Mystery Player on EBAY?

The only Sasaki I was able to find in "The Official Baseball Encyclopedia 2004" was Sasaki Makoto. However, according to his Goo Wikipedia page [in Japanese] he never wore the number 48.

Are you sure the uniform you're looking at isn't for Hankyu instead of Hanshin?

It's definitely a Hanshin Jersey. Here's the link to this item's auction, you can check it out. I had a feeling that this jersey might be bogus, now I'm pretty much certain.

Thanks.

It's not necessarily bogus. There are two possibilities that I can think of:

1. #48 Suzuki was a coach.
2. #48 Suzuki never played at ichi-gun

The Encyclopedia and other sources of information generally only cover players for the top team (the field manager being an exception). A career ni-gun (farm) player or coach will be very hard to find anything on.

The page has a lot of Hanshin information which is good, but nothing about this Sasaki. Since no Adam Iqbal has posted anything to this community, and Googling for him in conjunction with Pro Yakyu key words comes up empty, I'm guessing the page materials were taken from elsewhere. In fact, they were [Wikipedia].

I wouldn't rule out that the uniform is authentic, but it wasn't a major player if it is.

The Hanshin Tigers official website has a history of all its squad numbers (in Japanese; start here and follow the links for each group of four or so years). According to this history, at least, there has never been a player named Sasaki who wore #48 for the Tigers.

Best guess: it's a fan's jersey, and the fan had his or her own name sewn in. This is very common.

Correction: The above link wasn't from the Hanshin official site. Whoever they are, tho', they appear very informed.

I had a look at this e-bay listing and it is indeed a Hanshin Tigers jersey - the old pullover style. Makoto Sasaki did play for the Tigers in 1999, but he wore #8, not #48.

There was a Masayuki Sasaki who wore 48 and played for Nippon Ham in 1984-'87 after a career with the Swallows. He was from Osaka. My thought is that this is a fan fantasy - someone hoped he would come to the Tigers. Otherwise a fan put his own name on the shirt.

I don't want to insult the seller if they think that the jersey is genuine, but if someone is attempting to pass it off as a fake, then they're not trying very hard. This jersey isn't even close to the real thing.

• First of all, the number 4 has a base on the bottom. The current partial-button-down jerseys have this kind of number typeface, but they didn't when they wore pullovers. Have a look here [Auction.co.jp]
• The font for the player name is slightly wrong. In particular, the "S" is a bit too squarish, and all the letters are a bit too thin.
• There should also be a tag in the bottom of the jersey giving the year and player number (such as "91-48" or something similar). I imagine that this jersey doesn't have such a tag, or the seller would have taken a picture of it to show how authentic the shirt is.

My gut feeling is that this jersey is for an amateur team that wore Tiger-like uniforms. You know how well-made those kusa-yakyu uniforms are? They're often professional quality (with accompanying professional price tag!). Amateur teams don't often have numbers as high as 48, but it's not unheard of. Probably a guy named Sasaki played in an amateur league somewhere, his old shirt passed through many hands, and now someone thinks it might be game-used.

How about - without mentioning any of the evidence that we've posted - asking the seller for proof that it's game used and see what happens?

Even if it's fake, $4.99 is a good deal for a Tiger shirt if you just want to wear it walking around or practicing!

OK. I've asked him. Will post if he replies.

This is his reply as is:

OK I have read the thread. thank you for the information. My knowledge in baseball are very limited. BUT I would like to clearify [sic] that this is not an [sic] game worn jersey. And I could not find any SASAKI infomation [sic] in the net as well. I THINK most probably the SASAKI on the jersey is the name of a fan who put up his own name and his favorite number. I hope this helps. thank you and good luck

So, he agrees with you all, and totally avoids the question regarding what is meant by "authentic."

My guess is that it's a replica, as it's made by SSK, and not Descente or Mizuno.

But it does appear to be a genuine Hanshin Tigers jersey, as the front "Tigers" is correct, and the sleeve logo is correct, too (although it appears to be the logo they used to use between 1979 and 1983, so the jersey is quite old if that's the case). It's just not an authentic, as claimed by the seller. And BTW, authentic doesn't mean it's game used. Authentic merely means a jersey exactly the same design as worn by the players on the field.

Not many teams in Japan allow you to add any name and number combination to an authentic jersey anymore. But I'm not sure what the Tigers' policy was between 1979 and '83.

