The most valuable card I own is... was a stolen card.

[AstroJake09]

Hi all,

Yes, the most valuable card I own is a stolen card, you read correctly.

The card is a 1997 Upper Deck SP Inside Info #1 Ken Griffey Jr. and I stole it from my Dad.

When I was a kid, my Dad had a Nike shoebox with a few basketball and football cards in it, mostly cards that my brother and I gave him when we we're younger. I suspect he only kept them since they we're from his kids as he wasn't too concenred with sports collectiables. Being that he was a Seattle native, my Dad loved all things Seattle, especially his Seahawks and Sonics and while he didn't follow baseball, loved the Mariners as well. Of course it had been quite a while since they had any real success but he would always tell me stories of the 1995 Mariners and his favorite player of all time, Ken Griffey Jr. He told me about meeting Griffey when my Dad was at a Car Toys in Seattle with his best friend. Junior was there getting his SUV pimped out and my Dad noticed him and they walked over and chatted with him. Griffey showed them his ride and my Dad said that the sound system was insane and Griffey even had #24 stiched into the headrest of his seats. Another time he told me the story of when he was at the AL West tiebreaker against the Angels and stormed the field with the rest of the crowd that day (my Uncle told me later that Dad even scooped up dirt from home plate and brought it home.)

He had so many awesome stories and memories to share and I can confidentiality say that this is what ignited my own passion for sports but back then I was just starting out. After Dad told me the stories I went and flipped through what little cards he had, just curious as I didn't have many of my own save for some football. That's when I came across the 1997 Upper Deck SP Inside Info #1. It was beautiful, it was shiny and it was Griffey. It even mentioned our favorite baseball movie, Little Big League... I will never be able to explain why I did it but I took it. I put it in my room and when I went to my Mom's the card came with me. I didn't even ask my Dad if I could borrow it or have it, I just swiped it. Since my memory is a bit fuzzy, I don't know how long I actually held onto it before I began to feel remorseful but it was either for Father's Day or his Birthday (I'm leaning towards the former) but I actually regifted it to my Dad. Yes, I gave it back to him as a present. What made it worse was that it was a last minute gift where I used elmers craft glue and made him a card out of plain paper and within that card contained a pocket. Inside that pocket I placed this card. The problem was that the glue hadn't dried yet so the Griffey card almost became glued shut and stuck to the paper. Thankfully since it still hadn't dried by this time (I used a lot of glue) we we're able to peel the card off.

So, Dad got his card back and he was none the wiser (for all I know.) I don't even know where he got it originally or when, it might have been one that my brother and I gave him unknowingly and if so, I can't remember. I'll never be able to explain why I took it though but the memory has stayed with me all this time. My Dad passed away in 2016 two weeks before my 17th birthday. One of the things that I recieved of his was that brown Nike shoebox with his cards. There we're even less cards now than when I first saw it as a kid but one of the cards that remained was the 1997 Upper Deck SP Inside Info #1. By now it was a bit rough, had some paper loss and chipping and the bottom edge was split but I looked over it and remembered the stories my Dad would tell me and his love for Junior. I remembered my fiasco with it that no one but myself knew of. I put it away with my own cards and a while later finally put it in a case after it had been sitting around chilling in raw condition for 19 years. Anytime I look at the card, the memories flood back (I have tears in my eyes right now.) Never has there been a card I've been so attached to as this, yet at the same time is so meaningless to everyone else in the world. It's not a short print, not signed and not a relic... it's base but no other card is more valuable. It's almost been five years without my Dad now, but each time I pick up the card it hits me all over again. The smiles, the awe, the fear of being caught red handed, the saddness and pain but most of all it's the love.

So this is the story of my most valuable card and how I was for a brief time a bandit on the run.

Stay safe all.

[71buc]

Thanks for sharing. That sounds like a priceless card to me. I was at that play off game as well and will never forget the joy of seeing Langston laying on his back at home plate in defeat.

[h2oya311]

Beautiful story. Thanks for sharing. I am happy this wasn’t a story about a NYPL stolen card. I’m sorry for your loss. That card truly sounds priceless.

[cornhusker]

Thanks 4 sharing. I think I'm going to sit down with my kid this morning (everything is closed due to snowstorm) and dig thru some cards.

[AstroJake09]

Originally Posted by cornhusker

Thanks 4 sharing. I think I'm going to sit down with my kid this morning (everything is closed due to snowstorm) and dig thru some cards.

We've got snow too. That sounds perfect. If you're sitting there going through the cards with them, then maybe they won't steal them from you Have a great time!

Also... Sko Buffs!

[scooter729]

Great story - I enjoyed the read, and glad you have the card to help recall such happy memories of your dad...

[AstroJake09]

Quick update on this story.

As with all the cards I gave my Mom and Dad as a kid, they all had a theme, favorite team or player etc. A while back after I came home from college over winter break, I looked through the small binder that my Mom keeps some of the cards my brother and I gave her. They were all Astros cards save for a few (she’s the reason I’m a ‘Stros fan) however, I noticed there was another UD “Inside Info” card in the binder and suddenly remembered where the cards, including the ‘97 Griffey, came from.

When I was a kid, we had a neighbor at the end of the street who was a big time collector and upon downsizing his collection, gave my brother and I a couple of those long rectangular boxes of cards. Looking back now, there isn’t a doubt in my mind that this is where the Griffey came from.

To break it down, the card was originally gifted to me, I certainly must have given it to my Dad, stole it back, felt guilty and gave it back to him, and now I have it again but really I’m just taking care of it for Dad.

The life of a card… it’s never that simple though.

[rjackson44]

Terrific read