CNBC.com Article on Bill Ripkens F-Face card. Ripken speaks 20 years later.
Basilone
Posts: 2,492 ✭✭
Billy speaks about the card 20 years later. I was surprised to see this article right next to all of the doom & gloom economic articles.
Billy Ripken Obscenity Bat: He Finally Talks 20 Years Later
Posted By
arren Rovell
Sectors:Media
Had Billy Ripken not received a shipment of less than ideal Louisville Slugger R161 models that year...
Had Billy Ripken not decided to use one of those bats for batting practice that year... Had Billy Ripken not elected to mark that bat in a unique way that year...
Had the photographer, taking the picture for his Fleer baseball card, not asked him to pose for a shot in between batting practice with that bat...
Had the folks at Fleer caught what was written on the bat... it's extremely unlikely that we'd be talking about the 20th anniversary of any moment in the baseball career of Billy Ripken.
After all, the son of Cal Sr., once his manager, and the brother of Cal Jr., his teammate, was known more for his glove in a 12-year Major League Baseball career than for his bat. His batting average was .247 and he knocked in a total of 220 RBI.
But in January of 1989, Billy Ripken, scheduled to be a five cent common in the 1989 Fleer set, ignited the hobby already entering its prime with the debut of the very first Upper Deck set. Packs of Fleer hit hobby stores right after New Year's and, within two weeks, everyone had to have their hands on card No. 616, Billy Ripken.
It was the bat that he designated to use only in batting practice. It was the bat that had "F--K FACE" written on the knob, the obscenity in its full four-letter glory.
ESPN's Tim Kurkjian, then working for the Baltimore Sun, got to Ripken and Fleer first. Fleer's president Vincent Murray claimed that hadn't seen it before and that the company was doing all it could to correct the error immediately. Ripken told Kurkjian he was angry and disappointed.
"It appears I was targeted (by teammates)," Ripken told Kurkjian. "I know I'm kind of a jerk at times. I know I'm a little off. But this is going too far."
What ensued was absolute chaos and—as the "error" card's price rose to nearly $500—there were some amazing stories. A kid, who happened to be a fan of Ripken, had purchased a huge lot of No. 616's from a dealer for $50. When the curse was found, the new worth of the cards was closer to $20,000. There was the story of one kid who sued another kid for convincing him to sell his Billy Ripken for $1, without knowing the curse was on the bat. And the tale of the Geraldo show entitled "Men who write bad things in public places," when an audience member claimed it was he who wrote the obscenity on Ripken's bat.
For nearly 20 years, Billy Ripken hasn't told the whole story. That is, until he revealed to me how it all went down:
"I got a dozen bats in front of my locker during the 1988 season. I pulled the bats out, model R161, and noticed--because of the grain patterns--that they were too heavy. But I decided I'd use one of them, at the very least, for my batting practice bat."
"Now I had to write something on the bat. At Memorial Stadium, the bat room was not too close to the clubhouse, so I wanted to write something that I could find immediately if I looked up and it was 4:44 and I had to get out there on the field a minute later and not be late. There were five big grocery carts full of bats in there and if I wrote my number 3, it could be too confusing. So I wrote 'F--k' Face on it."
"After the season was over, in early January, I got a call from our PR guy Rick Vaughn. He said, 'Billy, we have a problem.' And he told me what was written on the bat and I couldn't believe it. I went to a store and saw the card and it all came back to me. We were in Fenway Park and I had just taken my first round of BP. I threw my bat to the third base side and strolled around the bases. When I was coming back, right before I got up to hit again, I remember a guy tapping me on the shoulder asking if he could take my picture. Never once did I think about it. I posed for the shot and he took it.
"I tried to deflect it as much as I could. It was fairly easy to say that somebody got me with a joke because people think you're the scum of the earth for doing something like this. The truth is that there's a lot of words like that that are thrown around in the clubhouse. They just don't get out there."
"I can't believe the people at Fleer couldn't catch that. I mean, they certainly have to have enough proofreaders to see it. I think not only did they see it, they enhanced it. That writing on that bat is way too clear. I don't write that neat. I think they knew that once they saw it, they could use the card to create an awful lot of stir."
"I have no idea where that bat is today. If I were to guess, I would say it probably got lost after someone used it in a game. Probably a guy like Brady Anderson because he choked up so he could use a heavier bat."
