Claire had always been fascinated by baseball ever since she was a little girl. Her grandfather used to take her to minor league games every summer and it was during those outings that she fell in love with America’s pastime. While most girls her age were more interested in pop stars or fashion, Claire spent her free time learning baseball stats and collecting cards of her favorite players.
On her 13th birthday, Claire’s grandparents had given her $50 to spend however she wanted. Knowing how much she enjoyed baseball, Claire decided that she would use the money to grow her baseball card collection. After school that day, she made her way to the local card shop that was about a 10 minute bike ride from her house.
When she walked through the door of “Ace’s Sports Cards”, the familiar smell of old cardboard and sticker residue greeted her. The shop was dimly lit with baseball memorabilia covering nearly every inch of wall space. Behind the counter, the elderly owner Ace looked up from his magazine and smiled. “Well if it isn’t my best customer Claire! Happy birthday kiddo, you here to spend your birthday money on some new cards?” he asked warmly.
Claire returned the smile and nodded. “Yup, I was hoping to get a few packs to see if I can add to my collection,” she replied. Ace chuckled and said “You’ve come to the right place then. We just got a fresh case of Series 1 packs in earlier today so the pickings should be good. Why don’t you grab a few and I’ll ring you up at the counter?”
Claire began perusing the selection of packs along the back wall. There were several different brands to choose from like Topps, Bowman, and Donruss but she had always been loyal to Series 1 by Topps. As she scanned the boxes, one pack in particular caught her eye – a shiny retro style pack from 1987. “Ooh I’ve never seen a vintage pack before, I think I’ll grab that one too for fun,” she thought to herself. She selected 5 regular Series 1 packs along with the vintage pack and brought them up to the counter.
Ace rung up her purchases and wished her good luck as she made her way outside with her prizes. The afternoon sunlight shone down on the packs in her hands, making the cardboard designs and logos glow. Claire could hardly contain her excitement as she pedaled the rest of the way home, eager to rip into her packs and see what baseball treasures may lie within.
When she arrived, Claire hurried to her room and emptied the contents of her packs out onto her bed. She started by cracking open the vintage 1987 pack very carefully, almost afraid to damage the fragile cardboard and sticker seals after 30+ years. The first card she pulled was an Ozzie Smith of the San Diego Padres. “Wow, a Hall of Famer in the very first card! What are the odds?” she said in amazement.
The rest of the vintage pack contained some other notable 80s stars like Tim Raines, Bob Horner, and Steve Sax. While none were in the best condition after decades, just holding cards from that era in her hands was a thrill for the young collector. Next, she moved onto the 5 Series 1 packs which had the current year’s rookies and players.
The first modern pack contained base cards of Freddie Freeman, Francisco Lindor, and Mike Trout among others. Not a bad start, but Claire was hoping for at least one rookie or short print. Her luck changed with the second pack, which held a shiny blue parallel card of top prospect Eloy Jimenez. “Yes! I’ve been wanting to add him to my collection,” she said with glee.
Pack number three and four held more base cards, but one did have an interesting “Bat Down” insert of Giancarlo Stanton. She opened the last pack with bated breath. After sifting through the commons, her hand landed on a card she had been hunting all season – Vladimir Guerrero Jr’s prized rookie card. “No way! I can’t believe I actually hit Vladdy, this is awesome!” Claire shouted as she did a little dance around her room.
Her birthday money had paid off in a big way. Not only did she add some true vintage gems to her collection, but she also scored several valuable modern rookie cards that would surely gain in worth over time. As she sorted and organized her new cards into protective sleeves and pages that evening, Claire couldn’t stop smiling at the memories she now held in her hands. It was days like this that reminded her why she loved the hobby so much after all these years. She couldn’t wait to show off her pulls to Ace at the card shop and to keep growing her collection in the future.
In the end, Claire’s $50 investment in 6 baseball card packs had turned out to be quite fruitful. While the odds of hitting coveted rookie cards are always low, her birthday luck seemed to be on her side that day. More than just cardboard and ink, the cards represented the joy of the game, memories of summers past, and her lifelong bond with her grandfather that baseball had helped to forge. For any collector, it doesn’t get much better than coming home with a stack of new cards to fuel your passion. Claire was already thinking about her next visit to the shop and what exciting new additions may await in her next packs.
