What Happens To Us When They Get Caught

[karamaxjoe]

Re: What Happens To Us When They Get Caught

I collect Lastings Milledge. I feel fairly certain from looking at him, that he does not do steroids.

He's a perfect example of a high risk guy. TONS of potential, but not a lot of numbers yet to back up the risk. Of course he's too small to be a steroid risk, but he's got the dreaded potential label on him. He's going to have to produce in the next year or so, or his stock will drop big time.

[geoff]

Re: What Happens To Us When They Get Caught

I have some Manny Game Used Items and I don't know what this will do to the Value of them.He still will be one of my all time favorites even though.Just like Miguel Tejada and his Items.I own alot of Miguel Tejada Items and I know the Value of his stuff is not what it once was.

[encinorick]

Re: What Happens To Us When They Get Caught

Agreed, anyone wanting to sell a GU Manny bat, I'm interested. My son is having his birthday this month and is a big fan. I don't believe that Manny took steroids a la Arod or Clemens. Manny did something stupid, which is in keeping with his personality. You have to be stupid to be "juiced" now because of the testing, in other words, you have to be Manny.

2009 World Series

Dodgers v. Jays, Dodgers in seven.

[justinlm24]

Re: What Happens To Us When They Get Caught

His value will certainly drop, I still believe there will be some value to his stuff. I am about to buy a Man-Ram 04 game used bat despite the news. I'm still a manny fan despite it, and I'm sure I'm not the only one. You think all the A-rod news has stopped collectors from buying his items? Give it a couple months and it will all blow over.....

[justinlm24]

Re: What Happens To Us When They Get Caught

Also let me add, alot of "collectors" realize that buying these items isn't really going to be an "investment". I mean honestly, how many of us have bought an item, and been able to turn around and resell it for a significant profit? Not many of us. I made $150 on a signed Dustin Pedroia game used base. Outside of that I have never been able to make any major profit from items I have bought. Fact is whoever sold you the item isn't going to sell it for much less that what the item is worth. Mostly when we buy items it is because we like the item or the players who used the item. So really this news does little to nothing to the "value" of manny items. You're either a Manny fan, or you're not. You'll either buy his items, or you wont. Basically that's what it boils down to.......

[helmets]

Re: What Happens To Us When They Get Caught

Football a better investment? Who owns a (true) Farve GU Packer jersey, or a GU TO's Cowboy jersey? The Fair Market Value for those (and others I'm sure) have dropped significantly, and this will be especially true next year when you can get a Farve GU Vikings jersey, or a GU Buffalo TO jersey, cheap, cheap, cheap.

I can smell the bonfires in Green Bay as we speak.

Those will come back when they enter the HOF.
Did Unitas helmets or jerseys lose value because he went to the Chargers? Montana 49er helmets or jerseys because he went to KC? Namath for the Rams? No, an item from a Hall of Famer will always be desirable no matter which team the jersey or helmet is from.

[pictureman]

Re: What Happens To Us When They Get Caught

Geoff, email me at jblackie@uwf.edu

thanks,

John

[the3lads]

Re: What Happens To Us When They Get Caught

Aside from game used items, I collect fight jackets/uniforms (we all know the sacrifices these guys made) and historical autographs (if there are any dark secrets, they are all known!).

[joelsabi]

Re: What Happens To Us When They Get Caught

i feel bad any time a players falls back to earth. some of these players perform feats all of us dreamt of doing when we were kids.

i think when it happens to a collector it is very disappointing but we persevere because we love the enjoyment in the hobby. might even find some bargains in the process but kinda sad to get the bargains for this reason.

i think when it happens to an investor it can be a big loss. As the saying goes, high risks, offers high rewards. Selling high to me would be selling just when the baseball player gets popular the first time around. I think the hobby in general is a poor investment. i just dont understand a person holding an item for over a year if i am an investor. i would be flippin like crazy.

for those that consider themselve to do both, invest and collect, its a good time to join us collectors. if not, lower your profit margins expectation and you wont feel it as much in the end.

[dirtyla2000]

Re: What Happens To Us When They Get Caught

you collect who you like,in most cases we like stars,stars cost more money.how much do we like those stars when they are proven to be cheaters!we think less of them and they end up costing us money!for the people who poured a fortune in CLEMONS and BONDS there one time heroes,how can you now not despise them!MAKE NO MISTAKE A COLLECTOR IS AN INVESTOR LIKE IT OR NOT!

[suicide_squeeze]

Re: What Happens To Us When They Get Caught

I am an extremely active collector of game used items.

Prior to the un-f*%king-real news Thursday morning, I was at every Dodger home game this week in the hopes of obtaining Manny's 534th home run. It will tie him with Jimmie Foxx on the All-Time list. Foxx and Ramirez were two of my favorite players.

Now, Foxx still is.

Also, I have lost the desire to go after that ball.

