Saturday, May 22, 2010

A Unique Collection


I had a friend who died a few years ago who had a very unique collection.   He would send to all the coaches of all the teams for autographs.  His collection was over 20 years old and his favorite was New York Mets coach Joe Pignatano.   This was a unique collection that really had no value because he really had no proof that the signatures were signed by the coaches and not someone else as does happen.  It didn't matter to him because it was not about money but the pleasure and thought that it was possible it had been signed by the coaches.  His collection was a work of love, fun and pleasure and not for monetary gain.  

He also was a set builder.   He was a big baseball fan and loved collecting.  He would go to card shows with his notebook and get there at the same time the dealers did and leave when the dealers did.  He loved to be around and be a part of collecting and baseball and the shows helped him with that because he could spend the day talking baseball and baseball cards. 

Now everyone talks about how much their cards are worth.   An example of that would be a Stephen Strasburg auction on ebay which is at $8,600 with 7 days to go http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=190398394834&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

Now I do have hope for card collecting as I see all the parents and kids buying 2010 Topps Attax.  Its a cheap product and the kids are playing with the cards and enjoying them.  I had a parent tell me this week after he got a Mickey Mantle Topps Attax card that his son would be thrilled when he got it.  

I have written 2 consecutive blogs about people buying Stephen Strasburg cards for inflated prices.  I am bothered by it.  I wish him the best of luck and I do hope he turns out great but the point is he hasn't done anything yet.   The prices that people are paying for 2010 Bowman Draft cards are over the top right now but will the product be worthless if most of the players are nothing more than a flash in the pan?  How can people spend so much money on these cards in a bad economy? 

Like my friend collect for fun and pleasure and don't make card collecting into another stock market where gambling rules the roost.

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