Quote:
Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth
So I have a question for Mike or Ron or whoever about something I have never really understood. How is it that all these supposed game used jerseys get into circulation? Do the players give them away? Are they being taken by locker room people? etc. etc.
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Peter IMO jerseys have entered the hobby I'm many ways over the years.
Nowadays the league and teams sell them thru MLB and at the park.
Players may enter into exclusive deals with promoters to sell items.
I'm sure items get stolen out of clubhouses to as I've read a few stories of clubhouse attendants/equipment managers getting caught and fired.
Players will give items to other players/family/friends/fans(on occasion) and down the road these sometimes popup for sale.
Back in the day most jerseys were recycled down to the minors since the jerseys didn't have a perceived value then after the season other than as a cost savings measure for the farm system.
Some FB teams like the Bears would use their jerseys for years on end with some eventually making their way into being practice jerseys. Ive also heard tale that the Bears donated jerseys to local High Schools though I don't know of any surviving.
Ive seen a 50's White Sox jersey that was actually passed down to an American Legion team for use in a Chicago suburb.
IMO over the past 30+ years the hobby has also been flooded with many, many created fake jerseys that have been passed off as being team issued and/or worn. This is particularly so with star type players Jordan, Marino, Elway, Payton, Bird, Magic Johnson, Frank Thomas, Ken Griffey, just to name a few.
IMO you are lucky if 1% of these jerseys can actually be proven to have been worn in a game and this has gotten so bad IMO that there is no way that I would ever even consider buying an expensive jersey without being able to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that it is what its being claimed to be.
Photo matching is much harder with older jerseys and non high resolution pictures but can at times still be done. Photo matching isn't the only way of course but with hi end jerseys I wouldn't settle for anything less cause again IMO you will get taken more times than not on the star player jerseys.