Armando had been collecting baseball cards for years, ever since he was a little kid. He loved the sport of baseball and enjoyed learning about the players, teams, and statistics on the back of each card. Every week he would go to the local convenience store and spend the $5 allowance his parents gave him on a few packs of cards, hoping to add some new players or stars to his growing collection.
This weekend, Armando’s dad had told him they were going to the big card show happening at the civic center. Armando had been so excited, as card shows meant the opportunity to buy individual cards from dealers and complete sets he was working on. They arrived at the civic center early that Saturday morning, as doors opened at 9am. Armando’s eyes grew wide at the sight of rows and rows of tables filled with boxes and boxes of cards for sale.
He immediately got to work, stopping by tables that had cards from his favorite teams – the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox. The first dealer he came to had a whole box of 1986 Topps cards, which was one of Armando’s favorite sets from when he was younger. He dug through and found a Don Mattingly rookie card, which he had always wanted. “How much?” he asked the dealer. “That’s a nice card, I’ll let it go for $15” replied the man. Armando smiled, knowing that was a fair price, and handed over his money gladly to add the card to his collection.
Over the next few hours, Armando methodically went table to table, searching through boxes organized by team, year, or player. He picked up a few more singles for his player collections, like a Nolan Ryan or Tom Seaver card. But Armando also had his eye on completing some full sets. He saw a dealer had the 1992 Fleer Ultra set reasonably priced at $3 a card. He was only missing 10 cards to finish that one, so he grabbed those. Another dealer near the back was practically giving away the 1987 Topps Traded set, with cards going for just 50 cents each. Armando only needed 5 more, so he added those.
By early afternoon, Armando’s father checked in on him. “Find anything good, son?” he asked. Armando proudly showed off the 10 cards he needed to finish the ’92 Fleer Ultra set and the 5 Traded cards. His father was impressed with Armando’s bargaining and selection of affordable singles and sets. “Looks like you’re up to about 30 cards so far. I’ll give you another $20 to spend – think you can find 15 more good ones before we have to head out?” Armando’s eyes lit up at the extra budget. “You bet dad, thanks!” he replied excitedly.
With the additional funds, Armando really took his time over the next hour. He wanted to make sure he picked cards that would be keepsakes for his collection for years to come. At one table, he spotted a full run of 1986 Topps Traded and Update cards, which included stars like Roger Clemens, Wade Boggs, and Rickey Henderson. He was able to negotiate getting the full 21 card subset for $15. At another, a dealer had a large box of 1990 Topps cards. Armando dug through and found a Kirby Puckett rookie card, as well as rookie cards for Dennis Eckersley and Jose Canseco. Pleased with those three pickups for $5 each, he was now up to 42 cards total.
With only a few cards left to find before having to meet his dad, Armando came across a table with boxes organized by player last name. In the ‘J’ box, he discovered an unopened 1991 Fleer Ultra Series 2 jumbo pack still sealed in the plastic. “How much for the unopened pack?” he asked the dealer. “Those are a hot item nowadays with the chance of pulling a Griffey Jr. rookie. I’ll let that go for $10,” replied the man. Armando thought about it for a moment. It was more than he planned to spend on a single item, but the chance to open a fresh old pack was exciting. And he was so close to his 45 card goal. “Deal,” said Armando, handing over his last $10 with high hopes of a big hit inside.
Right there at the table, Armando ripped open the plastic wrapping on the fleer pack slowly, savoring the moment. He pulled out the waxy pack and thumbed through the stack of cards inside. Near the back, he spotted the telltale black and white photo – it was the Ken Griffey Jr. rookie card! Armando could hardly believe his luck. With that huge card, he had not only reached his 45 card limit for the day but scored an incredible treasure for his collection. As he and his dad left the card show, Armando couldn’t stop smiling, thrilled with the great haul he picked up to add to his baseball memorabilia. It had been his best card show trip ever, and he was already looking forward to saving up for the next one.