"Fleer sent me some of the cards out of the goodness of their heart. I autographed them and used them for my gifts to my groomsman in my wedding (which took place that offseason). I figured, at the time, it was better than giving them a set of cufflinks. I think I devalued the cards by signing them though."
"When people recognize me, I see the look on their face. They think of the card immediately and, before they even ask, I say, 'Yeah, it was me.' I don't know if it happens daily, but, to this day, it still happens a couple of times a week."
There were at least 12 different versions of the card in various states of blackout. First reports estimated that there were about 3,000 cards featuring the full obscenity, but it is believed that there were actually more than 100,000 of them that hit the market. A man named Donovan Ryan has maintained a web site called BillRipken.com, a site that talks just about the card and has been visited about 19,000 times.
Today, the Billy Ripken 1989 Fleer obscenity card sells for about $5. The 1989 Fleer card of his Hall of Fame brother still sells for less.
Billy Ripken Obscenity Bat: He Finally Talks 20 Years Later
Posted By
arren RovellSectors:Media
Had Billy Ripken not received a shipment of less than ideal Louisville Slugger R161 models that year...
Had Billy Ripken not decided to use one of those bats for batting practice that year... Had Billy Ripken not elected to mark that bat in a unique way that year...
Had the photographer, taking the picture for his Fleer baseball card, not asked him to pose for a shot in between batting practice with that bat...
Had the folks at Fleer caught what was written on the bat... it's extremely unlikely that we'd be talking about the 20th anniversary of any moment in the baseball career of Billy Ripken.
After all, the son of Cal Sr., once his manager, and the brother of Cal Jr., his teammate, was known more for his glove in a 12-year Major League Baseball career than for his bat. His batting average was .247 and he knocked in a total of 220 RBI.
But in January of 1989, Billy Ripken, scheduled to be a five cent common in the 1989 Fleer set, ignited the hobby already entering its prime with the debut of the very first Upper Deck set. Packs of Fleer hit hobby stores right after New Year's and, within two weeks, everyone had to have their hands on card No. 616, Billy Ripken.
It was the bat that he designated to use only in batting practice. It was the bat that had "F--K FACE" written on the knob, the obscenity in its full four-letter glory.
ESPN's Tim Kurkjian, then working for the Baltimore Sun, got to Ripken and Fleer first. Fleer's president Vincent Murray claimed that hadn't seen it before and that the company was doing all it could to correct the error immediately. Ripken told Kurkjian he was angry and disappointed.
"It appears I was targeted (by teammates)," Ripken told Kurkjian. "I know I'm kind of a jerk at times. I know I'm a little off. But this is going too far."
What ensued was absolute chaos and—as the "error" card's price rose to nearly $500—there were some amazing stories. A kid, who happened to be a fan of Ripken, had purchased a huge lot of No. 616's from a dealer for $50. When the curse was found, the new worth of the cards was closer to $20,000. There was the story of one kid who sued another kid for convincing him to sell his Billy Ripken for $1, without knowing the curse was on the bat. And the tale of the Geraldo show entitled "Men who write bad things in public places," when an audience member claimed it was he who wrote the obscenity on Ripken's bat.
For nearly 20 years, Billy Ripken hasn't told the whole story. That is, until he revealed to me how it all went down:
"I got a dozen bats in front of my locker during the 1988 season. I pulled the bats out, model R161, and noticed--because of the grain patterns--that they were too heavy. But I decided I'd use one of them, at the very least, for my batting practice bat."
"Now I had to write something on the bat. At Memorial Stadium, the bat room was not too close to the clubhouse, so I wanted to write something that I could find immediately if I looked up and it was 4:44 and I had to get out there on the field a minute later and not be late. There were five big grocery carts full of bats in there and if I wrote my number 3, it could be too confusing. So I wrote 'F--k' Face on it."
"After the season was over, in early January, I got a call from our PR guy Rick Vaughn. He said, 'Billy, we have a problem.' And he told me what was written on the bat and I couldn't believe it. I went to a store and saw the card and it all came back to me. We were in Fenway Park and I had just taken my first round of BP. I threw my bat to the third base side and strolled around the bases. When I was coming back, right before I got up to hit again, I remember a guy tapping me on the shoulder asking if he could take my picture. Never once did I think about it. I posed for the shot and he took it.
