Steiner COA with half fake Rivera

Authentic Steiner Rivera signature with suspect inscription.

I recently saw this Mariano Rivera signed ball on eBay with a Steiner hologram and COA card.

In my opinion, the signature is 100% legit as one would expect from Steiner. However, something wasn't quite right about it. I think the "Enter Sandman" inscription has been forged.

The inscription appears tentative and does not match well with authentic exemplars. Further, the postioning of "Mariano Rivera" could indicate that it was signed with no intent to add an inscription below the name. Often, Rivera will sign higher on the ball when he plans to add an inscription below.

Authentic Steiner Rivera with authentic inscription

For your comparison, I have included a Steiner certified ball with an authentic "Enter Sandman" inscription.

Sadly, the lesson is that we must closely examine everything. Crooks are out to make money every way they can... including adding fake inscriptions to authentically signed items.