NOW LIVE: Negro League Baseball Collectibles Guide

[bcbgcbrcb]

Ryan:

Since you don't know how I was planning to handle the situation, you should have asked me first before posting on a public forum but it's too late for that now.

While you continuosly mention your willingness to help in whatever capacity needed, you did not volunteer to assist in any way to help put the guide together when I first began the process and was seeking help from anyone and everyone on Net 54 who had some expertise in this field. I also asked several times for scans of cards on Net 54 that I was missing, many of which you indicate that you have (and I'm sure you do) but nothing was ever sent to me. You did offer to forward images via e-mail somewhere along the way but, for some reason, I never received anything. Since you were in no way obligated to help me, I just moved on with my work.

It is very easy to sit back now, after the fact, and the book has already been published and make critical comments. Obviously, your expertise far exceeds mine and I'm sure that you could have put something like this together with virtually no issues but never chose to do so. In summary, your expertise was not available when it meant putting something together to help the hobby but it is now available to find fault with the finished product.

Rest assured that I will take the necessary steps to ensure that my buyers are alerted to any major issues with the guide that are known to me. I will have to further assess things before making a decision on whether a revised edition will be produced at some point in the future.

[ElCabron]

Okay, well let me know if you change your mind. Just so you know, I didn't see your posts asking for help as I was rarely checking the board at that time. I'm not sure why you didn't just call me and ask me since we've known each other for years, but it's fine. Sorry if I was too busy trying to raise 4 kids in two different states while in the middle of a brutal custody battle to send you some scans. I'm not trying to critique your work after the fact any differently than I would have before it was published. Someone should have, Phil. That's all I'm saying. It would have saved a lot of headaches. Also, I didn't just randomly come on some public forum without talking to you first. I did talk to you. And I was under the impression that there would be something included with the books you sent that corrects, or at least points out some of the more egregious errors. When everyone started posting about how great the book is and no one mentioned it, I correctly assumed you didn't include anything.

In spite of your hurt feelings about what you perceive as bashing your book, I actually think it's still great and worth buying, even in its current error-filled state, just for the memorabilia side. It's quite awesome to see all those images gathered together in one place. In fact, I think the card section is the only part I have any real problems with. You're probably right that I should just put something together myself so I would know it was accurate. But your guide is still good and I would still recommend it to people as long as they know about the errors. The memorabilia side would have made an awesome book all by itself. Your work was not wasted, Phil. But I'm not shocked there are mistakes due to what seemed like a rush to publish.

Again, your book is worthwhile and definitely something anyone interested in this material should buy, as long as they are made aware of the inaccuracies. Plus, what other book features images of so many cards of albino Negro Leaguer George Brown?

-Ryan

[cyseymour]

Just for the record, I decided to keep the book.

[bcbgcbrcb]

Thanks, Ryan.

I think that just about everyone is in agreement that the guide is a great resource overall and, thanks to your review, I will be making all buyers aware of all known, major issues in written form in the very near future. I think that will satisfy both of us for the time being and also work out best for all of the collectors who have already purchased or will purchase a copy of the guide in it's present form in the future.

Maybe one day, a new, improved version will hit the market. We'll have to see.........