Kirby Puckett is considered a legend in Minnesota, and in almost all baseball circles, that passed away too soon. Puckett died in 2006 at the age of 45 and just five years removed from being inducted into the Hall of Fame.
But, today’s topic isn’t about the career Kirby had. It’s about a cut autograph produced by Topps in 2009 for inclusion in its Topps Sterling set.
The card pictured above is the specific one I’m upset about (yes, six years later) and it doesn’t even belong to me. I saw this on Twitter a few days ago and it was being tweeted as having been added to someone’s collection. I’ve since forgotten who the owner is, but that’s neither here nor there.
I’ve seen many cut autos in my day but I don’t think I’ve even seen one that has been so sloppily put together as the one pictured here. The layout of the card surrounding the cut is fine. It’s nice, clean, and simple so as to not take away from the cut signature area. However, the actual cut auto leaves a lot to be desired!
The item actually used for this cut autograph is clearly a 1988 Topps Kirby Puckett card trimmed down to fit into the allotted space. What I strongly dislike is how the cut piece is set as it’s not centered or straight and also how there is remaining empty space. Surely there exists a signed Puckett photo that could have been cut down to not only provide a nice signature, but also to fill the entire space allotted for the cut. Personally, I would’ve rather had the full 1988 Topps card signed by Puckett and authenticated by Topps inserted as a buyback, which would set me back about $50. But, I don’t work for Topps and I don’t make those types of decisions, though maybe I should.
Either way, Topps could’ve easily made a better card in this situation and with very little effort.