Ozzie Smith Jersey in Vintage Authentics Auction?

[nickacs]

I'm not a baseball jersey expert by any means, but isn't usually the lower portion of the jersey where the front tagging is, is tucked in for a game? Just seems "odd" that yea the jerseys look 99.9% the same, but the "dirty" tagging is one area of difference. I'm sure the lower portion of a jersey can become un-tucked by slides/etc, but seems odd to me.

Hey, we've read on here some Ebay guy that was "dirtying up" NFL jerseys to mimick dirt/scuff marks, so it wouldn't be surprising to me someone might do the same here to get a jersey sold.

Seeing where it's begin auctioned and another Lou "special", I would say there's definitely some concern here, in my opinion.

Just my 2cents

[skinsfan0521]

I agree that the Busch patch shows several differences, but the biggest thing to me is the signature. The signature is EXACTLY the same including the lightness in places and the extra marker "streak" on the left of the "t". Basically, NO signature is exactly the same, so that to me shows that this is the same jersey. Plus, the Busch patch shows quite a bit of differences. Also, the "T" on the jock tag is a different thickness.

[sox83cubs84]

Good calls, Jeff and Robert...had I had the time toinvestigate Getty, I would have seen the same thing.

Dave M.
Chicago area

[Schmoozer]

Man, that jersey at auction looks a lot like Jim Yackel's jersey. I just left Jim a message to see if anyone bought his jersey recently. Will keep you posted.

Birdbats (Jeff), I'm dying to hear what he told you, as it's obviously the exact same jersey (because of the signature exact similarites).

[Birdbats]

I talked to Jim Yackel this morning. He told me he hasn't updated his site in a while and that he did, indeed, sell his Ozzie Smith jersey before Christmas to someone who was "buying it as a gift."

After talking with Jim, I called Vintage Authentics and spoke with Mark, then sent Mark comparative photos and links to Jim's site. We'll see what happens from here.

[Robert Sanders]

I talked to Jim Yackel this morning. He told me he hasn't updated his site in a while and that he did, indeed, sell his Ozzie Smith jersey before Christmas to someone who was "buying it as a gift."

After talking with Jim, I called Vintage Authentics and spoke with Mark, then sent Mark comparative photos and links to Jim's site. We'll see what happens from here.

It seems that nothing has happened yet. What a shame.

[Birdbats]

Just received this e-mail reply from Mark Redmond at VA:

Hello Jeff,

We don’t think it’s the same jersey. There is no evidence of restitching and the tags show more wear/coloring etc than the issued jersey you mentioned.

Thank you,

Mark

[Robert Sanders]

Just received this e-mail reply from Mark Redmond at VA:

Hello Jeff,

We don’t think it’s the same jersey. There is no evidence of restitching and the tags show more wear/coloring etc than the issued jersey you mentioned.

Thank you,

Mark

Hmm...adding a patch that wasn't there before does not constitute 'restitching'. And a few 'games' in the washing machine will certainly yield more wear than when it was a game issued jersey on Jim's site.

[nickacs]

Just received this e-mail reply from Mark Redmond at VA:

Hello Jeff,

We don’t think it’s the same jersey. There is no evidence of restitching and the tags show more wear/coloring etc than the issued jersey you mentioned.

Thank you,

Mark

Not surprised. I've gotten burned once for 4 figures in their last auction and will never do it again. Oh yea, the ARod "game worn" '07 jersey in their current auction is just like the fake Jeter I got from them last time. Please don't bid on it. I'm done with them and their notorious "love" for Mr. Lampson and his "letters".

[Birdbats]

Yeah, not sure why they're feeling so confident about this one. I'd agree there is no "re-stitching" because no original element was removed -- things simply appear to be added. Tag wear is easy to fake. And the tag color is a simple matter of photo lighting. They're missing the forest for the trees. It doesn't seem to bother them that the autographs are identical, right down to the unusual stray dot by the Z. The identical poor placement of the TH in Smith doesn't seem to bother them. The fact that it has a lesser-quality retail patch on the sleeve -- one that is available on multiple online sites -- doesn't seem to bother them. And the fact that Yackel's jersey sold in November and this jersey shows up now doesn't seem to raise a red flag. I feel bad for the person who ends up buying this jersey. I also kind of feel bad that VA doesn't care enough about its reputation to at least pull the jersey and research it more thoroughly. The evidence seems to suggest that they could be auctioning a fraudulent jersey, but instead of doing more legwork, they just offer lame rationalizations and look the other way. Sad.