Old Becketts

[exigussrex]

Does anyone think it's worth keeping old Beckett magazines? They obviously don't have any functional value, but are they collectible at all? I've got tons of them and I want to just throw them out.

 

[ch2423]

I'm not sure if they're worth anything but before you throw them out, I could use any 1997 and 1998 ones you have. It's fun to go through them and see how high Cruz stuff was booking when he was the "next big thing".

Plus, they can be a valuable resource for older insert sets. If I remember right, there used to be a paragraph of info before each set listing.

 

[rsmath]

I imagine you should at least save the covers.

I save the covers plus a whole magazine (2x a year) so I have a historical price guide. The rest is just newsprint that gets recycled.

 

[bear0555]

I like the old becketts because they used to have good articles. But if they're just taking up space and annoy you, I'd toss them.

 

[Fandruw25]

If they are decent shape you might be able to get a couple bucks from player collector's if their guy is on front/back covers.

 

[autocut]

I through all of mine out. Only kept a couple that I was mentioned in. Same with Tuff Stuff.

 

[jeff550]

put them up on here and see if anyone wants them

 

[craftysouthpaw]

I have every Beckett Baseball from September 1986 until they went to the current format (multi-sport/baseball with the cheaper covers/etc.). I might have all of the Beckett Baseball's since the new format as well but they aren't the same to me. I love the old ones and will use them for autographs from time to time.

The older ones can fetch a couple of bucks on Ebay.

 

[ThoseBackPages]

Bucky Does!

 

[JEA2880]

I always enjoy coming across these when cleaning... hot lists are interesting as is pricing from back in the day. Nothing like seeing a 2001 Bowman Chrome Pujols Auto book at $50 and thinking about what might have been!

 

[Tom Oates]

Every now and then they come in handy

 

[ripken2131_8]

I collect any magazine cover with Ripken on it. I'm pretty sure I have every Beckett with him on it and bought them all off eBay. So I guess you could check eBay first and see if there's any demand for some of them.

 

[BrewerSuperCollector]

The only one I need in the first 100 is Reggie Jackson. Its issue number 7 or 10 or something like that.

 

[uniquebaseballcards]

Its great to keep one or two a year just to laugh at what people used to pay for old cards - both high *and* low.

 

[1st4040]

Id be interested in ones that Canseco was on the front or back cover of if they are not all creased up.

 

[Topnotchsy]

There's actually more valuable information than you might expect in old Beckett's. I've referenced old ones a ton of times. Recently I dug up an old Beckett to check which SP's in 2000 Fleer Greats of the Game Auto set are the toughest and there's often info like that, that is tough to find elsewhere.

 

[Mudcatsfan]

I LOVE LOVE LOVE old Becketts, BBCM, Tuff Stuff, etc's.

The articles are fascinating, and as Top said there's hard to find info in them.

If you're just going to get rid of them, i'd definately be interested in filling in the gaps in my collection. I'm missing 2 or 3 per year but otherwise have a good run of them. Please let me know if you have them in any kind of order or i can figure out which ones i'm missing and let you look thru yours.

thanks in advance, and also to other members who have helped me out in the past with these (especially Craig Smith)!

 

[Greg Cleveland]

I still have a couple dozen, too. I tore the covers off a few and saved them--some of them had really nice artwork! A lot I have just to keep because I can't throw stuff away. I like to read the show calendars, and look for autograph prices. December 1991 issue showed a show in Phoenix where Frank Thomas was signing--for $15. A big show at the O'Hare Expo Center in Chicago advertised Don Drysdale for $9, George Mikan for $7, Jim Palmer for $9, Lester Lockett, Alvin Spearman and Double Duty Radcliffe for $6 each, Barry Bonds for $20, and Bobby Bonilla for $23 (WTF Bobby Bo??) You can find stuff liek that in every issue, never mind the prices of cards then to now. It's the autograph show prices that make you laugh!

 

[olerud363]

I used to keep old Becketts, as well as old baseball season preview magazines, mainly because I'm a bit of a pack rat. But it's also neat sometimes to pull one out and see what cards were hot at the time, read the articles about "new" card sets, etc. Back in 2005 when my then-fiance and I moved in together into a 700-square-foot condo where space was at a premium, I recycled my old baseball preview mags and unloaded a ton of old Becketts via a yard sale. I was asking 10-cents apiece and a guy came and bought the whole box.

For your situation, I'd open it up to the boards to see if any player/team/autograph collectors want any covers or issues for their collections. You could also post them on Craigslist for cheap or even free for the taking. Recycle what's left over.

- Rod

 

[abeabe]

As the poster with the Sandbergs demonstrated, many people like using beckett and SI magazines to get autographs on.