By the late 1940s, signed Babe Ruth baseballs were everywhere.  The Babe was one of sports’ most generous signers and when he died in 1948, there’s little doubt he had signed thousands, possibly tens of thousands of autographs, many of which wound up on baseballs.

If you are a baseball fanatic – and even if you’re not, it is common knowledge that Babe Ruth is widely considered the best baseball player of all time. Sure you can argue certain points, but when it comes down to it he still remains the most popular name in baseball history.

At first thought on may think that a baseball signed by the Babe would be a hard item to come by. Truth be told, it is easier than you may think to find a signed babe Ruth baseball. There are probably a couple of different reasons for this.

1) Ruth was immensely popular from the moment he started playing up to present day.  He was known to stop in the middle of whatever he was doing just to sign baseballs. While there are not thousands left, there is still a good number of them available.

2) Getting an autograph was different back then. Ruth was willing to give autographs anywhere and everywhere. Many of today’s athletes are not nearly as approachable.

Despite the fact that signed Ruth baseballs are not that hard to come by, they remain one of the most popular – if not the most popular, collectors item around. Serious collectors are willing to go to great lengths to find one and pay huge amounts to purchase a high quality signed Babe Ruth baseball.

Make no mistake; if you are in the market for a baseball signed by Babe Ruth, then you are probably going to pay a pretty penny for it. There are also many team-signed baseballs from the Ruth era that will run you quite a bit of money as well.

The 1927 Yankees – or “Murderers’ Row,” as they were named are widely considered the best baseball team ever. If you got your hands on a baseball singed by the entire team, you would be holding something that would be nearly priceless in many collectors eyes.  Ruth and Lou Gehrig along with the other Hall of Famers on the team by which all others are measured, make it a fantastic item.

How much should you pay for a signed Babe Ruth baseball?  It depends on several factors including condition, the quality of the ball, readability of the signature and, of course, provenance/authenticity.  Some authentic Ruth signed balls sell for around $3000.  One or two others, stuck in drawers and never touched over the decades, have brought as much as $80,000.   A readable, authentic Ruth ball, signed on the sweet spot (narrowest point between the laces) generally runs about $6-10,000.  Beyond authenticity, condition is everything.

Few pieces offer a more personal  snapshot of a given team at a precise moment in time than a signed team baseball.

Unless dated, old baseball photos can offer only a guess as to when they were taken.  An autographed team ball, when all players are represented, can often be pinpointed to a specific month, week or sometimes even a day.

Stars, semi-stars, and common players are all represented equally.  In fact, the autographs of many commons may be harder to come by individually than many stars. While the accomplishments of a team in a given season can be dubious like the 1988 Baltimore Orioles or glorious like a World Series champion Yankees signed ball, the ball autographed by a team represents those accomplishments equally.

Usually, the absence of a signature by a player can help define when a ball was signed due to the date of the transaction either by trade or free agency. Of course, the more stars or Hall of Famers on a ball will result in a greater value and a higher price.

Finding an authentic team signed baseball in great condition can be a bit of a challenge. Because of the nature of the item, if all team members attempt to sign the ball right after one another smudges and smears are likely. These defects not only affect the value of the ball, but may also make authentication nearly impossible.

Depending on the price of the ball in question, a buyer may seek to have a third party authentication service certify the team signed baseball prior to completing purchase. However, a higher valued ball, for example the 1927 Yankees, will likely already have the necessary documentation proving its authenticity. One guideline however, a certificate of authenticity is only as good as the company providing it. Collectors should recognize the name, and perform some research before spending a lot of cash.   PSA/DNA, James Spence and others do a generally fine job with authentication.

Team signed baseballs are a great way to recall a World Series year, a record year for wins, or other team accomplishment. Because collectors have favorite teams and favorite players, this type of collectible benefits both desires. Sometimes just reading the names (though handwriting is sometimes questionable) can help a collector recall each individual player and the ups and downs of a baseball campaign.

The nostalgia can be somewhat overwhelming ten years down the road, as these great snapshots of history capture every player that was on the team at that specific moment.  Signed team baseballs make for a terrific collecting focus, whether you’re collecting All-Star teams, World Series winners, specific teams or those from baseball’s storied past.

Quality autographs, especially those baseballs signed by Hall of Famers, continue to be one of the most collectible pieces of sports memorabilia today.

