God, was there ever a better year for collecting baseball cards than 1997? From Bowman Chrome, to Totally Certified, to Donruss Signature, life as a collector could not have been better. One of the big products of the year that many collectors balked on was ’97 Donruss Signature. I remember card shop regulars forking over close to $20 dollars per pack (unthinkable at the time) and pulling Todd Greene and Mark Grudzialanek autographs. I was sixteen at the time but seeing the hurt in their eyes at the realization that they would have to explain this to their wives, well…it officially made me a man.
Don’t get me wrong, Donruss Signature had some ridiculously nice players in their checklist but it was so hit and miss that I just bought a pack of Pinnacle Certified & Bowman Chrome with my $20. Man, I would give anything to return to 1997 again, for a variety of reasons.
1997 Donruss Signatures
You are looking at history, maybe. Donruss created the first-ever autograph per pack product, which in the long run probably hurt the business. I mean, look how worthless autographs have become today. Unless you pull some 20-year old phenom or a Hall of Famer from your box of cards, you piss and moan till the sun comes up. In 1997, pulling an autograph from a pack of cards was a feat almost almost as rare as winning the lottery. Donruss put an end to it with this release.
2006 Topps Sterling
This is another “run of the mill” super high-end product thousands of collectors will never get a chance to bust open. The card is a “one of one”, features Barry’s immaculate (and improved) signature, along with 3 pieces of a game-used jersey, plus a bat. This is worth big time Beckett value, if you can find someone to buy it from you.
So, what’s it gonna be?
The Baseball Card Blog 
Even his signature has bulked up.
For crying out loud, it’s no contest. The Donruss Signature. It’s cards like that Sterling thing that make me think we haven’t evolved as people. I wouldn’t pay anything for that, and it’s not because it’s Bonds.
triple threads
As much as I despise him I will make a selection. The 97 because it is a decent looking card whereas the 1/1 is too busy. Too much crap on it. The sig is better on the 1/1.
Niether? I guess the 1 of 1. But really who wants a Bonds card?
I really like the design of the Donruss card better, but I’d have to pick the Topps Sterling card because it has a nicer autograph.
For me without question the 1997 signature series. I loved this product. But just like the blog says tring to find that card is next to impossible, tring to find a unopened box of that product will never happen.
Sterling because how often can you actually read a players name from the signature
If the signature on the Donruss card was more than initials it would be a no-brainer. The signature on Sterling is just about perfect though, so I gotta choose the high-end abomination on this one. If I’m shelling out huge bucks on a Bonds auto, I want more than B..B.S
The 1997
I like the ’97 Signatures card better; It looks more like a card. The Sterling looks like a product sample sheet for carpet.
i gotta go with the sterling since i pulled the HR 24 auto 1/1 from that year 🙂
Ill take neither. I have never liked bonds and never will. I would rather have 1/3 of a random 88 donruss card than either of those.
I’ll take the topps sterling, the card is busy, but I don”t mind to me both cards are way out of my price range anyway so if I had to choose one why not the most obnoxious card there is with all the bells and whistles. I don’t mind Bonds and if I pulled it from one of a few packs I’m generally able to buy I’d be ecstatic. Just try being a collector on a very small budget and you really apreciate any auto or game used.
thekswiss: believe me, I fee ya. As for which card I’d rather pull, I too think I’d go with the Sterling. But as far as best looking, I just like the simplicity of the Signatures! As for being a budget collector, I have a decent collection of worthless game used crap I’ve gotten off ebay!
I am going to have to agree with Anthony….i have never been a Bonds fan or a fan of his attitude. Although there has never been any “Proof” of him doing any wrong doing I say shread both cards and use them for packing paper…..Just my opinion.