Three Bryce Harper Pins For The Price Of One – Nobody Pays Attention!

In March I ordered a Bryce Harper Philadelphia Phillies jersey pin for my collection.  It came from the official Phillies shop, and looked just like this on the item page.

When the pin arrived, something was missing.  No facsimile signature.  I thought to myself, no big deal.  Perhaps between the time I ordered it and the time it shipped they decided not to include the facsimile signature.  The image on the item page was a mock-up anyway, and not an actual image of a pin.

But then I saw this pin popup on eBay.  Its one with a facsimile signature.

I contacted the Fanatics Phillies shop.  Within the chat window I questioned as to what happened to the advertised pin with the facsimile signature.  Why would you advertise a pin with the facsimile signature, and then send one without it?  Clearly they have pins containing the signature.  Without any response I was quickly cut-off from chatting with the customer service representative.

A few moments later, I received an e-mail from them saying they plan to fix my order.  After a couple of days, look what showed up.  A fixed order in my book would mean receiving a pin with the facsimile signature.  Instead, they sent the same exact pin.  No signature.

My next move was to contact the pin’s manufacturer – WinCraft.  On the WinCraft website they show the pin with the facsimile signature just like the Fanatics Phillies shop.  In fact, it’s item #94232019.

In talking with their customer service representative I was told they were going to send me a new pin.  I had a good feeling about this one.  But then the package arrived and it turned out to be the same pin again.

On the bright side I ended up with three pins for the price of one.  That wasn’t really my goal.  Why did they make two versions of this pin?  How and where do you get the pin with the facsimile signature?  Even though the pin with the facsimile signature is advertised, it certainly isn’t the one you get.  The Fanatics Phillies shop no longer has them listed for sale.  Nobody seems to be paying any attention!!!

My best guess is that the pin containing the facsimile signature was made only available in-person somewhere like Citizens Bank Park.  They just chose to use the same image for online sales.  A little misleading if you ask me.

Card of the Day: David Price 2009 Upper Deck Signature Stars Top Prospects Auto

Christy Mathewson’s Relic Cards Have Increased 283% In Price Over The Last Four Years

Here is something you don’t see very often, especially within the hobby today.  The increase in price of a modern day card that isn’t related to some 18 year old prospect that was just bumped up to the majors.

Christy Mathewson relic cards have been on the rise over the past few years.  His first memorabilia card was issued in 2001 Upper Deck Legends of NY, and was limited to only 63 copies.  After that, Mathewson had relics appear in other products such as 2003 Upper Deck SP Legendary Cuts, 2005 Upper Deck SP Legendary Cuts, 2005 Upper Deck Trilogy, and last came in 2007 Upper Deck Sweet Spot Classic.  Since he has not had a new relic card issued in almost 5 years, the demand for his relics has drastically increased.

In 2008, I purchased a Christy Mathewson 2005 Upper Deck Trilogy game-used pants relic #’ed/75 for $58.00.  Last weekend I sold it for $222.50.  That is an 283 percent price increase in only 4 years.  During the time when he had a somewhat steady line of relic cards being issued, it wasn’t that difficult to find one up for sale.  Now you’ll be lucky to find one up for sale at all, and if you do be prepared to spend a hefty price.  Just take a look at some of these recently closed auctions:

• Mathewson 2003 UD SP Legendary Cuts Historic Swatches #’ed/100
• Mathewson 2003 UD SP Legendary Cuts Historic Swatches #’ed/250
• Mathewson 2005 UD SP Legendary Cuts Pants Relic #’ed/75
• Mathewson 2005 UD Trilogy Generations Past Materials #’ed/25

Christy Mathewson is a perfect example of what can happen when manufacturers stop making relic cards of a popular HOFer.  Among the first five inductees into the Baseball Hall of Fame, Mathewson has the second fewest relic cards.  Walter Johnson would be first considering he doesn’t have any.  Mathewson relics have really dried up.  It looks as if all the collectors that purchased his relics are keeping them in their personal collection.  I don’t know if I’d like to see some new Mathewson relics hit the market.  Someone would have to get their hands on some more Mathewson relics first, and those aren’t the easiest to find.  If new ones were to be issued, I have a feeling they would drive the price down on the older ones.

Mathewson’s 373 career wins still sits atop the number one spot in the National League, along with Grove Cleveland Alexander.  He attended Bucknell University which is only a few minutes away from where I live.  His body is also buried in the Lewisburg Cemetery and is right next to the college.