One of the major reasons for the sustainability of these items is the uniqueness and value of each and every baseball. Some of the factors that contribute to this include the player who signed the ball, how many signatures are on it, and the theme of the baseball in the case of multiple signatures.

The single most important factor in determining the value of a Hall of Famer signed baseball is the player who signed it. Currently, the most in demand autographed baseball is the single-signed Babe Ruth, often considered the “Holy Grail” among collectors. While there are many of them available in today’s marketplace, the value of an authentic Ruth signed baseball continues to skyrocket. This is due his legendary status in the sport, as well as an increased number of forged Ruth baseballs in circulation. These forgeries were created to take advantage of increased prices of Babe Ruth signed baseballs, but ended up raising the prices of the authentic signed baseballs even more.

For many Hall of Fame collectors, the value of a single-signed baseball is preferred over a multi-signed ball. While logic may dictate that more Hall of Fame signatures on one ball might be worth more, this is not the case. The value of a baseball is directly affected by its collectability, and baseballs signed by big names are worth more if there is more demand for them. With signed baseballs, there are usually many more collectors of a specific Hall of Famer than there are collectors of Hall of Fame players in general. As a result, the demand for the single-signed baseballs is greater than the multi-signed baseballs, and therefore more valuable.

However, multi-signed baseballs can also have increased values if they were created around a particular theme, such as a team-signed ball. A team-signed baseball is one that is signed by a specific team from a specific year, allowing for a few discrepancies due to mid-season roster changes. The inclusion of marquee signatures, the placement and quality of those signatures, and the condition of the ball, all directly affect the baseball’s value.

Other popular and valuable themes for multi-signed baseballs include the aforementioned Hall of Famers theme, as well as  All Star teams, World Series winners and specific individual achievement themes, such as the 500 Home Run Club, and 300 Wins Club.

As the Hall of Fame continues to add to its roster with a name or two each year, baseballs signed by those players take on added value as members of the most coveted fraternity in baseball.  It’s a special group–still relatively small–and for collectors, the ultimate focus.

The spring 2010 catalog auction being conducted by Robert Edward Auctions will include some very rare signed baseballs.

In addition to autographed items from all eras, and signed photos of legends such as Ty Cobb and Babe Ruth, the collection of hobby pioneer Larry Killeen, assembled with great care over a span of decades beginning in the 1950s, will be featured.

The collection includes thousands of autographs and is especially noteworthy for its remarkable level of quality throughout and its inclusion of hundreds of Hall of Fame signatures, including checks, photos, letters, and one of the most advanced collections of signed Hall of Fame postcards ever assembled.

The auction also presents an extremely impressive collection of particularly rare and noteworthy single-signed Hall of Fame balls, including Warren Giles, Chuck Klein, Ed Walsh, Bill Klem, Tom Connolly Willie Wells, Hilton Smith, Elmer Flick, Tris Speaker, Harry Hooper, Chick Hafey, and Sam Crawford, in addition to spectacular high-grade examples of Babe Ruth and Ty Cobb.

A single-signed John F. Kennedy baseball sold over the weekend at Hunt Auctions’ latest sale.

The ball had originally been presented to former Washington Senators’ manager Mickey Vernon during one of JFK’s opening day first pitch tosses between 1961 and ‘63. The family of the late big leaguer consigned the ball and a number of other items to the auction.

The final bid, including a 15% buyer’s premium, was $26,450.

The ball was personalized to Vernon and had faded a bit over the years.

A game bat signed by Joe DiMaggio and presented to Vernon in the early 1950s, sold for $35,650, the top price among the 800+ items sold by the auction house.

A baseball in superior condition, signed by Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris brought $15,306 while a ball signed by 13 members of the 1930 Yankees including Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig, sold for $9200.

While signed baseballs from Kennedy are extremely rare, players like Mantle signed thousands–especially after their playing days ended. Mantle was a regular on the sports card show circuit throughout the mid-1980s to early 90s.

Despite the large number of signed Mickey Mantle baseballs on the market, the demand still outweighs the supply in most cases. Mantle balls are among the most counterfeited, however, so collectors and fans are encouraged to buy only those carrying professional authentication.

When getting a baseball signed, it’s best to try and have the player sign in the narrowest area between the stitches, known as the “sweet spot” if it’s the only autograph you plan on having on that particular ball.

