Probably a touchy subject...

[Roady]

Re: Probably a touchy subject...

Some of you "adults" talk like children (brats) yourselves.

[Roady]

Re: Probably a touchy subject...

Everyones kids are brats unless it's your kids.

I understand the frustration but why would a grown man call children wanting an autograph a brat?
Talk about setting an example. I bet you wouldn't call them brats to most of their fathers faces.

[sox83cubs84]

Re: Probably a touchy subject...

The worst part is when the kids, at there parents behest, force there way in to get an autograph and then have no idea who the guy is. Its hard enough to get an autograph because it seems a lot of players wont even sign for grown men. David Wright has signed a few times at roads games but he walks by anyone who is not under 12 or, of course, a good looking female. I don't understand why kids think they should, and are given anything they want. I look at it like this, in 10 years that 9 year old is going to be a rude, entitled PIA 19 year old with my, probably long forgotten, autograph.

On the other hand it is nice to be able to have my, now 14 year old, niece be able to get autographs for me.

I hear ya talkin'. Several years ago the Astros were in town, and one of their coaches, Bob Lillis, was talking with a friend of mine who knows 1960s baseball and knows who Lillis is. The conversation they were having kept getting interrupted by brats who wanted an autograph even though they didn't know Bob Lillis from SpongeBob Squarepants. Lillis took a moment and asked the kids if they knew who he was. Of course, they didn't. Lillis, normally a great signer, told the kids that he wasn't gong to sign for people who didn't even know his name.


Dave Miedema

[Roady]

Re: Probably a touchy subject...

You can buy anyone's autograph online for less money than it takes in gas and food to meet them and get it in person.
Unless your life long goal is to shove a piece of paper in an athletes face and say hi all in a few seconds.

[64SHEA]

Re: Probably a touchy subject...

The worst part is when the kids, at there parents behest, force there way in to get an autograph and then have no idea who the guy is. Its hard enough to get an autograph because it seems a lot of players wont even sign for grown men. David Wright has signed a few times at roads games but he walks by anyone who is not under 12 or, of course, a good looking female. I don't understand why kids think they should, and are given anything they want. I look at it like this, in 10 years that 9 year old is going to be a rude, entitled PIA 19 year old with my, probably long forgotten, autograph.

On the other hand it is nice to be able to have my, now 14 year old, niece be able to get autographs for me.

[Roady]

Re: Probably a touchy subject...

As a grown man, unless I am paying for an autograph, I would just move out of the way for the kids. I don't care if their parents planned or didn't plan. It's not the kids fault.
As a collector I still know these guys are not Gods and nothing is worth going to war with children or their parents.
And I sleep very good at night.

[xpress34]

Re: Probably a touchy subject...

As an addendum to my post above...

Having worked for Rawlings and Nike and having gotten to know on a somewhat personal level many of the players, some of those parents don't even realize that my friends or myself might have a better shot at getting some players to come over and chat and sign than their child screaming at the player for 15 straight minutes - and not even knowing the players name.

I can't tell you - and I'm talking about at the MLB level (Coors Field) - how many times Rockies players have come over to hi and then start signing and then the kids and their parents (the same rude jerks I mentioned above) now want to be polite and start asking, 'Who was that?'.

They aren't there for certain players, they are just there to get an autograph... I seen them yell at Coaches, Ground Keepers, etc to come and sign...

Great example - 2008 Spring Training at Hi Corbett - St Patty's Day - the Rockies usually toss many of their hats (with Green CR) into the stands after the game... Mark Stritmatter (former Rockies Bullpen Coach and now roaming instructor) is coming off the field and a group of kids are yelling 'GIVE ME YOUR HAT!'... not even a Please... 'Mister', 'Hey You', etc...

I calmly walk past them and yell, 'Stritty! May I please have your lid?' He looks at me and says 'My cap?' and I reply 'Yes Please.' He walks over in front of the kids and gives it to me.

I immediately get the squawkers telling me to 'Give it to a Kid!' My response? 'Can ANYONE tell me who that was or what he does?'.... SILENCE... So I said 'Have a nice day!' and left with my cap...

The next day, a Dad and his two kids were sitting next to my mom and I... Stritty threw a ball up to one of the kids and his brother burst into tears. Between innings I went to the rail, got Stritty's attention, told him the situation and he handed me another ball to give to the other boy... I think it made their day and their father was so thankful he bought me a beer...

[xpress34]

Re: Probably a touchy subject...

I would hope that any grown man would make way for any child that wants an autograph. I have seen men getting in front of children before and that is not right. It is shameful actually.

Roady - there is another side to this issue (and it's been brought up before) called 'entitlement'.

There are many times that I have been at the park early and waited (literally) for hours for the one player I am looking for an autograph from only to have parents show up with their children just minutes before and then demand that we should let the children get up front. I'm sorry, but lack of planning on their part does not constitute and emergency on mine.

