He sent a 1990 Upper Deck Orel Hershiser card that was signed. He said that he received it in a trade and didn't know if it was a legit autograph, but that he wanted me to have it.
It didn't look right to me. I only have one signed Orel card and I was too lazy to find it. So, off to ebay. Now, I know that everything on ebay isn't a sure thing, but I trust the following two cards to actually have been signed by Orel.
First there is the 2012 Panini National Treasures Signature Materials. This is the signature that I've grown accustomed to seeing.
Then we have the 2009 Press Pass Fusion Cross Training dual autos of a girlish Kirk Gibson and Orel. Again, a true signature.
I'm not a hand writing expert, but I think that what Adam sent falls a bit short on the Sharpie scale. There's no L in the Orel and I'm not going to try to decipher the last name.
Please know that I'm thankful to Adam for sending this my way and this post is not intended to downplay his generosity, but I'm going to say, "No Orel Auto today." Thanks for thinking of me, Adam.
You can compare it to this one, too, as I know it's real as well:
ReplyDeletehttp://nightowlcards.blogspot.com/2009/06/mr-hershiser-has-heard-of-night-owl.html
I think you'd come to the same conclusion.
I'm with you two. The start of his last name isn't even close to correct. Wrong loop on the "H".
ReplyDeleteTwo things I'll play devil's advocate about:
ReplyDelete1. In person 'graphing is a whole different ballgame than the sitdown signings where these certified cards were probably signed. Hurried, crank 'em out autographs are the norm. Try signing a baseball card against your hand as opposed to a flat table, there's going to be a difference. And from my one in person experience with Hershiser, he wasn't the most willing signer.
2. Pen choice. The black one looks thick and was a popular choice if this card was signed in the same era that card came from. Card companies give the players the thin blue ones now when they have them sign the cards or stickers because the signatures turn out nicer.
While it may not be the greatest exemplar even if it is real, just some food for thought.