Sweet spot signatures do tend to sell for a premium in the market. Most collectors prefer non-personalized autographs in case they want to re-sell at a later date, but players are sometimes insistent because they don’t want their autograph re-sold. It may not affect the grade of a baseball if you have it authenticated, but it may hurt the resale value if it’s made out “to Tommy”.

Always use a high quality ink pen when obtaining signatures. Don’t use a Sharpie like you would on an 8×10 photograph, bat or jersey. It won’t smear if handled correctly and the autograph shouldn’t bleed.

What type of baseball should you use to get the autograph or look for when you’re buying one? Typically, a signed Official American or National League ball will sell for more than an ordinary ball. There are various types of balls that are used to acquire signatures. They’re relatively inexpensive, available at better sporting goods stores or online and will hold your autograph better than a cheaper ball.

Should you coat your autographed baseball with anything? At one time, shellacking was a very common method of attempting to preserve autographed baseballs. According to authenticator PSA/DNA, “if the extent of the shellacking is light and does not affect the eye-appeal greatly, a baseball may still achieve a grade of “7″ but no higher”. A ball that has been shellacked may show cracking over time, which will impact its value. Of course, it’s not possible to undo the shellacking and it’s common knowledge that many older balls will exhibit this.

Since plastic autographed ball holders weren’t available for most of the last century, coating a ball was one way to preserve it, but later on, putting it in a drawer, wrapped in a plastic baggy or sock was another way fans and collectors saved them.

Removing signatures has become a modern era practice employed to turn a multi-signed ball with some lesser names into a more valuable single-signed ball. If a grading company determines that one or more signatures have been removed from a ball, that ball can no longer qualify as single-signed ball. Be sure to examine the ball closely to see if any names have been removed.

Another thing to keep in mind about signature preservation. Beware of the 1984-1990 baseballs carrying the signature of AL President Bobby Brown. The baseballs with “Haiti” placed under the Rawlings logo stamp were made without using distilled water that has permitted enzymes to potentially change the color of the ball as time passes. These balls often contain a yellowish-brown color.

You can check out  autographed baseballs on eBay to see what’s available.

Legendary Auctions will conduct its next sports memorabilia sale in September.

Among the items up for bid will be a Hall of Famers Single Signed Baseballs Collection (56) Including Campanella, DiMaggio and Mantle autographed baseballs.

This collection of 56 single signed OAL, ONL, and OML balls each bears either a blue or black ballpoint autograph from a Hall of Fame inductee. The spheres are moderately toned to white examples, with the scriptings averaging “7-9”. Signed baseballs include: Aaron, Campanella, DiMaggio (“HOF 55”), Drysdale, Koufax, Mantle, and Musial. Minimum bid $1,500.

1934 Tour of Japan Vintage Signed Baseball (16 Signatures) Including Ruth, Gehrig, Foxx and Berg. The autographed baseball boasts sixteen black ink “Tour” signatures averaging about “5-8″ in terms of strength and clarity. The ball’s sweet spot is occupied by Babe Ruth (“6″). On other panels are Cascarella (Joe), Frank O’Doul (“7″), Lou Gehrig (“7-8″), Whitehill (Earl), Connie Mack (“7″), Moe Berg (“7″), Rabbit Warstler, Doc Ebling (trainer), John Quinn (umpire), Clint Brown, Eric McNair, Frankie Hayes, Jimmie Foxx (“8″), Lefty Gomez and Earl Averill. Minimum bid $1,000.

1914 New York Giants Team Signed Ball (10 Signatures) Including Mathewson, McGraw and Thorpe. Signature highlights on this unofficial “National League” ball include Christy Mathewson, John McGraw, Jim Thorpe and Chief Myers (signed “J.T. Myers”). All have significant fading, with Mathewson rating “2-3” strength, Myers projecting “2”, and McGraw and Thorpe assessing “1-2”. Most of the other names have faded into obscurity. Finding Mathewson’s signature on a team ball—let alone acquiring the ball—can constitute a lifelong quest for the most ardent collector. Minimum bid $1,000.

While there has been much discussion regarding the recent softening of the sports collecting market, no one seemed to be addressing it at the recent Legendary Auctions Live Sports Sale. In fact, more than 200 attendees at the high-end, sports memorabilia event, held July 31, 2009 at the House of Blues in Cleveland, Ohio, seemed more than happy to let their bid paddles do the talking. The ensuing “conversation” produced a sports memorabilia auction event that not only exceeded expectations, but produced several record-breaking industry prices.

