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  #1  
Old 09-16-2007, 09:00 AM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: bruce Dorskind

Selling for a ballpark figure
By Paul Lukas
Published: September 14 2007 16:08 | Last updated: September 14 2007 16:08
On August 7, Barry Bonds hit his 756th career home run, breaking Hank Aaron’s career mark and claiming the most hallowed record in American sports. Almost immediately, people began speculating what the ball – which was caught by a 21-year-old New Yorker named Matt Murphy – would be worth on the memorabilia market.

“I think it’s a half-million-dollar baseball, although it would probably be worth double that if it had been hit by a more likable fellow,” says Mike Heffner. And he should know – Heffner is president of Lelands, a Long Island-based auction house specialising in sports memorabilia.


We will find out what Bonds’ latest record-breaking ball is worth this afternoon, when bidding is scheduled to close. Lelands did not conduct this auction (Sotheby’s is handling it), but they did sell the ball Bonds hit for his 73rd homer of the 2001 season, which stands as the single-season home-run mark.

“That auction was aired live on ESPN,” says Heffner. “It was the first time a sports auction had been broadcast live.”

The ball sold for more than half-a-million dollars.

“In 1993 we sold the ball that went through Bill Buckner’s legs in the 1986 World Series,” says Heffner, ticking off some of the company’s other notable sales. “Charlie Sheen bought that one, for $93,500, which was a lot of money at the time. We’ve sold more Heisman Trophies [for outstanding college football players] than anyone else, including the first one ever awarded – that was Larry Kelly’s, from 1936. It sold for over $300,000.”

Of course, not every item Lelands sells brings such a hefty price. And make no mistake, Lelands sells a lot of items, as one look at Heffner’s office makes clear. Like most of the other rooms in the company’s small headquarters, it is packed with vintage jerseys, trophies, equipment, trading cards and other sports-related ephemera, most of it waiting to be assessed, appraised and entered into one of the company’s monthly internet auctions or biannual catalogue auctions.

All told, Heffner says Lelands sells about 7,000 lots a year, with total realised prices of about $12m. Numbers such as those have helped Lelands emerge as one of America’s leading sports memorabilia auction houses since the company was founded in the mid-1980s.

The rise of Lelands coincides with the explosion of the memorabilia market, which has mushroomed over two decades. But what exactly is the allure of an autograph or a game-used baseball glove? “Most people have fond memories of attending sporting events,” explains Heffner. “They want to relive those memories, and one way to do that is with a signed baseball or a jersey.”

In Heffner’s case, the link between memorabilia and youthful memories is even more acute. An avid baseball card collector as a kid, he put himself through college in the late 1980s by buying sports artifacts at flea markets, yard sales and antique shops (“Back then you could still find decent stuff that way,” he says) and then reselling it to specialty dealers. One of those dealers was Lelands founder Josh Evans, who offered Heffner a job when he finished college. So Heffner put off his plans for a career in criminal justice and instead took a shipping job at Lelands. Soon he had moved into acquisitions and then into taking a stake.

“I’m the first to admit, I’m not a trained businessman,” he says. “But I don’t know how many people in this industry are. It’s very emotion-driven – the normal rules of business don’t always apply here.”

One rule that does seem to apply is that high-valued items tend to be the best investments. A game-used Jackie Robinson jersey that Lelands sold for $80,000 15 years ago, for example, is now worth $250,000.

“I think the limited product – the Babe Ruth uniforms, of which only half a dozen exist, the Jackie Robinson uniforms – I think that stuff’s going to continue to rise,” says Heffner. “But something like a [New York Yankees captain] Derek Jeter baseball, which is already selling for $200, I frankly think that’s ridiculous. He’s going to sign a lot more baseballs in his lifetime. Babe Ruth isn’t going to be signing anything – I think his balls will always increase in value.”

