rob,

interesting reply. although most of the reasons i've heard always seem to mention that the source would be in trouble if they were revealed, i did realize that some keep their sources secret in order to prevent others from getting in on the action. now granted i'm not a dealer, but if all of these transactions are on the up and up, then i wonder how effective a strategy that really is? given, as you said, that almost any piece of information can be found these days on the internet and team media guides, if i was a dealer envious of one of your purchases, i'm not entirely sure i'd need much info from you. if it was all legit, then there could only be a small handful of people i'd need to contact. common sense would tell me to start with the director of marketing and/or merchandising and follow the trail. the contact info is readily available to the public.

anyway, this is starting to get off topic. mainly i was referring to those who say they protect their sources specifically because "they'd be in trouble if revealed". it's common knowledge that things are "slipped out the back" and my point was, do you really want to buy something that was obtained in this way? some dealers almost seem to boast that such methods are their main source. some seem to think it lends an air of legitimacy to their items when they mention they were obtained through a secret team source and that things often "slip out the back". for me, it seems as legit as buying electronics from the back of a van in an alley. it hardly seems something to boast about. reminds me of the recent story of the orioles employee caught stealing. "i bought it from a thief, but he was employed with the orioles, so you know it's good!"

regarding your "collector's cap" comments about provenance: i agree that if an item is good, it's good. however, every item requires a leap of faith. with some items, that leap is miniscule. with others, it's quite large. take your fergie jenkins for example and let's say that it's a perfect 10. despite the fact that it's a 10, there's still a small chance that it's not what you think it is. rare yes, but unless you personally had jenkins hand it to you after a game, that small chance must exist. now let's add some provenance to it. let's say you personally purchased the jersey from jenkins with written documentation. all of a sudden that small leap of faith just become smaller. you may enjoy your jenkins as much as your pujols, but your pujols requires a smaller leap. for me, that's what provenance does. it doesn't make a bad item good. it simply reduces the leap of faith. i believe the very nature of collecting in this hobby requires leaps of faith, even for those with 20 yrs of experience. it's what this hobby is inherantly about. we rarely get to collect a jersey or bat from a player after a game. therefore, we all have to take leaps of faith. we just try to make those leaps as small as possible. for me, provenance helps shorten it. do you really feel, in this respect, it means nothing?
(if so, it's a little ironic given that many in the hobby feel that provenance from authenticgamers.com increases the odds of legitimacy).

rudy.