Doug Allen, CEO and president of Legendary Auctions, was pleased and encouraged with the auction results because it gave collectors access to never before seen items while rewarding consignors appropriately. “Even in this difficult economy, I think the results are extremely telling about the potential of the industry when a top quality event, packed with high-end material reaches our customer base,” said Allen. “It seems, at least in our auction, the economy took a back seat to the collecting instinct.”

Significant items from Bob Gibson’s personal baseball collection were included in the recent Legendary Auctions Live Sports event. Not surprisingly, said Allen, those items were among the ones with the highest prices realized. “Gibson is one of the most talented and respected pitchers in baseball history,” said Allen. “In addition, Bob is just a well-liked guy. The combination of extraordinary talent and off-field congeniality is a hard for collectors to resist.”

In addition, Allen said the Gibson portion of the auction was fueled by an extensive public relations push in the St. Louis area during All-Star Week. “One St. Louis local who heard about the auction from our media efforts spent six figures,” said Allen.

The top prices realized for items from Bob Gibson’s personal collection include:

* Bob Gibson’s 1968 National League MVP Award – acknowledging one of the best single season pitching performances in history realized a final price of $120,000;
* Bob Gibson’s 1968 Cy Young Award from his incredible 1.12 ERA season commanded $84,000;
* Bob Gibson’s 2006 St. Louis Cardinals World Championship ring sold for $57,000;
* Bob Gibson’s 1967 World Championship ring – awarded after winning three games and posting a series ERA of 1.00 sold for $54,000;
* Bob Gibson’s personal Hall of Fame plaque – awarded at his induction went for $45,000;
* Bob Gibson’s 1981 Hall of Fame induction ring went for $30,000;
* Bob Gibson’s “All Century Team” collection (7 items) – bestowed upon the Top 30 of the 20th century’s best players went for $19,200;
* Bob Gibson’s 1971 Gold Glove Award went for $16,800;

* Bob Gibson’s “First Major League Victory” game used ball – the only one he kept went for $12,000;
* Bob Gibson’s game used glove sold for $9,000;
* Bob Gibson’s 1959 St. Louis Cardinals contract – his rookie season sold for $5,400 and;
* Bob Gibson’s 1968 St. Louis Cardinals contract – from his historic MVP and Cy Young season went for $4,500.

Allen and the ecstatic winning bidders weren’t the only ones happy with the outcome of the recent Legendary Auctions Live Sports sale. Dick Zitzman, Bob Gibson’s representative said that his client was also pleased with the results of the auction. “The sale allows Bob to participate at a higher level to a charity he cares deeply about,” said Zitzman. Part of the proceeds from the auction will benefit the Baseball Assistance Team (B.A.T.), an organization that helps baseball families who have fallen upon hard times.

The Bill Hoffer Collection was another group of items that attracted considerable attention in the Legendary Auctions Live Sports Auction event. Acquired directly from the family of the 19th century baseball player, the collection featured extraordinary items enhanced with iron-clad provenance. This resulted in a record-setting price for a non-Hall of Fame player’s jersey. A spectacular circa 1895 Baltimore complete uniform worn by Bill Hoffer (including shirt, pants, belt, cleats and leggings) sold for a stunning $105,000. Other notable record-breaking prices set during Legendary Auctions Live Sports sale include the highest price ever paid for a restored card. A restored 1909 T206 Honus Wagner baseball card sold for $222,000. Also, a rare 1903 World Series Program at Boston set a public auction record by commanding $105,000.

Other auction highlights include: a Roberto Clemente 1966 Pittsburgh Pirates game used home jersey and pants – from his MVP season realized a final price of $69,000; a phenomenal Mickey Mantle 1966 H&B game used bat – graded PSA DNA GU-10 – one of the finest Mantle gamers in existence sold for $57,000; 1911 Western Playground Association SGC-graded collection (12 different) sold for $42,000; rare 1874 Warren CDV’s of George and Harry Wright (2 items) – featuring both Hall of Famers in uniform sold for $39,000; a significant 1895 Baltimore pennant winning game ball sold for $28,800; Bill Hoffer’s 1897 Baltimore player contract – signed by Ned Hanlon went for $27,600; a Babe Ruth 1931 signed letter to a friend – incredible content: baseball and beer went for $25,200; Bill Hoffer’s circa 1895 Baltimore sweater went for $24,000; an 1895 Baltimore Base Ball Club “Champions” Imperial Cabinet photograph – featuring seven Hall of Famers went for $21,600; a Babe Ruth Early 1940s signed oversized studio photograph – PSA DNA MINT 9 commanded $16,800; and an 1895 Temple Cup Championship series program at Baltimore sold for $10,800.

