Board Advice Needed - please and thank you

[Huck]

Originally Posted by jimjim

First of all, I am not trying to call anyone out but I am just looking for some guidance from board members....

Long story short, I had a member of another board/dealer help me get a ticket stub signed during the MAB HOF Cooperstown show. I included specific instructions on autograph placement, pen request, and size of the autograph by including a photocopy of the ticket with a box drawn where I would like the autograph along with the players name written out to show the size of his autograph that I wanted. I received the ticket back a few days ago and the autograph is much smaller than I wanted. Much much smaller. Upon inquiring, I found out that my contact actually mailed in the items to MAB and did not get them signed in person, which was not what I was expecting. He said he was told that the player saw my picture prior to signing the ticket, but he can't confirm for sure. Whenever I send in specific instructions the item is signed that way, which makes me wonder if my sheet was even shown to the player or his representatives. This player is young and pretty accommodating so not like we are talking about Willie Mays intentionally messing up an item.

I am rather frustrated since the autograph was expensive and the ticket by itself costs around $50-75. I have been offered a refund for the cost of the autograph by my contact (not MAB) but only if I mail back the ticket. I have asked him to contact MAB to get a refund but he refused telling me that he was already told by MAB 'that is how the player signs'. That statement is not really true but not worth arguing that point right now. I am not really sure on the protocol on something like this. If keep the ticket then I would be hoping to break even if I sell it and I could lose money. If I return the ticket then I am automatically out the cost of the ticket, I have to spend the time to locate a new one, plus the contact/dealer could turn around and sell it for a profit since he only paid for the autograph and got the ticket for free. On a final note, I did pay with my credit card but I really don't want to dispute the charge for something like this.

I literally left no stone unturned to make sure the ticket was signed as I wanted and to make sure there were no issues, but they still messed it up. If this was a consignment or golf tournament then I can understand but this was a paid sit down signing for a lot of money.

Eat it.

I had a similar situation. I once asked a relative to get a Yaz autograph for me with three inscriptions. The piece came back not as I envisioned. I could have been more specific about pen size and placement and the piece still would have come back wrong.

The thing is only the collector really knows what they want the item to look like when all is said and done.

In all my years of collecting autographs, only Lou Brock asked "Do you want my Yogi Berra signature (small) or my regular autograph (large). Granted, most signers will do their best to fit their signature to a piece. Once the signer starts signing the size of the autograph is up to them. If you wrote "write small in this area" and included a picture, well how small is too small? The signee has no idea. Short of getting the item signed in person, you did all you could do. Signing the piece where you wanted, only informs the person as to where to sign. To think that the signee or MAB employee would infer that "Oh the collector wants the autograph to be the same size as the example" is asking a bit much. To match the size of the example is a stretch as well. Try writing your normal signature smaller. One, automatically you start to write slower, two most probably write smaller than needed, especially to squeeze their normal signature in a certain area on a ticket.

I was disappointed. I was out the price of the lithograph. I was out the price of the autograph and inscriptions. I didn't want my relative to feel bad. It was my fault, it was a lot to ask and if Yaz would ever leave the state of MA to do a signing, I would have gone to the signing in person.