Celebrity Autographs And Celebrity Addresses

JUPITER — Carlos Delgado, the newly signed slugger for the Marlins, plans to ride his bike to and from the ballpark during spring training and is aware of the mob awaiting him.

Surviving the growing gantlet of autograph-seekers may require the combined skills of Lance Armstrong and John Hancock.

Carlos Delgado of the Florida Marlins is mobbed by autograph-seekers as he leaves Roger Dean Stadium.
Signing bonus
A bat signed by Barry Bonds can bring $800. An authentic jersey with Alex Rodriguez's signature commands $350-$700. Prices vary depending on object signed, ability to verify authenticity and other factors. Prices for a signed ball from some top players training from Jupiter to Port St. Lucie:
• Miguel Cabrera, Marlins $30-$60
• Scott Rolen, Cardinals $50-100
• Carlos Beltran, Mets $50-$120
• Mike Piazza, Mets $100-200
• Albert Pujols, Cardinals $125-$300
SOURCE: Beckett Baseball magazine


Ground rules for autographs
Before exhibition games start:
• For Marlins at Roger Dean Stadium in Jupiter: To catch arriving players, some autograph-seekers line up at 7 a.m. or earlier at the gate near the entrance to the Marlins' locker room on the left-field side of the stadium. Another option is to get players going between practice fields for workouts that last from about 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• For Cardinals at Roger Dean: Stadium officials are urging fans to seek autographs from behind fences on practice fields behind the right-field side of the stadium before or between workouts from about 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• For Mets at Tradition Field in Port St. Lucie: The best spot is adjacent to Field 2, which is the field closest to the fans' entrance. Some players will sign before workouts, around 9:30 a.m., but the best bet is after they are done, around 1 p.m. or 2 p.m. The players' parking lot is off-limits, but players often will walk to the gate and sign before entering or leaving the clubhouse.
Once spring training games start:
• For Marlins and Cardinals: Gates open at 11 a.m. for 1 p.m. games. Cardinals fans may want to try for autographs at the grassy berm in the right-field corner. Marlins fans can line up along the edge of the stands near the bullpen in left field.
• For Mets: Gates open 90 minutes before games begin.

"As athletes we appreciate the enthusiasm of people coming out, but they also have to understand we're here to work," Delgado said. "I'm willing to spend the time with the fans as long as it doesn't interfere with my work and with my teammates' work."

Complicating the crush of casual fans seeking a souvenir is the seam-busting growth of the autographed sports-collectible industry, now estimated at $2 billion a year. The hard-core collectors and dealers sometimes line up before dawn at the ballpark or follow players to the golf course. Grown-ups arrive with backpacks full of merchandise, set up lawn chairs, and make it almost a full-time job at this time of the year.

Marlins pitcher Dontrelle Willis said he has seen children shoved out of the way for an autograph.

"You can't knock a little kid over to get an autograph," Willis said. "That's the strangest thing I've seen here. They get frantic."

Arthur Swers, who describes himself as a collector from Floyd, Va., said he goes out of his way to be polite. When he goes to different parks, he changes hats to increase the odds of a friendly reception. Tuesday he wore a Marlins cap.

"I can understand the players' hesitation at people making money off them," Swers said. "But let's get real. The players are not hurting for money. If one out of 100 fans is making $40 off a signature, so what?"

At Mets camp in Port St. Lucie, pitcher Pedro Martinez said he does not mind signing for kids and genuine fans, but he is not so happy about helping somebody make a quick buck on eBay. One of his autographs on a ball can fetch $150 to $300, according to Beckett Baseball magazine.

"Some of the professional autograph-seekers, they want you sign it in a certain place and sign it a certain way," Martinez said. "And they are using the kids and they give the kids the ball and tell them to get the autographs. Each year it seems to get worse."

Martinez said he tries to take the time to make a neat, legible signature. The problem is deciding when to stop signing, he said.

"We are in a no-win situation," Martinez said. "I'll sign for 30 minutes, 45 minutes sometimes an hour, but you eventually have to cut it off. When you do that you get the boos."

Mets outfielder Cliff Floyd, a former Marlin, agreed: "Some of them beg, but sometimes you really just have to go. We try to help them out as much as you can, but sometimes it's not enough."

Mets fan Dan Reale of Fairfield, Conn., likes the casual atmosphere of spring training and hopes it is not ruined by greed. He brought his children, Brigid, Danny and Gabe, on Tuesday.

"The kids really interact with the players," Reale said. "It's much better than at Shea. It's such a thrill for the kids."

He can see the atmosphere changing little by little.

"They shouldn't let anybody in here that is going to sell it," Reale said. "It just kind of turns me off on the whole process. I can understand when players won't sign."

The relentless push of the autograph industry has forced Roger Dean Stadium to make some changes in the past year, said General Manager Rob Rabenecker. Example: Last year the stadium sold $90 bleacher seats for a joint autograph session with the Cardinal and Marlins. Autograph-seekers bought up the tickers like scalpers and camped out as early as 7 a.m. for the 1 p.m. event. Then again, nabbing the right signatures from Albert Pujols, Miguel Cabrera or Mike Lowell can cover those costs in minutes.

"It got out of hand," Rabenecker said. "The professional autograph people were able to infiltrate it, if that's the right word."

This year the teams will hold separate autograph sessions, with tighter controls on ticket purchases. In addition, stadium officials say they plan to discourage people for seeking autographs from Cardinals players in their cars at the parking lot gate this year for safety concerns.

Pitcher Mark Mulder, who joined the Cardinals from Oakland, said he keeps track of faces.

"You can kind of tell who's selling them and who's not," Mulder said. "It's always funny when an 8-year-old kid comes up to with a brand new major-league baseball and goes, 'Sweet spot.' I just don't do it. It's not because I don't want to sign on the sweet spot, it's just that they just turn around and sell it. I've seen it before where a kid asks for an autograph, I sign, and they go running up to a 40-year-old guy, and that guys gives the kid $2. It's like, come on."

Four days ago, two men followed Mulder and two teammates to a private golf course 10 miles from the ballpark. Somehow, they got past the security gate and approached him for an autograph.

Mulder refused. The men drove off when a security guard caught up.

"I don't mind doing it, but there's times and places when you can do it and when you can't," Mulder said.