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yankees159
01-31-2007, 08:57 PM
On the Sports Collectors Daily website there is a great article by Mike Specht entitled, Does that Game Used Bat Really " Match Factory Records"? This should be considered a must read for any bat collector. Here's a link to the website http://www.sportscollectorsdaily.com

Number9
02-02-2007, 04:39 AM
Pardon my ignorance, but could someone fill me in as to who he is referring to in the following (perhaps someone would rather to email me directly instead of posting, if so, I am at hockeyhistory62@yahoo.com):


""Recently, one of the more noted entities in the hobby has proclaimed that, if a player ordered a certain model bat at any point in his career, and had, at some point in his career used a specific length of any model of bat, and had, again at any time in his career, used a certain weight of any model of bat, then the subject bat of that model and with those dimensions may be said to “match factory records,” regardless of the actual date of manufacture. Huh? "

Birdbats
02-02-2007, 09:40 AM
Read through the attached thread -- it will give you all the background you want about the issue in question.

http://www.gameuseduniverse.com/vb_forum/showthread.php?t=5464

MSpecht
02-02-2007, 11:29 AM
Hi--

Thanks for the question and also for reading the article on the Sports Collectors Daily site.

To answer your question specifically, Vintage Authentics / Steve Jensen publicly posted this claim which can be reviewed through the discussion in posts 9-13 on the following thread:

http://www.gameuseduniverse.com/vb_forum/showthread.php?t=5464

After that thread had been completed, Vintage Authentics / Steve Jensen was asked for further clarification on the topic, yet never responded to the question below:

http://www.gameuseduniverse.com/vb_forum/showpost.php?p=25878&postcount=16 (http://www.gameuseduniverse.com/vb_forum/showpost.php?p=25878&postcount=16)

Ultimately, the subject bat sold for $1,000 plus the premium using the definition/explanation originally offered by Steve Jensen. Obviously, this raises the question of how many other bats exist with this definition of "matches factory records" which was addressed very well on the final post of the above thread which can be found here:


http://www.gameuseduniverse.com/vb_forum/showpost.php?p=26186&postcount=22


So, what's the point here? Basically, the genesis of the article was the release of all known documented H & B records for Hall of Fame members in the upcoming publicatiion of Vince Malta's new book, and the authorization to post those records in the Game Used Library section of the GUU site. This information gives collectors, for the first time, the ability to research thoroughly a bat being considered for purchase, using ALL available documented records. In my opinion, this is one of the largest events in the history of the Game Used Bat Collecting hobby, second only to the initial release of factory records to a select few persons approximately ten years ago.

The key for collectors is, as always, research carefully the provenance attached to any specific bat, and read carefully the accompanying LOA. Understand the difference between such terms as "Matches Factory Records," "Matches Known Length, Model, and Weight," and "Matches Known Player Specifications," and understand the implications if the term "Matches Factory Records" does not always mean an exact match to a specific shipment that can be directly referenced through existing documented records.

Good Luck in future collecting.

Mike Jackitout7@aol.com

Number9
02-02-2007, 02:56 PM
Thanks for the help Rob and Mike. Good info for me to have as I start adding some bats to the jersey collection.
Also want to thank John Taube and Jeff Scott for the help and courtesy they have given me this week.

Mike

Number9
02-02-2007, 02:58 PM
Oops, that WAS Jeff helping by posting the link and not Rob (who is also always willing to help too.)
So this is twice that Jeff Scott has helped me twice today. What an asset to the hobby. Thanks Jeff.

Mike

kingjammy24
02-02-2007, 06:16 PM
agreed, very good article by specht. who'd have thought that any could twist the meaning of "matches factory records"? leave it up to some people i guess.

what's interesting to me is the shift that's going to occur as a result of this book. previously, you had a small handful of individuals who had access to these records. the rest of us therefore had no choice but to rely upon them and trust their judgement and interpretations (and ethics). now that the records are going to be released, anyone can look them up and make their own judgements and decisions. no longer must people be forced to depend on someone else's judgements, which is one of the purposes of this site in general; stop depending on others, start doing the work yourself.

mike, do you feel that the release of these records greatly diminishes the value of/need for the "professional bat authenticator"?

it's difficult to understand why the major bat authenticators didn't try to prevent the release of this info to the public. after all, it was their main drawing card.

it'd be an incredible turning point if russell/rawlings/majestic released their jersey ordering records per year/team/player. i have to wonder if anyone's ever tried to have that info released? if only a couple of individuals were granted access and those individuals managed to make a decent sum of money based on their access to the records, it's difficult to imagine that they'd ever advocate their public release.

here's hoping that one day all of the LVS records (non-HOFers) are released.

rudy.