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 Monday, August 27, 2007
WHEN SPORTS MEMORABILIA NEWS IS LIGHT, IT’S TIME TO GO OFF TOPIC
Posted by Chris
 Not a whole lot going on in the sports memorabilia world this week. Mastro’s big sale is ending, so that’s usually something to be aware of, but as far as interesting topics go, there really is no news. So what does a sports memorabilia blogger do in the case of a boring Monday? He goes to Youtube.com to fetch one of the funniest clips he has ever seen. CLICK HERE TO WATCH VIDEO******************
In addition to the Mastro auction, which is currently live, Memory Lane Inc. went live recently and is a “must see” for high-grade card collectors. Memory Lane is selling a stunning 1933 Goudey Lou Gehrig PSA 10 and also a killer 1952 Topps Andy Pafko graded a PSA 8 as its headliners. Collectors may also want to take note that the California-based auction house is also selling many autographs, jewelry and other non-card pieces.
8/27/2007 5:24:01 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00) 
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Friday, August 24, 2007
HOW MANY JERSEY DOCTORS ARE ACTUALLY OUT THERE?
Posted by Chris
In the past couple years, and definitely in the past few weeks, the sports memorabilia world has been bombarded with various “made up” fake game-worn jerseys. Sometimes fake jerseys are pro-cut shirts that are being pawned off as “game-used”, by added fake wear, and sometimes the jerseys are doctored from common authentic jerseys with added star players names, numbers, patches, tags etc. All of this is very scary for any game-worn jersey collector. Collectors have been educating themselves ever since the Internet was introduced, but these jersey doctors are still getting away with lots of crooked activity. The scariest part of all this is that we only hear about the fake jerseys when there is proof of the fraudulent activity that has taken place. I wonder how many fakes are in collections with the owners assuming they have the real deal. I also wonder how many “jersey doctors” are out there. How do these guys sleep at night? There are many collectors that are becoming knowledgeable of this illegal activity and it is only a matter of time before these crooks get caught. Buyer beware ... and no matter if the item is authenticated or not, always do your own research and ask lots of questions. If the seller refuses to answer your questions, look elsewhere for your collectibles. There’s lots of good jerseys out there for everyone.
8/24/2007 5:22:45 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Thursday, August 23, 2007
MY CHAT WITH MATT MURPHY AND MORE
Posted by Chris
 A lot has happened in the memorabilia world since I last posted a blog. On Monday, I found out that Matt Murphy, the guy who caught Barry Bonds’ No. 756 home run ball, had listed the jersey and cap he was wearing at the game on eBay. I figured this was pretty interesting so I gave him a call. Matt answered and we chatted for about 15 minutes. Keep in mind, this was on Monday Aug. 20. Murphy told me all about the night that he caught the milestone ball. He was fresh off vacation from Australia, and rather tired. Here are some excerpts from the interview: “I’m in LA right now and staying here for today. I’m jet lagged like crazy.”On that milestone night:“It happened so quickly and I just had it. I was just holding on thinking just don’t let go. You know, it all just kind of clicked. It didn’t really hit me until later that night when I was finally left alone with that ball.”What Giants security told him: “In the bank. They said ‘put that damn thing in your pocket. Hold on to that and take it to the bank and then go on your vacation, kid.’”Did he think he would have to pay taxes to keep the ball? “I think it’s not a myth, I think it’s a fact that I have to pay for something that I already own and it’s kind of ridiculous. I cannot pay $200,000 to $300,000 to keep a baseball. I could pay $20,000 to $50,000 to keep it.”Has his life changed?“Nothing’s changed so far, just my phone bill.”On Aug. 21 Murphy pulled the items (the jersey and cap) he had listed on eBay and announced his ball would be sold in SCP/Sotheby’s auction. As of the day I talked to him, on Aug. 20, he was still undecided:“It’s more about how much it’s going to cost me to keep it and it’s about who is actually going to buy it. If it’s the Hall of Fame trying to buy it, I’m gonna sell it. Joe-whoever from Kansas, then I don’t know.”I really think Murphy wanted to keep the ball. But, from what people were telling him, he thought he would have to pay that crazy amount in taxes to the IRS to keep it. I think that is absolutely horrible. What kind of a world do we live in when you actually have a guy who doesn’t want to cash in on a home run ball for once and he can’t keep it as a souvenir, and as a result is forced to sell it? ***********************************
 In other major hobby news, Upper Deck dropped its offer to buy Topps. I know that a lot of card dealers are happy with this because it keeps the competition alive and the competition between Upper Deck, Topps, Donruss etc., should be good for all collectors of sports cards. ***********************************
Also, The National Card Convention filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last week. CLICK HERE FOR STORY That said, the 2008 National is still slated for Chicago and everything seems to still be going as planned. “Anyone who selected a booth for next year’s show at the lottery in Cleveland will receive their contracts and invoices next month,” said Etta Hersh, president of the NSCC. *********************************** In about three hours I am going to drive to Green Bay for the Packers game. This is the first game of the year for me and I am pretty excited. It is supposed to rain like crazy tonight, so that is a bummer. I don't mind braving the elements for a regular season game, but preseason doesn't excite me as much. I will probably watch Brett play for a half and then check out his backup, Aaron Rodgers for a little while and head back home. I'll be back tomorrow.
