Now many sports card collectors are looking to get something for their cards. The hordes of cards didn't disappear, they merely sat in closets for years, gathering dust. As the hobby hemorrhaged collectors, supply now far exceeded demand. The mass supply should have been a major tip-off that made the continuous growth of sports card value impossible. Supply and demand were in line, so prices were strong. It seemed like everyone was stashing sports cards and lots of them. Heck, you could get 500-card lots relatively easily. You wanted 100 Todd Van Poppel rookie cards from 1991 Upper Deck for every member of your football team? No problem. Collectors could easily buy single cards by the brick. With few exceptions, there were always enough cards to go around. When millions of people were buying sports cards in the late-1980s and early-1990s, card companies had press runs to match. But in this time of card shops on every corner, everybody was forgetting about one of the most basic rules of economics: supply and demand. The 1991 Upper Deck Baseball SP1 Michael Jordan was selling for $25. Heck, 1986 Donruss Jose Canseco cards were going for more than $100. Sports card values were supposed to see steady climbs, eventually culminating in cashing in for college tuition, new cars and lavish weddings.īaseball cards of a shirtless Jose Canseco were worth $20 or more. Everyone was suddenly dreaming of Jose Canseco and Todd Van Poppel cards working like stocks. The hobby then enjoyed exponential growth. Soon after that came price guides, which placed specific values on collections. When sports cards began to emerge as collectibles, more people started to buy in. This is the same with almost every sports card made between 19. Today, they can be found for pennies on the dollar. Even if they were just one per box, tons are out there. To put it bluntly, everyone who wants a 1991 Upper Deck Baseball Michael Jordan has three of them. See also: The Top 30 Baseball Cards from the Junk Wax Era. But not all hope is lost for those looking to cash in on their sports card stashes from the era. In fact, many are hard to give away today. For all these years, he's been careful to keep the corners sharp and not creased.īut the fact is, very few sports cards from the late-1980s through to the early-1990s have much value. The collector is shocked and can't understand it. But he holds back and continues to try and let him down nicely and educate him about real-world sports card values. The shop owner just wants to tell the guy that if he wanted to get rid of the cards, he might as well use them for kindling. The dance goes back and forth for a couple of minutes. "But I paid a lot for these cards back in the day." "So, what can I get for them?" the collector asks. The shop owner carefully puts the cards back in the box and thanks the customer for bringing them in. The only problem was, the last time the 1991 Upper Deck Baseball Michael Jordan sold for more than a dollar or two was back when Saved by the Bell was still on the air and Reebok was rocking the Foot Locker with pump shoes. The last time I looked in a price guide, these bad boys were selling for $20. "This card is awesome! Check it out, Michael Jordan taking batting practice with the White Sox. "I know some of them didn't quite pan out, but they should be worth a little something still, right?" asks the collector.Īs the shop owner nears the bottom of the stack, the collector reaches in and grabs one card. The shop owner continues to thumb through the cards politely as the collector, now completely overcome with visions of forthcoming riches, points out can't-miss rookies like Greg Vaughn, Gregg Jefferies and Kevin Maas. Sports card values from the late 1980s and early 1990s are pretty much worthless, with some notable exceptions. Those were some great cards back when they were first released, but they aren't going to put anyone through college today, let alone buy a ham sandwich. Same with the Upper Deck card where there's three pictures of him." That Nolan Ryan where he's wearing the tuxedo I've got two of them. But he opens the box anyway, out of courtesy.īefore the shop owner even has a chance to take a handful of cards out, the customer amps up the sales pitch, "I've got tons of Hall of Famers in there. Seeing the mix of Fleer team logo stickers and Upper Deck holograms tattooing the box, the shopkeeper knows the customer won't be leaving the store happy or with a newfound wad of cash. They confidently toss them on the glass display case, look up at the card shop owner and ask, "How much'll you give me for these?" expecting high sports card values. It's a familiar scene in sports card shops: someone walks in enthusiastically with a faded box or two under their arms.
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