"I tried to deflect it as much as I could. It was fairly easy to say that somebody got me with a joke because people think you're the scum of the earth for doing something like this. The truth is that there's a lot of words like that that are thrown around in the clubhouse. They just don't get out there."
"I can't believe the people at Fleer couldn't catch that. I mean, they certainly have to have enough proofreaders to see it. I think not only did they see it, they enhanced it. That writing on that bat is way too clear. I don't write that neat. I think they knew that once they saw it, they could use the card to create an awful lot of stir."
"I have no idea where that bat is today. If I were to guess, I would say it probably got lost after someone used it in a game. Probably a guy like Brady Anderson because he choked up so he could use a heavier bat."
"Fleer sent me some of the cards out of the goodness of their heart. I autographed them and used them for my gifts to my groomsman in my wedding (which took place that offseason). I figured, at the time, it was better than giving them a set of cufflinks. I think I devalued the cards by signing them though."
"When people recognize me, I see the look on their face. They think of the card immediately and, before they even ask, I say, 'Yeah, it was me.' I don't know if it happens daily, but, to this day, it still happens a couple of times a week."
There were at least 12 different versions of the card in various states of blackout. First reports estimated that there were about 3,000 cards featuring the full obscenity, but it is believed that there were actually more than 100,000 of them that hit the market. A man named Donovan Ryan has maintained a web site called BillRipken.com, a site that talks just about the card and has been visited about 19,000 times.
Today, the Billy Ripken 1989 Fleer obscenity card sells for about $5. The 1989 Fleer card of his Hall of Fame brother still sells for less.
0
Comments
Edit: Congrats on the mention, D!
<< <i>The part about fleer enhancing the image is very interersting. I wonder if someone using CSI style photo analysis could detect if the photo was altered to make the words clearer? >>
In my opinion I'd say without a doubt they did. There's a white "halo" around the words on the bat that are completely out of place. Check it out with a loupe - it's pretty obvious.
Edit: I think Donovan said he's noticed at least one other player with writing on his bat in the 1989F set. We should compare close up scans of the two.
<< <i>The whole competitive drive amongst the big 3 card producers back then was how crisp you can get your photos. This became a big issue in '82 when Fleer had arguably the worst photography ever in sportscards. This was also one of the main key factors the hobby rags of the day used to rate the new card sets every year. No doubt they enhanced the picture, but I think they did this across the board for all cards in the set and it just so happens to have also made the writing on the bat a bit more clearer. >>
You're absolutely right that they likely enhanced all photos with color correction and other standard "fixes". But the text on the bat stands out well beyond a simple sharpen or contrast fix technique. It's also much darker than the "7" on his batting glove, for example. Both were likely written with a Sharpie, and the 7 is on a white glove, but is less dark than the writing on the bat. And again, there is a white halo around the "RICK" especially. I have to touch up many photos for my job, and that simply does not look natural.
Edit: Also, if you look very closely, the "F" on Face doesn't appear to curve with the bat knob. The whole thing just looks "off".
Executives gathered in a room, and had discussions on the different variations they would create? They talked about how they would compete against the new Upper Deck company?
"Let's fight higher quality with profanity", I'm sure one of them said.
<< <i>So are you guys saying that Fleer purposefully created the F-Face craze?
Executives gathered in a room, and had discussions on the different variations they would create? They talked about how they would compete against the new Upper Deck company?
"Let's fight higher quality with profanity", I'm sure one of them said. >>
Haha... nice.
I'm not saying it's some company-wide conspiracy, but I'm also not putting it beyond one photo editor to do something crazy, and no one else noticing. By many accounts this card had a huge effect on Fleer being sold the first time, and the family who had owned it was deeply embarassed by the error. I don't see them doing that on purpose. We all work with at least one person who couldn't care less what happens to their employer, though.
I don't know what photo editing was like pre computers, but anyone with Photoshop could create that same effect now by selecting the text on the knob and bumping up the contrast. That would create the halo and enhance the letters.
My scanner has a hard time with PSA holders, so it's a bit grainy, even at 600x600. But you can still see that there is an odd halo around the RICK. If it were just a reflection or the result of a camera flash, it would have affected the words too, not just the knob.
Ripken in the Minors * Ripken in the Minors Facebook Page
CNBC
EDIT: oops on the bad link before, all fixed!
<< <i>
See what happens when you scan really well?