Hello. My name is Adam and I am the seller for the Hanshin Tigers Jersey in ebay. I personally do not think that this jersey is a fake as it clearly indicates the SSK tag on the jersey. And I was told that in Japan there are few garment manufacturer who produce jerseys for a team, but only one type is the player's Official jersey, which has the team logo on the tag. Not Mizuno, Decente, SSK, etc. (Correct me If I am wrong.)

Saying that I sell bogus or fake jerseys is just not true.

Thank you, and I look forward to your responses.

- I personally do not think that this jersey is a fake as it clearly indicates the SSK tag on the jersey.

I don't think it's a fake either, but the SSK tag doesn't prove it one way or the other.

- I was told that in Japan there are few garment manufacturer who produce jerseys for a team, but only one type is the player's Official jersey, which has the team logo on the tag. Not Mizuno, Decente, SSK, etc.

Each team does things differently, and they all have different arrangements with the manufacturers. But a team logo on the tag usually proves that the jersey is a replica!

Anyway, we should perhaps clarify the terminology:

• Official: licensed by the team.
• Authentic: exactly the same as worn by the players, but not necessarily game worn.
• Game worn: an authentic that used to belong to a player and was actually worn on the field at some point.
• Replica: a licensed or "official" jersey, usually with the same logos and style as an authentic, but of lower quality.

So, while this jersey looks like it's an official replica, it probably isn't an official authentic. I don't believe SSK has ever manufactured authentic Hanshin jerseys, although as I said, this jersey may well date back to the 1970s or early '80s, and the arrangements may have been different back then.

Adam, I am not accusing you of selling fake or bogus jerseys, but you should be careful with your use of "authentic." You are selling "official replicas."

Your listings for the Yakult, Lotte, and Daiei jerseys are also problematic. These are all clearly replicas, not authentic jerseys. Your listings are highly misleading!

Hi. But all embroidery jerseys are suppose to be authentic, right? And normally replicas are screen printed type, not embroidered. I used to see 3 different types of SEIBU LIONS jerseys:

1. Embroided by Mizuno
2. Screen printed by Mizuno, and
3. Embroided type but not by MIZUNO but by the LIONS themselves

Anyway, are there any website that show Japanese game worn jerseys, especially the tag so this issue will be clear to everyone, including me? Thanks.

- But all embroidery jerseys are suppose to be authentic, right?

No, that's not right. Many replicas have embroidered names and numbers - especially Hanshin jerseys.

- And normally replicas are screen printed type, not embroidered.

Also incorrect. They are rarely screen printed. T-shirts are screen printed; jerseys usually are not.

- I used to see 3 different types of SEIBU LIONS jerseys...

But we're talking about a Hanshin jersey aren't we? As I said, the teams all do things differently. Different manufacturers, different sizes, different tags.

- ... are there any website that show Japanese game worn jerseys, especially the tag...

Game worn jerseys are extremely rare, and I would actually be very skeptical if I saw one for sale. I don't know of any websites that feature them.

As far as tags on authentics are concerned, have a look at this site selling Yomiuri Giants jerseys. Notice the NPB patch at the back. Also the words "pro collection" and "authentics.," And the high price.

Again, not all teams do the same thing. For example, the Giants are the only team using Adidas as their supplier. So other jerseys are going to have different tags.

BTW, I told you in my last post that authentic labels don't feature team logos. That was misleading as the logo sometimes does appear - it just tends to be less prominent than on some replicas - for example the old Seibu jerseys you mentioned.

So to summarize, how is an authentic different from a replica?

1. Authentics have the small NPB patch at the back (although the older ones may not have this patch).
2. Authentics usually have the word/prefix "pro" or "pro collection" somewhere on one of the tags.
3. Replicas are usually made of single polyester mesh (as in one layer of material). Authentics are of higher quality.

- Game worn jerseys are extremely rare, and I would actually be very skeptical if I saw one for sale. I don't know of any websites that feature them.

Mijow, actually they're not at all hard to find if you frequent Japanese auction sites like Yahoo! Auctions. Decent players' jerseys go for 100,000 yen or more, but if you're not picky about that and can put up with a bullpen catcher or staff member, you can have one for less than 20,000 yen. (My best deals so far is 9,300 yen for a gamer and 5,100 yen for a practice jersey, both from Kintetsu.)

You can see a variety of Kintetsu game used items such as jerseys, pants, and helmets here, though most aren't cheap.

Ahh. I meant in English. Sorry.