autographed rookie card #’ed/799. He informed me that fake versions of this card have been popping up a lot because some of these cards are autographed and others are not. Apparently, this card was only made available back in 2001 as a redemption, just like a lot of Pujols autographs at the time. Many of the 799 cards that Fleer produced were redeemed, but there were some that didn’t, which meant some cards would go unsigned. Doing a quick search on eBay, you will find autographed versions of this card and unsigned versions. Somehow the unredeemed cards made it to the secondary market. This is alright because collectors may be able to obtain a more affordable rookie card of Pujols, but it has also has lead to many people forging his signature. The cards look exactly the same except some have autographs and some do not. If you plan to buy an autographed version of this card I would be very skeptical. It would be a good idea to find one that is graded and/or certified so you know its a real autograph. Above you will find what an authentic signed card looks like. Below is an unsigned version.
Filed under: Spotting Specific Fake Cards | Tagged: 2001, albert, autograph, baseball, card, counterfeit, fake, fleer, legacy, pujols, redemption, rookie |
Sports Card Info 
Very nice.
I just saw one listed on E-Bay and it sure looks fake to me. I had actually pulled out and redeemed one when the product first came out and unfortunately sold it for a lot less than what it would be worth now but if I remember correctly on the card, there was a peel-off that if removed it would not be redeemable for the autograph version and I believe it was limited to the first 250 serial numbers.
I just bought this card a week ago on ebay, the card is signed and it has the authintic autograph underneath the singnature, although the auto is a little sloppy but ive studdied this card on ebay looking a graded an non graded and came up with this. Cards #300 under all have nice singnatures and 450 above they start getting sloppier i know he didnt only sing 1-300 straight they skipped numbers but im not an expert its a gamble with this card, still its worth 400 to 5 hundred anyway.
I have one of the 2001 Fleer Legacy Autos. I got it out of a pack with the redemption sticker on it. I redeemed it and got it a few months after I submitted it. My auto looks like the one that is graded and you can definitely tell a difference between some of them. Mine is lower on the card like the one above. It appears that some of the alledged fake autos are more to the left and a bit higher up on the card with a bit more loopiness. I have also heard from another Ebayer that he is friends with someone that worked for Fleer and he said that they only redeemed like 43 of them. If that is true that means that it is one of the rarest Pujols auto rookie available, way more than the Bowman Chrome. I really enjoy knowing that mine is the real deal. It’s really too bad that people out there are doing forgeries trying to make a quick buck and cheat people. Be awhere of the Pujols auto and make sure you do research before purchasing one of them.