Broken bat-MLB Authenticated

[Tunis]

Did a search but did not find these specific questions answered.

I am looking at a bat that has been MLB Authenticated and has been broken in 2 pieces. It has been wrapped in white tape. Here are the questions:

1. Do I remove the white tape and try to repair the bat?
2. Should I just leave it as it is?
3. Do I mess up the authentication if I try to repair it?

I am afraid that once I unwrap the tape, I might be surprised at what I find. It could be that the bat doesn't "join" very well and the tape is all that is holding it together. It might even be missing pieces.

Thanks for opinions
Paul

[camarokids]

Leave the bat alone. Is this sticker from the bat survey MLB did on broken bats? If so leave it alone as well. I do not like repaired bats......

[Manram]

Leave the bat alone. Is this sticker from the bat survey MLB did on broken bats? If so leave it alone as well. I do not like repaired bats......

I agree, leave it like it is. Some people prefer repaired bats and some don't like them. Personally i don't like them

[Tunis]

The sticker is only referring to the game it was used and broken.

[MarinersFan34]

It really depends on whether the tape keeping it together is part of the players tape job or if it's the tape applied by a batboy/clubhouse guy to keep the parts together. If it's the latter, then it wasn't part of the bat while it was in use and imo is fair game to remove. If you ever have any thoughts of removing the tape, do it now and not later. If you do it later the tape will most likely leave behind residue and tape marks on the bat making it quite unsightly.

I actually see removing the extra tape as a way of restoring it back to when it was last used, with the exception of MLB holograms of course. I would also NEVER repair a bat, I prefer them cracked/broken or whatever state they were in when they were removed from the game.

In the end though, it's all up to you and your personal preference.

[camarokids]

The sticker is only referring to the game it was used and broken.

Is this the MLB Authentication sticker? Leave it alone. Or even if it is from the broken bat survey, I would leave that on there too. If you can, please post a pic of the bat.

[camarokids]

It really depends on whether the tape keeping it together is part of the players tape job or if it's the tape applied by a batboy/clubhouse guy to keep the parts together. If it's the latter, then it wasn't part of the bat while it was in use and imo is fair game to remove. If you ever have any thoughts of removing the tape, do it now and not later. If you do it later the tape will most likely leave behind residue and tape marks on the bat making it quite unsightly.

I actually see removing the extra tape as a way of restoring it back to when it was last used, with the exception of MLB holograms of course. I would also NEVER repair a bat, I prefer them cracked/broken or whatever state they were in when they were removed from the game.

I agree!

BTW, welcome to the Forum!

[Tunis]

I think I will remove the tape because it was applied to keep the bat together after it was broken. It is not part of the original taping by the players. When I try to repair a bat, I am not trying to disguise whether or not it was broken, just trying to make it more presentable.

Thanks for all of the opinions and the welcome.
I have been part of the boards before but somehow my start date got reset.

[yankees506]

what player is the bat?

[legaleagle92481]

Did a search but did not find these specific questions answered.

I am looking at a bat that has been MLB Authenticated and has been broken in 2 pieces. It has been wrapped in white tape. Here are the questions:

1. Do I remove the white tape and try to repair the bat?
2. Should I just leave it as it is?
3. Do I mess up the authentication if I try to repair it?

I am afraid that once I unwrap the tape, I might be surprised at what I find. It could be that the bat doesn't "join" very well and the tape is all that is holding it together. It might even be missing pieces.

Thanks for opinions
Paul

Paul,

As a former collector of GU bats here is my opinion.

1. Don't remove the tape and try to repair it. It is not easy to repair a bat and alot of repair jobs are terrible and the bats would have looked better broken then how they came out. Plus like you say you don't know what is under there.

2. Leave it as it is.

3. You won't ruin the autentication as long as you don't remove the MLB hologram but if you sell it the buyer will look it up in the database and see that it was cracked and you will have to explain the repair.

[Tunis]

Guys,
Thanks for all of the great input. If I have the opportunity to have it autographed, should I? or does that raise questions down the line if I try to sell it? as it was not part of the MLB Authentication.
Paul

[Tunis]

Received my bat from Kruk yesterday. It is a game-used bat that was broken in the 11th inning on September 10, 2010 by Jose Lopez. I have followed his career since the minor leagues. Even though he had a poor season this year (almost everybody on the Mariners did), I think he is still young enough to become a good player for another team.

After weighing all of my options, I decided to unwrap the tape to see what was under it. I was pleasantly surprised that the bat was missing only very small, small fragments. Splinters, really. One thing that was cool was there were green markings inside the breakage from when the barrel landed on the turf. The bat was pretty easily put back together. The taping left no marks on the pine tar.

I took plenty of pictures during the process, so i can show the before, during, and after shots.

I have repaired bats before so I had a nice wood glue, two adjustable wood clamps and some knowledge to work with.

After the bat has dried, I will take the "after" shots to post.

Thanks to all for their opinions. This site is incredible with the wealth of knowledge that the members bring to the table.

Paul

[Tunis]

Here is the bat unwrapped. Learning how to add attachments to my posts, so this first one is an experiment.
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[Tunis]

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