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drcAnyone who buys raw cards on eBay will tell you that 8 out of 10 eBay sellers couldn't grade correctly if their butts were on fire. So it shouldn't take a genius to figure why PSA 10 Gem Mint cards sells for more than the average eBay seller who claims is a 10. Even if PSA isn't your favorite grader, you know their grading is more accurate than the average beanie babie seller.
For the bidder the issue isn't whether the the exact same cards are worth the same, but whether the cards are the exact same. After all the eBay purchaser won't be able check the grading in person until after the auction is finished and the money is paid. Until then he has to go by the information provided by a seller 500 miles away. With a PSA graded card the bidder will have confidence in what he will receive in the mail. With the Joe Blow raw card seller, there won't be the same confidence. And for bidders, more confidence translates to higher bidding.
The reason that the Mike Gutierrez auction sold more both times is because the bidder calculated that they were more likely to receive an authentic Babe Ruth signed ball in their mail. When you place a thousands dollar bid you aren't concerned with theoritical price comparisons on virtual autographs, you are concerned about what you will phyically receive in return for your check.