Hobby Shop Pulls Cy Young 1/1 Cut Signature—Authenticators Call It Fake

A New York card shop pulled what appears to be a Cy Young 1/1 cut signature from 2022 Topps Series 2 this week, but the authenticity debate started before the card even left the case.

5Z Sports Cards in Falconer, NY posted the pull on Facebook, showing a Topps Cut Signature card 1/1 featuring a signature from Hall of Famer Cy Young.

The card came from what the shop described as a “fat pack.” (editors note: retail packs would feel noticeably heavier when they contain thick memorabilia or autograph cards. Kinda weird for the shop to “randomly” pull one from a personal stash.)

But Steve Grad—former lead authenticator at Beckett Authentication Services and PSA—publicly called the signature fake. Grad, who recently left Beckett after 24 years, has questioned multiple high-profile autographs in recent months.

The pull raises familiar questions about pack-searching in retail environments. Hobby shop owners handle thousands of packs and can detect weight differences that signal premium hits. Fat packs containing cut signatures or thick memorabilia cards are noticeably different from standard packs—something experienced shop owners would recognize immediately.

Whether the signature is authentic remains unresolved. Topps has not issued a public statement verifying the pull, and third-party authentication has not been announced. The card is a 2022 Topps Series 2 Certified Cut Signature featuring a signature attributed to Cy Young, who played for the Boston Red Sox and Cleveland Spiders from 1890-1911. Young died in 1955.

Written by

Grayson Bryce Thompson

Grayson writes about the sports card hobby — the money, the frauds, and the stories the industry doesn't want told. He's been collecting since the junk wax era and still has the boxes to prove it.