Taking a Deeper Look at Myself

 In searching for somebody to profile, I discovered that there aren't really any famous collectors with much to write about.  So I thought I would ahead and pull the unprecedented step of profiling myself.  Doing so can be a difficult thing to do, because accurately portraying yourself can be one of the most difficult things to do.

As I have mentioned before, I collected as kid, but stopped in my teens.  The hustle and bustle of teen life generally isn't too conductive to slower paced things and I would place card collecting in that category.  As time passed and I got into my early adult life, I got more in the hobby.  I primarily focus on rookie cards as generally they have pretty good value both now and in the future.  Some of my prized possessions are rookie cards such as 2010 Stephen Strasburg which was a very highly touted card as it was coming into the scene.  

I grow older and my tastes change.  Over the past couple of years, I've gained a new found appreciation for older cards.  Mostly cards from the 80's and 90's, getting these cards is interesting for me because although I was not alive during this area, it's still a great era in baseball history.  I'm sure my tastes will continue to change and evolve as time goes on.  The same is true in life and the more I think about it, the more life and card collecting go hand and hand.    

The following is a picture of me at one of my first baseball games.  

Interview with an Experienced Card Collecter

 For this post I have conducted a short interview with an experienced card collector who has asked to remain nameless.  His answers showed that despite perception the hobby is dying, this hasn't lost the most committed and they remain steadfast on continuing to complete their collection.  This is their story.

Q: How long have you been card collecting?

A: I started card collecting when I was 12 years old in 1984, it was a pastime that my late father passed down to me.  It's much different from what it was back then.

Q: How has card collecting changed over your nearly 40 years in the game?

A: The more things change, the more they stay the same is a famous quote and I believe it applies here.  When I was a kid and trading at the local hangouts, it's not much different then when I attend a auction or a convention.  There is a little bit of being a kid in everybody and collecting brings me back to my childhood if that makes sense.

Q:  What advice do you give to new card collectors?

A: Collect everything!  It is impossible to know when values of certain cards are going to change, and these changes can happen long after the playing career of any given card is over.  Don't be afraid to trade if it furthers your collection.  Many new collectors get in the habit of having to "win" every trade.  Don't think like this, think if it gets you closer to getting what YOU want, do it!

Reviewing the 2020 Rookie Cards

 Looking over rookie cards and properly valuing them is crucial to building a good collection as I have mentioned in passing over and over again on this blog.  Today, I will look over the 2020 rookies and "rate" the value of a couple of them.  

Bo Bichette a SS for the Toronto Blue Jays is an outstanding young player who is continuing the family legacy of his father who also played in the MLB.  As a result of both factors, one day if he has the career I suspect he will have, his rookie card will spike in price.  Right now, countless of these cards are up in eBay and supply is high so it's only going for roughly a $1.  

Dylan Cease is a special one for me because I was in attendance at Guaranteed Rate Field for his MLB debut July 3rd, 2019.  I went with some friends because we all suspected Cease would become a very successful big leaguer.  Despite some early struggles, he has really started to become more successful in the early portion of the 2021 season.  I think prices of his card will only increase in value as time passes.  

The 3rd and final card I will review is much different from the other two.  Danny Hultzen  won't have any more cards made after him, despite it looking much different in the early 2010's.  Drafted early in the 1st round of 2011 by the Seattle Mariners, he looked primed for greatness.  However many injuries and minor league stops later, he made his long awaited MLB debut 9 years later in 2019 for the Cubs as a 29 rookie.  He threw 3.1 innings and then retired following another year in the minors in 2020.  Some players careers take very interesting paths and Hultzen is one of those.    

 

Linking to A Beginner's Guide to Buying, Selling, and Collecting Baseball Cards

I read a very detailed article on the hobby of collecting cards at A Beginner's Guide to Buying, Selling, and Trading Baseball Cards - HobbyLark.  As far as being attached to the hobby, this person is very in-tune with everything that is going on and claims to have more then 30 years of experience.  

Some things that I have not covered on my blog include the ways to acquire cards which include trading, online, and retail stores.  My primary way of collecting cards has been retail stores as Target used to carry the complete set from each year, I'm not sure they still do.  By online, the author is referring to eBay or other auction sites.  These sites are good for the collecting of just one or a couple cards are often utilized as a means to build a collection.  For example, if you wanted to collect every Bryce Harper card ever made you made you would not want to go to Target.  You would want to go to eBay. 

