Sunday, November 22, 1998

BY JULIE IRWIN
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Steve Cummings' extensive collection of Cincinnati Reds memorabilia is on its way to destinations throughout the country, much to Dr. Cummings' disappointment.

Red Stockings cigar cutter purchased by Steve Wolter. | ZOOM | See other items in the auction. |

Seventy-nine items from the Seattle psychologist's collection were sold to different bidders at auction Friday for a total of $187,526. The auction house disclosed the total price Saturday, but not the names of winning bidders, other than to say they were from around the country.

After the sale, Dr. Cummings lamented that the collection would not be kept intact to furnish a Reds museum scheduled to open in 2003.

"The Cincinnati Reds ballclub are absolute fools," Dr. Cummings said. "They could have had a world-class museum with $300,000 of stuff they could have made money on right away. . . They want the things given to them. That's the way the team operates, on the cheap."

The Reds declined comment on the collection before the auction but said that they would begin collecting items for the museum after it is designed, probably in late 1999. A museum would be part of a new stadium, to be built on the riverfront next to The Crown.

The memorabilia sold by Chicago-area Mastro Fine Sports Auctions included baseballs signed by 63 consecutive Reds teams and a contract between Hall of Fame pitcher Christy Matthewson and the Cincinnati team.

Steve Wolter of Sports Investments Inc. in Montgomery disclosed that he bought the highest-priced item in the collection, a 19th century mechanical cigar cutter advertising "Red Stocking Cigars." Mr. Wolter declined to say how much he paid for the cutter. Mastro listed the sale price at $17,942.

"I thought it would be neat to be able to have it back here," Mr. Wolter said. "At first I wasn't going to bid on it, but as it got closer and closer, I decided it would be neat to have something from 1869."

Mr. Wolter's Sports Investments specializes in selling older baseball cards and sports memorabilia.

Among other items that went to local collectors: a group of about 800 photos of early Reds teams that went for $8,947, and a 1971 Tony Perez flannel jersey that sold for $2,527.

The items, insured for $300,000, sold for about $112,000 less than that. Still, Dr. Cummings said he was pleased with the sale price, if not with the items' scattered new homes.

"I'd long wanted to see the Reds have that stuff, actually," he said. "I'm just so sorry the Cincinnati Reds are so utterly misguided."

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