Collecting Autographs Common Among Pro Athletes

Albert Pujols woke up a napping Barry Bonds before last year’s All-Star Game in San Francisco, extended a baseball and pen and asked for his autograph. Bonds obliged and dozed off again while Pujols chased down more players.

“Every time I run into a guy I try to get him,” said Pujols, the first baseman for the St. Louis Cardinals and 2005 National League Most Valuable Player. “It’s not just for me, but for my little boy.”

When it comes to autographs, professional athletes aren’t much different from fans leaning over the railings at the stadium. They just have better access. Rookies to veterans ask LeBron James, Alex Rodriguez and Sidney Crosby to sign jerseys, baseball bats or hockey sticks. To top players like Pujols, who is making $13.9 million this season, the souvenirs become heirlooms. To journeymen, they are potential nest eggs.

Pujols added more legends to his collection at the All- Star Game, where 40 members of the Hall of Fame including Willie Mays, Frank Robinson and Bob Gibson participated in ceremonies honoring Yankee Stadium.

The rest of the time, pro athletes get their souvenirs when they can. Baseball clubhouse workers act as go-betweens, shuttling merchandise between teams for tips: $10 for a ball and $30 for a jersey. In the National Hockey League, trainers act as the middlemen.

Such fraternization doesn’t sit well to a man like Bill Russell, whose hard-nosed play with the Boston Celtics in the 1950s and 1960s won him five Most Valuable Player awards and a spot in the Hall of Fame. Back then, having a friendly chat with an opponent was taboo, never mind asking for an autograph.

“I wouldn’t have allowed someone from the other team into my locker room,” said Russell, 74.

Whitey Ford, a Yankees pitcher from 1950-67, was able to amass his collection without committing that faux pas. The Hall of Famer waited until spring training or charity golf tournaments to snag signatures from contemporaries like Ted Williams and Sandy Koufax. Now the 79-year-old Ford is selling them.

“I am getting along in my age, and I thought it would be a good idea to get rid of some stuff,” Ford said. “There were some things where I didn’t think they were worth that much.”

More than 300 pieces of his memorabilia are expected to generate at least $300,000, according to a catalogue for a sale by Hunt Auctions Inc. that starts today in New York.

In his career, Ford never made more than $60,000 a year. Today’s baseball players earn at least $390,000, and the average is about $2.8 million. They’re less apt to sell memorabilia because they don’t need the money, said Mike Heffner of Lelands Inc. auction house.

Not all athletes are collectors. And being one doesn’t help get the most sought-after autographs. Tiger Woods won’t even sign for Roger Federer, the world’s top-ranked tennis player who has won 12 Grand Slam tournaments.

“I have turned Roger down a lot of different times,” Woods said. “As far as asking for autographs, I don’t. It is more important for me to go talk to them and meet them and remember the moment.”

There’s an unspoken rule among today’s athletes that signed merchandise won’t be hawked.

“Not too many guys have room to justify selling your racket for a profit,” said Andre Agassi, the eight-time Grand Slam champion.

It isn’t about money for Washington Wizards guard Gilbert Arenas, who yesterday signed a six-year contract worth more than $100 million. His collection of more than 400 autographed basketball jerseys includes one from Michael Jordan for every team he played for — from the University of North Carolina to the Chicago Bulls to the U.S. national team. Each will be framed and used to decorate a gym he’s planning.

Some players are hesitant to ask even teammates. New England Patriots backup quarterback Matt Cassel has spent the past three seasons shadowing Tom Brady in practice and sitting next to him in meetings. Cassel still hasn’t obtained the Super Bowl MVP’s autograph.

“Heck no; I’ll wait a little while,” said Cassel, who has never started a game in his three years in the National Football League.

Patriots running back Laurence Maroney, who led the team in rushing last season, is more forward. He has signed jerseys from Brady and wide receiver Randy Moss.

“I get autographs all the time,” Maroney said. “I’m still a fan.”

Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Doug Davis doesn’t just collect signatures from baseball players. He says he has a football helmet signed by Joe Montana, Jerry Rice and Steve Young of the San Francisco 49ers, a guitar signed by the Rolling Stones and signatures of all the U.S. presidents. An insurance company appraised his collection at $280,000.

“It’s kind of an investment,” said Davis, who has played for four teams in 10 years. “I’m not going to make any money off it, but it’s something I can pass down to my kids.”

Pujols said he’ll display his Bonds-autographed ball at his home next to those from Juan Marichal, Stan Musial and other Hall of Famers. He said he hopes to pass along his collection to his son, A.J., 7.

“He’ll appreciate it in the future,” he said.

- Bloomberg News