South Bay Baseball Cards is a famous card shop located in Lomita, California that has been a mainstay in the local baseball card collecting community for over 30 years. Founded in 1987 by lifelong baseball fan Jim Rogers, the store has become a mecca for collectors from not just the South Bay area, but all over Southern California.
While baseball cards had been around since the late 1800s, it wasn’t until the late 1980s that the hobby truly exploded in popularity. Seeing an opportunity to cater to the many new collectors in the South Bay looking for packs, supplies and places to search for rare finds, Jim decided to open up a dedicated baseball card store in a small strip mall along Pacific Coast Highway in Lomita. Starting with just a few hundred square feet of retail space, Jim stocked the shelves primarily with new wax packs, boxes and supplies like toploaders and binders to organize collections.
Word of mouth quickly spread about the new shop in town and business took off almost immediately. On weekends especially, the parking lot would be packed with collectors of all ages coming to trade, sell and connect with other enthusiasts. Soon, it became a popular weekend routine for many families in the South Bay to stop by South Bay Baseball Cards to see what new boxes or packs had come in and check binders full of duplicates listed for trade or sale behind the counter.
Within a couple years, Jim had expanded into a larger storefront next door to accommodate the growing business. The selection of new and vintage singles also greatly expanded as Jim built relationships with collectors willing to consign high-end cards. This allowed South Bay Baseball Cards to truly become a “one stop shop” where anyone could get their collecting fix, regardless of budget. Whether looking for the latest releases or a coveted rookie card from the 1950s, there was a good chance it could be found within the store’s jam-packed shelves and display cases.
As the 1990s rolled on, the sport of baseball itself entered a period of strife with the 1994-1995 player’s strike and steroid scandal tarnishing its image for many. This downturn hardly affected the booming business of baseball card collecting. If anything, it drove even more collectors to focus their fandom on stockpiling, trading and researching the history and players of the game through cards. South Bay Baseball Cards stayed ahead of the evolving trends, adding supplies for the burgeoning hobby of graded card slabbing and beginning to carry higher end licensed sports memorabilia alongside the cardboard.
Into the new millennium, Jim’s son Michael began helping out more at the store. In the 2010s, he eventually took over primary operation, continuing the focus on excellent customer service and keeping well-stocked with the products collectors demanded most. Whether it was the latest releases from Topps, Panini, Leaf or Upper Deck, or vintage cardboard treasures still being unearthed in attics, South Bay Baseball Cards aimed to have it. The store also became renowned for having some of the best sorted and most extensive vintage duplicate bins in Southern California, a dream hunting ground for collectors looking to find affordable childhood stars or fill holes in their vintage team sets.
A significant part of South Bay Baseball Cards’ enduring success lies in the powerful community it helped foster. Many lifelong friendships between collectors were made within its walls. Along with being a marketplace, it served as a true hobby hub. Events like annual National Baseball Card Day celebrations and the Thanksgiving weekend bargain bins sale drew collectors from far and wide. Local card shows and contests were often sponsored, and the store frequently donated cards and supplies to charity drives and school fundraisers.
The impacts of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic posed fresh challenges but the store adapted, taking online orders, facilitating safe in-person shopping with masks and distancing protocols, and even livestreaming breaks of new wax on their Facebook page. Through downturns in the hobby itself and unforeseen crises, South Bay Baseball Cards has remained dedicated to serving local collectors, preserving the social aspects integral to the enjoyment of the sport, and witnessing new generations discover the collecting magic found within slabs, penny sleeves and worn cardboard. Jim, Michael and the entire staff have kept the dream of discovering that find or completing a personal collection set alive for over three decades in Lomita. Their legendary shop is sure to entertain and bring people together in the South Bay card community for many more years to come.
