Vintage game used baseballs
 

For those who collect vintage game used baseballs, if a ball has vintage writing saying the game it was used in (score, teams, pitchers etc) How much do you trust that it is what it says?

There's a difference between if it says "Babe Ruth's 60th home run' and the details from some random 1950s Triple A game in Rochester. In the later, I would say it's fair evidence, and many would say it's reliable if the writing is indeed vintage. Of course, good provenance helps.

From Chief Bender's Estate. In his hand. April 25 1912 Hilltop Park.

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j2...tz/benders.jpg

Very cool Bender gamer. It's very interesting though that he spelled Yankees wrong.

Over time people get confused about details surrounding old items. Stories change, inheritors die, etc. Items also get confused - the ball with the scuff was the no-hitter ball for 50 years, then someone dies and the next person remembers the story as the ball without the scuff. I'm guessing that even the players got baseballs mixed up from time to time. If pitcher X threw a no-hitter and one of the balls in his estate was definitely from that game, but none were marked...what happens? Especially if the no-hitter ball is worth big bucks and its time to sell? Maybe pitcher X is still living and even he isn't sure.

I trust almost none of them, but David's is probably as trustworthy as they get.