Why do you collect baseball cards?

[rainier2004]

I typed this into the search and no results were found. I just want to read how others feel about this. Do baseball cards rekindle memories, remind you of freinds/family, to make money, feel young or all of the above?

Recently my wife and I bought (2) e107s...the plan was to actually invest in these cards as the economy is crap...I have NEVER invested in a card and Ive collected for 27 years. But, we decided to do this. When they came in the mail I gave her the box to open and she sat in "the chair" and opened them very delicately. When the first card came out I saw her excitement and got a bit giggly myself. I watched her eyes get big with a big "Wow" come from her mouth followed with "That sure looks nicer than a 1" (You gotta love her!)..and felt like i was 7 yrs old again buying my first 35 cent wax pack.

The cool thing about cards is I also had the same feeling when I purchased my first kaline, clemens or gehrig cards...they make me feel like a kid again and I still have yet to find something else that has that effect. I carry my new cards around w/ me, they get new "neighborhoods" and places and eventually they find their permanent home. They tie me to my childhood, history of the game and our country and has always been a way for me to bond with my father and now father-in-law.

That is why I collect baseball cards. Id like to hear about your reasons or you can call me a sissy boy and move on with life all the same.

[Robextend]

I collect for many reasons but first and foremost because I have a deep love and appreciation for the history of the game. I feel collecting cards connects me to the game I love so much.

[sportscardpete]

To pick up chicks...



Kidding, haha, I usually collect because I love history and baseball. Those two subjects tie together with this hobby.

[ChiefBenderForever]

It's fun and is a much healthier escape from reality than hookers and blow, seriously......

[2dueces]

Collecting picture of dead men is sure a great pick up line for chicks. Try it some time.

[sportscardpete]

Originally Posted by 2dueces

Collecting picture of dead men is sure a great pick up line for chicks. Try it some time.

I assume so, girls love that kind of stuff!

[Howe’s Hunter]

baseball and marketing. Have only collected t206s, but would love to have been in the room when the marketing guy said "we could get the kids hooked on tobacco by putting pictures of their favorite players in the packs. We'll make a fortune!"

[jp1216]

Good question. For the most part, I'd say the 'feeling like a kid again' aspect is the strongest (for me). I love sorting through cards, trading, scanning, displaying, attending shows and talking about them (Net54). The fact that they have financial value is nice, but doesn't drive me. I bought some cards 20 years ago 'as an investment'. I did flip them years later for a gain, but didn't enjoy it. Those cards were never 'mine'.
When my kids see me with my cards, they see the enjoyment. I love it when they say I should grow up...

[greenmonster66]

For me why I love collecting so much it takes me away from the hectic rat race of work,etc. It is my private time to enjoy and relax collecting the immortals of our past. I actually envision me going back in time to the roaring 20s or 30s and seeing these ballplayers and all close up and see a time in life when things were I guess better off perhaps??? Overall enjoyable hobby and quite relaxing to me!!

[scmavl]

My wife would say it's because "I like old things". Same reason I write with a fountain pen.

I open 80's packs to feel like a kid again.
I collect vintage for the nostalgia/history of the game.
I open modern to make money to buy more vintage.

[rainier2004]

Originally Posted by jp1216

When my kids see me with my cards, they see the enjoyment. I love it when they say I should grow up...

Thats awesome!

[freakhappy]

Steven, great thread by the way.

I've collected cards ever since I was eight years old and I'm 32 now, so its been something I've done for most of my life. I've always loved sports and in the past five years or so, my passion for the hobby has exploded. I don't really buy cards for their monetary value, but do love to find the great deal. I do occasionally flip cards to make a little money to help in other areas of my collection.

All I can really say is that I've loved collecting since I was young, going to trade night at Jim's Dugout being able to see other's collections and money never being a factor at all, just liking certain players. One huge thing for me was being able to buy certain cards like Walter Payton and Wayne Gretzky's rookie because when I was young, that was only a pipedream and not reality, owning them that is. Every once in a while I go through my cards and admire them and pick up the Payton or other like cards and still marvel at them like they are a million bucks...gotta love it.

Overall, it's a hobby that I love and enjoy and there is so much to learn about it and has a great following as well. I can't say how happy I am to have found Net54 as are many others are as well...such a great site to learn and purchase cards otherwise I could not have.

Mike

[97manoftroy]

I started collecting cards as way to spend more time with father. He was a die had dodger fan so as way to needle him I started collecting any and everything new york yankee. We were able to share a lot of laughs and alot of great memories. After 15 years I had to liquidate my entire collection to cover his funeral expenses.

I just started thinking about collecting cards again after 11 years away from it. Reading this board has actually helped me find that kid inside again. I think thats the main reason I do it. Its just some pictures on cardboard but they all carry a story.

