gameusedbat
06-16-2008, 06:25 AM
Hey guys,
Beware this Ken Griffey Jr. bat on eBay represented as a game used bat from the 90's being sold by swingman-24. Click here to see the fake Griffey bat (http://cgi.ebay.com/Griffey-Jr-Game-Used-Bat-Reds-Mariners-91-93-Very-Rare_W0QQitemZ250259513227QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item 250259513227&_trkparms=72%3A552%7C39%3A1%7C65%3A12&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14).
I emailed the seller originally when the auction stated rookie 1989 game used bat. I went on to explain to this man that Griffey didn't sign his contract until the early 90's. I also pointed out how this bat could not have been a game used bat because it isn't even a pro model bat. All of a sudden, he changed the information to a 1991-93 game used bat. This was his response to me:
"Thank you so much for your info, but you are so wrong. This bat was given to me by Ken Griffey Jr. in the early 90's. I was a police officer in Orange County during that time. I have met Jr on many occasions, the last being in San Deigo this year. See attached of a few pictures of Jr and I.
David"
So now, we can be confident that the owner of this bat is behind the foul play if he claims to have gotten a promo Griffey bat with criss cross tape from Junior that never was issued to him 6-8 years before Louisville Slugger even used this particular oval!
There are so many things wrong with this bat, but here are a few for the rookies:
(1) Griffey primarily ordered Smith double dipped finish bats. This alone would not cause a problem, but just raises a flag.
(2) The distance between the 125 and Louisville is too far, indicating a line under the 125 that has been concealed.
(3) The oval of this bat didn't go into production until 1998. The owner claims he got the bat personally from Griffey in the early 90's. Impossible.
(4) The absense of Swingman, Seattle Mariners, or Cincinnati Reds under his barrel name is a huge red flag. 99% of the bats he ordered post contract with Louisville (signature model) have either team name or Swingman under his name.
(5) The tape job is not right. Griffey's pattern is inconsistent with this example. This is obviously unimportant after knowing the previous 4 points. Does Griffey criss cross tape his handles? Of course. Does he do it like this? No.
(6) Griffey has religiously avoided using pine tar during his career, especially since becoming a superstar. In fact, I had an opportunity to ask Griffey why he doesn't use pine tar. He told me he occasionally uses a colorless spray for stickiness. If you notice, all of Griffey's gamers with solid provenance have a pine-tar free tape job. This tape job clearly has been soiled past Griffey's personal use characteristics.
(7) The grain of the wood on this Griffey bat is very poor quality. Griffey would never receive such a poor quality pro model bat from Louisville. Again, this is very secondary as the facts about the bat have already told us more than enough information to avoid this bat.
I hope nobody on the forum ends up falling into this guy's trap!
Good luck
Beware this Ken Griffey Jr. bat on eBay represented as a game used bat from the 90's being sold by swingman-24. Click here to see the fake Griffey bat (http://cgi.ebay.com/Griffey-Jr-Game-Used-Bat-Reds-Mariners-91-93-Very-Rare_W0QQitemZ250259513227QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item 250259513227&_trkparms=72%3A552%7C39%3A1%7C65%3A12&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14).
I emailed the seller originally when the auction stated rookie 1989 game used bat. I went on to explain to this man that Griffey didn't sign his contract until the early 90's. I also pointed out how this bat could not have been a game used bat because it isn't even a pro model bat. All of a sudden, he changed the information to a 1991-93 game used bat. This was his response to me:
"Thank you so much for your info, but you are so wrong. This bat was given to me by Ken Griffey Jr. in the early 90's. I was a police officer in Orange County during that time. I have met Jr on many occasions, the last being in San Deigo this year. See attached of a few pictures of Jr and I.
David"
So now, we can be confident that the owner of this bat is behind the foul play if he claims to have gotten a promo Griffey bat with criss cross tape from Junior that never was issued to him 6-8 years before Louisville Slugger even used this particular oval!
There are so many things wrong with this bat, but here are a few for the rookies:
(1) Griffey primarily ordered Smith double dipped finish bats. This alone would not cause a problem, but just raises a flag.
(2) The distance between the 125 and Louisville is too far, indicating a line under the 125 that has been concealed.
(3) The oval of this bat didn't go into production until 1998. The owner claims he got the bat personally from Griffey in the early 90's. Impossible.
(4) The absense of Swingman, Seattle Mariners, or Cincinnati Reds under his barrel name is a huge red flag. 99% of the bats he ordered post contract with Louisville (signature model) have either team name or Swingman under his name.
(5) The tape job is not right. Griffey's pattern is inconsistent with this example. This is obviously unimportant after knowing the previous 4 points. Does Griffey criss cross tape his handles? Of course. Does he do it like this? No.
(6) Griffey has religiously avoided using pine tar during his career, especially since becoming a superstar. In fact, I had an opportunity to ask Griffey why he doesn't use pine tar. He told me he occasionally uses a colorless spray for stickiness. If you notice, all of Griffey's gamers with solid provenance have a pine-tar free tape job. This tape job clearly has been soiled past Griffey's personal use characteristics.
(7) The grain of the wood on this Griffey bat is very poor quality. Griffey would never receive such a poor quality pro model bat from Louisville. Again, this is very secondary as the facts about the bat have already told us more than enough information to avoid this bat.
I hope nobody on the forum ends up falling into this guy's trap!
Good luck