One reason memorabilia values have continued to rise is that the internet has opened up the market to more collectors. Lelands, for example, used to do live auctions, usually in Manhattan. But with rare exceptions, like the auction of the Bonds ball in 2001, the company now conducts its business exclusively via phone and internet bidding.

Personally, I always preferred the live auctions, because there was a lot of energy and excitement in the room,” says Heffner. “But it turns out most of our bidders prefer the phone and internet system, because it’s so much more convenient. It’s made things more accessible.”

If you are a savvy investor – and a big sports fan – and are thinking of spending, say, $20,000 on some memorabilia, what is the best way to go?

“Stick with baseball, because it’s the most widely collected sport,” says Heffner. “Stick with the big names, like Mickey Mantle, Lou Gehrig, Cy Young. And get the best example you can find and afford – you want to buy quality, not quantity.” But how does one determine quality? “Ask around, talk to dealers and other collectors – you’ll need to do some homework.”

Or perhaps you will simply get lucky and stumble upon something in your attic. Heffner has a long list of stories like that. “One time we had someone come in with a Babe Ruth pin-back button that he’d found at a flea market for $5, which we eventually sold for $10,000,” he says. “Another time, a garbageman came in with a 1951 game-used Jackie Robinson jersey. He’d literally found it in the trash, but it was still beautiful. I appraised it at $50,000 and tried to get him to consign it with us, but he ended up selling it to a collector himself.”

It is a constant struggle to acquire the best artifacts. The company is competing not only with the other sports memorabilia operations but also with larger auction houses such as Sotheby’s. But Heffner says the rivalries tend to be friendly. “I’m a big fan of Sotheby’s sports sales, because they do quality work,” he says. “But they’re not sports specialists – they’re selling paintings for $40m. So we like to think we have a bit more expertise in our niche. But as long as they’re getting good prices for good items, it’s good for everyone.”

So what does Heffner think of Sotheby’s getting the latest Barry Bonds home-run ball? “I think they’re smart to be selling it right away, because it’s probably going to lose value over time,” he says. “[Yankee] Alex Rodriguez may end up breaking Bonds’ record in a few more years, and Bonds’s status could be affected if he’s indicted in the steroid controversy. He’s a charged figure, so his presence makes the value harder to calculate.”

That unpredictability, of course, is part of what makes the memorabilia scene so interesting. Let the bidding begin.

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  #2  
Old 09-16-2007, 02:14 PM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: davidcycleback

That was an interesting article.

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  #3  
Old 09-16-2007, 02:33 PM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: barrysloate

So what did the two balls sell for?

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  #4  
Old 09-16-2007, 02:39 PM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: Cobby33

As of 1:45 p.m. Pacific:

$142K for 755; and
$317 for 756.

With Premium, looks like 756 may actually get to $500K, despite all the Bonds haters at work-

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  #5  
Old 09-16-2007, 02:55 PM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: Jeff Lichtman

Well, it's already in the extended bidding period and the ball is at 317K. When you consider what McGwire's ball sold for -- 3 million -- this is a huge drop-off despite the more significant nature of Bonds' ball. I guess the use of steroids by Bonds et al. has greatly cut into the value of any home run record ball these days.

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  #6  
Old 09-16-2007, 02:58 PM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: barrysloate

I actually thought they sold yesterday, and wondered why I didn't hear about it in the news. That shows you how much attention I've paid to it.

I've been too involved with the O.J. story, waiting to see if he robs anyone else at gunpoint or knocks over a few convenience stores.

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  #7  
Old 09-16-2007, 05:54 PM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: peter chao

Barry,

OJ is too smart to try armmed robbery...your talking about a guy that was clever enough to get away with murder.

The home run ball #756 is going to break $500,000 soon. To me that's a pretty ridiculously high price, the most valuable home run ball will probably be Barry's last. The last home run ball will make #756 a lot less valuable.

Peter C.

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Old 09-16-2007, 06:00 PM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: Bob Pomilla

Peter,
If Simpson was "clever" enough to get away with murder, why wouldn't he fancy himself "clever" enough to get away with armed robbery? Your logic escapes me.

