[spartymatt]

There's not a universally black vs. white answer. The best way I've ever been able to answer it is to think of the card production process itself:

an ERROR is usually a mistake in the "design" process of the card. That is, the person who does the actual layout of the card. Common things considered errors would be things like using the wrong player's photo, misspelling a name, wrong stats on the back, etc. Think of it as human error.

a FLAW is usually a mistake in the physical process of "printing" the card. The machines that actually print and make the cards have a foul up - things like missing a certain process (foil) or poorly applied processes (miscuts, etc). Think of it more as machine error.

Occassionally - the distinction between the two becomes more blurry when what would normally be considered a flaw under the above definitions reoccurs so often as to create two (relatively) common variations on the same card. This would be like the Frank Thomas 1990 card, where a printing plate was damaged (I think) in such a way that there are a number of his cards that appear without his name having been printed on them.

Where a lot of new collectors get into trouble is automatically assuming an error holds a premium value. In most cases, the error is never found or corrected, so every single card has the same error. Value (as with all cards) is a function of supply and demand. If the error card is of such abundance, and/or of a player with little collecting value, it's quite possible that it holds no premium. In fact in many cases, the 'corrected' version of the card may hold a premium if there is a smaller supply of correct cards than the 'error'.

Hope that helps.

yes it did and I thank you very much for the explanation. The feeling I had all along was that the error on this card was purposely done by someone. The reason I felt this way was because how expertly the Topps logo was applied exactly over his name. Also the Topps logo on top of he card was perfectly placed like it should have been. There was absolutely no reason why this was done this way and I have yet to hear or find another card like it.... I trust your analysis and realize this card is worthless because it actually harms it. I am taking steps to discard this card

once again Thank You

[bbcgalaxee]

No one did it in purpose, it's just a defect.

If I collected trout, I'd certainly have interest and imho, it's more valuable than a correct version because you can always find the correct. Have fun finding the error again more than a few (if that many) times.

With that being said, don't expect more than several bucks.