One of the autograph requests I sent around a month ago was to current Colorado Rockies first baseman Justin Morneau. I’ve been a fan of his for five or six years now and was excited last year when the Pirates acquired him during the season. So, I figured I’d give him a shot and send him an autograph request.
Well, he was actually the first to return my request although it was returned unsigned. Yes, it was returned unsigned and that was a bummer, but he did enclose information on how to obtain his autograph for a small fee of $25 which would be donated to a charity. I have no issues with him asking for $25 in exchange for an autograph since it could be on any item that I send in. Will I take him up on his offer? Probably not. Is it worth the money? Absolutely…depending on the item I send. This is where, as a collector, I have to be smart and actually send an item in that’s worthwhile. Would it be financially sound to send a baseball card in to be signed for $25? Not at all since I could probably get one for half that on the secondary market. Would it be the $25 to send in an Official Major League Baseball or a mini helmet to get signed? It definitely would!
Morneau isn’t the first athlete to ask for a donation to be made to a charity of his choosing in exchange for an autograph and he definitely won’t be the last. In fact, Max Scherzer made a few headlines earlier this year by saying that he would sign autographs through the mail in exchange for a $25 donation to the Washington National Youth Baseball Academy. In fact, I could see this becoming more of the norm in the years to come.