I hear them telling their kids just to squeeze or force their way in and very rarely have I ever heard an 'excuse me' out of any of these kids. They knock your stuff over, step on your feet, etc. and neither them nor their parents have any type of manners to apologize for their actions.

Now, if you're talking about the jack @$$e@ that shove their way past kids (and everyone else), then I completely agree with you... the problem is, the kids I'm talking about above will grow up to become these type of adults because their parents are raising them to feel entitled to do or get whatever they want whenever they want it.

Just my .02.

Smitty

[Roady]

Re: Probably a touchy subject...

I would hope that any grown man would make way for any child that wants an autograph. I have seen men getting in front of children before and that is not right. It is shameful actually.

[shaunharr]

Re: Probably a touchy subject...

I get mostly cards signed, at minor league games that is. With guys that I know have no problem signing multiple cards, I will ask them to sign howeve many I have. I don't ask guys to sign a lot if I know they won't either. Also, if I have many cards, I will ask a player if he could get a couple done, because I have them all ready for the entire series.
Yes, I have gotten 10-15 cards signed at once by players, but they had no problem with it, and a lot of the times, there aren't more than a few people around anyways.

[Roady]

Re: Probably a touchy subject...

I agree that it is selfish on the collectors/sellers part it but the player can always sign just one and move on to the next person.
Do they ever do that? Just say they can't sign that many for one person?
I have never asked for an autograph at a game so I don't know.

[godwulf]

Re: Probably a touchy subject...

Different cards - I don't really have a problem with that. I've asked guys - not active players, but former players who were managing or coaching - to sign five or six different cards. (Steve Karsay signed five cards for me earlier today, in fact, as did Tim Worrell last Tuesday.) Even then, it's not something I would do if I was surrounded by other fans, waiting for an autograph. I generally only ask for that many autos at a time if I'm the only one asking.

It's the album pages with eight or ten copies of the same card, presented to a player for whom a lot of other people are waiting, that I would think would give some players second thoughts about making themselves as accessible as they have been.

[Billy77]

Re: Probably a touchy subject...

I have been collecting autos since I was 10. I am now 46 and have emassed a huge collection of signed cards for baseball, football and hockey.

My practice has always been to ask players to sign as many at their discretion. I may have 10 cards on a page but they are 10 DIFFERENT cards.

What I do since the late seventies is if topps puts out a set of cards, I try to get every card signed by the respective player. So some of the sets may have one player on 7 different cards, thus prompting me to try and get all of them signed.

Since I have collected for so long some player do remember me and we also have become good friends. I have actually gone to many ALL Star games and championship games as well as Stanley Cups.

WHen they ask me or speak of collectors asking for multiple sigs on cards and reasons why, I just explain to them my side of the above story and they get it. They may not like it but the get it.

Billy

[godwulf]

Re: Probably a touchy subject...

I think the craziest example I've ever seen was a few years ago, before an Arizona League game out at Papago Park. There's this father-son "team" that shows up for a lot of these events - the son is not a kid, but a guy in his twenties - and I watched while, between the two of them, they got Diamondbacks prospect Wagner Mateo to sign some outrageous number of cards, while I stood there waiting to get a ball signed.

A couple of years later, I'm at an independent league game, and I'm telling this story to a guy, and I'm a couple of sentences into it, and he says some number - like "Fifty-four". I said, "What's that?" and he says, "That's the number of cards we got him to sign." I hadn't recognized him, but this guy I'm telling the story to is one of the guys I'm telling it about. At least I dodged a bullet by not starting the story with, "Wait till you hear about these jerks!"

[ahuff]

Re: Probably a touchy subject...

Jeff,

I completely agree with you. Trading them or not is not the issue. How would these same people feel if roles were reversed. Granted...some would be fine with it - others not. I spoke to Blake Beavan when he was in my area. I saw the same people day after day bringing books with 9 cards per page and asking him to sign them. Not only did they have 9 cards a page (of him) but they had multiple pages for him to sign. I see it much like you...if he signs all 27 cards you have that means 26 other people do not get an autograph that would have had that jackwad not done that. When I spoke to Blake he seemed very cordial and said it didn't bother him. I did notice his sig went from a full sig to primarily "B's". I do believe Blake is the exception and I always wonder if he still feels the same way after years of that garbage.

Guys like Ryne Sandberg are great at helping out fans, as they remember you and will not only sign just one or two items for you a day...but they remember your face and will only sign one/two for you during the entire homestand. I love guys like that.

The best story I have heard/seen was this: A local card dealer (or use to be) shows up at games with hundreds of cards of these players, gets them signed, and NEVER stays for even a pitch. The thing is this - he never actually gets them signed himself...he only has his daughter do it. She was getting them signed one day. She walks up with a stack of probably 50 cards of this one player and asks him to sign. He signs the first one, and then tells her if her dad wants the rest signed he has to come ask for himself. Still chuckle at that one!!!! :-)