Police in Delaware, OH have arrested a suspect in connection with the weekend burglary and theft of a 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle card. Delaware, OH police say a 23-year-old man was taken into custody in Indianapolis, where he was trying to sell the card. Capt. Adam Moore of the Delaware City Police Department told the Columbus Dispatch that Giancarlo Venditti, … [Read more...]
Notes: Khalil Mack Finally Signs; Tiger Putter Brings Big $; Canseco to Hit Homers, Sign Autos for Card Shop
It’s taken awhile—and apparently taken a small army to get it done—but Khalil Mack has finally signed his 2014 Playoff Contenders rookie cards. Panini America announced Monday that it would begin fulfilling redemption cards that were issued upon the product’s January 15 release. No specific reason was given as to why it took so long to get Mack to sign, but Panini says … [Read more...]
Grading Companies Give Much Needed Boost to Junk Wax Era
Broadly defined as baseball cards produced from the late 1980s through the early 1990s, the "Junk Wax Era" is often cited as a primary reason for the crash of the industry felt in the late 1990s. The gist is that cards produced during that time were usually printed in far greater quantities than many collectors believed. As a result, supply became much greater than demand. That … [Read more...]
Jose Canseco Headlines Day One of The National
If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? Similarly, if Jose Canseco is invited to sign autographs (for free!) and no one shows up, is he really there? Wednesday night, the 1988 American League Most Valuable Player hit Rosemont, IL to take part in opening night of The 38th National Sports Collectors Convention and alongside NBA … [Read more...]
What I Collect: Tanner Jones – Jose Canseco Supercollector
This is the latest in an ongoing series of articles written by readers who tell the stories of the sports memorabilia they collect and why. Like many of you reading, my baseball journey started as a child. I was captivated by the game, and one player in particular: Jose Canseco. His violent swing, and titanic home runs were addicting. Collecting … [Read more...]
1986 Donruss 30th Anniversary: 5 Memorable Cards
At the time of production and in the years that followed, the 1986 Donruss baseball set appeared to have long-term viability in the trading card market. Headlined by slugger Jose Canseco and the set's popular 'Rated Rookies,' it became a popular set among collectors within its first few years. In addition to the standard 1986 Donruss set, the company released its popular 'The … [Read more...]
Ramblings: Reality Tie Makes Our Hobby Stand Out
Back in the day when I would interact with either newspaper reporters or radio hosts while working at Beckett, a question which often arose was: "What makes sports cards different as a hobby than stamps, coins or other hobbies?" While at that time we were still heavily kid focused, I would explain how ours was connected to current events—sort of a “living hobby”. Every new … [Read more...]
Ramblings: Mistakes, I’ve Made a Few
I recently saw a great thread on one of the hobby message boards which was titled: “What was your worst hobby mistake?” With very few exceptions, we all can admit to errors we made, from selling Mike Trout cards too soon (I thought I did great with my 2011 Updates at $20 each) to not selling fast enough. On that one, just ask anyone who dealt cards circa 1990 and ask them if … [Read more...]
Canseco Selling Autographs… Interviews?
Jose Canseco has gone all Pete Rose. Nearly every day, he can be found at a memorabilia store inside a Las Vegas resort hotel on the strip, signing autographs for pay. The fact that he's doing it isn't shocking. The fact that someone actually thought there might be a market for him is what's strange. The cheapest Canseco autograph, an 11x14 photo is $59. But that's a … [Read more...]