Do you think this ball is legit?

[Louieman]

Hey, so I was wondering if you net54ers think this autographed ball is the real deal. It's my best friend's ball, he got it from his uncle, who claims its from the 82 or 83 A's. The uncle had it, got drunk and put it somewhere he forgot about until many years later, so he accidentally kept it in good condition.

He has no plan on selling it, but he'd like to know if it's actually legitimate or not. What do you think? I'll try to post as many pics as I can

[Louieman]

...

[Runscott]

stamped

[Louieman]

more...

[Louieman]

aw man, ok he'll be devastated. I'm unversed in autographs...can you help me out a bit and tell me exactly what reveals to you that it's stamped?

[Scott Garner]

Louie,
It's obvious that it's a stamped ball by its appearance as the OP stated.
Note how all the "autographs" are identical in appearance with regards to color and uniformity.

Real sigs would not look like this at all.... ;)

[Louieman]

I think my friend and I were optimistic b/c there is a section or two of the ball where the "autographs" are a bit more faded. But thanks for your help. Any other info would be greatly appreciated so I can tell him some specifics the next time I see him

[packs]

Another tell-tale sign is that none of the autographs overlap. They're all perfectly placed so that they have their own space. That won't happen when you're passing a ball around to 20 plus players.

[khkco4bls]

that is a typical stamp ball the way the signatures face one way and then the other way

[Mark17]

I think my friend and I were optimistic b/c there is a section or two of the ball where the "autographs" are a bit more faded. But thanks for your help. Any other info would be greatly appreciated so I can tell him some specifics the next time I see him

Look at the attached pic. In the red oval, notice the line where the ink in the signature isn't? That's from a flaw with the stamp - a person writing their name would not have ink suddenly stop flowing from the pen along that same line...

[Louieman]

You guys are awesome, thanks so much for the help. At least I can tell him all of this so he (and I) know what to look for in the future. Thanks!

[Sportsguy20]

Lots of stamped balls were sold decades ago at ballparks across the country. This is stamped as everybody else has opioned

[murphusa]

All that said this facsimile baseball is still worth $30-40

[JMEnglish27]

And, it's a 1982 A's ball. Rick Bosetti's on it. '82 was his last year.

His claim to fame is claiming to have urinated in the outfield of every major league park at the time.

[timzcardz]

Another telltale sign of a stamped ball . . .

Some of the letters almost appear to be outlined with ink, as in the tail of the "y" in Fred Stanley.

[Louieman]

I know its bittersweet b/c my buddy was really excited about the possibility it was real, but thanks again to everyone with all the helpful info, really appreciate it!

[Bpm0014]

I'm pretty sure it's worth $30-$40 if stamped, and $5-$10 if real...

[JMEnglish27]

I'm pretty sure it's worth $30-$40 if stamped, and $5-$10 if real...

Nah, it'd have Rickey Henderson on it. From his record setting year. It'd be worth considerably more than that.