(sorry if I got off track there)

[vintagecpa]

Collecting post-war cards is a hobby. Collecting pre-war cards is a disease that doesn't appear to have a cure. My wife has nearly the same reaction when I open one of my packages. Except she channels all her positive energy into raising one eyebrow, grinding her teeth and asking "now how much did that one cost?" I guess collecting cardboard pictures of dead sports figures doesn't capture everyone's imagination.

[rainier2004]

Originally Posted by freakhappy

One huge thing for me was being able to buy certain cards like Walter Payton and Wayne Gretzky's rookie because when I was young, that was only a pipedream and not reality, owning them that is. Every once in a while I go through my cards and admire them and pick up the Payton or other like cards and still marvel at them like they are a million bucks...gotta love it.

You GOTTA love it!

97man:
I dont think any of us are on track...its amazing that old cardboard can help w/ a loss as well.

[Cardboard Junkie]

......Because I'm not gay? Really because it's as close to a time machine that I have found. Aloha, Dave.

[90feetaway]

The cards are a tangible connection to the game I enjoy. For example, it was neat for me to read about the Merkle game and then go out and be able to buy one of his cards. Especially as you get to Pre WW1, it's really cool seeing the old uniforms and gloves.

[Jcfowler6]

THE RUSH!


Yeah you know what I mean.

[mrmopar]

I don't know if there is a way to fully explain it. I'm sure there are forces here that are in part controlling some impulses or behaviors.

I enjoy collecting cards, but I think sometimes it's more of a chase or a challenge. Trying to find all of a certain type or player has some exciting factors. Spending money on these cards seems irrational though, as there are probably better things to spend my money on at this point in my life.

Part of me thinks that maybe this "investment", at least the monetary portion, may pay off for me or my family at a later point. However, I collect what I enjoy and don't worry so much about the resale value. That is evidenced by my extensive player collection of Steve Garvey!

I do love looking through boxes of cards that I have not looked at in a while. It rekindles the excitement of opening packs of cards, which I rarely do anymore.

[rdixon1208]

Originally Posted by ChiefBenderForever

It's fun and is a much healthier escape from reality than hookers and blow, seriously......

I feel ya Johnny

[Kzoo]

I love history, baseball, and the 'thrill of the hunt'......in no particular order.

[DixieBaseball]

..."Beisbol (cards) has been very very good to me."

[pitchernut]

collect cards, I collect baseball ephemera of winning pitchers in the world series and perfect no-no hurlers.

[z28jd]

I collect Dots Miller stuff because...

1- I collect old cards
2- I collect Pirates stuff
3- I collect players born in the same town as I was
4- I collect players who have six relatives in commons with me

That last part narrows it down to just John Barney "Dots" Miller

[murcerfan]

I'm just in it for the hookers and blow.

....wait.

what?

[uffda51]

The food service quality at the National.

[itjclarke]

Originally Posted by rainier2004

When the first card came out I saw her excitement and got a bit giggly myself. I watched her eyes get big with a big "Wow" come from her mouth followed with "That sure looks nicer than a 1" (You gotta love her!)..
.

WOW!! I hope you realize how lucky you are!! I'm getting married in a few months and am pretty much resigned to knowing I'll be opening my cards in a dark empty room by myself for fear my wife will see the eBay invoice pop out.

I'm 34, have collected my entire life and I think you nailed it with your comment about first Kaline, Gehrig etc. It's ALL about that feeling! When I was a small kid it was about the gum and getting Dodgers cards (my dad was a Brooklyn fan).. always hoping to score a Garvey. Once I came to my geographic senses, it was about getting Giants cards and anyone whose career ERA was under 3.50 or batting average above .300 (that same dad tought me stats well). When 1987 rolled around, it was about snatching up all the Topps Will Clarks, Wally Joyners, Mark McGwires, Jose Cansecos in sight (what an incredible set at the time). Over the past 10-15 years, the cards have generally become nicer (i.e. that first Mays, Mantle, Mathewson, etc) and I'm driven to collect them by a love of baseball history, but that same feeling holds true when I open a padded envelope. It's all about getting hold of something that perfectly "hits the spot" at that particular moment in your life. That said, I'll still always be able to connect directly to that boyhood feeling when I flip through my old binders and come across a page full of '88 Greenwells.

Getting good deals is a distant 2nd to me, but is also very fun. Lots of fair and even great deals on N54, and I love buying cards others seem to dismiss.. especially great looking OC/MC qualified cards. My taste is not always in line with the mainstream on them, which in my opinion makes for a lot of "good" deals. Also always very nice to buy from good people and ones you know really appreciate how much you liked the card. I've had some pretty cool transactions like that on N54 (even on eBay). Really enjoy that about this board.

[itjclarke]

[QUOTE=mrmopar;931874]That is evidenced by my extensive player collection of Steve Garvey!QUOTE]


Ha! I just bought a 1975 Topps Garvey for like $1.75. I love that card!!

