Thursday, September 27, 2012

Product Review: 2012 Leaf Cut Signature History of Baseball Edition

So Leaf has temped me once again with a new Cut Signature product. History of Baseball; how could I resist a Cut Signature of someone within Baseball history?

This was a very similar instance that happened to me just like the Peter Rose Leaf product a few weeks back. I didn't hear much about it, didn't know when it was coming out, and had no idea about a checklist or what was inside.

The local hobby shop brought in 8 boxes, the Pete Rose Leaf product did very well so they took a chance on this product hoping for the same result. Again a lower priced product but with a guaranteed Cut Signature inside. Plus each of the Cut Signatures are encased in a Beckett Grading Services holder!

I had to stop and think again, how can they do this for such a low cost? The value of the BGS holder alone could cost you $15-20. The packaging is vague in the sense they show the hard to find hits like Babe Ruth and Willie Mays, no mention of odds or a checklist on the box either.

I did some investing online at the store and there isn't really any information on these cards anywhere. The only info I could find was that it is the largest Cut Signature product to be released. Now once I heard that I was a little suspicious, and I knew the odds of pulling a fantastic card out of these boxes would be very rare.  I've seen pricing as low as $30 up to $45 at the top end. For a chance at a decent Cut Signature it is so worth it the gamble.

I opted to buy 3 boxes, while another person at the store purchased two for them self. We both were talking about what we could get in the box and what most likely we would see. We both thought of a ton of "nobody's" in the baseball world that could end up in this product. But we didn't care. the fun was seeing who they would turn out to be and maybe pull a decent hit.

So here is what I pulled out of the 3 boxes:

Box #1: Gene Clines (1971 World Series Champion)

Box #2: Fred Stanley (1977 & 1978 World Series Champion)

Box #3: Billy Gardner (1954 & 1961 World Series Champion)
I had to do some research on these three players in order to figure out who they were. I had no idea when I pulled them and I consider myself to know baseball very well but I had a little trouble on this one.
Needless to say they weren't all-stars on their teams and the only thing about them was they were on World Series Championship teams. The Clines and the Gardner are on solid white pieces of paper, almost like they were given the paper to sign for the product. The Stanley is on a lined cue card it would seem, so a little different there and is a nice touch to a cut signature.
The BGS holders were in perfect shape and the overall concept of the product is very cool. You have to think for the $105 I paid for the 3 boxes I took a chance on maybe pulling a really cool cut signature. I didn't get one, but you can't beat that price for a product like this one.
The design of the cards aren't anything to write home about and they are not numbered either. The back of the cards is a very generic message about the authenticity of the cut signature, but again nothing about the player. The BGS description does state the players name and their place in baseball history, but wasn't expecting much there so this was a nice add.
This is a product I would recommend to any collector that enjoys cut signatures and baseball history. Sure the checklist probably has a ton of players or people in baseball you have never heard of before, but this is all part of the gamble. It made me go out and research these three players to find out more of who they are and what they did in their careers. I think it's a great idea and I'm considering going back and purchasing more.

Gambler Overall Rating: 4.4 out of 5
Cost: 5/5
Autographs: 5/5 
Players Represented: 3.5/5
Design: 3.5/5
Concept: 4.5/5
Fun Aspect: 5/5

1 comment:

  1. Nice looking cards..but didn't know the players lol

    ReplyDelete