FUTURE of Baseball cards/collecting...

UODucksbestcollector · Jul 24, 2011

I wonder if anyone thinks like me....

20-40 years down the road what will baseball card collecting be like and will the most expensive sports cards in history still be as such?? While cards with president cut autos and relics prove history matters even to young kids who know little or not much about the person/era...but will baseball players last the same way??

Think about it...will Honus Wagner/ Babe Ruth (among MANY, MANY others) be as valuable OR MORE valuable 20-40 years from now?? Especially after the Baby Boom years...

I'm 26...so i'd like to think what everyone thinks, even the young fellas...even tho i feel old already...sorry grandpa's....

tramers · Jul 24, 2011

You better go back to basic training this grandapa might sneak up on you :lol: :lol: :lol: .
Most future stuff will be high tech in my opinion

UODucksbestcollector · Jul 24, 2011

tramers said:
You better go back to basic training this grandapa might sneak up on you :lol: :lol: :lol: .
Most future stuff will be high tech in my opinion

of course it will be...however...what do you think will happen to the classics?? value WAY UP, UP, SAME, OR DOWN in the future??

ThoseBackPages · Jul 24, 2011

as those of us that are addicted to cardboard start to die, i think that collecting cardboard will fade away.

todays youngsters are too focused on technology and the instant gratification of everything

shayscards79 · Jul 24, 2011

ThoseBackPages said:
as those of us that are addicted to cardboard start to die, i think that collecting cardboard will fade away.

todays youngsters are too focused on technology and the instant gratification of everything

I agree that card collecting will never be as popular as it was because of technology. But I can't help but to think that there will always be a small carboard following even within the younger generations.

The main reason is because of is our love of sports and our idolization of athletes. We seem to love memorabilia as a result of it, cards included.

maxpower · Jul 24, 2011

I took it as a bad sign that when I first clicked on this thread, I got a page that said 'General Error'.

uniquebaseballcards · Jul 24, 2011

For cards to be collectible (and valuable?) IMO people need to appreciate nostalgia and/or need to enjoy cards as "simple works of art".

As nice as technology may be, it obviously isn't art, or at least its not art as it appears on cards. Technology at best is a different kind of collectible than cards, it represents an entirely different medium. Unless you're living in Guttenberg's time, cards aren't technology anyway.

Memorabilia is all about the athlete, much more than a card could ever be, its "closer" to the game and to the athlete. But memorabilia invokes a different sense of nostalgia than cards...and it isn't art either.

StrasburgMania · Jul 24, 2011

I think the Pujols chrome auto will be THE card of the next generation.

TBTwinsFan · Jul 24, 2011

Cards aren't going to be around in 20 years. It amazes me they lasted this long.

It's a mix of things that is going to destroy the hobby. First off, the companies are killing themselves. They are producing products that satisfy (or don't... which ever) the veteran collectors. The key to get something to last is getting the youngins' involved. They aren't producing very much at a cheap level.

Secondly, the patience level, of many is going WAY down. Card collecting takes patience. People want the big cards fast and don't want to wait for them.

Third, the brick and mortar shops are dieing. They are a good fuel for the hobby, providing a lot of stuff that the internet can't offer.

Fourth, I think the interest in professional sports is dieing as a whole. Criminals in the game mixed with money issues and scandals are turning a lot of people away.

I think the classics (and I mean TRUE classics... '33 Goudy Ruth... etc) will always be worth SOMETHING. Antique collectors will never go away. It's like old telephones (I mean, OLD). Do we still use them? No. Does the general public know a lot about them? No. Do they still have collectors? Yup.

rymflaherty · Jul 24, 2011

A concern/question I've had, in terms of where things will stand 20 or so years from now, is regarding parallels and the number of products available. 20 years from now will anyone care if the card is #'d 50 or 250. Especially if the difference is simply foil color, or something else trivial. Or if we're talking sticker auto's....and you can just say an auto is an auto. I wonder if that won't be simply be seen as artificially creating scarcity and with the "hype" of the product long gone, that many cards will fall into the same general price range.

Hopefully there is a "future" and it doesn't fall completely into oblivion as it seems some that have commented think.

brouthercard · Jul 24, 2011

I think Baseball cards and their popularity will start to die off - attendance is down, viewing is down, the popularity of the sport is just dying as the American public continues to give their attention to football, basketball and other sports that are more in tune with the current generation.

nborton · Jul 24, 2011

brouthercard said:
I think Baseball cards and their popularity will start to die off - attendance is down, viewing is down, the popularity of the sport is just dying as the American public continues to give their attention to football, basketball and other sports that are more in tune with the current generation.

Attendance might be down from the highest point. However, basketball isn't doing as hot as it once was either. It's all going to come down to football, and what direction it goes in the future. I have a weird suspicion that football makes many of the same mistakes baseball made when it was king. It wouldn't surprise me in the slightest to see football have some sort of steroid scandal down the road.

Dice-K Collector · Jul 24, 2011

shayscards79 said:
ThoseBackPages said:

as those of us that are addicted to cardboard start to die, i think that collecting cardboard will fade away.

todays youngsters are too focused on technology and the instant gratification of everything

Click to expand...

