PastPros.com <--- Former MLB player site founded by Ellis Valentine

I have re-jigged things so all the players are on one site (a lot more manageable for me, with the added bonus of being able to buy from several guys in one transaction).

I also added 3 new guys: Brian Tollberg, Bill Sampen and Jose Morales and I should have at least 2 more by next week.

(you'll also see some price drops sprinkled in, as it will be cheaper to maintain this new setup too)

teamcolin said:

In some cases, too, they are raising money for a charitable cause - something they've chosen not to highlight.

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Interesting that they would choose not to make that information public. I suspect some people would be more willing to plunk down the $10 if they knew the money was going to charity.

Great looking site! There are a couple of Don DeMola cards listed on Willie Aikens page.

DaClyde said:

Interesting that they would choose not to make that information public. I suspect some people would be more willing to plunk down the $10 if they knew the money was going to charity.

Great looking site! There are a couple of Don DeMola cards listed on Willie Aikens page.

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Thanks for the heads up.

It's not so much we don't want to publicize it... I guess I would rather people not know who ISN'T doing it for charity. Know what I mean?

No shame it making a few bucks off their fame for themselves, in my mind. I would assume most collectors would agree as long as the prices were in line/reasonable. Again, the sales should reflect that fact eventually as well. Most of those guys didn't play in the mega buck era or they were not the mega stars that would have earned millions and millions that the average joe with a moderate career ends up with these days.

I was expecting faster growth though. I've noticed that a lot of former MLB guys who are on Facebook seem to link together. I figured their shared experience and elite club membership would open the doors for more networking and more guys jumping on board. Maybe I am just overly optimistic or naive on what it takes to get the ball rolling.

Still hoping to see some more obscure former Dodgers who I am light on signatures for to show up. Maybe you can get Ricky Wright to sign autographs!! That is the most frustrating thing to team collecting when you have a guy like that who just won't sign and what little he did sign sells for HOFer level $$.

I think you mean Jerry. I looked for Jose to no avail.

I like the new price range for several (those under $10 mainly). I don't really need any of those guys, but that is a lot more in the range I think is fair and enticing to collectors on a budget!

teamcolin said:

I have re-jigged things so all the players are on one site (a lot more manageable for me, with the added bonus of being able to buy from several guys in one transaction).

I also added 3 new guys: Brian Tollberg, Bill Sampen and Jose Morales and I should have at least 2 more by next week.

(you'll also see some price drops sprinkled in, as it will be cheaper to maintain this new setup too)

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mrmopar said:

Maybe you can get Ricky Wright to sign autographs!!

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Ah yes... Jerry Morales.

We added Wes Chamberlain and Jim Wolhford yesterday.

The growth is limited by really a couple things:

1) Time - it's just me working on this site and I had to rebuild the whole thing from scratch last week.

2) Some guys aren't as responsive as others. They may say 'yes' one day but I only move ahead if they re-confirm.

On a side note, I created Wes Chamberlain's page yesterday. Generally I grab screenshots of signed cards of the internet just for display purposes. He emailed me today and told me that all the images I was using were of forgeries! Thoughts?

That's wild. Some of these players signatures change IP so much, I wonder if they themselves don't even recognize them.

metrotheme said:

That's wild. Some of these players signatures change IP so much, I wonder if they themselves don't even recognize them.

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I was thinking that too. I know Ellis V's signature has changed several times over the past 30 years. I've showed him a couple on eBay and he claims they are not his - but 30 years is a long time!

I am also reminded of the time I got Felix Jose's autograph years ago...

My friend asked him for one, and he obliged. He then signed a few others. I wasn't close enough to him so I handed my card to my friend, who asked for another autograph. Felix looked at my friend, recognized that he had already signed for him, then proceeded to scribble his name on the card (nothing like his signature), then throw the sharpie up into the stands. That autograph wouldn't pass any authentication test but it's gold to me!

My thought is who would bother to forge Wes Chamberlain? Unless he is a tough signature to get in general, then are people maybe getting $2-3 for one? That is the funny thing though. All it takes is a guy who just doesn't sign much and next thing you know there is demand for team, set and sometimes even player collectors. I know there are a handful of living Dodger players who I have yet to add because of this fact.

teamcolin said:

On a side note, I created Wes Chamberlain's page yesterday. Generally I grab screenshots of signed cards of the internet just for display purposes. He emailed me today and told me that all the images I was using were of forgeries! Thoughts?

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You may have noticed, we added Denny McLain and Frank White in the past couple of weeks.

In another note, you guys will love this response I got from a former Phillies pitcher - very nice:

Thanks for the interest and for developing this site. It looks good. I appreciate you asking me to be a part of it, but I don't think I would bring much value. I still receive about 5-6 pieces of mail each week, asking for autographs, but I return those for no charge. Kind of honored that folks still remember me! If I thought it would be worth the time and effort to be on your site, I might consider it, but I enjoy signing without charging folks. It is a ministry for me! Thanks

teamcolin said:

Thanks for the interest and for developing this site. It looks good. I appreciate you asking me to be a part of it, but I don't think I would bring much value. I still receive about 5-6 pieces of mail each week, asking for autographs, but I return those for no charge. Kind of honored that folks still remember me! If I thought it would be worth the time and effort to be on your site, I might consider it, but I enjoy signing without charging folks. It is a ministry for me! Thanks

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Thanks for sharing, Colin. This is very interesting stuff. I'd love to know who this former MLB pitcher is but I understand your hesitancy on posting his name.

That is cool to hear and too bad more don't feel that way. I do like the idea of making these guys a few extra bucks either for themselves or for charity, especially those who didn't make the huge money players nowadays do.

I wonder if this particular player would get MORE requests if he were a member of your site though? There are 1000s of former players and a TTMer can only afford to go after so many. I think a lot of collectors concentrate on the high percentage hit rate names and those with specific themes may venture into tougher ground. Some of these guys may be so obscure that only true die hards go for it. If they were as s impel as a click and a PP payment, it might widen their potential.

See if you can get Bob Giallombardo. I see nothing for him anywhere, but hear he charged $25 a pop TTM. I think given his career and price point, that probably explains the lack of supply out there and the demand (if he will sign for $25) will probably never catch up until he dies. I am half tempted to try him at that rate, but that is far away the most I have considered paying for a cup of coffee player, but he just doesn't seem to have signed much out there and was a Dodger, so I want his signature!!

Ray Newman is another guy i'd like to find for his 73 Topps card. His signature seems to be nonexistent. He was never a Dodger, but I love those early 70s action cards and try to get as many as possible signed, regardless of the player.

Those are the kinds of guys that I would be willing to pay more for because they just aren't available out there.