Baseball Memorabilia

Baseball Memorabilia Proving More and More Lucrative

As the sport of baseball continues to capture the hearts and minds of millions of fans worldwide, the baseball memorabilia market is becoming increasingly lucrative for players and collectors alike.

One only needs to look on eBay to see countless examples of this phenomenon. I recently visited the site and saw balls, bats, gloves, caps, jerseys and all other forms of baseball memorabilia that had been autographed by players and was being auctioned off to the highest bidder.

For years, it seemed, the major ways professional athletes attained their fortunes was through the money they received from their contracts, or through endorsements. Players would serve as pitchmen for such products as Wheaties and Gatorade.

While those are still the two biggest means to financial gain, autographing baseball memorabilia and other sports paraphernalia is now also a big money-maker. The only question is, does it take away from the significance of the item if it is being produced en masse?

In other words, doesn't going to the ball park and getting baseball memorabilia autographed by Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez mean so much more than just bidding for it online and knowing that it was probably one of a thousand he autographed specifically for the purpose of making money?

For me, the answer is yes. Baseball memorabilia, like anything else that a person collects, is a very personal matter. It means a lot to you because of not only who the person or team is, but how you acquired the item.

For example, I received a copy of a book called “Third base Is My Home” about the great Baltimore Orioles third baseman Brooks Robinson. The book was autographed, and it was a gift from my father, who actually bought the book and had it autographed by Brooks Robinson in person.

A few years later, I received a baseball that was autographed by Pete Rose. Now, to most baseball memorabilia collectors, both items would be considered quality additions to their collections. For me, however, the Brooks Robinson book meant a lot more, because I actually saw a feature on Pete Rose on television where he was autographing hundreds of baseballs to be sold for profit.

Both items were gifts, and I am grateful to have both as part of my baseball memorabilia collections, but the books mean a lot more to me.

I suppose that people will always find a way to make money, and I don't think that there is necessarily anything wrong with that. Baseball memorabilia is very popular and a lot of people have extensive collections, which I think is a great thing. I just make it a personal point to strive for the personal touch when I add a new piece to my collection.