Induction Weekend by Justin Brooks

Induction Weekend by Justin Brooks The last time I visited Cooperstown, I was an 11 year old kid with eyes as big as the moon, and a desire to see everything that was there in the first 5 minutes. This time, I was a 28 year old kid with eyes as big as the moon, and a...

Ty Cobb Bats and the Use of Imagery Analysis by MEARS

As an Intelligence Officer, over the years I have often found that what you are looking for has in fact been hidden in plain sight. Bat collectors and researchers have spent countless ours pouring over shipping records and photographs in an attempt to determine what a...

Collecting Baseball Bats by MEARS

While looking for bats to complete my set of participants of the 1960 TV Series Home Run Derby, I spotted a vintage Rocky Colavito gamer on E-Bay. The opening bid price of $1295.00 and the “Buy It Now Price” of $1495.00 was in line with what I was looking to pay of a...

Baseball Postcards by MEARS

As the summer vacation months are drawing to a close, I am going to date myself a bit with this piece. There was time when people traveled and brought back or sent images that did not come via the camera phone on in digital means in an e-mail. There was a time when we...

The Shirt Off My Back: Vol. 1 No. 36 by Dave Miedema

Tags have long been an essential part of the authentication process, but even legitimate tagging can throw a curve ball to hobbyists not expecting it. Following are five examples off odd or substandard tagging in pro sports jerseys that were used on fully legitimate...