i threw this one back

about ten months ago, i stumbled on a listing for a willie mays autograph from 2004 topps originals signature edition (i am on the lookout for a dodger card signed by rick sutcliffe from that release). the price was decent, so i "bought it now" and was excited about adding another mays auto to my collection.

once the card arrived, i was less excited.

while the card was advertised as being from the 2004 set, it was not in the original sealed case that came with cards from that release. that's not necessarily a deal breaker, especially with the topps hologram sticker on the back

but when i looked at beckett's online database, this card should have only been numbered to 5

still, perhaps the checklist is wrong, and there were actually 50 of these signed. i figured i would check with topps and see if they could verify the number on the hologram. after a couple of tries, i got through to someone who told me that they no longer have the database that included these autograph certifications. that is crazy to me, but topps will topps i suppose.

is it real? is it a fake? i don't know.

in the end, i contacted the seller to see if they had any additional information on the card, but they did not. to their credit, they accepted my return and i felt better than i would have had i kept the card. buyer beware.