Note: sorry for the rotated images.

The book you see in the banner image arrived at my house on Tuesday of this week. I pre-ordered the book about 2 weeks ago.

Obviously the book is about the Cubs winning the World Series last year, here’s an excerpt if you are interested. The book was written by noted MLB writer Tom Verducci. You may be familiar with Tom since he is occasionally on the Sunday Night Baseball broadcasts and the dude has been an MLB writer for fucking ever. He also contributes to Sports Illustrated and SI.com.

I like his style. He brings some of the old school lyricism that many of the long time baseball writers are known for but he will also get you some advanced stats and sabermetrics without fucking choking you to death on them. I am a big fan of the advanced metrics used in baseball and stand firmly behind their value but I don’t need to read a 2,000 word column where every other sentence is about D-WAR, BABIP and UZR. I get them I just don’t need to read them. Some modern baseball writers do nothing but throw the advanced stats in your face so you will be dazzled by their usage and I think that’s a pretty shitty way to write about a game when I’m more interested in outcomes and personalities.

Tom does a good job of holding that fine line without crossing it.

I can’t wait to read the book.

That’s not why we are here right now.

When I pre-ordered there was an option to order a “signed” copy of the book. Limited number and all that. I figured why the fuck not since I’ve got a few signed books already and there was no additional cost for the “signed” books. I’m not a big Verducci fanatic but fuck it, if the signature is free why the fuck not.

When the book arrived I opened the cover and on the inside was this:

Look at this. What the actual fuck is that, Tom? Enlarge that if you need to.

Is that a “signed” book?

I say “fuck no”, that’s a signed sticker that Mr. Verducci must have carried sheets of around with him will signing them at his leisure only to have some poor minimum wage earning motherfucker at the fulfillment house slap on the inside page just before shipping out.

That’s a goddamned signed sticker!

I’ll show you a signed book!

Check this shit out.

Here’s the book and…

Here’s the damn signature!

I actually like a little personalization with my signed books like so.

And here’s the signature!

I covered up my name with the quarter so nobody would find out that my real first name is “Trudy.” Drew was really fucking cool to do this for me. I mailed him the book. My book. That I purchased myself. Sent it to Drew with a stamped addressed return box and presto! You’re my boy, Drew!

See the difference? Old Tom up there, never even held “my” book. Some chucklehead held my book and stuck a motherfucking sticker on it!

So again, I ask you.

Is this a “signed” book?

I’m wondering if there’s a secondary market after I read it.