NUMBER 5
Joe Mauer ‘07 UD SP Authentic By The Letter Signatures "U" 25/25
You’ll notice that the middle of the lineup here is very Mauer-centric. Well, why not? He’s a hell of a player, and he’s the hometown hero.
Number five on my list is the first (and so far only) Mauer BTL that I own. I always knew that these cards were manufactured and were not game used or game worn or any other superfluous term card companies like to bandy about in order to boost sales, but I was still in awe. For one, that’s a giant swatch–manufactured or not. Secondly, it has Joe Mauer’s signature on it. Also, Mauer’s ‘07 BTLs were redemption exchanged only and not found in packs, boxes, or cases. That, to me, adds up to a pretty special card. The only thing that would make it more special is if that letter patch were from an actual jersey that Joe actually wore. Guess I’ll have to look to Topps Sterling for that sort of coolness.
That’s not to say that this card isn’t its own type of cool. The moment I got this card in-hand, I knew that it had to become my mission to complete this set. This set is set A. The letters in this set spell out M-A-U-E-R. Set B spells out M-I-N-N-E-S-O-T-A. I’m not terribly concerned with spelling the name of the state for which he plays. I’d rather see his signature on the letters that make up the name found on the back of his jersey. Perhaps if the back of his shirt said "MINNESOTA" I might consider going after that set.
I paid just a little bit over "book value" for it, which I normally wouldn’t do. Cards like this, however, sometimes warrant that type of spending. As you can see, I don’t like to spend that kind of money on single cards that often. Though I am on a mission to complete his name, I am still stuck on one letter. I’m not sure I would ever pay more than book value on any of the other cards, though. I suppose it would all depend on such factors as my mood, my wallet, and if that poor old "U" starts to tell me that it’s lonely. I did see on eBay once that someone was auctioning off the entire set for $300. That’s $50 more than book. Obviously, I passed. I guess I would rather try to trade for the rest of the letters. Or, ya know, receive them as gifts. *wink wink, nudge nudge*
What do you think of the By The Letter sets? Do you collect them? Do you feel they’re an affordable and suitable substitute for actual game used letter patches?
