Why don't more people collect Baseball Hall of Fame Rookie Cards?

[Runscott]

Phil, you have won me over. I have decided to collect rookie semi-pro postcards of HOF'ers. But that's as far as I go.

[triwak]

Originally Posted by Runscott

Phil, you have won me over. I have decided to collect rookie semi-pro postcards of HOF'ers. But that's as far as I go.

Uh oh... Another bidding competitor!!

[bcbgcbrcb]

Well then, Scott, do I have some things for you ............

[wake.up.the.echoes]

I find this topic to be completely fascinating. As a child of the 1980s, I have always been taken with the concept of a rookie card. As I turned away from collecting cards from the 4 major sports in the United States (baseball, football, basketball, and hockey), and toward collecting, first, boxing, and now soccer cards exclusively, I have tasked myself with identifying and collecting the "rookie" cards of significant players. Soccer doesn't really have an international hall of fame, so deciding the players to collect is a unique part of my pursuit. I am aware of beckett's definition of what constitutes a rookie card. In my own pursuit I decided to try and find the earliest released card for each player. I definie "rookie card" as a player’s earliest appearance on an item made for either collectible or informational purposes. This broad definition of the term allows me to collect a wide array of items. I very much appreciate the ideas that you guys have of setting up a page/database that identifies several options for which rookie card to collect. I think it helps a collector who would prefer a traditional card as a rookie to collect, and also the collector who would prefer to collect the earliest collectible, regardless of the "medium" on which it is presented. I hope to emulate/imitate some of your work with regard to creating a soccer database.

[Runscott]

I have never felt the need to collect rookie cards, but I could see building a collection of images of each great pre-wwi player.

'HOF' designation doesn't mean much to me, as the HOF is missing a lot of key players. 'Card' doesn't mean much to me, as a beautiful cabinet photo beats the hell out of an ugly 'rookie' card - besides, everyone has a different definition of 'card', and everyone has a different definition of what a 'rookie' card is.

Example - My cabinet of the 1906 Pirates has the greatest Fred Clarke image I know of. Why would I need a card that wasn't part of a set I collect?