Global Authentics Timeline

[VintageGamerN00b]

Hey Guys,

First time posting in the auto forum. PLEASE DON'T BITE MY HEAD OFF. I've been poring over these threads and am really impressed with all of your guys' expertise. Wish I would've found this before being taken on a 500 HR ball.

I'm wondering if anyone has a timeline of when authenticators with good reputations like Bushing and Knoll, and more controversially Steve Sipe, worked for GAI. I wonder if there's a way to date the GAI stickers to periods in time when they were apparently doing better work than others. (For the record, you guys have scared me off of autograph collecting for a while, and I would probably never pay for a GAI piece that wasn't perfect, but the researcher in me is interested.)

There's a guy in Orange County selling clearly counterfeit stuff with GAI stickers, and there are eBay listings popping up all the time, like this (that sticker was probably taken from another item anyways):

http://www.ebay.com/itm/MICKEY-MANTL...-/400481936986



Any thoughts?

[tazdmb]

I think the Ted Williams is fugly, slants way to much to the right for starters. However, I am far from an expert

[MooseDog]

We don't all bite here in this forum.

I can't help on the timeline but I'm sure someone will chime in. That would be helpful information for all.

First of all I would NEVER even consider buying a photo signed by those three players. No matter who certifies it, there is still probably a less than 1% chance a piece like that would actually be "good". Unless you got it yourself or from someone you trusted implicitly - just not worth the risk.

People get sucked into these pieces because they look nice and usually the price is "too good".

I don't think this one is even a good forgery. To me the J and gg in the first autograph are all off. The second M in Mantle looks suspicious, and the Williams is all wrong.

[drc]

The first director of authentication was Mike Gutierrez and his name appeared on the full 8"x11" LOAs. I'm not sure when he left, perhaps 2005. Gutierrez had a strong reputation in the autograph hobby, left when he was hired by PSA/DNA then Heritage where he now works. GAI's checkered downhill slope happened after he left. The early years GAI LOA with his name on it is the best and most respected.

In the early days, GAI had Bushing & Knoll for game used, Gutierrez for autographs and was at the top of the heap in unopened pack grading. Some collectors today may not know or recall, but GAI once had a very strong hobby reputation, including in autographs.

[shelly]

DRC, Gobal was authenticateing in the late ninty's early 2000.
They where going broke and cut a deal with B and J to authenticate there items. I know for a fact that they authenticated Dimaggio balls half where good the other half bad. That was Rocchi at the time. Then Baker, Purdy and gone. Now is Steve Sipe.

[collectbaseball]

I'm generally more confident buying things without certification than ones that comes with GAI.

[drc]

I believe GAI was started in the very early 2000s, when the head of grading for PSA left and started his own card grading company. It was primarily a trading card grader, but soon added autograph and game used units.

The company has indeed taken a serpentine route since then, with authenticators and units coming and going, its reputation going downhill. The original authenticators long gone. The original pack grader had to quit when his house burned down. There have even been multiple companies holding the same acronym.