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The following is
intended as a warning to memorabilia
and autograph collectors. The Pujols
Family Foundation is NOT an authenticator
of signatures. Please use caution when
purchasing ANY autographed item and
seek the service of an authenticating
professional before you buy.
By Todd Perry, Executive
Director
Pujols Family Foundation
Dear
Friends,
Please be aware that
many top autograph authenticators say
that Albert Pujols is one of the most
forged signatures in the hobby today.
The reasons vary, but unfortunately
the main reason is that due to Albert's
very rare signing appearances, supply
and demand has driven his signature
to near the top of retail price points
in the hobby market. Anytime this happens,
dishonest and unscrupulous people try
to take advantage of the unknowing public
with fake and forged signatures on a
variety of items and memorabilia.
Now that Albert and the
Cardinals have their first World Championship
in 25 years, the supply and the demand
will grow even higher for Albert's signature
and so will the number of fakes on auction
sites like EBay.
The on-line memorabilia
store at PujolsFamilyFoundation.org
is the only place I know where Albert
Pujols regularly signs and releases
authentic game used memorabilia. Please
note: Albert does not accept any compensation
from any of the items sold at our on-line
store. There is no broker or middle
man in any of these transactions. 100%
of the purchase price for any item goes
directly to the ongoing work of the
Pujols Family Foundation.
Here are a few basic
rules to remember when buying Albert's
signature:
1) If it sounds too good
to be true, it probably is. The market
determines the retail of true, authentic
memorabilia. If someone has something
listed at 20% to 50% off of actual value…
BEWARE!
2) Please note: Albert
does not sign jerseys or bats for the
public. If there is a bat or jersey
for sale, without documentation from
the St. Louis Cardinals or the Pujols
Family Foundation, I would be very wary.
If the description says something like:
"I got this bat signed at the team
hotel when Albert came to town…"
chances are the item is fake. The Foundation's
memorabilia store is the only place
I currently know where you can buy an
authentic autographed Pujols bat.
3) I was told at the
Winter Warm Up in 2006 that some dealer
had 60-signed Pujols jerseys he was
looking to sell. I actually saw one
of the signed jerseys and the signature
looked pretty good… the problem
is, I know Albert did not sign 60 jerseys
all year in 2005! Albert hardly ever
signs jerseys. When I say "hardly
ever"…. let me put that into
perspective… in the almost two
years I have worked for him, I have
seen him sign less than 12 jerseys.
If someone shows up with Pujols signed
jerseys in bulk, please let us know,
then… Run! Authentic autographed
Pujols jerseys are very, very rare.
4) As for game used items:
Buyer Beware! There are a number of
bad items with letters from some pretty
reputable authenticators who clearly
don't have all of the facts. For instance,
Albert has told me directly: "I
have never swung a Mizuno bat in a Major
League game… ever." Yet, there
are several dozen "Game Used"
Mizuno bats in the hobby as we speak.
Most of these game used items are very
big-ticket items, so there are a lot
of incentives to cheat here. Another
important detail is that Albert does
not go through a great number of jerseys
during the year (like some superstar
players), so the number of authentic
Pujols game worn jerseys is always very
low when compared to his peers. For
more information about game used Pujols
items, here's a resource of a great
article published in 2005 in Sports
Collector's Digest from Rob Steinmetz
and recently updated by Rob Steinmetz
and Jeff Scott in 2006: Pujols Gamers:
A Primer.
5) Albert will not sign
anything sent to the foundation or to
his home.
6) Remember, a Certificate
of Authenticity (COA) is only as good
as the organization behind it. You can
usually bank on authentic letters from
MLB, Cardinals Care, and of course,
the PFF representing authentic merchandise;
however, please know that these letters
themselves can also be doctored and
forged. Our PFF hologram will always
be numbered and the number will match
both the item and the COA. Just remember,
a COA from "Earl's Collectibles"
is only as good as ol' Earl himself….
Know who you are buying from. Ask questions.
If you have ANY doubts… pass on
the item.
7) 2006 World Series
Team signed memorabilia: There are very,
very few authentically team signed World
Series items in existence. I have only
seen two (and they both belonged to
Albert), and I have yet to see a legitimate
WS team signed item on EBay.
In no way are we trying
to corner the market or say unless you
purchase your signed items from the
PFF store, they are fake. What I am
saying is that there is an epidemic
of fake and forged Pujols signatures
in the hobby right now. Our on-line
store is simply our way of bringing
authentic Albert
Pujols memorabilia to the collector,
while helping those less fortunate.
Please email me directly with any questions
or comments - todd@pujolsfamilyfoundation.org.
I would like to post some of your comments
on the site to share with others.
Please be careful out
there!
Peace,
Todd
Pujols
Gamers: A Primer
01.02.07 UPDATE from Todd
Perry
Over the past several
days I have been getting a lot of e-mail
asking me to authenticate their Albert
Pujols memorabilia. First let me say,
that in hindsight, I probably asked
for that one seeing that I posted a
gallery of"Junk Signatures"
that I pulled down off of Ebay.
Even though I have seen
Albert sign his name thousands of times,
and am very familiar with his signature
and how it has changed over the past
6 years, I am not an authenticator.
For this reason, I am
pulling down the "Junk Gallery"
and letting my article stand on it's
own. Just remember: With any signed
memorabilia, you should educate yourself
on what a real autograph looks like
and buy only from people you know and
trust.
Finally, the PFF exists
to help people. Nothing more, nothing
less.
Have a great New Year,
Todd
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