Ideas Please: Unique Insciption on Unique Bat, fine paint pen, or possibly on tape?

[dplettn]

I'd be grateful to fellow forum members willing to share ideas as to how (ie: where, what pen) the bat below can best be signed and inscribed. The inscription is longer than average in length, and in my humble opinion it is a very relevant and important inscription.

Thanks in advance for your insights! Please know that what I'd really like to hear opinions on:

• Would others consider having the signature and/or inscription on the tape that holds the broken bat together?
• Or, stick with a relatively fine point silver paint pen pen and use the traditional location? Does anybody have examples of bats that were signed and inscribed with a finer than usual paint pen? Any specific pen suggestions?

[metsbats]

Don't have the signature on the tape. It would be better with silver pen on the sweet spot.

[Wrigley2010]

I agree with metsbats don't have it signed anywhere on the tape. Silver paint pen would work best on a black bat and like you said a fine point would also be advantageous. I guess if you had to wrap the inscription around the barrel that would be better than putting any of it on the tape.

[danesei@yahoo.com]

I'd be grateful to fellow forum members willing to share ideas as to how (ie: where, what pen) the bat below can best be signed and inscribed. The inscription is longer than average in length, and in my humble opinion it is a very relevant and important inscription.

What are you asking to have inscribed into it, for starters?

I would have the bat signed in the "sweetspot" (between the two barrel labels), with the inscription under the player name. I would avoid the tape, as the others have said. Personally, I would pay to have a furniture and/or bat specialist repair the bat, if it's that important. I just have a personal aversion to tape on the barrel and residue.

Oh, and to see why you shouldn't have tape signed, look at hockey sticks and tennis rackets. Lots of players will sign on the tape... which usually results in a VERY ugly signature after three years or so.

[cfern023]

I would remove that tape and replace it with thin gaffers tape musicians use. It's designed to come off clean, and it really doesnt detract from the bat like that white tape does.

You may be able to get it at a musicians supply store in your home town.

With your bat having black on it, I think it would blend in nicely and yet not be deceptive enough to fool anyone.

[stlbats]

You may want to keep the bat in 2 pieces, which is fine, its your personal preference. If it were me, I would have the bat repaired (Jeff Scott does a great job) and then have it signed (if you have time for the repair before the signing).

Then there would be no issue of the tape being in the way. Although I do prefer my gamers to be cracked with no pieces missing, I always get them repaired if they are in 2 or more pieces.

stlbats
stlbats@bellsouth.net

[dplettn]

Thanks for the insights shared already. I appreciate the wisdom to avoid penmanship on the tape and also the other ideas (ie: restoration). Restorations have not been my personal taste, but it's something I am considering in this instance. For me, there are pros and cons on both sides of the restoration option. There is a track mark of some sort already through the pine tar, presumably from when it was positioned on something for it to be taped back to one piece and sold. One half of me says that since that track mark wasn't the condition when the bat was in use, I might as well have it restored. But the other part of me considers everything visible about it now (including that track mark) is exactly how it left the team's custody. So aside from Devin himself signing/inscribing it, I'm hesitant to have any alterations affected.

Does anybody have pictures to share of inscriptions done on other bats with a finer than normal paint pen? If anybody can cite the specific pen used in good or bad outcomes, that would certainly be useful to know.

Again, thanks to all!

[dplettn]

What are you asking to have inscribed into it, for starters?

I have not decided on my favorite wording and it may depend on my impressions of different length exemplars folks can share when they had similar length inscriptions done. But what I think is most relevant about the bat is the grand slam in his first appearance against Bronson Arroyo on May 30th. If I can also attain equal certainty to Devin's 2nd HR in the same game, I'd consider something like "HRs 23 + 24 5-30-14" in addition to a respectful notation about the grand slam.

[danesei@yahoo.com]

2nd career GS.
2nd career multi-HR game.
Career HR 23/24.
Career 82-87 RBIs.

Does the MLB holo say when the bat was broken?

I think you could probably get away with:

Career HRs #23 & 24
Career GS #2

Those two lines should fit under his signature.

[danesei@yahoo.com]

2nd career GS.
2nd career multi-HR game.
Career HR 23/24.
Career 82-87 RBIs.

Does the MLB holo say when the bat was broken?

I think you could probably get away with:

Career HRs #23 & 24
Career GS #2

Those two lines should fit under his signature.