Man Arrested For Selling False Garciaparra And Jeter Game Used Bats

Press Release: April 2, 2002

The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of California announced that Herbert John Derungs pled guilty yesterday afternoon in San Jose federal court to six counts of mail and wire fraud.

Mr. Derungs, 31 of San Francisco was indicted by a federal grand jury on December 18, 2001. He was charged with three counts of mail fraud in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1341, three counts of wire fraud in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1343, and one count of utilizing a telecommunications device in interstate communications with intent to threaten and harass in violation of 47 U.S.C. § 223(a)(1)(C). After his arrest, Mr. Derungs was ordered to be detained in custody by a U.S. Magistrate Judge who found him to be a danger to other persons and the community. Mr. Derungs pled guilty to all six of the mail and wire fraud counts. There is no plea agreement between the government and the defendant.

In pleading guilty, Mr. Derungs admitted to having devised a scheme to defraud and to obtain money and property by means of false representations. As part of Mr. Derungs' scheme, he did the following: (a) he ordered and obtained baseball bats in the names of Major League Baseball players Derek Jeter and Nomar Garciaparra from The Original Maple Bat Company, which is located in Ottawa, Ontario; (b) he offered Derek Jeter and Nomar Garciaparra game used baseball bats for sale through eBay, Inc., which is located in San Jose, California; (c) he falsely represented to potential buyers that the Derek Jeter and Nomar Garciaparra baseball bats were authentic, game used baseball bats; (d) he sold baseball bats to buyers which had the names Derek Jeter and Nomar Garciaparra on them; and (e) he failed to disclose to buyers of the baseball bats the material facts that the bats were not authentic, game used baseball bats of Derek Jeter and Nomar Garciaparra, and that instead he had ordered and obtained the bats from The Original Maple Bat Company. For the purpose of executing his scheme to defraud, Mr. Derungs knowingly caused various packages to be delivered by U.S. mail in the Northern District of California, and transmitted various wire communications in interstate commerce in the Northern District of California.

The sentencing of Mr. Derungs is scheduled for July 1, 2002, at 1:30 p.m. before Judge James Ware in San Jose. The maximum statutory penalty for each count in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1341 and 1343 is five years in prison and a fine of $250,000, plus restitution. However, the actual sentence be dictated by the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of factors, and will be imposed in the discretion of the Court

Easton Buys Sticks Baseball

Baseball America reported that Sticks Baseball, manufacturer of the Kissimmee Stix line of baseball bats used by many major leaguers including Mo Vaughn, was recently purchased by Easton of aluminum bat fame. Obviously Easton has the funding to make the Kissimmee Stix brand, or any wood bat brand, a major player in the market. It is unclear whether the Kissimmee Stix name will continue, as we get more news we'll pass it on.

Barry Halper's Bats Break Records

New York, New York, September 1999. In what can only be termed a stunning display of hobby heath, some of the biggest names in memorabilia, and many others, converged on Sotheby’s auction house in New York City to witness and participate in the break-up of one of (if not the most) impressive collections of baseball artifacts ever collected. To document the entire auction would take forever, however there were some fantastic game used bats sold and immense prices paid during the auction. Buyers clearly were paying not only for the gamer but also for the fact it came from Mr. Halper’s collection

Here are some of the highlights:

• Special Bats:
  • 1969 Mets Bat collection: Collection of 15 bats of players who played on the 1969 Mets team. Estimated $2,500-$3,500. Sale Price $4,025.
  • 1978 Bucky Dent Home Run Bat. . . .yes that bat. Estimated $5,000-$10,000. Sale Price $64,100.
• Some Modern Bats Sold:
  • Tommy Agee, Lot 1805: 1969 World Series bat H&B Model S2. Estimated $800-$1,200. Sale Price $2,185.
  • Luis Aparicio, Lot 1749: 1965-68 H&B Model S44 heavy use. Personalized signature to Barry Halper. Estimated $400-$600. Sale Price $1,380.
  • Ernie Banks, Lot 1742: 1965-68 H&B Model S2, cracked with heavy use. Personalized signature to Barry Halper. Estimated $400-$600. Sale Price $2,990.
  • Wade Boggs, Lot 2104: 1995 LVS Model B349, heavy use, autographed Estimated $400-$600. Sale Price $1,725.
  • Lou Brock, Lot 2049: 1977-79 H&B Model R161, moderate use. Estimated $400-$600. Sale Price $2,587.
  • Rod Carew, Lot 1980: 1977-79 H&B Model C234, heavy use. Personalized signature to Barry Halper. Estimated $400-$600. Sale Price $2,070.
  • Steve Carlton, Lot 1776: 1967-70 Adirondak Model 254A heavy use. Personalized signature to Barry Halper. Estimated $400-$600. Sale Price $1,955.
  • Gary Carter, Lot 1982: 1977-79 H&B Model P89 heavy use. Estimated $300-$500. Sale Price $690.
  • Reggie Jackson, Lot 2052: 1980 Adirondak Model 288RJ, used and autographed. Estimated $400-$600. Sale Price $1,840.
  • Al Kaline, Lot 1979: 1973-75 H&B Model M110, heavy use. Personalized signature to Barry Halper. Estimated $400-$600. Sale Price $2,875.
  • Harmon Killebrew, Lot 1263: 1973-75 H&B Model S207, heavy use. Personalized signature to Barry Halper with notation that the bat was used to hit home run No. 522. Estimated $1000-$1,500. Sale Price $7,475.
  • Frank Robinson, 1748: 1965-68 H&B Model R133, heavy use. Personalized Signature to Barry Halper. Estimated $400-$600. Sale Price $2,300.
  • Mike Schmidt, Lot 1981: 1971-79 Adirondak Model 246A, heavy use. Personalized signature to Barry Halper. Estimated $400-$600. Sale Price $2,875.
  • Al Simmonds, Lot 1304: 1934-43 H&B Model S28 with the H&B factory markings showing the bats was used as a template. Estimated $1,500 to $2,500. Sale Price $4,312.
  • Willie Stargell, Lot 1788: 1968-70 Adirondak Model 303X heavy use. Personalized signature to Barry Halper. Estimated $400-$600. Sale Price $1,150.

Some Other Links And Articles

"Forget Cooperstown", Bob Klapish, NEW JERSEY MONTHLY, June 1997. An story about the magnificent collection of Barry Halper.

"The Evolution Of The Baseball Bat": An interesting article about the development of the baseball bat.

"Baseball Memorabelia Is White Hot In Cleveland", Eric Sandstrom, BEACON JOURNAL, 8/8/95. Article about a number of museums with game used equipment surrounding the Cleveland ballpark.

"Baseball Memorabelia", Bruce E. Johnson, GOOD HOUSEKEEPING, 1996. An article and reference page dealing with the explosion of baseball memorabelia market.

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