(Like to read “forgotten” posts about baseball cards? Check out these other lost gems.)
By some estimations, there are nearly 40 billion new blog posts published every day*. Of those, nearly 3 million are related to baseball cards.**
(*possibly a slight exaggeration)
(**completely made up)
So it’s understandable that you might miss a few of the best hobby pieces here and there.
And, with the Internet closing in on the end of its first century (not true), there are bound to be some really great posts from several years back that you either never saw in the first place or have completely forgotten about.
Lucky for us, nothing on the Internet ever really goes away.
Even luckier for you, I had a hankering for the past today and decided to wind back my time machine … all the way to 2010.
Here, for your enjoyment, are 10 posts from that year that I found entertaining, intriguing, or odd. Hope you enjoy them, too.
Owltown Baseball Card Shop
Corey Brinn delivers a cool story about a hiking trip with buddies that uncovered a Shangri-La baseball card shop-shack in the mountains of Georgia. As you read this tale, keep in mind that the Owltown Baseball Card Shop still turns up in current Google searches, and plan your vacations accordingly.
SaberCards: A (concept of a) Baseball Card for Stat Geeks
This is a quick-hit piece in which “adarowski” at Beyond the Box Score lays out the concept for a baseball card back based on Sabermetrics. It’s an interesting idea that garnered plenty of discussion seven years ago. What would be on the back of your ideal baseball card?
In Pursuit of Baseball’s Past: Signed T206 Cards
You know all about the T206 set, the most famous tobacco-card issue of all time and home to th
e granddaddy of all cards, the legendary and scarce Honus Wagner beast that dominates headlines whenever it comes up for sale. But did you know there are collectors who target signed T206 cards as their primary hobby goal? This fascinating blog post outlines those efforts and gives insight into the early days of autograph collecting.
The Boss: Back to Baseball Cards (Ryan O’Hara)
Ever wondered what sort of career path might lead you to the highest office within the baseball card industry? In this piece, Ryan O’Hara gives you some idea as he relates to the New York Times the story of how his father helped lay the foundations that would eventually land Ryan in the CEO slot with Topps (he stepped out of that position in 2013).
The Great Baseball Card Bubble
Back in 2010, Dave Jamieson released one of the best books about baseball cards ever written: Mint Condition. With Baby Boomers hitting retirement age and Gen Xers moving into mid-career, the book drew interest from all corners, including Slate, who presented this excerpt to their readers.
Baseball Card Collecting Poised to Pull Out of Slump
By Opening Day of 2010, everyone knew that baseball cards from the 1980s weren’t worth spit — the market crash was complete. But T.W. Burger at Penn Live maintained that the hobby was on the verge of a comeback, and he cited the experiences of several veteran collectors and dealers as evidence. So what do you think — are baseball cards “back”?
Baseball Cards’ Value Based on Many Factors
It’s always interesting to see what mainstream folks think about our little hobby, and baseball cards tend to get a fair amount of play in business-related publications. The Spokesman-Review, a Spokane-based newspaper, took on the ever-popular question of how to figure out card values in their business section with this piece. They hit most of the familiar tropes and struck a truism with one of the final quotes from Topps’ Warren Friss:
They’re meant to be fun, and looked at and played with. It’s not always about making an investment. For some
people it’s just the fun of looking at their heroes.
The Baseball Card Hall of Infamy
Some baseball cards transcend their 2-1/2″ x 3-1/2″ boundaries to become American icons because of their importance — the T206 Honus Wagner, the 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle rookie card, the 1989 Upper Deck Ken Griffey, Jr., rookie card. Some cards, though, gain notoriety for being mistakes, visually odd, or just downright silly. Drew Dernavich takes aim at these cards in his Baseball Card Hall of Infamy — be forewarned, though, because some of your favorite cards are likely on this list.
Baseball Cards and Bad Investing
Comedian Joe Zimmerman reflects on his childhood baseball card collection and how he thought it would be worth BIG BUCKS when he 
made it to adulthood. Sound familiar? Zimmerman goes beyond the usual lament of lost cardboard riches, though, and draws parallels between those cards and other tenuous investments before making some do-buy recommendations of his own. Those included … dirt, weeds, bottled fog, Yugos, and stray cats.
A Baseball Card Artist: What He Does and Why
Baseball Reflections is a site that offers fan and expert insight on all aspects of the game, and this piece is an introduction to artist LaVern Brock by the man himself. If you can’t get enough of diamond art, check out LaVern’s work to see if it resonates with you. (Bet it will!)
Recent Comments