Player Collector at a crossroads...I need help

[Gonzaleznut]

I think every player collector at some point faces the decision I now face...keep going with your guy or move on to another.

I currently collect mainly Josh Hamilton and I have (what I think) is a pretty awesome collection. I have over 1,800 different cards with 225 autos and 90 1/1s. I have about 5 years and $20,000 invested, but since he signed with the Angels I have found myself less interested in picking up his stuff.

I have thought about re-focusing my efforts on my old PC guy Ivan Rodriguez or starting a new player collection all together. I have also thought about just drawing a line in the sand and only pick up cards from 2013 back. I kind of want to collect a current player so that I can stay interested in new products as they come out.

I would love to hear any thoughts, ideas, or suggestions others might have regarding this. Surely I am not the first one to go through this.

Thanks for your input.

 

[byronscott4ever]

Sell and refocus...find someone who you could chase everything on and go for it

 

[DaClyde]

My main collecting focus has always been Dave Winfield, but for almost as long, I also collected Matt Williams. I ended up with somewhere north of 900 different Williams cards, but they were just coming out so fast, and picking up the endless parallels just became so boring, I almost completely lost interest. Now I've got a decent stack of Matty that has absolutely no value (because there are only like 3 other collectors in the world and they all have larger collections than mine), but no real interest in picking it back up.

I filled that gap by picking a few obscure failed prospects that I liked as a kid, and following those trails for awhile, but when a player only has about 30 not-so-rare cards, that doesn't last long. In the end, I just focused even tighter on my Winfield collection.

 

[BunchOBull]

I've only ever had real focus for Frank Thomas and can't imagine having the passion to collect anyone else with the tenacity that I've maintained for going on 25 years. I have small collections of other heroes - Maddux, Clemente, Rose, Chipper, McGriff - but they have always, and will always be secondary to the Big Hurt.

I think the advantage for me is that I was 8 years old, collecting and looking up to Frank Thomas...in some ways I still have that child-like wonderment, and I've never gotten bored with it.

Honestly, at age 30, I can't imagine getting into any of the younger guys as a collector...I briefly collected Lincecum when he was in his first couple of years, but got bored quickly...most modern cards just don't hold an candle to the designs of the '90s.

 

[MansGame]

I'd keep collecting your guy.

Problem if you "exit" is that you'll never recoup the time or $ spent on the collection. You're probably one of the big buyers of his stuff, so when you sell, your bid won't be placed and the cards won't sell for as much. The other problem is even if a large collector is out there, he won't be able to pony up for all 90 1/1s back to back to back... it'll take you some time to unload it all to get max value I'm assuming.

I'd either stick to JH or keep the collection but shift to another player. Or slowly sell off the rare JH cards while shifting to another. Dumping JH and starting over or a new player is a terrible idea IMO but who am I to say

 

[ASTROBURN]

Got bored quickly...most modern cards just don't hold an candle to the designs of the '90s.

This

Maybe you just need a break. I mean, ive been collecting Bagwell since 94, but ive taken breaks. A change of interest, lack of money, etc... But luckily for me he never played with another team. I had minor collections of Biggio, Berkman, oswalt, and other Astros. It was a few years ago that i decided to solely collect Bagwell, and i sold off a good chunk of my Biggios, and am openly looking to sell the rest of the guys. I definitely didnt give a crap about the others once they left to play for other teams. So in that aspect, i feel your pain. But franchise players dont exist any longer, so you may be in the same situation in a few years with your new player.

i say keep the cards you have. Someday you may want to start back his collection again and you will regret selling anything off. Go ahead and start someone new if you wish, but someday i feel you will go back to Hamilton.

 

[MansGame]

Or... if you were a huge fan of his on the Rangers, just start focusing on only his Rangers stuff and then start or shift the other time and funds towards another collection? I know I've talked too and seen other Albert Belle collectors who only collect his Indians stuff or only collect his pre-2001 cards, etc.

At the end of the day, collecting should be fun and exciting and if you're losing interest because your guy left the team you enjoyed collecting him on, change is OK but I would hate to see someone dump all the cards they've collected for pennies on the dollar and start over. Doesn't sound very fun to me.

 

[Techniq]

Put 'em on the back burner and pick up what ya can, but perhaps not so aggressively. Maybe start a new collection and throw some of the new cards of ur guy in when u get em.

That's just my opinion, i can't help but to be a completionist and would see the team switch as a nice new chapter and show some variety rather than the same old. With that being said, sometimes I carry things along and progress but it's not because I feel it's fun, it's like its necessary!