Anyone have Brady Andersons phone # ? lol
I've always found it interesting that the bat knob is 2 colors. Underneath the words there is a lighter color. Could be nothing though.
Bill did write it ! His handwriting matches the knob too.
.....off to find Mr. Andersons home.
So Clemens guy might have it?
<< <i>
So Clemens guy might have it? >>
Haha!
So anyway here is my case for the enhanced writing.
My sample
I searched through a few cards I had on my desk. This is from a 1984 Topps Brett Butler. I scanned it in.
a) First image is the original, unedited image
b) I selected a portion of the image surrounding the numbers on the knob
c) I bumped up the contrast on just this portion of the image, resulting in a miscolored halo and darker letters
d) I played with the contrast until I got it right. I then marked over the numbers with a quick shot of black
I'm sorry the Ripken is a bad scan, but tell me that's not at least somewhat similar in appearance...
That's pretty funny
1994 Pro Line Live
TheDallasCowboyBackfieldProject
I notice the Butler has a 2 color knob as well. Good to know. Maybe they paint over the previous owners scribble.
<< <i>Chris- I see what you saying. I'll do some experimenting as well.
Butler has a 2 color knob as well >>
Ouch, that sounds painful lol
1994 Pro Line Live
TheDallasCowboyBackfieldProject
<< <i>Seeing a new FF article AND your name in it.....sure did make my day alot brighter.
Anyone have Brady Andersons phone # ? lol
I've always found it interesting that the bat knob is 2 colors. Underneath the words there is a lighter color. Could be nothing though.
Bill did write it ! His handwriting matches the knob too.
.....off to find Mr. Andersons home. >>
Great day for you today! Your name is everywhere! Congrats!
How does that go- "Searching for the whole story. Looking for the truth. Collecting cards. Finding answers." Might need to change that to collecting bats. Good luck tracking down Anderson about that bat. Answers only lead you to more questions don't they? Congrats again on making world news!
<< <i>
<< <i>Seeing a new FF article AND your name in it.....sure did make my day alot brighter.
Anyone have Brady Andersons phone # ? lol
I've always found it interesting that the bat knob is 2 colors. Underneath the words there is a lighter color. Could be nothing though.
Bill did write it ! His handwriting matches the knob too.
.....off to find Mr. Andersons home. >>
Great day for you today! Your name is everywhere! Congrats!
How does that go- "Searching for the whole story. Looking for the truth. Collecting cards. Finding answers." Might need to change that to collecting bats. Good luck tracking down Anderson about that bat. Answers only lead you to more questions don't they? Congrats again on making world news! >>
Thanks !!
I love seeking out info on this card. I dont look forward to the day that I'm out of questions.
<< <i>Seeing a new FF article AND your name in it.....sure did make my day alot brighter.
Anyone have Brady Andersons phone # ? lol
I've always found it interesting that the bat knob is 2 colors. Underneath the words there is a lighter color. Could be nothing though.
Bill did write it ! His handwriting matches the knob too.
.....off to find Mr. Andersons home. >>
I've seen him a bunch of times at (can't believe I'm saying this) at LA Clippers games. We have season tickets and he and Eddie Murray sit about 5 rows in front of us in section 101.
saucywombat@hotmail.com
email bcmiller7@comcast.net
Guess Bill knew I knew the handwriting matched. lol
For the 20th Anniversary of the FF, I'm planning on doing a giveaway on the site. Nothing too fancy. Versions, auto ball etc. Going thru and seeing what I'm cool to part with and seeing if other FF collectors want to toss in. I'll post a thread when it's ready.
Thanks to Billy Ripken for telling his story and everyone who wrote in after seeing our obscenity bat story yesterday. There's one part of the story, which I inadvertently left out.
Ripken said that he thought that Fleer enhanced the writing on his bat. But many of our readers said Ripken was in on the act because the writing on the bat was perfectly positioned so that the card owner could read it.
Here's the part that I left out. Billy did tell me that he thought Fleer engaged in some funny business with the bat as well so that the writing was in the perfect place. The first Photoshop program came out in 1990, but that doesn't mean that there couldn't be some sort of manipulation.
We've admittedly had a hard time finding people who were higher-ups at Fleer at the time. So we're putting it out to our audience. If you or a person you know worked for Fleer and were in on some Ripken card conspiracy, e-mail us at sportsbiz@cnbc.com.
Followup Story