THE MARKEL REPORT: Are Graded Baseball Cards Being “Juiced” (Aesthetically Enhanced)?

[WhenItWasAHobby]

Compare these two 1967 Topps Sammy Ellis cards below. Not only do the print marks match, but
there is matching surface scuffing on Ellis' pitching arm (forearm and bicep).



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This is an exceptionally good comparison of the same card. We were able to make a 6 megabyte
scan of the raw card – front and back - before it was sold to this devious card dealer.

Notice the tiny dots on the top border on the left front of the card above the word "SAMMY".
Even though these scans are not the same exact scale, on a proportional basis the tiny dots are
clearly closer to the top edge on the graded card. Also notice the improved corners on the graded card.



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In this comparison the graded card clearly has an improved corner.



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Notice the roughness of the top edge of the ungraded card and the smoothness of the graded
card. The corner of the graded card is clearly improved.



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The same is true for the rest of the top edge of the card.