Another Babe Ruth Ball Walks In

[perezfan]

Originally Posted by Mark17

I don't collect this stuff but I am curious, if someone bought that ball and had the Ruth professionally removed to make it a single-signed Huggins ball, is that similar to someone removing defects from cards? Or is there a separate set of rules for removing unwanted signatures from signed baseballs?

The removal of a signature is quite comparable. It is something that needs to be disclosed, when selling. PSA and JSA both include in their LOAs when they’ve detected signature removal. If a removal is present, and it goes undetected, it is akin to trimming, recoloring or other alteration being missed by PSA.

The two are very similar in nature. As to the compromised monetary value, the ball will be less impacted than the card. A card graded “A” takes a much more severe hit in monetary value. A signed ball with ink removal will definitely be worth less than it’s all-original counterpart. But It only loses about 1/3 of the value, whereas the card’s value will plummet much further. That’s just one aspect of why all of the PSA “misses” on the card side are so infuriating.

[Yastrzemski Sports]

Originally Posted by perezfan

The removal of a signature is quite comparable. It is something that needs to be disclosed, when selling. PSA and JSA both include in their LOAs when they’ve detected signature removal. If a removal is present, and it goes undetected, it is akin to trimming, recoloring or other alteration being missed by PSA.

The two are very similar in nature. As to the compromised monetary value, the ball will be less impacted than the card. A card graded “A” takes a much more severe hit in monetary value. A signed ball with ink removal will definitely be worth less than it’s all-original counterpart. But It only loses about 1/3 of the value, whereas the card’s value will plummet much further. That’s just one aspect of why all of the PSA “misses” on the card side are so infuriating.

I may disagree with you on value. As it stands, the Huggins with Clubhouse Ruth or if someone were to remove the Ruth (which can’t be done well enough to go unnoticed) the ball is worth around 400-600. A single Huggins in that condition is 2000-5000. Single signed baseballs are a different category altogether and can go much higher than a multi signed ball.

[perezfan]

Originally Posted by Yastrzemski Sports

I may disagree with you on value. As it stands, the Huggins with Clubhouse Ruth or if someone were to remove the Ruth (which can’t be done well enough to go unnoticed) the ball is worth around 400-600. A single Huggins in that condition is 2000-5000. Single signed baseballs are a different category altogether and can go much higher than a multi signed ball.

You make a good point with this particular ball, but some of these signature removals can be done without a trace of the former ink being present. Many signature removals are invisible to the naked eye, and are only visible under magnification. There are people who are experts at doing this...

I've seen many balls at auction that appear as single-signed, but have a sig removal that's disclosed. Often (if the removal is virtually invisible) they sell for up to 2/3 the value of a single-signed ball. Especially if the remaining signature is bold and clean.

I still believe an altered Card plummets in value to a far greater extent than an altered Ball. But of course there are various exceptions.

[ullmandds]

Interesting discussion that is out of my wheelhouse!!