This just in...the famous Honus Wagner T-206 that was once owned by Wayne Gretzky and is now owned by Ken Kendrick (who owns the Arizona Diamondbacks), was altered by a low down dealer that owned it before them. Kendrick payed a record $2.8 million buckeroos for that counterfeit chunk of cardboard crap.
Bill Mastro, the dealer who altered the card, admitted to it in the hopes of gaining leniency from a judge. It seems he's been accused of - surprise - making a career of selling a whole slew of fake swag, including a bogus lock of Elvis hair to unsuspecting customers.
Controversy and rumors had been swirling around the Wagner card for years, seeing as how Mastro allegedly was peddling counterfeit goods. At least he's cleared any clouds of doubt and confirmed the card was cut.
If I were the owner of the falsified Wagner, I'm pretty sure my immediate reaction to this news would be, "Dang it! That's 2.8 million down the drain!"
Of course, if I really had bought it, those would be the exact same words that my old lady would have spoken for me spending that kind of dough on a baseball card in the first place, Honus or no Honus.
But here's the rub...in a stroke of marketing genius, Kendrick is spinning this in a totally opposite way. He's declaring this actually INCREASES the value of his card!
In keeping with the spirit that some of us in the blogoworlds hold, in which a card with 'character' does have value, Kendrick may have a point. This certainly adds to the cards infamy - but does it increase it's value? Is that Wagner now worth a cool $3 million?
What do you think? Drop your opinion in the comments below....