“Overall, we are thrilled with the results of the auction and by the response of our bidders to the live auction format,” said Allen. “Our goal is to provide the best material in the best manner possible to produce a rewarding experience for both our consignors and bidders. This event obviously delivered on all levels.”

Today at the National Sports Collectors Convention, the St. Louis based Memorabilia Factory announced its new revolutionary flagship premium baseball holder the BallDOME. This product is packed with so many features that it takes displaying and authenticating a signed baseball to new heights.

Traditionally, hobbyists have used an inexpensive square baseball holder to display their autographed baseballs. This type of holder was really designed for dealers to have an inexpensive case that they use as a tool to ship and sell a baseball. It was never really designed for the collector.

The BallDOME was designed for the collector. It was designed to attractively display and protect the collector’s cherished baseball. Display and preservation features of the BallDOME include an UV protected dome shaped enclosure that represent the surface of the ball, an enclosure that provides 360 viewing of the ball, a locking base that prevents opening during movement, an innovative stabilizing platform that can be raised to secure older balls that have shrunk due to time, a stabilizing platform that prevents the ball from moving and a unique labeling feature that gives each BallDOME a way to customizable labels with facts about the ball.

Authentication features include a unique authentication ring that will be sold only to authorized authenticators. This authentication ring is permanently secured to the bottom of the BallDOME and contains breakaway pins that if broken, destroy the authentication ring. This reveals that the ball might have been tampered with and therefore invalidates the authentication. Authorized authenticators can create a customized label that specifies facts about the ball and other authentication information. This label will eliminate the need to place authentication stickers on the ball, which prevents contamination from the sticker glue on the skin of the baseball.

“We developed the BallDOME™ to help preserve one of our national treasures,” said John Weldon, President of the Memorabilia Factory. “Look at what is happening to baseballs in the hobby today. Baseballs are being bought, sold, touched, dropped and rolled around in cardboard boxes and exposed to sunlight and florescent lights. If you look at the baseballs that were signed by Babe Ruth during the 1930’s you will see that there are only a few choice signatures left. Each of these balls were signed with similar types of ink pens. But over time the signature has slowly been destroyed from handling, hand acid, dropping or friction from the container they are stored in. At the current rate of destruction how many Babe Ruth baseballs will be left in 25 years? In the art world, every precaution is taken to preserve a Picasso. Would you throw one of these coveted pieces of art in a box? Baseballs are very young compared to many of the artifacts of the past. We need to start thinking about this now before, our generation’s Picassos are destroyed.”

The BallDOME is currently priced at $15 each or six for $72. Customized labels are $5 each.

The Memorabilia Factory is a division of INDUPlastics, an injection molding division, owned by INDUCOMP Corporation.

A Christy Mathewson autographed baseball was among the top sellers in the All-Star FanFest Auction held in St. Louis on July 14. The single-signed ball sold for $50,600 which included a 15% buyer’s premium tacked on to all winning bids.

Mathewson’s death from tuberculosis long before he reached old age makes his signature rare; his Hall of Fame career adds to the desirability.

There were several other signature baseballs up for bid in the 700-plus lots sold on the day of the American League’s 4-3 win over the National League.

Three baseballs autographed by Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig were offered, with two selling. One brought $6325 and the other $5060. The value of vintage signed baseballs depends greatly upon condition and clarity of the signatures. Other Ruth and Gehrig balls have sold for significantly more over the past fifteen years that the sports memorabilia auction business has taken flight.

Other lots sold included a high quality Roberto Clemente signed ball, which also included fellow Pirates’ Hall of Famer Bill Mazeroski ($6325) and a 1924 Washington Senators ball ($6325); the only Washington team ever to win a World Series. It included the autograph of star pitcher Walter Johnson. A ball inked by members of the 1917 New York Giants including manager John McGraw and legendary Jim Thorpe brought $5405 while another signed by 11 members of the 500 home run club sold for $1265.

The top selling item in the auction was a Lou Gehrig New York Yankees game-worn cap dating from the late 1920s or early 30s. It was purchased by another auction house on behalf of a client and sold for over $74,000.