So I suppose if u have the strength to close that chapter and move on, maybe it's right. But after coming so far, do u really wanna just pack it up? Clearly U put a lot of time, effort, and money into it

 

[AmishDave]

Keep rolling on Hamilton AND pick up more Pudge cards !

 

[Gonzaleznut]

Keep rolling on Hamilton AND pick up more Pudge cards !

I like this idea but between Hamilton, Pudge, and my HOFer auto collection...well, let's just say that my wallet hurts just thinking about it.

Thanks to everyone for the suggestions so far. Keep 'em coming.

 

[AmishDave]

I like this idea but between Hamilton, Pudge, and my HOFer auto collection...well, let's just say that my wallet hurts just thinking about it.

Thanks to everyone for the suggestions so far. Keep 'em coming.

Then just be selective w/Hamilton, if you are starting to lose interest. Anything w/the Rangers uni only or pre-2013. That way, maybe with a lack of stuff coming in, perhaps the love for Hamilton can be built back up.

 

[Juan Gris]

I keep my Adam Dunn card collection manageable and myself from going broke/insane by just going after pack-pulled autograph cards. I don't touch base, parallels, game-used (except with rare exception) or any game-used/autographed cards. Perhaps you should focus your PC on just one of these card varieties? You don't necessarily have to be all-in or nothing.

 

[joey12508]

Why not collect the player who took his spot on your team. And i would keep your hamilton.

 

[NY Tony]

By no means start a massive sell off - you will lose soooooo much money and will not make you feel any better.

Take a break from player collecting - just chill but keep your line in the hobby ocean--- see what you like ... See what sticks and go for it and utilize your non essential JH stash to fund your new chase if you still want to stop collecting JH

Go what you want

 

[Brewer Andy]

Take a break. Pick up some Pudge cards. Don't worry about that 30th Angels parallel or 5th ink color auto from 2014 Topps. Save the Hamilton pickups $ for the real heavy duty/high end pre 2013 stuff that will still pop up but less frequently.

 

[nosterbor]

Hi Mike! Glad to see you still collect. So Dump the Hamilton collection like you did your Juan collection and start fresh again? Here is a great idea you will never get bored with. Super Sweet inserts of the 90's. Nah! stick with what you have. I still collect Juan and considering I sold off 300+ of my Unique more rare Juan cards that I only had one of, to jzk_ksy, juanzalez, and adelith . I have built my total back up to within 96 cards of adelith I will catch him and pass him by.

I don't often buy cards, but when I do I buy Juan Gonzalez.

 

[Crewfan82]

I usually bounce around quite a bit with this addiction of mine. Right now I'm on football and buying MLB prospects. Once spring rolls around the baseball juices get flowing again and I start to get pumped for the season that gets me going on the Gallardo PC again. All the while I am always selling prospects or football, which also keeps the wallet full for when I really get cranking on the PC again.

I think having a baseball and a football player or team of focus helps keep from getting burnt out.

 

[mrmopar]

I really like the idea of stopping at a certain point and filling in the gaps from the past and this may be the best option if you find that you don't care for his new team. That is what I tried to do with Frank Thomas when I was collecting him and it got way out of hand. I thought something like pre-2000 would work well. However, I ended up back-burnering the collection entirely and have only picked up a few eye catchers here and there. That is when I really started to refocus on my old Steve Garvey collection and the boom dropped after 2000 on his new issues, which aside from 2005 were not too crazy. I want to say he had like 3 cards issued in 1999 and then it was fast and furious from there.

I have thought about that as each year as more and more limited and expensive cards seems to be the norm and you end up with a small handful of "affordable" new cards. I have not been able to pull the trigger myself on that idea yet and the team change Idea didn't work for me either when he jumped to the Padres in 82, but maybe it can for you.

 

[Julz24]

#1 - You gotta follow your passion. If your not feeling it right now for JH then you should definitely take a break. If you're worried at all about FV, you could unload a small portion and refocus your collection or save up for later.

I left the hobby for ten years when my guy left town. In the past three years I've picked up around 3,000 new cards. That might be a bit extreme - but the layoff rekindled the collecting fire for me.

 

[BiggioBrooks755]

At one point I collected Craig Biggio, Ike Doigu, Derek Hagan,Johnathan Joseph,YSL Set, Derrick Brooks, and probably something else

I got bored and hated seeing Hagan/Joseph/Doigu get traded or leave my team.

Thats what I collect Biggio and Brooks only...The love of the team

Keep the JH collection, and maybe find someone new for now...You can always go back.