8/23/2007 1:19:37 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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SORRY I HAVEN'T POSTED IN A FEW DAYS
Posted by Chris
Hi everyone... It's been a few days since my last post. We have been having some computer server problems and that is the reason. I will be posting a new blog at some point today. I am leaving for the Packers vs. Jaguars preseason game in a few hours, so check back soon. -chris
8/23/2007 12:41:28 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Monday, August 20, 2007
MAN WHO CAUGHT BONDS BALL SELLING JERSEY ON EBAY
Posted by Chris
 This is a new one... Matt Murphy, the guy who caught Barry Bonds' 756th home run ball is selling the Mets jersey he wore while he caught the famous record-breaking ball on eBay. CLICK HERE TO VIEW AUCTIONThis is probably going to mark the first time a jersey, not worn by a player, sells for five figures. It will be very interesting what it sells for. I would be surprised if it get $20,000 or more.
8/20/2007 3:20:48 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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ATTENTION GAME-WORN BASEBALL JERSEY COLLECTORS
Posted by Chris
 One of the most comprehensive guides that can be used for identifying Major League Baseball game jerseys has been released in PDF form. The fourth edition of Bill Henderson's MLB Game Worn Jerseys of the Double Knit Era (1970-2007)includes more than 1200 pages and 8000 photos, with 200 pages of new information and thousands of new images. Henderson's computer publication was first published in 2005 and has been featured in Paul Lukas' Uni-Watch column on ESPN.com, and with mentions in USA Today Sports Weekly.  The Baseball Hall of Fame requested copies for its research library of the publication, which is becoming a staple in many game-worn jersey collectors' archives. MLB Game Worn Jerseys of the Double Knit Era (1970-2007) is independently published and presently available for $34.99 through www.mlbstyleguides.com.
8/20/2007 3:00:18 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Friday, August 17, 2007
WHO SAYS KIDS DON’T COLLECT CARDS ANYMORE?
Posted by Chris
 For all those people who don’t think youngsters buy packs of cards anymore, brothers Sal, Jude and Jaryn Polit-Moran of Dallas, Penn. one-upped all those naysayers. This group of 12, 10 and 7-year-olds, respectively, recently completed a set of 1934 Goudey baseball cards. Quite an accomplishment considering when I was their age, I couldn’t even spell basbal kardz … (maybe I still can’t)☺ I had a chance to chat with Sal and Jude today via the telephone and they filled me in on their impressive venture. According to Sal, their uncle got them involved in the vintage card hobby, but made it clear that they used their own money. Between allowances, Christmas money, birthdays and funds they made by selling some of their old toys, the Polit-Moran boys ponied up more than $3,000 in the span of about two and a half years to complete the set. When asked if they are done collecting and satisfied with just the ’34 Goudey set, young Sal put me in my place: "We're probably gonna keep it for a couple years and get appreciation on it and then sell it,” he said. “After this we might save up some more money and buy a Sherry Magee (T206) card. After that we are gonna sell the Magee and get even more money and buy a (Eddie) Plank (T206 card) and then maybe in 30 years we will be able to make enough money to buy a (Honus) Wagner (T206)." Now that would be a lot of allowances!
8/17/2007 4:12:35 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Thursday, August 16, 2007
IS THIS THE BIGGEST FLIP IN EBAY HISTORY?
