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will watsoni somewhat collect modern cards, so i'd like to chime in about the cut card auto vs. auto check/3x5 debate. comparing the prices and values of cut auto cards to other autographs is like comparing apples to oranges. just like every Ty Cobb card isn't the same, every autograph isn't the same. different cards and different autographed items carry different values. sure, you can get a cheap Ty Cobb card or a cheap Babe Ruth signed index card for a lot less than you can for other similar cards and autographs. same principle.
granted, these cards are man made and a big part of the selling price is due to artificially created rarity. of course there are hundreds of autographs of these players, but only one cut autographed card - at least in this particular set. god knows how many other 1/1 cut autographs of the same players are out there.
i recently bought a Miguel Cabrera card with a game used MLB Logo patch on it for $300. it's the only one in the world. of course, i probably could have bought an entire Cabrera game worn jersey for a few hundred bucks more. but that wasn't what i wanted. i wanted the card with the patch affixed on the front. i suspect this is similar to the people who pay outlandish prices for cut signature cards instead of spending thousands less for each individual signature. personally, if i wanted those autographs i'd save myself thousands and buy them one at a time. but apparently a lot of modern collectors think differently. they're paying for the card and the scarcity over the actual autographs themselves