Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Why don’t you charge based on the value of the item?
A: You are paying for service and the time spent to form that opinion. You should not be penalized for submitting a high-end item. In addition, we should not be the one assigning value to your item and then charging you for that.
Q: Why are Hall of Famer items more expensive?
A: Our fees are broken down into a variety of categories spanning both time and performance. Older pieces and those of players of great prominence take more evaluation time because of the circumstances surrounding them, including, but not limited to the increased potential for forgery.
Q: What is considered good provenance?
A: Provenance, regardless of the source, can only make something better in the eyes of the collector; it can’t make an item something it is not. We look at two aspects. The provenance must be credible (does it makes sense that the person could have obtained the item as they state) and is it verifiable (is there a way to substantiate the claim).
Q: Are you ever involved in offering opinions on items you consign to auction houses?
A: Yes, this does happen on occasion. However, in all cases that relationship will be stated on the Letter of Opinion as well as being listed on this site so that the bidder is made aware of this before they bid.
Q: Is the “buy back” policy just a promotional gimmick? If not how does it work?
A: This policy is as real as the money you paid for the item. If you own an item that we have written a letter on and that item is shown to be other than what we stated, we will arrange for a refund. [ April 26th, 2011 – UPDATE ] –>
Q: What does your definition of A5 for uniforms mean?
A: A grade of A5 can be the result of two things. For pre-1987 jerseys it reflects a cumulative grade for shirt with points being added or deducted for various factors as listed in our grading criteria. For post 1987 jerseys it reflects both a grade and an issue within the hobby that deserves both explanation and qualification as it relates to star or period star player uniforms. As LTC Dave Grob wrote in an 30 April 2004 Article in Sports Collectors Digest titled “The shirt off my back or off the rack! When collecting gamers became a hazardous hobby,” he begins to explain the commercialization of game used product within the hobby. Although not limited to just uniforms, as this is also roughly the same period of time that the Anaconda-Kaye Sports Inc. Pro-Model bats surfaced within the hobby (1986-1989), it does provide a similar set of circumstances requiring explanation. For MEARS, a post 1987 star player or period star player jersey, this means that without provenance, both reasonable and verifiable, the A5 designation is defined as a jersey that posses all the qualities and physical characteristics of a major league uniform manufactured for the purposes of player use, retail sale, or promotion. Only use and wear on the uniform will be described. Other examples of products that highlight the need within the hobby for an A5 designation are the Champion basketball jerseys of star players for the mid to late 1990s.
Q: I know what a star player is, but what is a “period star” player?
A: A “period star” player is one whose career showed great promise at the time these products (jerseys or bats) where manufactured, yet over the course of time, never achieved the prominence that was envisioned or the value of the items was never fully realized. In the book “Bats: Professional Hillerich & Bradsby and Adirondack, 1950-1994” by Vince Malta, Ronald Fox, Bill Riddell, and Michael Specht (Off the Fence Publishing, San Francisco 1995), the authors list the players associated with the Anaconda-Kaye Sports, Inc. bats on pages 49-50. This list includes Bo Jackson, Eric Davis, Andy Van Slyke, Cory Snider, Dave Magadan and Kevin McReynolds, among others. While there is no list per say for players of this caliber in the realm of jerseys, the same principle is applied.