Player collectors and Super Collectors - what's your story?

Some stories are pretty boring. You like the player so you start collecting his stuff. Your best cards you bought on Ebay. But some are more involved...

Back in about 1996 I needed an outfielder in my fantasy baseball league and picked up Rusty Greer. He did well for me and I was impressed. I watched him play on tv when the Mariners played the Rangers and was again impressed by his all-out play on defense. All this just made me aware of Rusty.

Then one day at a card show I spotted a Select Artists Proof. I was hooked. But with so few card issues my interest started to dwindle. I had also sent him a card in the mail during spring training with no response. I was pretty disappointed.

Then in the fall, I finally got it back. Now the fact that there were so few card issues only gave me an itch I couldn't scratch. Then came 1997, and I scored an artist's proof out of 1997 Score. That was the deal maker. And all that pent-up collector energy from not having enough card issues was unleashed.

In 1998 I discovered Ebay and Beckett Online. Believe it or not, there was actually a LOT of competition. He was still active, he was playing great, and he was a fan favorite in Texas. I soon realized I no longer gave a crap about Rusty Greer - it was about my need to have every single card that bore his name. I was constantly checking back with Beckett to be first in line on new postings.

One day it paid off. A hockey collector in Maine got a wild hair and bought some baseball - Topps Gold Label. He unearthed a Class 3 Black Masterpiece and the shop owner told him to list it to score a profit. He asked for $125 and I did not hesitate. It is still the crown jewel of my collection today.

But eventually I became frustrated. A group of four people, all with far more dispensable income than I had, were picking up all the fantastic Rustys that were coming up on Ebay. To make it even worse, one of these guys was getting people to take down their auctions and deal on the side. Plus postings on Beckett slowed wayyy down. It got to the point where, at best, my collection was maybe 5th best and I was not satisfied with that. I quit, temporarily.

Then I heard that THREE of the other Rusty collectors sold out to the other guy and my collection was officially dwarfed. And I don't mean Shaq vs Muggsy, I mean an elephant vs a flea. That guy had (and has) an incredible Rusty collection and I was the flea. I quit, permanently.

Or so I thought... around 2002 Rusty interest had died down. It was evident his career was coming to an end due to injuries. It was actually a relief to know there would be fewer issues to have to collect, even though I had quit. I always relished the fact that I had a few issues that the super collector wanted. I'd check back on Ebay every few weeks and see fewer and fewer excellent issues pop up only to see the usual suspect or two snatch them up. I bet I went at least five solid years without buying a Rusty Greer.

Just a few months ago I noticed a feature I never knew existed. Buy It Now with Make an Offer. One of my favorite Rusty issues is the 98 Fleer Vintage '63 Classic. I tried to add another by offering just $5 - and it was accepted. Interesting... Then I saw a card I knew I would never have in my collection. A Fleer Starting Nine. And I won it for $15. The habit I had quit almost ten years ago was instantly resurrected.

And so here I am today. A couple of the Richie Riches are still out there looking for Rusty, but I thought if I reach out through trading sites like this one and build a network helping me search for Rusty, maybe I too can have a collection worthy of being called a Super Collection. :ugeek:

Good story. Similar to a lot of us player collectors. There is a player collector list in the "Threads You Should Know About" sticky at the top of the list of Baseball threads.

We'd love to see scans of your nice Greers. Post them in the 1990's insert thread or just create a new thread.

Do you have a photobucket or website for your collection? If so, give us the link.

Can't believe you got a Starting Nine for $15! That's about my most wanted Mark Grace card at this point.

You might enjoy checking out my Mark Grace website... I'm sure you'll see a lot of 1990's cards you're familiar with, and maybe some you're not. It has over 2500 different cards scanned, so it can be a good resource for card identification. I've collected Grace since 1990, the story of why I collect him is on my website on the "Webmaster" page.

Let me know if you have any questions or I can help in any way.

Great background story, RustyGreerFan!

RustyGreerFan said:

Some stories are pretty boring. You like the player so you start collecting his stuff. Your best cards you bought on Ebay. But some are more involved...

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My story isn't too involved...

I collect Adam LaRoche. Although I am a die-hard Red Sox fan, I try to pay as close attention as possible to other teams and players in the Majors. The collection started when Adam was traded to the Sox in July of '09. I was very happy with the transaction, as I had followed his career enough to know he would be a solid addition to the team. Unfortunately, his stint in Boston lasted only 6 games. I decided to keep the collection going, however, and I now run http://www.adamlarochecollector.com.

i collect miguel cabrera, with a focus on 1/1's. i started collecting him because he became my favorite player in the 03 playoffs, especially when he helped beat the suckees. although i try for completion as well (try to get all his cards) my favorites are the 1/1's

gracecollector said:

Good story. Similar to a lot of us player collectors. There is a player collector list in the "Threads You Should Know About" sticky at the top of the list of Baseball threads.

We'd love to see scans of your nice Greers. Post them in the 1990's insert thread or just create a new thread.

Do you have a photobucket or website for your collection? If so, give us the link.

Can't believe you got a Starting Nine for $15! That's about my most wanted Mark Grace card at this point.

You might enjoy checking out my Mark Grace website... I'm sure you'll see a lot of 1990's cards you're familiar with, and maybe some you're not. It has over 2500 different cards scanned, so it can be a good resource for card identification. I've collected Grace since 1990, the story of why I collect him is on my website on the "Webmaster" page.

Let me know if you have any questions or I can help in any way.

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Ditto. I'm lucky that Tony Clark was big enough in the mid-to-late 90's and so he has some pretty nice cards and inserts from that decade. Check out my collection as well if you get bored!

I collect players that i got to talk to when they where in the minors on local team. Many never made above low "A" and being a Pirate fan -well you know how they are.

Hey Pappa where is he in the Reds uni?

You know what rocks about this thread? I went back and looked at the holes in my Hernan Iribarren collection and then went and checked eBay for him (which I haven't done in a looooong time. Sure enough, ending in a little bit, is his 2005 BB gold parallel which I have been looking for for a decade. It should be mine here shortly, and I've basically shut down the collection. He was my first player collector.

subpop77 said:

Hey Pappa where is he in the Reds uni?

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::facepalm::

hive17 said:

You know what rocks about this thread? I went back and looked at the holes in my Hernan Iribarren collection and then went and checked eBay for him (which I haven't done in a looooong time. Sure enough, ending in a little bit, is his 2005 BB gold parallel which I have been looking for for a decade. It should be mine here shortly, and I've basically shut down the collection. He was my first player collector.

Click to expand...

Man, it's only been 5 years, not 10!