Seeking opinions on Catfish Hunter...updated, again...

[Kzoo]

Guys.............I'm looking for opinions on this Catfish Hunter 'signed' rookie card. The signature is in more of a vintage blue marker and the 'J' in 'Jim' is not as big as he normally signed, but it's also jammed into the bottom corner of the card without much room. The 'Catfish Hunter' part of the signature has many similarities to his normal autograph from examples I've studied. Thanks in advance for your opinions..........Matt

[vthobby]

Looks fine.

[GrayGhost]

[mr2686]

No question it's good.

[Kzoo]

Thanks for your opinions guys. I feel the same way, but here's the rest of the story...

I bought this card at the last Chicago Sports Spectacular show in March feeling pretty confident it was a good autograph.....and after sending in for authentication, here's the results. Others have mentioned that PSA has been pretty tough lately with higher fail rates than in the past. Has anyone resubmitted an item and had better results, or do they track autograph submissions now and stick with their original opinions? Thanks again for your thoughts........Matt

[felada]

I had a similar experience with a 52 minoso. Had JSA sticker and PSA kicked it back. I’m not sure what is going on there but that hunter looks good to me. I would have bought it also

[BillyCoxDodgers3B]

Name another industry where the quality of work is leaps and bounds worse than it was 15+ years ago, yet the profits for the companies keep rising to silly new levels.

What it most reminds of is the Toronto Maple Leafs: haven't won a Cup in nearly 60 years, yet have a rabid fan base and play to sellout crowds. Lots of opposition telling the fans how much their team stinks, yet nothing deters that fan base.

TPAs and their adherents all like to point out that the pre-TPA days were like "the wild west". OOOOO, scary! Frankly, it was a far, far better era, provided you knew what you were doing. I certainly miss the days where more emphasis was placed on personal responsibility and knowledge of the subject matter as opposed to deferring to an LOA or a slab. Ugh.

Forgive this sidetrack, but these were my immediate thoughts upon seeing that N4 label.

[rand1com]

I don't like the autograph either. It is not typical of Hunter's autograph. You have to believe that Corcoran or Keating or maybe both looked at it before failing it. There is likely a reason it was not already authenticated when you bought it. His autographed rookie card is certainly worth the cost for authentication for a dealer to maximize selling price. I suspect that you bought it at a very good price if it were authentic.

[BillyCoxDodgers3B]

Originally Posted by rand1com

You have to believe that Corcoran or Keating or maybe both looked at it before failing it.

Not necessarily. Not by a longshot. If you think that one, or perhaps two people look at every single iota of the endless mountains of submissions they receive, you've got another thing coming. Theoretically, sure, one or both of them could have looked at/failed this, but the odds are greater that they perhaps didn't.

[gonefishin]

The exact same thing happened to me, with the exact same card - Catfish's rookie card. Came back from PSA as questionable and took my money.

My card is attached.

[BillyCoxDodgers3B]

Wow. Granted, it's impossible to say anything with certainty based on that dark scan, but there's a lot to like with the amount that is visible.

[dgo71]

Originally Posted by BillyCoxDodgers3B

TPAs and their adherents all like to point out that the pre-TPA days were like "the wild west". OOOOO, scary! Frankly, it was a far, far better era, provided you knew what you were doing. I certainly miss the days where more emphasis was placed on personal responsibility and knowledge of the subject matter as opposed to deferring to an LOA or a slab. Ugh.

+1. Sadly, the slow death of accountability applies to more things in life than simply collecting autographs.

[mr2686]

Matt, if you want to sell the card as one with an unauthentic autograph, message me. Maybe we can work out a deal. I look at Catfish autographs for my collection almost everyday, and this one would find a great home in my collection. Not sure what the TPA was looking for, but other than it's a small example so that it fit next to his picture, the auto is pretty much perfect with slant, letter formation etc.

[BillyCoxDodgers3B]

Yeah, same goes for me as above, but Mike beat me to it. Would likely extend the same offer to gonefishin, provided I could see several better photos/scans before deciding.

[Kzoo]

I ended up sending my Catfish signed RC to Beckett for another opinion and they agreed with most of us here on the board. Glad to get it slabbed.

BTW, their turnaround time was pretty quick at about 3 weeks instead of the estimated 45 days.

[tlake22]

I don't know what the problem is here. You sent off an autograph that you wanted someone's opinion on. They disagree with you and then you get mad. If you don't value someone's opinion then don't pay for it.

[Kzoo]

Originally Posted by tlake22

I don't know what the problem is here. You sent off an autograph that you wanted someone's opinion on. They disagree with you and then you get mad. If you don't value someone's opinion then don't pay for it.

Just sharing my experience dealing with TPA's. I understand the gamble (I've been submitting for 25 years), but I never stated I was 'mad'. It was more disappointment in PSA's opinion as I thought they got it wrong. Take care and happy collecting!