Deficit reduction

While debt continues to pile up around M Street in our nation's capital, a few miles down the road, 2 of baseball's hottest players' cards are raking in enough dough to make a dent (albeit a tiny one) in that massive deficit :-)  Before the Tommy John Surgery Heard 'Round The World took Stephen Strasburg out of commission until at least 2012, he was carrying both the hobby and his team, which had a relatively strong first half.  While Bryce Harper has yet to wear the Nationals uni just yet, his cards are picking up the Strasburg torch, but to a much lesser extent from a price standpoint.  Still, if his fast minor league start continues, there's a chance those prices could go from "inflated" to "ludicrous".  Perhaps the Tea Party is interested in making the investment to pay down the deficit.  

Bryce Harper's trading cards rising in value

If you're looking to the card shop to send your kid to college......

The Stephen Strasburg example provides the textbook case of how sports cards as an investment are no safer in the long term than anything else you could sink your money into.  If investing in cards provide a better alternative than just taking your life savings and putting it all on one spin of the roulette wheel in Vegas, here's one player recommended as a target to put your money in.  An eBay search of the cards mentioned in the article indicates they can still be had for a song.......as low as 35 cents in one case (plus a rather exorbitant shipping charge for 2 baseball cards).  Then there's this one, which will cost you a little more. 

Clayton Kershaw's Los Angeles Dodgers rookie trading cards starting to pick up investment steam

Before And After........Roy Halladay

Now that the SIXTH no-hitter of the 2010 season has been racked up, including 2 by the same pitcher, can we officially declare the Steroid Era over?  To put in perspective how truly monumental Roy Halladay's performance was in Game 1 of the NLDS, let's take a quick gander at the history books.  It would be enough if it were simply the first postseason no-no since Don Larsen's perfect game in the '56 World Series (only 2 days shy of 54 years ago), but it's also the first time the same pitcher has thrown 2 no-hitters in a season since Nolan Ryan in 1973 (albeit Ryan's 2 were both regular season no-hitters).  What a way to get your first taste of October baseball!

So what did creating history do for Halladay's card values?  Let's examine the crown jewel for Halladay collectors.  As always, eBay is our barometer here. We'll check the selling price of one prior to tonight and another just after the finishing touch was put on the no-hitter. 

1997 Bowman Roy Halladay Auto Rookie

BEFORE - $259.99

AFTER (7:37 PM Eastern) - $299.00

Unlike other players and cards we've covered (Armando Galarraga, Matt Garza, Jahvid Best), we've only seen a 15% spike this time.  With the stakes far higher and the achievement far more impressive, that seems a little unusual, but let's stop a minute and think of the differences this time around.  First and foremost, Halladay has been one of the top 5 players at his position in baseball for an extended period of time.  He should be a dead solid lock for Cooperstown with three to five more seasons like he's put together throughout his career.  His RC values are already pretty far up there.  Second, and relatively speaking, the '97 Bowman being looked at is also pretty rare.  The 2 we compared and contrasted appear to be the only 2 put up on eBay over the past 30 days.  Demand is already there and supply is short.  Finally, the impulse buyer crowd might bite over the next 24 hours or so on the 2 that are currently listed here and here for $399.  Then it begins to look more like the immediate jump we've come to expect with a virtuoso one game performance. 

Still, if you happen to be holding one of the Halladay cards we covered here, you could do worse than picking up somewhere in the neighborhood of $300 for the 5 minutes or so it takes to list it on eBay. 

 

The madness continues.....

With 2 pretty dominant major league starts behind him now, Stephen Strasburg continues to bring the sports card collecting hobby attention unseen since the arrival of the recently retired Ken Griffey, Jr. 21 years ago.

The first major cash-in on the rarities of all things Strasburg came on May 29 with the $16,000+ haul on a 2010 Bowman Strasburg "superfractor".....a true 1/1. Now the other major Strasburg treasure, the 2010 Bowman Red 1/1 autographed card, has been found and can be yours on eBay......for a small fee that can be negotiated.

My best advice for anyone holding anything Strasburg and looking to make money is SELL NOW!!! As anyone who discovered the hobby in the 80's and 90's can tell you......holding onto rookie cards has its ebbs and flows as value goes, and most collectors don't make their living on Wall Street for a reason :-)

From the Fringe to the Mainstream,,,,,,For Now

For possibly the first time since the arrival of Upper Deck and the ensuing boom of the early 1990's, sports card collecting is getting the attention of the mainstream media, and not for a bad reason. TV had "The $25,000 Pyramid", and now the hobby has "The $16,103 Baseball Card". And all the hoopla is for a guy who has yet to spend a day in The Show.

Stephen Strasburg could be the next Nolan Ryan or the next Brien Taylor. But for the moment, he's providing a much needed boost for the hobby and bringing it attention in places where it rarely commands it. When is the last time you read about or saw coverage on the hobby in......

USA Today?
Fox News?
Bloomberg?

The term "phenomenon" definitely applies here, and while a Strasburg chase card won't be affordable on the average kid's weekly allowance, it definitely seems to be signaling a possible renaissance for baseball card collecting. That can only be a good thing. But for a full-fledged return to the halcyon days, card companies need to find a way to bring back the one group that brought them to the dance........the kids. Topps Attax seems to be a pretty good start toward accomplishing that end. Hopefully it provides a building block.

The Strasburg SuperFractor card isn't the only current "holy grail" among collectors. The 2010 Bowman red-bordered autographed Strasburg card is still out there. Best of luck to all who search for it!!

Here's hoping better days are ahead for card shops, collectors, and online dealers! Strasburg Mania is a step in that direction