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  #9  
Old 09-16-2007, 06:26 PM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: peter chao

OJ is still in pretty good shape, he doesn't need a gun to steal a few collectibles.

Peter C.

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  #10  
Old 09-16-2007, 06:28 PM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: Jeff Lichtman

Bob, I guess he wasn't "clever" enough to avoid a $35 million judgment either.

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  #11  
Old 09-16-2007, 06:45 PM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: Bob Pomilla

"OJ is still in pretty good shape, he doesn't need a gun to steal a few collectibles."

By extension of that reasoning, we can clear Simpson of the murder of his wife, since, being in even better shape at the time, he wouldn't have needed a knife to dispatch her.

Jeff,
Do you find it hard to type with your chin on your knees, after some of these statements? I sure do.

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  #12  
Old 09-16-2007, 06:52 PM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: peter chao

Looks like there's at least 2 crazy bidders driving the auction for #756. It's approaching $600,000 now.

Peter C.

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  #13  
Old 09-16-2007, 07:07 PM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: davidcycleback

Even at the time, many thought $3 million was way too much for the McGwire ball, so it's not a good item for comparison.

I never quite understand when the quality of an item is judged by its sell price. It's like news networks that can only judge movies by the box office receipts. Do you know why you can't judge the quality of a movie by the box office receipts? Just one reason is the movie goers buy the tickets before they watch the movie.

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Old 09-16-2007, 07:17 PM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: Jeff Lichtman

Bob, I assume one of these positions:

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Old 09-16-2007, 08:38 PM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: peter chao

Looks like the Net54 informal boycott of SCP didn't have much effect on the sale of the Bonds' baseballs...I guess it's all about having the stuff.

Peter C.

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Old 09-16-2007, 08:49 PM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: jay wolt



"Looks like the Net54 informal boycott of SCP didn't have much effect on the sale of the Bonds' baseballs"

Since the majority of the posters here collect vintage cards
I doub't too many (if any) bid on the Bonds baseballs anyway

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  #17  
Old 09-16-2007, 11:28 PM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: Rich

The $3 million paid for McGwire's 70th was excessive...but the publicity Todd McFarlane received helped him land the deal with MLB to license his action figures.

Here is how the Bonds balls ($752,467 and $186,750) stack up against some others:

http://www.sportscollectorsdaily.com/latest/one-bonds-ball-sold.html

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  #18  
Old 09-17-2007, 12:59 AM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: Cobby33

Great link- thanks for providing.
Guess the verdict is in. Most people with considerable money to burn on collectibles don't give a rat's a** what the majority of pedestrian collectors/critics have to say about Bonds and the record-

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Old 09-17-2007, 06:28 AM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: Jeff Lichtman

...or witnesses, grand jury testimony and physical evidence....

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Old 09-17-2007, 12:01 PM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: Cobby33

Oh come on, Jeff, you know the State would be all over that "evidence" if it was competent and supportive of an indictment/complaint...

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Old 09-17-2007, 12:46 PM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: Jeff Lichtman

How about the poor guy that spent 200K on the Eddie Murray ball?

Edited to add: nah, the State won't do a thing against Bonds; the Feds and their sitting Grand Jury? Different story.

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Old 09-17-2007, 09:27 PM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: Cobby33

They've been sitting for an awfully long time

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Old 09-18-2007, 01:49 AM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: Jeff Lichtman

Cobby, if Bonds gets indicted will you take down the poster of him hanging on the wall in your room?

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Old 09-18-2007, 10:47 AM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: Cobby33

LOL- only if you put one up if he doesn't!

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Old 09-18-2007, 11:07 AM
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Default Financial Times Feature Story on Lelands and Sports Memorabilia

Posted By: peter chao

If Bonds were treated fairly, he would be indicted on the tax charges and not for perjury. For baseball players lying about steroids is like lying about never cheating on your wife.

Peter C.

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