Back when DLP was still in the baseball market, things were going well for the collectors that focus on the sport that started it all. There were good sets, there were nice cards, and the stuff that was put out every year was built on the foundation put in place from the year before. I loved a lot of what DLP put out, but I forgot what was possible until I saw a card on a message board.

See, normally, we just get a message on the back of each card that certifies the jersey was used in a game. That’s all we have to go on most of the time, and McWilliam has even removed some of the language on the back of the cards to prevent further liability. It’s a reality that millions have come to accept, that their jersey cards are wholly authentic because some president of a company leaves a message on the back of a card. Hell, even DLP has taken a step back along with Topps and the rest, because liability and transparency are thought of as the enemy. The less we know, the more we will buy. I have gotten countless emails from UD employees, Topps employees, and DLP employees, indicating to me that the stuff I have written about is a tame representation of what actually happens behind closed doors.

It wasn’t always this way. In fact, the card I saw actually had a picture of the jersey it came from on the back of the card. Amazing that these type of things never caught on. Of course, there is never a guarantee, as we have found out, that the jersey IS authentic, or that the swatch is from the pictured jersey, but it’s a step up from a stupid message on the back of the card.

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It used to be that game used jerseys were the exception to the rule instead of the rule itself, and things have definitely changed in this hobby since 1996 when they first appeared. I really do like the way most of the cards are done today, but I cant help but feel like sometimes, the wool is pulled over our eyes, wrapped around our head, and painted black. One day, someone will have the balls to come out and tell me what I have always wanted to know, or in more simpler terms, what have we been missing?