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Watch | Colonial Williamsburg, Hour 2

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Related | 1919 Howard Chandler Christy "The Spirit of America"

Related | 1919 Howard Chandler Christy "The Spirit of America"

Appraisal Collection | All Our Appraisals from Colonial Williamsburg, Hour 2

Appraisal Collection | All Our Appraisals from Colonial Williamsburg, Hour 2

Related | Playboy "Womb Chair" Spread

Related | Playboy "Womb Chair" Spread

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Baseball Player-Signed Oversized Bat

Value (2016) | $10,000 Insurance
Watch  

GUEST:
A few years back my wife was walking in the mall, and she saw this bat in the comic store.

APPRAISER:
Unsigned.

GUEST:
Unsigned, and she says, "Let me get it for my husband because I... he loves baseball." She says that was the sorriest thing she ever did. (laughing)

APPRAISER:
I bet, right? This has taken some tremendous work on your part, hasn't it?

GUEST:
Oh, definitely.

APPRAISER:
How many signatures are on this bat?

GUEST:
Three hundred and fifty-seven.

APPRAISER:
Wow. And these are sorts of players from all sorts of eras, correct?

GUEST:
All eras, yes.

APPRAISER:
Yeah, so who was the first signature you got?

GUEST:
My first signature was Mel Allen. He was just as famous as Joe DiMaggio in that time.

APPRAISER:
Sure. Tell me, how did you obtain these signatures?

GUEST:
My son, I used to take him to the shows with me. Sports cards shows up in New York and New Jersey, and he loved it.

APPRAISER:
So which is your favorite signature on here?

GUEST:
My favorite is Stan Musial. Stan the Man, right here.

APPRAISER:
Who just recently passed, so was he one of your favorite ballplayers?

GUEST:
One of my favorites. I think he was the best ballplayer ever. Best hitter ever.

APPRAISER:
What did he do when he saw this bat?

GUEST:
Well, he looked at it, and he shook my... I shook... I shook everybody's hand that ever signed this bat.

APPRAISER:
Wow! That's cool.

GUEST:
And I loved it, I still love it.

APPRAISER:
There are dozens and dozens of Hall-of-Famers on here. Dozens. A lot of guys who aren't with us anymore. There are a lot of culty ballplayers on here I noticed. So you've really... you know, you've really kind of run the gamut with this thing. There's still a few spaces here, so is this something you're going to continue working on?

GUEST:
I'm always working on it.

APPRAISER:
So is there one particular signature you would love to get on this bat?

GUEST:
Yes, I would love to get Derek Jeter. I live Jeter, and I would love to get him.

APPRAISER:
When did you get this? How long has this taken to put together?

GUEST:
I'd say about '95.

APPRAISER:
What is the most recent signature?

GUEST:
The most recent signature I have was Bryce Harper at the Washington training camp, Dusty Baker, and Davey Lopes.

APPRAISER:
(laughing): You must stand out, you know.

GUEST:
A lot of guys that were excited signing it. Before they would sign it they would look over the bat. And at Atlantic City, Tom Seaver says to me, "take care of this bat," he goes.

APPRAISER:
He knows, because you know, he signs a million things, and he probably doesn't sign anything like this. So I kind of agree with Tom Seaver, I got to say, I think it's a very, very special bat. Now we see multiple-signed things all the time. But something that stands out as striking as this, the fact that it's a white bat that you can really see all the signatures on here, and you've done such a great job and so many interesting players. Do you happen to know how much your wife originally paid for the bat?

GUEST:
I think she paid like $60 for it.

APPRAISER:
We wouldn't insure it for anything less than $10,000.

GUEST:
$10,000. It's unbelievable, wow, very nice. I just love it. It's part of my life, really, it's part of my life.

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Appraisal Details

Appraiser
Simeon Lipman
Collectibles, Sports Memorabilia
Appraised value (2016)
$10,000 Insurance
Featured In
Orlando, Hour 3 (#2118)
Event
Orlando, FL (June 18, 2016)
Category
Sports Memorabilia
Form
Baseball Bat , Memorabilia
Material
Wood

Executive producer Marsha Bemko shares her tips for getting the most out of ANTIQUES ROADSHOW.

Value can change: The value of an item is dependent upon many things, including the condition of the object itself, trends in the market for that kind of object, and the location where the item will be sold. These are just some of the reasons why the answer to the question "What's it worth?" is so often "It depends."

Note the date: Take note of the date the appraisal was recorded. This information appears in the upper left corner of the page, with the label "Appraised On." Values change over time according to market forces, so the current value of the item could be higher, lower, or the same as when our expert first appraised it.

Context is key: Listen carefully. Most of our experts will give appraisal values in context. For example, you'll often hear them say what an item is worth "at auction," or "retail," or "for insurance purposes" (replacement value). Retail prices are different from wholesale prices. Often an auctioneer will talk about what she knows best: the auction market. A shop owner will usually talk about what he knows best: the retail price he'd place on the object in his shop. And though there are no hard and fast rules, an object's auction price can often be half its retail value; yet for other objects, an auction price could be higher than retail. As a rule, however, retail and insurance/replacement values are about the same.

Verbal approximations: The values given by the experts on ANTIQUES ROADSHOW are considered "verbal approximations of value." Technically, an "appraisal" is a legal document, generally for insurance purposes, written by a qualified expert and paid for by the owner of the item. An appraisal usually involves an extensive amount of research to establish authenticity, provenance, composition, method of construction, and other important attributes of a particular object.

Opinion of value: As with all appraisals, the verbal approximations of value given at ROADSHOW events are our experts' opinions formed from their knowledge of antiques and collectibles, market trends, and other factors. Although our valuations are based on research and experience, opinions can, and sometimes do, vary among experts.

Appraiser affiliations: Finally, the affiliation of the appraiser may have changed since the appraisal was recorded. To see current contact information for an appraiser in the ROADSHOW Archive, click on the link below the appraiser's picture. Our Appraiser Index also contains a complete list of active ROADSHOW appraisers and their contact details and biographies.

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