   Shown above is an example of a Bryce Harper 2012 Topps Rookie Card.  This card was very highly sought after at the time it was produced as Harper was a very popular prospect who many had projected to do great things in the major leagues.  We have discussed the appeal of rookie/prospect cards in another post and Bryce Harper is yet another example of that.  Also something that was discussed that applies here, as time passes on and this card gets older and older, it's value will likely increase because supply gets lower.  

This article is very detailed and I recommend my readers giving it a look when they have the time.   

Top 5 Mistakes New Collectors Make

The Top 5 Mistakes in order:

 1. Every card has a value and that value is always changing.  Not understanding value of cards is often a mistake new collectors make.  Selling too early is the most common mistake.  

2. On the contrary of the first mistake, some collectors hold cards too long.  For example, rookies that come up with lots of promise but flop, those cards will lower in value.  These cases are more tough to time right right.

3. Keeping care of your cards is important and finding proper storage is key to maintaining the value of these cards.  A dusty shoebox is not the place.  

4. Keep every card that you come into contact with, don't throw any away under any circumstances for the simple reason that supply and demand is always changing.  

5. Don't remain so reluctant to do trades with other collectors, sometimes a trade benefits everybody.

As you can see, most of these mistakes are based on understanding the laws of supply and demand.  Basically, if you took a HS economics class you would understand these laws.  Typically, supply and demand are constantly shifting and that is no different in the card market.  If a high-school student can understand it, then practically every adult should be able to as well in order to avoid these common mistakes.  New collectors can make sure to make their transition into the hobby rather seamless just by understanding these common mistakes and the reason they are made by newcomers often.      

Critiquing the Collecting Community

Critiquing things can be difficult, especially when the thing you are critiquing is something that you are very passionate about.  That is the case in this instance as I am looking at the community and something that they can improve on.  

It boils down to the fact that for the most part the community is very civil and respectful towards each other.  However, as with with group, on the fringes there are some bad apples that ruin it for everybody.  These bad apples are usually trying to take advantage of newer collectors, stealing cards, and doing just about everything to collect all they want.  Don't get me wrong, I love collecting, but that doesn't mean by ill means.  When bad people do bad things, it makes less people want to get into the hobby.  In the real world when an employee makes a bad impression on a customer, they don't usually come back for a second time.  The same rings true in the card collecting community, so in order to keep the hobby alive and well we must make sure to unite together.   

The community as a whole needs to rid ourselves of these people and group ourselves in with the people that push the hobby forward as a whole.  In one of my previous posts, I discussed that act of card collecting is on the downswing and there is absolutely no stopping that downswing if these people continue to act like they have been able to.  It takes a community to change.        

Respecting the Game Rant

 Ranting is something that I take great caution in doing, however sometimes it's necessary.  I will leave a warning that a rant isn't any good unless the author strays a bit off topic into a related but distant dimension.  

In today's game of baseball are being taught to have fun and disrespect the game by doing so.  Throwing bats, yelling at opposing players, etc.  I'm not a fan of this in the least as I feel it degrades the quality of the game into something you would see out of a NBA game (meaning very low quality).  Players need to show up to work each day, ready to play the game the right way.  Not showing off after hitting a homerun, but hustling to first base just in case that ball doesn't get over the fence for a HR.  

For example, in the GIF above, Jose Bautista of the Toronto Blue Jays is shown "pimping" a homerun.  And sure this ball probably gets over the fence 95/100 times based on his reaction, but the 5 times that it doesn't?  You look like an absolute clown who will probably be thrown out at second base when trying for a double.  

MLB has tried to market this behavior as acceptable, but I don't really see anyway in which this would be allowed in the workforce.  Could you imagine an employee "pimping" a sales pitch?  Thinking he had made the sale and doing a crazy celebration only to find out that the client had replied, "I don't need this product."  The employee should be fired on the spot for such an act.  Respecting the game of baseball is something that I am very passionate about and it's beyond me how MLB could promote such terrible acts.  

Predicting the Future of Card Collecting

 At first glance, card collecting appears to be a well established hobby that isn't going away any time soon.  However after peeling back the surface and taking a closer look at things, there are causes for concern.  

