Ddsm

[cubsphill]

Gallagher's current agent is awesome with autographs. At the cubs convention I was sitting on the players floor and his agent started talking to us about autographs and I showed him the cards of Gallagher and he took them and got a page of 9 signed.

well, gallagher himself is a pretty cool dude.

 

[Joshua Kusnick]

Josh, because of what I just wrote above. Many collectors trade with others. 1-2 for some of these guys with 8+ different cards doesn't even begin to help those who do sets or who are trying to get extras to trade for crap they need in a diff league.

We are talking signed cards by guys in A and AA here. How does them signing 1-2 or 8-10 matter at the end of the day to their future autograph related income? Answer, it's doesn't. I am so glad most players ignore advice like what you just wrote. As an agent of guys in A and AA, you shouldn't even be advising them about signing cards. You should be talking to them about working out, eating right and not screwing some underage girl or boy. Hopefully your autograph pep talks rarely happen.

So we're all operating under the assumption that the main focus of all of my lectures to each one of my clients is autograph centric? Thats great because obviously I never talk to my clients about working out, eating right, and not screwing some underage boy or girl. Since this is an autograph message board one would assume the bulk of whats written here is about autographs and not the dietary habits of A ball players. I do appreciate everyone's input on how I should run my agency, without this help I think once and for all my agency would have to shut its doors forever. Then and only could the entire autograph community rejoice in collective relief that my reign of terror is over. If you guys would like to start dictating autograph policies towards fans from the players side I suggest everyone here work real hard, become a sports agent and do things the right way. Somehow between writing here and doing nothing as everyone assumes of me, I somehow managed to magically sign Josh Bell of the Dodgers and land two potential first round picks in the 08 draft. I suppose anyone could do what I do since it's obvious everyone thinks I dont do anything.


As for not advising them about autographs in A ball or AA ? Im not going to be negligent towards these players. If you want to create a value or a buzz you have to limit what you sign. It's a fact of the business. If a guy bangs out absolutely everything while you guys get them in the minors what incentive do you people EVER have to pay for the players autograph down the line? Look at Ryan Anderson for example. I seem to remember everyone paying 5.00 a pop for him and he's a total flamed out minor leaguer. My job is to create a value for something that is not inherently there. It has to be created. The only people in this entire equation that I have to keep happy are the players. I dont care about anything else except the general well being and happiness of the clients. When autograph collectors start paying my salary, Id be happy to cater to your needs, until then, I certainly wont be changing anything at all.

And for the record on Gallagher, after that 1st year I had him when he was limiting his autograph I got him an 8,000.00 topps contract. This kid was a 12th round pick and I got him paid more than some first rounders. Obviously Ive since been replaced but rest assured it was not for the office autograph policy. The autograph talk/policies literally take up .00000000000001 of my job. It's just under focus here since this is actually an autograph message board thus negating the importance of everything else I actually do for my career.

I also fail to see how it falls on the shoulders of players to fulfill the autograph needs of every collector in the world. If you need 8 things signed then really go to more games, or if you cant, pay for the autographs. If you cant do either I guess blame me since I am to blame for the societal collapse of humanity. These players have no source of secondary income and most players need off season jobs just to even live. If I can make them a few thousand dollars at the expense of people I dont even know then guess what I'm going to do? If you go to a player who is making 1050 a month in A ball and you tell him that he could make a few thousand dollars just by limiting how much stuff he signs what do you think that said player is going to do????

This is all incredibly pointless however and I am stunned that people even respond to me at this point. It's like a car wreck you can't turn away from. Life on the road can be somewhat taxing living out of a suitcase, going to different hotels in different cities, being in 4 times zones in 7 days etc..... I rarely get a chance to write anymore so I am totally thankfully you have allowed me this forum to relax for a few moments each day to respond to each and every one of you. The only thing worse than being hated is being irrelevant. Thanks for making me matter.


See you on the road,

J

 

[Joshua Kusnick]

I mean really 1500 people have read this thread. Thats 1500 times people have read about me, my company and some of my clients. All for doing absolutely nothing. This is fantastic.

 

[Joshua Kusnick]

but he did what he thought were in his best interests. not what he was advised. your side railroads just as much as the teams. who in the %$#@ told matt harrington to not take his deal. or maurice claretts million dollar deal with the broncos. where are they now? this sport has urned into a bizillion dollar affair. right or wrong it's out of control. and people like you are part of the problem. you talk out of both sides of your mouth. one time you are ushering the players away from the collectors, the next time you are buddy buddy with them in a hotel pimping out one of your clients for $$$. very unprofessional.
i agree this is way out of hand and i'm done responding, but i can't believe you don't see the issue....

I felt the urge to respond to this.

Matt Harrington advised Matt Harrington not to sign. I work for the player all agents do, if matt wanted 4.95 million dollars badly enough he'd have signed. Thats all on him. And Maurice Clarett was cut by Denver because he was terrible at football, and thats what cost him millions. I dont at all see how it's unprofessional making my clients money. It's unprofessional to ignore fans at the team hotel then talk to them when Im taking their money? Get out of here with that. The ends justify the means player was temporarily happy fans were pissed and they still paid up. Like I care if fans are mad at me? I assume you're refering to the futures game where Tabata didnt touch a pen at the hotel but everyone outside paid thousands of dollars to have him finish their stuff. If you didnt pay it I wouldnt do it.

