Posted By:
Steve M.email received today:
Dear Stephen,
It has been widely reported that thirty baseballs signed by Pete Rose with the
inscription “I’m sorry I bet on baseball” were discovered among the Barry Halper
Collection materials which will be featured in Robert Edward Auctions’ spring
sale. These thirty baseballs have been withdrawn from auction. An offer to
purchase all thirty Pete Rose baseballs for $30,000 was made to us by ESI
Entertainment Systems Inc., a gaming service industry company from British
Columbia, Canada. REA has never before withdrawn an item from auction that has
been scheduled for auction, but in this unique instance, in light of the fact
that Pete Rose is now selling baseballs signed in an identical manner on his
website for $299, we advised our consignors (the Halper family) that it was our
opinion that this offer should be accepted. We were given the authority to
proceed in whatever manner we felt best. Our job is to make the best decisions
possible for our consignors, and we have therefore executed the sale of the
thirty baseballs to ESI Entertainment Systems Inc for thirty thousand dollars.
We apologize for any inconvenience to the hundreds of collectors who have
contacted us during the week regarding these Pete Rose baseballs, but in this
very unusual circumstance we believe that it was appropriate to recommend an
outright sale. We are confident that collectors will appreciate our thought
process, and hope that any inconvenience is more than remedied by the fact that
baseballs bearing this identical inscription can now be purchased directly from
Pete Rose at www.PeteRose.com. Please note that the buyer was made fully aware
by Robert Edward Auctions that baseballs signed in an identical manner could be
purchased directly from Pete Rose, but they specifically wanted the REA auction
examples. We wish Pete Rose all the best and we will be referring all future
(and previously received) inquiries regarding Pete Rose baseballs to
www.PeteRose.com. For information about the withdrawn thirty baseballs, which
will always have a special historical significance as the original thirty Pete
Rose balls discovered in Barry Halper’s basement, contact: ESI Entertainment
Systems Inc. (TSX:ESY), 15th Floor, 4710 Kingsway, Burnaby, British Columbia,
Canada V5H 4M2.
Sincerely,
Robert Edward Auctions LLC
www.RobertEdwardAuctions.com