Boxing Mailday – A Package From Dr. Brian H. Price

This afternoon I received a package and letter from the desk of Dr. Brian H. Price.  Inside were seven promotional cards for Creative Cardboard Concepts new product due out in June, Ringside Boxing – Round 1.  All of the cards I received say “Promotional Card” or “Promo” on the back.  They look really cool, especially the ones designed like the Turkey Red Cabinets.  I’m not sure what I’ll do with them.  They might make good prizes for a contest this weekend.  Check them out!

Joe Frazier

Chad Dawson

Roy Jones, Jr.

Hector Camacho

Larry Holmes & Mike Tyson

Mike Tyson

Lennox Lewis

Blowout Cards New Spokesman

I’ve been waiting for Staples to put this ad online.  I think Blowout Cards needs to use this guy for their next promotion 🙂

Save Those Redemption Letters

Redemption cards can be one of the biggest pains in The Hobby today.  A majority of the time they are used to act as substitutes because the manufacturer couldn’t get a certain card inserted into a product on time before they had to ship it out.  Sometimes they are used for extremely rare cards and the manufacturer likes to hold on to the real thing just to keep it safe until its time for it to go to its new owner.  Usually when you receive your card in the mail, which could be weeks or even years, it comes with a letter from the company.  Most collectors toss the letter and keep the card wrapped inside.  After seeing this auction, it might not be a good idea to throw out those redemption letters, especially if they contain the signature of the person who is head of the company.  Who knew there was such a demand for a Dr. Price autograph?  These letters might actually be worth more than the cards themselves 🙂

Last summer I met TRISTAR’s President & CEO Jeff Rosenberg during the ’09 National in Cleveland.  After talking with him, he was nice enough to sign a copy of the e-mail he sent out to bloggers.  I wonder if there is a demand for his signature?

The Magic Of Dual Autographed Cards

Dual autographs are one of the cooler parts of the hobby.  They can feature players from the same team, position, or maybe they are all Hall of Famers.  Other times dual autographed cards can leave collectors scratching their heads wondering why the manufacturer put these two players together on the same card.  A lot of people think that dual autographs are more expensive than single autographed cards, but that isn’t always the case.  Dual autographed cards can actually be a great way to get that superstar autograph at a lower price.  The reasons why some dual autographed cards come at a lower price would be serial number, and who that superstar is teamed up with.  Sometimes if a superstar is paired with an athlete that didn’t quite do so well, the card might come at a discount.  This specifically can happen when a superstar or legend is teamed up with a new rookie that never panned out.  Take this card for example.  It is a 2006 Press Pass Legends Dan Marino / Greg Lee Dual Autographed card numbered to 50.  I know what your thinking.  Who the hell is Greg Lee?  After doing a Google search I found out he is a wide receiver for the Detroit Lions, and he’s not the most popular player to collect.  In the case of this card, thats a great thing.  Currently this card is up for sale with a “Buy It Now” price of $95.00.  It probably won’t sell for that price, which means if it were a regular auction the price might be lower.  Press Pass cards usually don’t sell for as much as the ones made by Upper Deck, Topps, and Donruss/Playoff, but being able to snatch up a Marino autograph numbered to 50 for less than $100.00 is pretty nice.  I know of only a few other Marino autographed cards that you can get for under $100.00 and be an on-card signature.  The important thing to remember is that this may not work all the time, but its a good way to try an obtain that superstar autograph at a lower price.

 

Speaking of Book Value

This video was posted on YouTube 9/7/2008.  I think this guy, and that lady from the other video should get married.  They have so much in common.

Totally Brainwashed

Is it just me, or did this lady drink too much of the Kool-Aid?

One Heck of a Trade

Over at Dinged Corners, there is a post entitled “What Would You Trade for an Illinois Senate seat?”  If I had a senate seat and wanted to try an trade, it would take a lot of cards and/or memorabilia.  They would need to find a T206 Honus Wagner graded a BGS Pristine 10 for me to get rid of something like that.  I would also settle for an entire sealed case of 1952 Topps baseball cards or maybe perhaps a few relics from the Baseball Hall of Fame.  What would you trade for a senate seat?  By the way, does anyone else think Gov. Blagojevich looks like a Fisher Price Little Person? (Especially the hair).