Also during that weekend there were three kids probably 10-14 years old there with their parents and they were getting absolutely slammed to the back of the autograph line each time when you vultures were stalking the players inside the hotel. Not only did I go upstairs and get each of those kids a stack of cards signed by jose, I gave out two game used bats. I dont have a problem with kids or fathers and sons etc.... I have a problem with people my age spending hours on end stalking these players at resturants hotels even their houses. The people that bum rush players at airports knocking kids over etc etc..... you people are the ones who ruin it for everyone. Not me, not the teams not the players. If you want to wax nostalgic back to the 50's and 60's try getting autographs at the stadium and leaving the players alone on their down time. Ill make a deal with everyone here, Ill tell everyone to sign everything they can do at the stadium just leave them alone off the field. It's going to be up to them to do what they want as always but I can always suggest things. And I guess it will be up to you guys to act accordingly but we both know that will never be enough. You cant make everyone happy so why even bother?

 

[Captian23]

Not Again

You know, I really keep trying to defend you. This is not something new. All of the same issues occurred on TPA as well. I was all set to start deleting parts of this thread as well because it did not pertain to the point of the thread, but alas, you kept talking. And since you must have small feet because even with your foot in your mouth there is still sound coming out I feel the need to address some of your points.

Ryan Anderson - He is retired and no longer making his living from baseball, that is why we are paying $5 for autographs.

As for other players who are currently playing, signing autographs at the park is completely different then signings. When a player is at the park he is on Baseball time. He is getting paid to be there. Tell you what, next time you are doing some work for your client, see what happens when you give one of your vendors a hard time about signing your name. Most players will never be part of the public eye. There only real lasting fame will be on a Baseball Card. If you want to teach them to be greedy money hungry teenagers, then you might want to teach them how to type as well because most players will need to do more typing in their careers than signing when they are back in the real world

As for this being a business, we all agree, so treat it that way. It makes good business sense for a player to be fan friendly. If the guy is a borderline player he may get a bump up to the next level if he is well received. Maybe he will get that shot for the second chance in independent ball where in most cases autographs are required. As for the Star Players, I guess I must have missed the Albert Belle Gatorade commercials. And I am real sure Pat Neshek has not benefited a bit from being a good guy.

You are one of the only agents who get so wrapped up in AA players signing autographs. I don't see Steiner running after any of your clients and I don't see any loss of value in Joba autographs even though he signed everything put in front of him prior to his call up. Time for you to get a clue

 

[sMatt]

I mean really 1500 people have read this thread. Thats 1500 times people have read about me, my company and some of my clients. All for doing absolutely nothing. This is fantastic.

But you've already said it yourself, the people on this forum don't bring you any money. Is a big name player suddenly going to sign for you because they heard a bunch of guys on an autograph forum think you're full of yourself? Stop acting like the issue is about us being mad that you won't let players sign 100 cards, it's always been about that you don't fit in here and only come in here and talk because you think you're better than all of us. You're just like the obnoxious teenage brat from the Maury Povich show that insists everyone hates her because they're jealous, NOT because of the fact that she's an obnoxious teenage brat.

All this post has ever been about is you trying to prove to yourself just how insecure you are, and I think you've surprised all of us.

 

[Joshua Kusnick]

You know, I really keep trying to defend you. This is not something new. All of the same issues occurred on TPA as well. I was all set to start deleting parts of this thread as well because it did not pertain to the point of the thread, but alas, you kept talking. And since you must have small feet because even with your foot in your mouth there is still sound coming out I feel the need to address some of your points.

Ryan Anderson - He is retired and no longer making his living from baseball, that is why we are paying $5 for autographs.

As for other players who are currently playing, signing autographs at the park is completely different then signings. When a player is at the park he is on Baseball time. He is getting paid to be there. Tell you what, next time you are doing some work for your client, see what happens when you give one of your vendors a hard time about signing your name. Most players will never be part of the public eye. There only real lasting fame will be on a Baseball Card. If you want to teach them to be greedy money hungry teenagers, then you might want to teach them how to type as well because most players will need to do more typing in their careers than signing when they are back in the real world

As for this being a business, we all agree, so treat it that way. It makes good business sense for a player to be fan friendly. If the guy is a borderline player he may get a bump up to the next level if he is well received. Maybe he will get that shot for the second chance in independent ball where in most cases autographs are required. As for the Star Players, I guess I must have missed the Albert Belle Gatorade commercials. And I am real sure Pat Neshek has not benefited a bit from being a good guy.