The art of trading baseball cards in school yards is sadly a thing of the past.  This art was taking place in the 70's and 80's, but not so much in recent years as technology has become more prevalent for younger and younger kids.  Kids just aren't as interested in sports cards as they would be in their iPhone for example. 

The hobby has always been based on supply and demand and more specifically item scarcity.  Topps and other companies like them are now producing cards at record rates, meaning as the years pass by the cards from recent years aren't gaining value like they have in the past.  In fact, they are often losing value as time goes on because the supply is go great.  If supply continues to produce at the current rate, I predict that less and less people will be inclined to get into the hobby.  

My final reason is simply the decline in sports cards being pushed by people.  When I was a child, I got into the hobby because my family seemed to have an interest in it.  As the older generations start to pass or move on in life, the hobby continues to lose life.  It's unlikely that today's kids would pick on the hobby by themselves because the marketing is as far as I can tell nonexistent.  

All of this to say, that you had better enjoy the hobby while it lasts because the art of card collecting could be changing rapidly in the near future.         

Case Study: Mickey Mantle 1952

  This post will serve as a case study of one of the most famous baseball cards ever shown below (Mickey Mantle 1952 Topps Card)

This card, the card published directly after his 1951 rookie card is so popular because of the iconic photo, the rarity in which it is seen, and the player shown on the card.  The card when found in certified mint condition sells for upwards of over 2,000,000 dollars.  As mentioned in the last post, the crazy price is mainly due to the fact that only 3 are known to exist.  There are very likely more, often there are stories of people not knowing what they have or finding it in a basement years after it was placed there.  But only 3 have ever been identified, so this card when in mint condition could make you a very nice profit.  

 

The pose in which he is looking off into the distance is apparently very popular as it signifies the changing of the guard in CF for the Yankees from Joe DiMaggio to Mantle.  As Joe was about to retire, Mantle is seen looking off into the distance ready for a very successful Yankees tenure.  This card sits #2 on the highest value behind a Hall of Fame shortstop Honus Wagner card.  

This is not meant to diminish other sports and their collective cards, but baseball is known to have the most historic cards and cards that garner the most money.  Other sports cards generally earn only a fraction of what the top cards in baseball will reach.  This Mickey Mantle is just one of the many examples of that being the case. 

 

Identifying Good Cards

 The practice of identifying "good" cards in this case refers to cards that will hold higher value.  It goes without saying a general rule of thumb that the better the player, the more valuable that given card will be.  However at the end of the day, that is all it is: a general rule of thumb.  Let's get into instructing you on what you should be looking for.

- Older cards are more valuable then newer cards.  Why?  This is because as time passes supply of these older cards becomes less and less.  A new general Topps Now card published in 2021 is going to hold much less value then a card published in 1921.  

- I briefly mentioned it above, but generally the better the player the more valuable the card is.  Everybody is looking for the Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, etc. cards, because 1) They were outstanding players 2) As we have already gotten into, those are older cards.

- Rookie cards, usually signified by a little R with a red circle in the left hand lower corner are going to generally hold very high value.  Many traders make it a habit to load up on rookie cards, so if the player does go onto have a great career that trader will generally be able to flip them for a lot more money then they originally paid for them.  It's effectively like trading stocks in that you are trying to gauge future value without there being 100% guarantee of profit.  

These are just three of the things that you should be looking for when doing business, I will likely get into more over future postings.  

Introducing Carter

I'm Carter Evans, the creator of Carter's Rare Cards.  I have long been interested in the collection of sports cards, primarily baseball and I created this blog in an effort to connect those with that same passion.  Many people can admit to at one point collecting and then stopping and that is the same for me.  Life got in the way of my hobby for a while, however I am now back in full force.  As far as other sports go, I will be mainly focusing on baseball however people with other sports as their primary are encouraged.  It can never be a bad thing to spread the "wealth."  

As a soon to be college graduate, my collection habits have resumed and I'm looking to continue to grow my collection through any means necessary.  Whether that be trading, buying, selling, or flipping.  The choice is yours, my posts are meant to simply grow the following, promote certain cards or strategies for acquiring them.  My next post will be detailing how to know the value of certain cards and understanding why some cards are more valuable then others.  The goal is to get everybody what they want and grow a sense of community.  I look forward to accomplishing this goal through my postings on this site.  

I look forward to getting to know my readers so if you are interested in other details regarding myself, please feel free to leave and a comment and I can fill in any details as requested.  Have a great day!

- Carter