There is and always will be something terrifically nostalgic associated with ripping open a pack of baseball cards.
The sound of the wrapper, the smell of the cards (go ahead, take a whiff next time), the low-key dramatics of flipping through a pack, or the thrill of pulling a monster — it all equates to magic.
For myself and many others, this particular love affair began during childhood. Any minor profits from mowing a lawn or shoveling snow instantly became taxable revenue for our local card shop proprietors.
The process was a simple one: sleeve up the good ones for protection, sort out the rest, and put it all away for when the hobby explodes.
Keep in mind, at least for me, this was the 1990s; known affectionately today as the Junk Wax Era due to the mass overproduction of product that watered-down an entire market.
And due to the litany of industry missteps during that time, that aforementioned explosion was still quite a way off. Well, it’s here now.
For those of us who kept our collections intact, a quick peek at recent sales on eBay or a browse through #HobbyTwitter would reveal the possibility of cold, hard cash stashed away in dusty old boxes.
You won’t retire off that Ken Griffey Jr. rookie card, but if it’s in good condition and it grades well, you’ll fetch a modest stash for a piece of cardboard if you’re so inclined. Not a bad deal.
Modern cards, that’s another story altogether. Baseball, basketball, football, even hockey — you can open a pack and pull out a hundred-to-thousand dollar card.
But that’s not what the hobby means to most collectors.
Sure, paying for your purchase with one card is fun, as is making a down payment on a house if you pull the right one (not kidding).
Though, every collector has what they refer to as a PC (personal collection). Adding to and admiring that stash is what brings the most joy.
Me, I collect Mets cards. All of them. Bowman prospect cards, Topps rookie cards once they hit The Show, rainbows of their Topps Chrome serial-numbered parallels as their careers progress. We have fun here.
But that’s not to say I don’t have healthy stacks of Luis Robert and Bo Bichette just waiting for that .460/.580/.800 month, sending the value of their cards through the roof, either. Some folks play the stock market. I mess around on the sports card market.
The industry’s largest grading and authenticating company, PSA, a subdivision of Collectors Universe, was sold for $700 million (30% over market value) in November to a group of investors that includes New York Mets owner Steve Cohen.
That’s presumably a very good sign of things to come, as Cohen hasn’t amassed billions for betting on losers.
An even more substantial market shift from the one we’ve seen come to pass in the past 36 months could very well be upon the hobby.
In August, a 2009 Bowman Chrome Draft Superfractor (1-of-1) autographed Mike Trout card (graded a BGS 9; Beckett Grading Services, the industry’s clear no. 2 grader) sold for $3.94 million, shattering the record purchase price for a sports card, which was $3.12 million for a 1909 T-206 Honus Wagner card in 2016.
Just last week, a 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle card graded a PSA 9 (out of 10) sold for $5.2 million.
Earlier this month, a 2019 Topps Chrome Fernando Tatis Jr. BGS 10 Black Label (highest grade possible) sold for $2,500.
Yes, he’s only got 143 MLB games under his belt. But the market says he’s the one, so the hobby follows suit.
Wild times, kids. Stay tuned.
