trying to get them to sell them. I work across the street from a hotel in baltimore that all the visiting teams stay at and i see the same guys sitting outside all day no matter who the team is trying to get autographs. They have like stacks of pictures, jerseys, etc... and it so obvious they are just selling them. Why would the player ever want to sign for them. Prolly explains why i almost never see players signing autographs for them.
trying to get them to sell them. I work across the street from a hotel in baltimore that all the visiting teams stay at and i see the same guys sitting outside all day no matter who the team is trying to get autographs. They have like stacks of pictures, jerseys, etc... and it so obvious they are just selling them. Why would the player ever want to sign for them. Prolly explains why i almost never see players signing autographs for them.
Yeah, it's a shame, bc many players do make a genuine attempt to be good to fans, but I can see why they get caustic when dealing with people like that.
There was a line of autograph seekers in the airport by baggage claim sitting at tables, waiting for the players to get in. One guy was armed with binoculars to keep tabs on who was walking out of security and all of them had every piece of memorabilia you could think of to get signed, with one having a few binders he kept shuffling through as I waited for my bags.
I spoke to the security guy on duty while I waited and he said they had been there since the morning (my flight got in around 8:30 pm), just sitting and waiting. They had to setup the makeshift staging area with tables to keep them under control and not clog up the walkways (ALB is small) or pester guests. Maybe there is a financial component to it, but its such a parasitic way to act.
It reminds me of the Giants camps in Albany a number of years ago where Strahan and a few players finally had enough. A scumbag that had a store in the Crossgates Mall would crowd out kids to get his memorabilia signed, created fake proofs of authenticity and then jack up the prices on everything. Pretty sure they saw this going down and realized they were making the jackass some nice margins with their signatures.
Its a shame - its a big deal for kids, but once you hit 12-14 range - just leave them alone. Signed memorabilia should commemorate something you participated in or were there for, not something some creep stalked a player in an airport for and sold to you on eBay. But that's just me...
IF Reggie was paid to be at this autograph signing/appearance. In many instances, the athlete is paid to be at these sessions. Also, many people pay to go there to get things signed. If either is the case in this situation, then I disagree with Reggie. You can't be cashing out on this and then get pissed off when someone else is also doing the same.
Now, if he was not being paid to be there and this was some sort of charity event... then ok.
RE: I am actually going in the other direction with this...
IF Reggie was paid to be at this autograph signing/appearance. In many instances, the athlete is paid to be at these sessions. Also, many people pay to go there to get things signed. If either is the case in this situation, then I disagree with Reggie. You can't be cashing out on this and then get pissed off when someone else is also doing the same.
Now, if he was not being paid to be there and this was some sort of charity event... then ok.
I think the story is that Reggie was due to be at a paid session the next morning, but these people were camped outside a restaurant where he and his friends were having dinner. He flipped when he recognized one guy as someone who had already come up to him for an autograph on the golf course earlier in the day
RE: I am actually going in the other direction with this...
IF Reggie was paid to be at this autograph signing/appearance. In many instances, the athlete is paid to be at these sessions. Also, many people pay to go there to get things signed. If either is the case in this situation, then I disagree with Reggie. You can't be cashing out on this and then get pissed off when someone else is also doing the same.
Now, if he was not being paid to be there and this was some sort of charity event... then ok.
He was leaving a restaurant by the back door after having dinner with friends. Watch the video/read the article.
Reggie was doing an autograph signing and being paid for it on Saturday. This incident happened on friday night. He was out for a private dinner with friends
I became friendly with a guy in the neighborhood who is a fellow met fan, we text back and forth about baseball, the mets, etc. Apparently he has a big autograph collection, he sent me a few pics of his autographed pictures, these are the exact texts he sent me regarding his days as an autograph seeker:
One day, I'll have to show you my autograph collection. Back in the day, we harassed the Mets and every visiting team for autographs. We started in the city at the hotel the visiting team stayed at. Got them going on the team bus, then beat them back to Shea to get them coming off the team bus.
The Mookie/Buckner, someone bought for me. Everything else, I got on my own. I have a baseball card with Ozzie Smith and Ryan Sandburg together, signed by both of them. Sandburg was easy to get. He took the 7 line to Shea and we waited there for him when the Cubs were in town. It took a while for me to get Ozzie, but I eventually did.
The biggest a-holes from that era were Kirk Gibson and Kevin McReynolds.
Dykstra was another idiot, Dale Murphy was the coolest of them all.
Darryl was hard to get, but I eventually got him when he went to LA and they were in town.
I couldn't imagine acting this way to get autographs, literally harrassing and stalking people.
If you're getting one for your kid, by all means go ahead. But some fans are just weird with the way they stalk celebrities.
Yeah, it's a shame, bc many players do make a genuine attempt to be good to fans, but I can see why they get caustic when dealing with people like that.
I spoke to the security guy on duty while I waited and he said they had been there since the morning (my flight got in around 8:30 pm), just sitting and waiting. They had to setup the makeshift staging area with tables to keep them under control and not clog up the walkways (ALB is small) or pester guests. Maybe there is a financial component to it, but its such a parasitic way to act.
It reminds me of the Giants camps in Albany a number of years ago where Strahan and a few players finally had enough. A scumbag that had a store in the Crossgates Mall would crowd out kids to get his memorabilia signed, created fake proofs of authenticity and then jack up the prices on everything. Pretty sure they saw this going down and realized they were making the jackass some nice margins with their signatures.
Its a shame - its a big deal for kids, but once you hit 12-14 range - just leave them alone. Signed memorabilia should commemorate something you participated in or were there for, not something some creep stalked a player in an airport for and sold to you on eBay. But that's just me...
If you're getting one for your kid, by all means go ahead. But some fans are just weird with the way they stalk celebrities.
+1
Now, if he was not being paid to be there and this was some sort of charity event... then ok.
Now, if he was not being paid to be there and this was some sort of charity event... then ok.
I think the story is that Reggie was due to be at a paid session the next morning, but these people were camped outside a restaurant where he and his friends were having dinner. He flipped when he recognized one guy as someone who had already come up to him for an autograph on the golf course earlier in the day
Now, if he was not being paid to be there and this was some sort of charity event... then ok.
He was leaving a restaurant by the back door after having dinner with friends. Watch the video/read the article.
One day, I'll have to show you my autograph collection. Back in the day, we harassed the Mets and every visiting team for autographs. We started in the city at the hotel the visiting team stayed at. Got them going on the team bus, then beat them back to Shea to get them coming off the team bus.
The Mookie/Buckner, someone bought for me. Everything else, I got on my own. I have a baseball card with Ozzie Smith and Ryan Sandburg together, signed by both of them. Sandburg was easy to get. He took the 7 line to Shea and we waited there for him when the Cubs were in town. It took a while for me to get Ozzie, but I eventually did.
The biggest a-holes from that era were Kirk Gibson and Kevin McReynolds.
Dykstra was another idiot, Dale Murphy was the coolest of them all.
Darryl was hard to get, but I eventually got him when he went to LA and they were in town.
I couldn't imagine acting this way to get autographs, literally harrassing and stalking people.