Joey Cora and 'roids?

[hblakewolf]

Forum readers-

We have all seen a player bulk up during his career. He wears a size 44 jersey when he breaks in, then 5 years later, is wearing a size 50. How about this for a change.

On Ebay, you will find this Joey Cora 1998 M's gamer:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Game-Worn-Used-1998-Seattle-Mariners-Road-Jersey_W0QQitemZ110002322683QQihZ001QQcategoryZ605 97QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Note, it is size 52. I have had a few of his gamers from the M's, ranging from 44 to 46. Is it possible he was using steroids when he broke in and then quit? Could he go down 8 sizes?

Honestly, how in the world could this be a gamer worn by a guy who is 5-8", 160 pounds?

I have quite a few customers seeking older M's jerseys, and as such, emailed the seller, seeking additional info. i.e, # change, etc.

Curious to see the response.

Howard Wolf
hblakewolf@patmedia.net

[ironmanfan]

Very interesting Howard....Also note that the seller of this jersey must be confused since he states that this jersey belonged to "Alex" Cora (who never played for the M's).

[W_EISENHUTH]

Another thing to consider is players who wear their jerseys, hats (and worn crooked), and even helmets two or three sizes too big - part of the hip-hop culture I guess. I wish the league would step in on these cases like the NFL does. Alot of the players nowadays look like they're playing in their jammies!

[hblakewolf]

Hip Hop? Give me a break!

How about Getty Images or a 1998 baseball card. Check out Cora with the M's in 1997/98 and you will easily see that his shirts fit correctly, not 2 or 3 sizes too big. Likewise, I have had Cora's M's gamers, and he is a size 44 or 46. Griffey was even wearing a size 46 or 48 during this time with the M's, not a 52.

Howard Wolf
hblakewolf@patmedia.net

[trsent]

The seller corrected his Alex Cora reference.

Howard, not that this jersey has a realistic explanation, but how does the tagging match with your jerseys? See the eBay auction and it looks like the #30 is written on the bottom tag and it has faded.

1045

[Spiezio23]

I noticed this jersey as well, I have a Joey Cora Home jersey from 1998 and the tagging style matches up. The sizes do not match up at all as my jersey is a size 44.

Looking over the roster from 1998, Paniagua wore #30 briefly, though I have a jersey of his from 99 and it's a size 48. The other player to wear #30 was outfielder Robert Perez, who at 6'3 205 could have worn a jersey that large.

In the end, I wouldn't touch it.

[trsent]

If Robert would have had the last name Cora the mystery would have been solved.

Maybe someone should ask the seller if the jersey appears to have a name-plate change if they are bored like me.

I should write a song: "Don't you wish your boyfriend was bored like me? Don't you"

[bigtime59]

When Bobby Munoz was an Oriole (circa 1998) the team didn't even have a size 52 jersey in stock for him to wear. I've seen two Munoz gamers from this period (directly from the Orioles) one was a size 50 that had been opened up at the side seams, and an extra 4-6" strip of material sewn in, and the other was a size 52, but wasn't a "Diamond Collection" jersey, but instead, had standard, non-MLB Russell tagging.
Oddly enough, starting last year, 50 became the standard size for the Orioles to order extra jerseys in. My team contact says that the Majestic jerseys the Orioles get have started running small, for whatever reason.

[intheminors]

Hi all,

I didn't realize I caused a small commotion with the sale of this jersey. If I had, I would have tried to address the issues as they came about.

As I believe I explained to Howard through ebay, there was no sign of a number change, the proper tagging was in line with every other Seattle Mariners jersey from that era and it appeared that no other alterations had been made.

I did make the mistake that ironmanfan caught. I don't know what I was thinking when I typed in Alex.

So, even though I knew the size seemed odd, everything else was in tact and I stand by it. All of my auctions are public - not private - and I always welcome feedback. I bought a game-used Texas Rangers jersey worn by Michael Young from Howard and am currently working with the Rangers to get it authenticated. I, too, like to make sure that I get what I pay for.

I want to make sure that the people who do know the business know that I will do the very best I can to authenticate any item, major or minor league.

Again, thanks for watching over the market.

Look forward to hearing from you.

Kyle

intheminors@yahoo.com

www.intheminors.com (http://www.intheminors.com)