Sometimes this hobby really pulls you down…..

[vintagesportscollector]

…..and other times it can lift you to unimaginable heights! Here are some examples.

I frequently have people reaching out to me, thru my site, asking for help about an item(s) they found or have had for a while and are not sure of what they have, or the value, and often they want to sell. More and more I have been coming across disingenuous, deceitful and greedy people. Hey, I get it, we all want to make a buck, but it’s discouraging. Here are two disheartening stories, and one uplifting one.

Case #1: This seemingly sweet and adorable older woman, in her 70s, reaches out to me about an item that was supposedly her grandfathers and she would like to know more about it and it’s potential value. She goes on and on about her grandfather, how she came across this item, her love of baseball, where he lives, her family, and so on. We exchanged several emails. She seemed truly genuine and really adorable. I tell her the value, spend an hour or so researching some leads for her, and send her the info. She sends me her thanks and tells me she will continue researching……two days later I see the item on eBay, from her, with a pack of lies, some tall tale on where the item came from, and other false statements. I felt crushed and dooped by the “sweet old lady”.

Case #2: An antiques dealer reaches out to me for assistance in valuing and selling an estate from a former MLB player she purchased. She purchased the full estate, which included many non-sports items, but she is not a sports dealer and was seeking some assistance. We spoke and started to work with each other. She was clear that she was looking to clear some profit, and I was upfront that I may have an interest in purchasing some of the items too. It seemed this can be a win-win for both of us and she said “we will definitely do business”.

I start researching values, contacting experts I know about certain pieces, sharing photos with many people who may have an interest in purchasing, etc.. I actually really enjoy this leg work...and if it helps her, and I end up with some good deals from her in trade, it’s a win-win. After many hours spent, I send her a lot information and several buyer contacts. This continues for days. Each time she is disappointed with the market value I am sharing with her and insists she can get more. The fact is she had unreasonable expectations and I was just trying to give her the facts. I even forwarded emails from my contacts so she knows I am sharing the truth. Long story short, she blows me off, expresses no genuine thanks for the information I have given her, which if nothing else should give her a much better understanding of what she has, and I don’t hear from her again.

Case #3……(hang in there, it now gets better).
The grandson of former MLB umpire Scotty Robb reaches out to me to share the collection of his grandfather’s items and understand their value. He sends me many photos of an impressive collection of items. His grandmother saved everything from her husband's career. We end up speaking a few days later. I ask him what he wants to do and he explains that he wants to sell and ultimately he wants them to end up in a good home where they would be appreciated. We talk for a long while and walk thru the potential value of each item he has shown so far. I also tell him which items would interest me.

He continues to explain there are many many more items (several hundred), some of which I explain to him could have significantly more value than what he has shown so far. I tell him how for some items (like photos) I would put him directly in contact with an expert(s) as I would not want to steer him wrong. We end the conversation with agreeing that he would cataloge and photograph the entire collection, send me the information and then we would connect again on next steps.

Two weeks ago he contacts me to tell me he has finished cataloging, put everything on a thumb drive and would like to mail me the thumb drive to review. I give him my address and we also agree to meet when he will be traveling to my area in June. Along with the thumb drive he told me he included a small thanks in appreciation for my help so far.......the package arrives last week and he had generously added as gift for me a couple of the items from the collection I had shown interest in – I was blown away!

We finally meet last night, as he was travelling in the area, and spent hours together reviewing the collection (he brought a large suitcase with him with a majority of the smalls). It was an absolute joy, but what made it special was the stories he had about his grandfather behind every item, as we talked "old school" baseball for hours. From arguing with players, stories about Jackie Robinson, to infamous or notable calls and games, to his grandfather’s favorite stadium dressing rooms, to mudding up the balls before games.

We agreed on next steps to help him sell the vast bulk of the collection, and I purchase a few items that interested me, for a fair deal.

Here is a link to the items I acquired: https://goo.gl/photos/NG5bfLPkPnCLiS8M7

Most notable for me is the figural belt buckle – I had to have that! Love it!

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• 1949 NL Season Pass
• 1952 AL Season Pass (one for Robb, and one for his wife)
• Batting Order cards
• One of Scotty Robb’s Umpire Caps
• 1948 NL Schedule

Douglas “Scotty” W. Robb – Distinguished career as an Umpire.
• National League from 1947 to 1952; American League in 1952 and 1953
• Umpire in the 1950 and 1951 Major League All-Star Games
• In the International League in 1946 and was umpiring at first base for Jackie Robinson’s minor league debut with the Montreal Royals.

After a series of discouraging experiences, I am once again rejuvenated. Thanks for the opportunity to share.

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[Huysmans]

Hey Joe,

Wonderful stories!
It sounds like you made a positive and memorable impact on Robb's grandson for him to have been so generous. Its great to hear.


Brent

[ruth-gehrig]

Thanks for sharing those stories. Looks like you picked up some great items! The way I see it is you are batting .333
Not bad my friend

[icollectDCsports]

Sorry to hear about your bad experiences, but happy for the one that worked out for you. Great items.

[bnorth]

Thank you for sharing your stories. It is always great to hear of the good things that happen in our hobby. Unfortunately most of us including myself get hung up on the bad things. 10 good things can happen and we don't say squat, then 1 bad thing happens and we can't shut up about it.

[irv]

Great story! And it shows, despite this seemingly, crazy, mad world we currently live in, that there are still good, appreciative people around.

Thanks for sharing, and congrats on the P/U.

[71buc]

Great stories thanks for sharing. I'm a firm believer in karma.

[slidekellyslide]

Very nice. Karma pays off. You are a good egg, Joe! Congrats.

[ksfarmboy]

That buckle is pretty sweet. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and the collection.

[Leon]

Thanks for sharing the stories!! Good things do happen.

.

[vintagesportscollector]

Thanks All, for the encouraging comments. Hopefully there are far more positives, than negatives, for all our futures.

[antiquefootball]

Joe,

You are not alone in these experiences. I've was contacted by an antiques dealers that was consigning a collection and wanted more info. After research I determined the 1890's broadside he had was a repo. I informed him, he thanked me profusely, and then listed on EBay the same day as authentic.

I've also made the mistake of making partial payments for items Fter executing a sales agreement and then have the seller completely disappear.

I have a lot of positive stories too, but these are valuable lessons I've learned over the years about the people you can cross paths with.

Chris
www.antiquefootball.com

[CW]

That was an interesting read, Joe. Thanks for sharing the stories and the cool pieces.

[Scott Garner]

Joe, awesome story! Thanks for sharing it with everyone on net54.

[RichardSimon]

Regarding case #2. These people do about five minutes of research on their own.
Their research consists of running an ebay search and finding the highest price for their item, in some autograph cases that is from history direct the most absurd pricing dealer in the hobby, and then telling you that your reasonable estimate/offer is way off.
Makes me crazed.
But nice story on your third case. Really nice.