I agree that card collecting will never be as popular as it was because of technology. But I can't help but to think that there will always be a small carboard following even within the younger generations.

The main reason is because of is our love of sports and our idolization of athletes. We seem to love memorabilia as a result of it, cards included.

I love collecting cards, and will never stop, as long as the hobby keeps running! I want topps to reach 100 years, I cant wait to see that celebration!

brouthercard · Jul 24, 2011

nborton said:
brouthercard said:

I think Baseball cards and their popularity will start to die off - attendance is down, viewing is down, the popularity of the sport is just dying as the American public continues to give their attention to football, basketball and other sports that are more in tune with the current generation.

Click to expand...

Attendance might be down from the highest point. However, basketball isn't doing as hot as it once was either. It's all going to come down to football, and what direction it goes in the future. I have a weird suspicion that football makes many of the same mistakes baseball made when it was king. It wouldn't surprise me in the slightest to see football have some sort of steroid scandal down the road.

Basketball is still in MUCH better shape than it was in the 70's.

Baseball had it's hey-days in the 50's-80's, and now are in an overall downwards spiral.

Granted, I know i'm responding in the baseball section of the message boards, I wish it were different cause I loved it when baseball was king in the late 80's early 90's, it's just sad that it is dying away and may eventually become a "niche" sport in the future...........

shayscards79 · Jul 24, 2011

brouthercard said:
I think Baseball cards and their popularity will start to die off - attendance is down, viewing is down, the popularity of the sport is just dying as the American public continues to give their attention to football, basketball and other sports that are more in tune with the current generation.

So with that logic do you think football and basketball cards will remain popular? Just curious.

tikitomoka · Jul 24, 2011

Vintage and highly notable rookies will be the only cards worth any money 20 years from now. And 20 years after that, the only things still worth anything will be strictly 1960's and back baseball simply because they're historic items.

Prospectmaster · Jul 24, 2011

Im 22 and have collected almost my entire life. My dad got me into the hobby when I was about 2 or three years old and we started going to the K-Mart and Walmarts and buy a big box of late 80's or early 90's Topps Donruss or whatever they had. We both went to all the card shows and whatever else we had the opportunity for. I love the card industry and I will make sure that I collect untill its gone for good. This might sound kinda weird but Cards are what makes me feel good about myself. It makes me wanna work harder at getting a bigger and better collection. I battled depression last year and the only thing that would keep me in a good mood was whenever I bought a card and waiting for it in the mail. It gave me something to look forward too while not being in the greatest times of my life. I have my dad to thank for getting me into a sport and hobby which I dearly love so much. It gave me good friends while playing the game of baseball and got me to watch some of the best talent while I was in High School. I played during some glory years for my Metro Area when it came to High School Baseball Players becoming either College Players or straight to the pro's. My close friend Deck McGuire who is with the Blue Jays Organization was the best high school player in my area during his junior and senior years. He took his High school to one Baseball state final but lost. He took his school to one football state final. Other top players in my area while I played High School Sports included Russell Wilson and Graham Stoneburner who went on to play college and pro sports. There were those who were less fortunate who played pro ball and didn't pan out at all. Justin Bristow was one of them and so was Matt Moses. But thats part of baseball. Anyway I will never give up on cards untill they die or untill I die.

shayscards79 · Jul 24, 2011

Prospectmaster said:
Im 22 and have collected almost my entire life. My dad got me into the hobby when I was about 2 or three years old and we started going to the K-Mart and Walmarts and buy a big box of late 80's or early 90's Topps Donruss or whatever they had. We both went to all the card shows and whatever else we had the opportunity for. I love the card industry and I will make sure that I collect untill its gone for good. This might sound kinda weird but Cards are what makes me feel good about myself. It makes me wanna work harder at getting a bigger and better collection. I battled depression last year and the only thing that would keep me in a good mood was whenever I bought a card and waiting for it in the mail. It gave me something to look forward too while not being in the greatest times of my life. I have my dad to thank for getting me into a sport and hobby which I dearly love so much. It gave me good friends while playing the game of baseball and got me to watch some of the best talent while I was in High School. I played during some glory years for my Metro Area when it came to High School Baseball Players becoming either College Players or straight to the pro's. My close friend Deck McGuire who is with the Blue Jays Organization was the best high school player in my area during his junior and senior years. He took his High school to one Baseball state final but lost. He took his school to one football state final. Other top players in my area while I played High School Sports included Russell Wilson and Graham Stoneburner who went on to play college and pro sports. There were those who were less fortunate who played pro ball and didn't pan out at all. Justin Bristow was one of them and so was Matt Moses. But thats part of baseball. Anyway I will never give up on cards untill they die or untill I die.

... and this story right here just might be the key to keeping the hobby alive. Passing a hobby down from generation to generation. If I ever have a son one day, I'd be more than happy to pass it on to him. Kids might be distracted by social media and video games, but if they see something as simple as card collecting making a person happy, it can be all the difference. Especially if they are already into sports.

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