Any TV broadcast documenting the aura of a major sporting event invariably uses a few setup shots of people tailgating and then walking into the stadium. It's standard operating procedure. And that one audio clip is always used to help set the scene, just outside the front entrance to the stadium of a vendor: "GET YOUR PROGRAM HERE!" It's been customary over … [Read more...]
Collecting in the New Digital Frontier: Fantasy vs Reality
by Eamonn Donlyn Life comes down to a series of experiences. We are living in an era where ‘the experience’ dominates every walk of life, and the sports collectible market is still adjusting to the digital frontier reality. Sporting leagues are concentrating on creating new ways to engage a very tech savvy audience, with new venues and stadiums looking more like the … [Read more...]
Return of Pitching Creates Quandry for Collectors
by Eamonn Donlyn In the early 1900s, baseball was dominated by strategy and controlled by pitchers, with the likes of Walter Johnson, Christy Mathewson, and Cy Young on the mound. It took Babe Ruth’s prowess at the plate in the 1920’s to break the league out of the deadball era. A sign of the times, even Ruth arguably could have been a Hall of Famer strictly as a pitcher … [Read more...]
Baseball Myths: Invest in 27 Year Olds?
Ah, to be the ripe age of 27 again. If you are an athlete, the 27th year of your life is a very important and momentous one. The body is in prime condition, and combined with just enough experience is set to reach full potential, creating a mythical age for athletic performance. And of course, we can blame baseball for this article. (And so many other things). When it … [Read more...]
Best NBA Player of All-Time? Don’t Forget Who Really Put the ‘O’ in Offense
by Eamonn Donlyn So, the NBA All-Star Game is behind us. Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley are 50 years old. And as we’ve heard repeatedly in the media, Jordan supposedly said he would choose Kobe Bryant over LeBron James, so Kobe did his best to show up LeBron down the stretch in the All-Star extravaganza. In any case, last weekend was a big one for the NBA, with … [Read more...]
Basketball Memorabilia Market Still Dominated By You Know Who
It pays to be King. While ‘King James’ may be dominating the current NBA landscape, there’s really no comparison to the man who paved the way for LeBron and today’s generation of players. Forever there will be on-the-court comparisons to Michael Jordan, and arguments may ensue over the best NBA player of all-time -- forever. With players like Wilt Chamberlain and Bill … [Read more...]
Singles No Longer Moving the Market
by Eamonn Donlyn There are many ‘lost arts’, but from a sports card dealer perspective the simplest one has become the toughest challenge: Selling the single. Once upon a time, single cards were the holy grail. Generally, a rookie single, but not always limited to such. From Ty Cobb to Mickey Mantle to Nolan Ryan all the way to Ken Griffey Jr., the single dominated the … [Read more...]
Market for Vintage Super Bowl Tickets & Stubs is Strong
Nostalgia is a term that definitely comes to mind during Super Bowl week. It’s one of those events that transcends boundaries, where everyone is a football fan regardless of interest level or knowledge of the game. And almost everyone has some kind of Super Bowl memory. Thousands of people travel thousands of miles to be in the super city during the super week, and many of … [Read more...]