Posted by Chris
 I first saw this eBay auction on the Network 54 Vintage Card forum. CLICK HEREI was amazed to see that this bottle of beer sold for $500,000! But what was more surprising is that this exact same bottle sold for only $300 in June of this year… CLICK HERE What the heck is going on here? I have a feeling that this actually may have been totally legit. The person who bought it for $300, and sold it for $500,000, did a lot of research on it and included all of that in his description. Is it possible that his new description could have made the bottle that much more valuable?? Maybe. I think this is so intriguing… Unfortunately, I know next to nothing about antique beer bottles, so I don’t have a good grasp on this whole thing.
8/16/2007 6:11:27 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Wednesday, August 15, 2007
MEARS OUTLINES 2008 AUCTION HOUSE POLICIES
Posted by Chris
MEARS just announced its auction house policies for 2008. The game-used equipment authenticators just laid out what looks to be a strict and innovative list of rules an auction house must follow in order to submit items for MEARS’ authenticating services. To read the full text on its site CLICK HERE.To my knowledge, no auction house has ever agreed to be audited by a third party. I think it’s a good idea in the respect that it would help instill more confidence in the bidders’ eyes, but I am not sure auction houses would open up their records to anybody. The idea with all of this is to give all bidders full disclosure … it will be interesting to see how this all plays out and to see which companies will use MEARS next year and which ones won’t. Also, I would like to hear your comments on this and how many auction houses you think will abide by these rules.
8/15/2007 5:37:46 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Tuesday, August 14, 2007
FREE LISTING DAY ON EBAY TOMORROW
Posted by Chris
 Just got an email from eBay… Tomorrow is free listing day and there are some stipulations that go along with this. Usually eBay lets you list the item with as high of a minimum bid you want to. This ticks people off because many items are listed with outrageous starting bids. Tomorrow’s free listing day forces the seller to start his or her auction at 9.99. Also, it forces the seller to use the Gallery thumbnail in the auction. All this makes for better eBay surfing, so props to eBay for understanding concerns many bidders have with this promotion.
8/14/2007 5:21:38 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Monday, August 13, 2007
$20,000 BARRY BONDS COIN ISSUED
Posted by Chris
I don't know what exactly to say about this: a $20K Barry Bonds coin? This is quite a bit of money for something that was produced this year. I wonder how much one pound of 24KT gold is worth... Thoughts? For Immediate Release
Contact: Timm Boyle, Double M Communications (262-942-9851)
Licensed by Barry Bonds and Major League Baseball
Extremely Rare One-Pound 24kt Gold
Barry Bonds Home Run Record Proof Coin Available Now from Highland Mint
MELBOURNE, Fla., August 10, 2007 – If an ounce of prevention is
worth a pound of cure, just think what a pound of 24kt gold coin must be
worth! How about $20,000?
The Highland Mint has produced a one-pound, 24kt gold proof coin to honor
Barry Bonds for his 756th home run that he hit August 7 at AT&T Park in San
Francisco to become Major League Baseball’s all-time home run leader.
This product, licensed by Barry Bonds and Major League Baseball, is limited
to 25 coins and sells for $20,000 each. Each coin is individually numbered
1 through 25.
“More million dollar coins have been sold in the past three years than in
the previous 30 years as the entire coin industry has gone rarity based,”
said Ian Clay, president of the Westminster Mint, a leading national rare
coin dealer. “This extremely limited Barry Bonds Home Run Record proof coin
has many unique features that will interest both the rare coin and sports
memorabilia collector. We expect a fast and complete sellout.”
Each proof coin measuring 3.5 inches in diameter features a portrait of
Barry Bonds on the obverse and the official 756 custom logo designed by
Barry Bonds on the reverse.
The one-pound, 24-kt gold Barry Bonds Home Run Record proof coin is
available by calling toll-free 1-800-301-3868.
# # #
8/13/2007 5:17:27 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Thursday, August 09, 2007
THE FIND OF ALL FINDS
Posted by Chris
 If you are a collector who dreams of finding the next big collection, CLICK HERE and also HERE… I got these links from the Network 54 Vintage Card message board, so thanks to them for that. These posts were started by a man who inherited, potentially, some of the best cards recently discovered in the hobby. I am not going to pretend to be a big pre-war card guy, but I know of many of the cards talked about in this thread and all I can say is “holy crap!” The condition on these cards look to be very impressive. I made a post on the forum in order to try to secure an interview with this lucky guy. I will keep everyone posted.
8/9/2007 6:04:27 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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