Mint Musings: Athletes Get the Strangest Autograph Requests – A little while back, I wrote about how the most unusual autograph story I had ever heard came from Basketball Hall of Famer Wes Unseld. In case you didn’t see it, Unseld told of the time a fan asked him to sign a stolen license plate from Unseld’s own car. I had the chance to hear even more unusual autograph requests, this time  from members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Speaking with several of them, I once again came away with the impression that athletes truly are asked to sign the strangest things. While some of the former players, such as Art Shell, had nothing they could remember as being odd to them, some players related that they had never been asked to sign anything more unusual than random scraps of paper.

HOFZimmerman

Hall of Famer Gary Zimmerman signs pieces for NFL Auctions.

Some notable stories from the players included Charlie Joiner talking about signing the bottom of a flip-flop while he was in Hawaii. One of the more entertaining ones had to have been former lineman Gary Zimmerman talking about how a fan asked him to sign a rock for their garden. I can only hope the marker used for it was able to hold up well against the weather.

Not surprisingly, many of the players responded that their strangest autograph requests had come in the form of being asked to sign a body part of some type. Somewhat more harmless, though no less perplexing, former Seahawks lineman Walter Jones discussed the time a fan had asked him to sign their baby. While he responded that he did indeed honor that autograph request, he also remarked it was the last time he signed a baby.

To do that one even better, former Raiders punter Ray Guy relayed the story of how a fan asked him to sign a baby’s diaper. To Mr. Guy’s credit, he remarked about how he was happy to sign for fans, no matter how strange the request, given a desire to make them happy. Suffice it to say, I’m sure all fans and collectors are appreciative of that sentiment and wish more of his fellow players shared it.

For my part, I’ve never been able to understand why fans want body parts signed. Babies are even more confusing to me, but I’ve heard from numerous athletes over the years who have told similar stories. At the end of the day, I guess it turns into a matter of “to each their own” when it comes to requesting autographs.

Sometimes, it’s not about the value of an item, but rather about making an impression. I once met a fan who asked Mickey Mantle to sign a pizza box strictly for the purpose of having Mantle remember him. Sure enough when he caught up with the Yankees legend a few years later, Mantle remembered him because of it. In the case of many of these players, the same seems to be true since they can remember these strange requests years later.

While some of the stories relayed by the players truly were interesting, I still think Mr. Unseld’s request tops all the others. It’s not too many fans who will resort to stealing a license plate for a collectible, then have the guts to ask the athlete to sign it later on. While I doubt I’ll ever hear a stranger autograph request, I’ll sure have fun trying to find one.


Kelsey’s ability to bring hobby coverage to the mainstream sports fan as the producer of ESPN’s Mint Condition has been a true asset. GTS is happy to feature his thoughts on the hobby in Mint Musings. The opinions expressed are his and do not necessarily reflect those of GTS Distribution.
Kelsey Schroyer

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