You are one of the only agents who get so wrapped up in AA players signing autographs. I don't see Steiner running after any of your clients and I don't see any loss of value in Joba autographs even though he signed everything put in front of him prior to his call up. Time for you to get a clue

Im glad you're privy to my dealings with Steiner sports. I dont even get wrapped up in any of this, I just happened to be the one guy who posts what really happens out there. I really should make a suggestion box for everyone here since everyone is so incredibly skillful at running a sports agency. Until I came here I actually thought I knew how to run my business but once again I owe a huge debt of thanks to all the great people here who have helped me realize how poorly I was actually doing my job. Im also not going to waste time citing specific examples of players who sign and dont sign either we all know there are examples of everything. This isnt even about fame or opportunity. This is strictly about the money. You guys dont realize how much you all help me here by responding to all this. I have 8 guys in the next bowman set. 8 all because of some stupid buzz that my clients dont like to sign. Out of 110 cards in the set I have 8 guys in the set. It's nothing personal really. Personally, I couldnt care less what these guys do with regards to signing, but as a professional, I think Im going to keep doing what Im doing.

 

[Captian23]

I felt the urge to respond to this.

Matt Harrington advised Matt Harrington not to sign. I work for the player all agents do, if matt wanted 4.95 million dollars badly enough he'd have signed. Thats all on him. And Maurice Clarett was cut by Denver because he was terrible at football, and thats what cost him millions. I dont at all see how it's unprofessional making my clients money. It's unprofessional to ignore fans at the team hotel then talk to them when Im taking their money? Get out of here with that. The ends justify the means player was temporarily happy fans were pissed and they still paid up. Like I care if fans are mad at me? I assume you're refering to the futures game where Tabata didnt touch a pen at the hotel but everyone outside paid thousands of dollars to have him finish their stuff. If you didnt pay it I wouldnt do it.

Also during that weekend there were three kids probably 10-14 years old there with their parents and they were getting absolutely slammed to the back of the autograph line each time when you vultures were stalking the players inside the hotel. Not only did I go upstairs and get each of those kids a stack of cards signed by jose, I gave out two game used bats. I dont have a problem with kids or fathers and sons etc.... I have a problem with people my age spending hours on end stalking these players at resturants hotels even their houses. The people that bum rush players at airports knocking kids over etc etc..... you people are the ones who ruin it for everyone. Not me, not the teams not the players. If you want to wax nostalgic back to the 50's and 60's try getting autographs at the stadium and leaving the players alone on their down time. Ill make a deal with everyone here, Ill tell everyone to sign everything they can do at the stadium just leave them alone off the field. It's going to be up to them to do what they want as always but I can always suggest things. And I guess it will be up to you guys to act accordingly but we both know that will never be enough. You cant make everyone happy so why even bother?

There is a big difference in signing at the hotel and at the park. I personally agree that it is out of line to bug a player when they are in the public. Here is the flip side, Players are making $$$$ to play baseball. That is what comes with the job. The reason the money is there is because people like us go to the games. I take my kids to a few games a year. I go to several more on my own. I am the customer, time for you to learn that. You know why players can make $20,000,000 per year? It is because regular people go to work and make money that they spend at the park or buy the products or get the satellite pkg to watch baseball. And some of those regular people collect autographs.

 

[Joshua Kusnick]

But you've already said it yourself, the people on this forum don't bring you any money. Is a big name player suddenly going to sign for you because they heard a bunch of guys on an autograph forum think you're full of yourself? Stop acting like the issue is about us being mad that you won't let players sign 100 cards, it's always been about that you don't fit in here and only come in here and talk because you think you're better than all of us. You're just like the obnoxious teenage brat from the Maury Povich show that insists everyone hates her because they're jealous, NOT because of the fact that she's an obnoxious teenage brat.

All this post has ever been about is you trying to prove to yourself just how insecure you are, and I think you've surprised all of us.

You dont bring me any money. You guys create a buzz because you all have a huge desire to get stuff signed. Thats wonderful. I have a reputation of having clients who are tough signers, I sell that to the companies, and they hand out the contracts. There is no real issue here. This whole thread is insanity to me, Im so irrelevant it's not even funny, why the hell is anybody even responding to this anymore??? I do enjoy the Maury show to be honest with you. Like I said I am not above criticism obviously, Id really like one of you, just one to call me and help me out over the phone. It's tough writing anonymously via the internet I know but since nobody is calling what can I do. I do enjoy however that we've all denegrated to name calling, has everyone really run out of things to say?

 

[Joshua Kusnick]

There is a big difference in signing at the hotel and at the park. I personally agree that it is out of line to bug a player when they are in the public. Here is the flip side, Players are making $$$$ to play baseball. That is what comes with the job. The reason the money is there is because people like us go to the games. I take my kids to a few games a year. I go to several more on my own. I am the customer, time for you to learn that. You know why players can make $20,000,000 per year? It is because regular people go to work and make money that they spend at the park or buy the products or get the satellite pkg to watch baseball. And some of those regular people collect autographs.

And for this the players are obligated to sign on command everything you put in front of them? I dont think so. Here's what I tell players. Sign everyday, smile be cordial, be yourself, personalize photos, side pannel baseballs and thats your day. The average work a day fan couldnt care less about that stuff, it's the uptight "collectors" who flip out if something is in the wrong color that get mad. I still DONT see anything wrong with my suggestions.