MTF Rant! Absurd Autograph Prices For Dodgers Yasiel Puig Makes Jack Want To Puke! Autograph Insanity!

Sports collecting is another whole side of crazy isn’t it? When I was a kid, I’m talking young. I played baseball, hockey, soccer, etc… but I was never a huge fan of watching sports on TV. Just a thing I guess. I remember my Dad did buy an autograph from Mickey Mantle one time and we would head down to Florida here and there for the Kansas City Royals spring training.

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I didn’t think it was even possible, but it happened. I have to finally speak out about this BULLSHIT. Last night I was checking my emails when a friend passed along in his wonderful email:



“Dude, do you want to meet Yasiel Puig from the Dodgers? You know the latest LA Dodgers phenom who is destroying the national league with his offense? If you do, you can meet him for the LOW LOW price of $149.00. Yes, you read that correctly, ONLY a $149.00 you can meet him, but make sure it’s small item (flat up to 11×14, baseball, mini helmets and figures) otherwise it would be $199 (jerseys, bats, full size helmets, and equipment) or $299 (for artwork and game used equipment). Remember, you have to supply the item or you can buy one at the show. You need to go otherwise you would be FOOLISH!”



(FILL IN EVERY EXPLETIVE WORD IMAGINABLE)



This is exactly why I stopped collecting sports autographs. Years ago, actually attending sports conventions were fairly reasonable. Most athletes charged $10 to $30 with Hall Of Fame/ higher caliber players typically charging more in the $40+ range. In those instances, you could meet a Baseball icon like Stan Musial (one of the greatest baseball players of all time and a Hall of Famer) for less than $50 in the early millennium (circa 2000-2005).

Stan “The Man” Musial was not only a (HOF), but: a 24x All Star, 3x World Series (WS) Champion, 7x Batting Champion, member of the baseball All-Century Team, had his number retired (#6 for the St. Louis Cardinals), amassed over 3000 hits and blasted 475 homeruns all while maintaining a .331 career batting average. For non-sports fans, you might not understand all these stats, but what these numbers and words mean is Stan WAS an ELITE and ICONIC baseball player. One of the game’s best players of ALL TIME.



During my sports collecting years, I met HOFers, MVP winners, WS champs, All Stars, Batting Champs, Gold Glove Winners, Pro Bowlers, and Rookie of the Years in basketball, baseball, and football along with a few boxers including Mike Tyson and I NEVER paid more than $50 per autograph. Sure this might have been a decade ago, but this has become too ridiculous.

Back in 2002 when the Angels won the World Series, Francisco “K-Rod” Rodriguez, the stud closer of the playoffs did an autograph show (within a few months after winning the World Series) in southern California and was charging $75 per “small autograph.” Again, that’s in 2002-2003 dollars, but I felt that was absurd and that started the beginning of the end for sports autographs with me. Sure, K-Rod performed well for a few years leading the American League in saves 3x and receiving 4 All Star selections, but after a record setting season in 2008 collecting 62 saves (single season record) he “lost his steam” and underperformed for the New York Mets. Of course this was after signing a lucrative 3-year contract worth $37 million. Today, he is considered a has-been after 11 years in the big leagues. I hate to say it, but his autograph is not even worth half the $75 he was charging a decade ago.



As of June 13th, Yasiel Puig has smacked four homeruns with 10 runs batted in (RBIs) while batting .486 (17 hits in 35 at bats) for the last place Los Angeles Dodgers (fifth team in the National league West). Now unless you’re smoking crack and huffing glue, there’s absolutely NO REASON WHY ANYONE SHOULD PAY $149/199/$299 for his autograph. Stop this insanity!



Please if you care about autographs, whether you pay or obtain them in person, please boycott the Frank N’ Sons event. It’s due to ridiculous prices that have driven life-long sports fans (such as myself) from attending sports conventions and I hope you make sure these trends stop. Sadly, some celebrities have taken noticed and dramatically increased their prices at autograph conventions (I’m talking to you Miss Shannon Elizabeth charging $50 for non personalizations). Please if you care about the integrity of autographs, please pass this information along and help stop this trend of crazy prices. Thanks and happy autograph hunting!