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C.A.: 2007 Upper Deck Sweet Spot Signatures Chad Billingsley

(Today, according to most traditions, is the 12th day of Christmas. Yes, I am one of those people who plays Christmas music until the bitter end. The longer I can hold back the boredom of January, the better. But at least it's one month closer to baseball season! Time for Cardboard Appreciation. This is the 219th in a series):


While sorting through relics the other day, deciding which ones to keep and which ones to send out to folks, I came across another card item that had lost its meaning to me.

This is the 2007 Sweet Spot Signatures Chad Billingsley card that I displayed a couple of years ago after receiving it in the mail from a fellow blogger. In that post I discussed the fatal flaw of these cards, which is that the signature fades over time.

In fact, this card's signature has faded even more than from the time I posted it. Here is what it looked like then:


It might be difficult to see, but there was more of a hint of a signature in 2012 than there is now.

That's interesting to me because I thought sunlight was the main culprit in causing the signature to fade. But this card was kept in a box, near the bottom, with the lid closed, so light rarely touched it.

Anyway, when I saw the card the other day, it occurred to me all over again how utterly useless it is. It's possibly the most useless card in my collection. I appreciate receiving it, but really, if there's no autograph on this card -- which seems to have been created solely with the intent of displaying an autograph -- then why is it here?

In my downsizing frame of mind, I didn't see a reason to value it or hold on to it, except if I could find some way to get Billingsley to sign it again. I stopped doing TTM autograph requests several years ago, but this would be a chance to add meaning to a card, bring a card back to life, in fact!

Fortunately, I received a Billingsley address from Matt_F of Heartbreaking Cards and that is what I'm going to do. I will ask Chad if he will sign the card again. I'm not sure whether to request a specific kind of pen for his signature, since I don't know if it was the pen or the baseball-like surface that caused the signature to fade. A couple of other Sweet Spot sigs I have show no signs of fading.

At any rate, it's worth the shot of giving this card a purpose again.

If I am successful, I'll let you know.

Comments

kid2119 said…
That product was ill-thought out. I have a Harold Baines, numbered to 60, that will be like yours soon. Maybe I'll send it to him with a Sharpie.
Metallattorney said…
I have one like that too, but mine has signatures from Carl Yastrzemski and Johnny Pesky on it. That one will be impossible to fix. It pisses me off and I would not have spent money on it had I known it would do that.
Dave said…
Was the original signature in ballpoint pen? I found anything else on a baseball will rub off or fade away
Wow. I thought that was an error at first glance. Yikes.
Corky said…
That would be pretty cool if he does sign the card for you.
BobWalkthePlank said…
That was the ultimate Upper Deck screw job set. I have a few that have faded too.
Jamie Meyers said…
Billingsley has been a poor TTMer recently from the Dodgers but if you have another address it might work better. The fading on baseball-like materials is why I get cards signed and not baseballs.
jacobmrley said…
I sold a 1/1 Derek Jeter from that set for a boatload of money. I wonder how the AUTO on that card has withstood the test of time?

I do like your idea of getting him to sign it again. What do you have to lose?