[4k6]

I collect for "shimming" purposes. The window on my old apartment door kept rattling so I stuck a 64 Aaron in the pane crevice. My coffee table has a slightly short leg, so I put a 71 Vida Blue and a 59 Killebrew under it. A stack of 82 Quisenberrys fixed the clawfoot bathtub's drainage problem. Simple solutions for simple problems.

[Tinola]

I'm gonna start collecting vintage cards since I feel like modern cards are not for me because I know a lot about the modern players and such but not the past. I want to learn more about the game's past. I'm 19 yrs old and started loving baseball since my first time going to a baseball game weeks after moving here in the US from the Philippines 8 yrs ago. I still love it up to this date, but have really no idea about its history. And I feel like I'm missing a lot of things related to baseball.

[rainier2004]

Originally Posted by itjclarke

WOW!! I hope you realize how lucky you are!! I'm getting married in a few months and am pretty much resigned to knowing I'll be opening my cards in a dark empty room by myself for fear my wife will see the eBay invoice pop out.

I am very aware of how lucky I am. My step-mother, the 4th greatest lady the world trailing wife, mother, and grandmother, wont even stay in the room if bb cards is brought up...the most grief I get is when I have to pickup multiple ot shifts to pay a recent h/s auction or some e145s....But her perspective is wrecked w/ her first 2 cards being e107s!

Tinola:
Collecting became part of my education...First seeing a set I liked, wondering who this cap anson or waddell character is or other players, then look them up and educate myself and finally link them into the foundation of baseball history Ive been building for 30 years...no rush!

[almostdone]

I always love the thought that there is some old timer out there somewhere that at one point got excited (or upset) that he got this card out of the pack. I mean I know it sound simple but every card was a mystery to someone until the popped that pack.

I love to think think that maybe they thought "Yes! I love this guy" or "Oh man! This guy sucks!" or more often than not "Who the heck is this guy?".

No matter what the response I not hold that same card in my hand decades later and probably decades from now someone who I'll never meet will hold the came card in thier hand and think the same thing.

Drew

[tcdyess]

Some great reasons posted many of which are similiar to mine. The love and appreciation of the game of baseball, its ties to our history and its evolution with our culture, the community of collectors sharing stories and helping one another (sometimes), my desire to know as much about my team as possible and hold a connection to its past, and my wish to have something to pass down to my grandchildren (when and if I have any) that will show them a link to myself and what I love.

Hope that's not too corny...

Tim

[CobbSpikedMe]

Originally Posted by ChiefBenderForever

It's fun and is a much healthier escape from reality than hookers and blow, seriously......

Some collectors (Charlie Sheen comes to mind) enjoy both cards and the hookers and blow.

Sorry, I couldn't resist.

[mrmopar]

I've noticed someone trying to sell a 1971 Topps set that they claim was once owned by Sheen. Now the asking price of this particular set is about 5 times what a similar set might typically go for. I have never bothered to email the seller and ask why the fact that Charlie Sheen owning the set makes it 5X more valuable than a set not owned by him. It keeps showing up week after week...

[Fred]

I think Pete summed it up nicely... for the chicks! Yeah, as JD and a few others have mentioned it's hard to beat a pick up line like "ya wanna see my Polar Bear Johnson?"


Who the heck can resist collecting old pictures of dead guys? If you truly love the history of the game then collecting this stuff is for you.

[Section103]

Its fun.
I feel like a bit of a historian.
It caters to my slow, methodical, researching side.
It connects me, a bit, to my youth.
It connects me, a bit, to my grandfather who was a ballplayer.
It connects me, a bit, as a fan because my "list" follows how I follow the game.

[ls7plus]

The cards connect you to the player, and take you back to the time of their issuance--they are truly the history of the game you can hold right in your hands!

Happy collecting,

Larry

[atx840]

Primarily the history, not of baseball per se, but the card. Imagining the life it had from the press to 100+ years later in my hand. To make it that long intact. I like old things.

Secondly their beauty (t206). I am a graphic designer and love everything about the old methods used to manufacture them. Man these cards are purddy.

Third. I like the challenge of working to complete something.

[Doug]

Originally Posted by ChiefBenderForever

It's fun and is a much healthier escape from reality than hookers and blow, seriously......

It's cheaper too!

[39special]

I collect because I like baseball and history.I stopped collecting when I was 16,in the early '80's.My dad was into cars,and I followed his footsteps.From then on my hobby was cars.I built street rods,customs,drag cars, restored antiques.I built a small shop at my house.I would work on cars as my full time job,then come home and work on freinds cars and my own projects.After 25 years of that I became very burned out.About 5 years ago a guy I work with and I started talking about collecting when we were younger.We went to a local mall show,and I've been hooked ever since.My full time job is still working on cars,but baseball collecting is my hobby.It relaxes me and I enjoy it.

[irishdenny]

It's iN me DNA