[Topnotchsy]

I just went through the latest REA auction which opened today. Over 4,000 lots, and only 41 of baseball memorabilia, which is largely made up of a number of tickets and a few programs. There are a few signed items as well.

With the explosion in card prices over the past couple of years (even as they have settled a bit, many are still many times more expensive than they were 3 years ago) it seems like we are seeing the auction houses much more heavily focused on cards rather than memorabilia. REA seems to be 95% vintage cards. Goldin is 95% modern cards etc.

I imagine a part of it is that memorabilia collectors are a bit less opportunistic around selling and there are fewer memorabilia items being sent to the auction houses, but I also imagine that for the auction houses, cards are an absolute gift. They take up almost no space, and the process of ID'ing and researching them is minimal/non-existent. It probably takes 5 minutes to create the listing for a Mantle 1952 Topps, and it sells as well or better than the best memorabilia out there, which requires research and a write-up that highlights the piece.

I don't know whether there has been an actual shift taking place, but wonder if some auction houses have decided that memorabilia isn't worth the look. It seems like a few are still more in the memorabilia game more heavily. Just based on my memory of recent auctions I think LOTG, Lelands and Grey Flannel still do a nice amount of memorabilia. Heritage always has some big items, but even there it seem to be more and more cards if I am not mistaken.

I'm curious to see what others think about this. I wonder if we are going to reach a time when some auction houses are basically card auction houses and a few others focus more on filling the void for memorabilia. I don't see why any auction house would turn down the easy money of selling cards though since the work is minimal, and the prices are strong.