Last year, I was a mainstay at the Dodgers home games post-Manny. I was able to buy his 520th, 521st (a biggie that has a story all of it's own), and I got his last home run of the year, #527.

All of these balls have iron-clad provenance, as I pre-typed up letters of Affidavits with all the details of the game, starting pitchers written in, and home run number typed out. The letters have a place for the lucky fan who caught the ball (ended up with the ball) to acknowledge that they were approached by me, and subsequently decided to sell the home run ball to me for an undisclosed amount. Then, 5 lines for witnesses to write in their names and telephone numbers, with the city they live in.

I would buy tickets for each bleacher section: right field pavillion; left field pavillion. All in an effort to insure I could GET TO the area Manny hit the home run. It paid off for me. I got three!!

Then, once I got to whoever caught the ball and consumated a deal (or even not, but would leave in the hopes they would change their mind and call me.....which did happen on the last occasion), I would take a LOT of pictures...of the ball of the moment itself, the special markings on each ball so it could be identified later, (scuff marks, smudges from impact on one of the balls labels, etc.). These were the three balls I had success in obtaining. In each case, I had to pull a wad of benjamins out of my pocket and offer up serious cash for the home run balls.

So, I went through serious expense and effort and time to preserve three pieces of MLB history, for myself, my family, or anyone else in the future to admire should I choose to sell them........and now this.

I feel like I let some stupid moronic athlete kick me in the gut while I try to catch my breath.....all the time while he laughs and says "too bad amigo....I'll be vacationing on the beaches of Mexico and fishing on my yaght off of Baja while you throw those balls to your dog in the backyard".

So you collect as a fan, but yes, it's also an investment. It's a time investment, a financial investment.....an emotional investment. And to be insulted by the very guy you put on a pedestal in such an unbelievably stupid manner....it's almost more than I can take.

So, I'll do what I always should have done and started out by doing. I'll buy a lot less, and only the items of the true older superstars.

This current generation ain't worth the effort in any way, shape, or form. And yes, it's guilt by association. Of course there are clean players out there. But how do you decipher who is and who isn't? Most apparently aren't.

They wipe our the value of the things we collect (or at least deminish the value....to what degree only history will tell), they wipe out our love for them, they destroy the game they play with their actions.....and leave a trail of mayhem.

But they do get their money.

No more modern day guys for me, thank you. It just isn't worth the risk.

[geoff]

Re: What Happens To Us When They Get Caught

I just picked up for pretty cheap I think a 2008 Manny Locker Room Name Plate.

[joelsabi]

Re: What Happens To Us When They Get Caught

you collect who you like,in most cases we like stars,stars cost more money.how much do we like those stars when they are proven to be cheaters!we think less of them and they end up costing us money!for the people who poured a fortune in CLEMONS and BONDS there one time heroes,how can you now not despise them!MAKE NO MISTAKE A COLLECTOR IS AN INVESTOR LIKE IT OR NOT!

i am a collector foremost. I upgrade items when i can. does that make me an investor? collectors happen have items that you can sell in the future. does that make me an investor?

i can think of better and safer ways to invest. the opportunity investment cost of holding a game used for over 1 year seems very big to me. i would be flippin like crazy if i was a investor. the biggest myth in the hobby is that it is a good investment. this was heighten with the card craze in the 80s. an investor would contemplate selling items when the demanding is dropping dramatically and if he was a good investor would get out when they could and invest in something else.

maybe it is different when you have a business selling items for a living. I feel bad for dealers. getting items now is not cheap. athletes know how much there game used items are worth in the secondary market, they know that their autographs are worth something. when something bad happens to an athletes you have invested in, its hard to not feel the impact because it hurts your financially. its not your hobby money but you money for your livelihood.

[joelsabi]

Re: What Happens To Us When They Get Caught

[QUOTE=suicide_squeeze;139260]
I would buy tickets for each bleacher section: right field pavillion; left field pavillion. All in an effort to insure I could GET TO the area Manny hit the home run. It paid off for me. I got three!!

Then, once I got to whoever caught the ball and consumated a deal (or even not, but would leave in the hopes they would change their mind and call me.....which did happen on the last occasion), I would take a LOT of pictures...of the ball of the moment itself, the special markings on each ball so it could be identified later, (scuff marks, smudges from impact on one of the balls labels, etc.). These were the three balls I had success in obtaining. In each case, I had to pull a wad of benjamins out of my pocket and offer up serious cash for the home run balls.
[QUOTE]

suicide_squeeze,

i would be interested in know more on how you did this. maybe you can start another thread on this. seems like quite a task. maybe add photos and so forth as an example.

regards, joel

[Mac670]

Re: What Happens To Us When They Get Caught

Suicide,

If you are selling any of those home run balls, let me know before you give them to your dog.

Anthony
anegrete70@aol.com