Baseball Cards in Pleasant Hill, California
Pleasant Hill, located in Contra Costa County, California has a rich history with baseball and baseball cards. The city and surrounding area has produced major league ballplayers, hosted card shows, and has a strong collector community today.
Baseball has deep roots in Pleasant Hill going back over a century. Some of the earliest known organized baseball games in the area date back to the 1890s when amateur and semi-pro teams would play at the Pleasant Hill Park, which was located where Pleasant Hill Middle School stands today. Fast forward to the 1950s and 1960s and Pleasant Hill produced a handful of players who made it to the major leagues including pitcher Gary Kroll who played for the California Angels and San Francisco Giants as well as infielder Dennis Paepke who played for the San Francisco Giants.
The collector culture around baseball cards began blossoming in Pleasant Hill in the 1970s, fueled by the rise of the hobby during that decade. Some of the first card shows and conventions in the area were held in the late 1970s at the Pleasant Hill Community Center and local hotels. These early shows helped expose many local youth to the hobby and kickstarted card collecting for generations to come. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, larger and more frequent baseball card shows became common in Pleasant Hill and the surrounding cities, drawing collectors from all over Northern California. Today, two of the biggest and longest running annual baseball card, comic book, and collectibles shows in the entire Bay Area are the Pleasant Hill Card Show held each April and the Dublin Fall Sports Collectibles Show held each November, both still going strong after nearly 50 years.
While the brick-and-mortar baseball card shops of the past have mostly faded away, the collector community in Pleasant Hill remains vibrant today. Many current residents grew up collecting in the area and still actively pursue their hobby, often attending shows, joining online collecting groups, and meeting up locally to trade. Pleasant Hill is also home to the headquarters of Beckett Media, the leading publisher of trading card price guides and information resources. Having the “Beckett bible” of the hobby located nearby has certainly helped fuel and legitimize the collector culture in the city.
Walking into any of the local hobby shops that still sell cards, you’ll find the shelves lined with customers of all ages proudly displaying their team pride and collections. The nostalgia of baseball cards is alive and well in Pleasant Hill. Many residents reminisce about collecting cards as kids and passing that tradition down to their own children and grandchildren. Little League games are hotbeds of card swapping and discussing the latest cardboard. Local parks, where the roots of baseball in the area grew over a century ago, remain popular spots for collectors of all ages to meet up on weekends to admire collections and strike trades.
While the industry has changed over the decades, baseball cards remain a cornerstone of sports fandom and collecting in Pleasant Hill. From the early shows that helped build community to the vibrant local scene today, cards reflect both the rich baseball history of the area and help keep that legacy alive for future generations. Whether chasing rare vintage gems or building full modern sets, baseball cards continue providing enjoyment and memories for collectors in Pleasant Hill and the East Bay. The hobby, much like the area’s love of America’s pastime, shows no signs of slowing down.
