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AVERAGE JOE’s BASEBALL CARDS

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Average Joe’s Baseball Cards: A Brief History of America’s Favorite Pastime

For over 50 years, Average Joe’s Baseball Cards has been a staple in communities across America. What started as a small hobby shop in a small Midwest town has grown into a nationwide franchise beloved by baseball fans of all ages. Through countless childhood memories, trades on the playground, and connections formed over our national pastime, Average Joe’s helped foster passion for America’s favorite game.

The story began in 1962 when high schooler Joe Smith decided to parlay his love of the game into a business. With $500 saved from his after school job, Joe rented a small storefront in his hometown of Springfield, Illinois. He stocked the shelves with boxes of the newest baseball cards, racks of vintage finds, and rows of bubble gum to entice young collectors. Word spread quickly among the local ballplayers and they soon had a regular crowd of kids trading and talking baseball.

In those early years, the baseball card industry was still in its infancy. Topps held a near monopoly producing the only widely distributed cards each year. Joe saw potential for expansion and began acquiring inventory from smaller regional brands like Fleer and Leaf. This introduced collectors to new artists and parallel sets beyond Topps’ standard rookie cards and stars. It was also through these niche brands that Joe built relationships with independent card show promoters and vendors starting to pop up across the Midwest.

By the late 1960s, America’s pastime was more popular than ever with the emergence of superstars like Mickey Mantle, Willie Mays and Hank Aaron. Television was bringing baseball into living rooms nationwide and fueling new interest. Average Joe’s was perfectly positioned to capitalize, growing from its original 1,000 square foot shop into a 2,500 square foot “superstore” packed with the latest wax boxes, binders, and memorabilia. Joe expanded his inventory to include non-sports cards as well, like those featuring movies, TV shows and music groups popular with older collectors.

The 1970s saw unprecedented growth for the entire trading card industry as mass production made the hobby accessible to more kids. Topps’ annual baseball issues ballooned from around 500 different cards to over 700 by the decade’s end. Meanwhile, Joe was developing Average Joe’s into a bonafide regional chain. By 1980, there were 10 locations across Illinois, Missouri and Iowa, each stocking over 100,000 individual cards and catering to the unique collecting tastes of their local communities.

During this time, Joe also recognized the growing collector market and began offering supplies like plastic sheets, magnetic holders and premium storage boxes. He pioneered innovative services like consignment sales and a rudimentary grading scale displayed in each store to help collectors appraise their vintage finds. These additions transformed Average Joe’s from just a retailer into a true community hub, hosting card shows, autograph signings and youth baseball leagues.

The 1980s marked Average Joe’s golden age of expansion. Aided by the first modern sports card boom fueled by the arrival of stars like Wayne Gretzky, Joe Smith franchised his successful store model across the Midwest and beyond. By 1990, there were over 200 Average Joe’s locations in 30 states, making it the largest chain in the industry. With increased scale came new initiatives like a mail order business, team sets program, and the introduction of Average Joe’s exclusive inserts highlighting the chain’s history.

This period also saw Joe diversify into related merchandise like licensed apparel, equipment, and a line of Average Joe’s trading cards featuring store mascots and franchise milestones. The company’s marketing department became renowned for creative promotions that engaged customers like oddball parallel issues, in-store contests and a popular “Card of the Week” feature spotlighting key rookie cards and deals. Throughout, Average Joe’s stores remained dedicated third places that brought people together through their shared fandom.

The sports card market contracted in the 1990s amid concerns over speculation and investment. However, Average Joe’s adapted by focusing on the core hobbyist. Stores underwent renovations to emphasize a cleaner presentation and expanded their inventory of supplies, memorabilia, and related collectibles. When the baseball card boom returned in the late 90s fueled by stars like Ken Griffey Jr, Average Joe’s was ready to serve renewed interest. By the 2000s, the chain had grown to over 300 stores across 40 states and Canada, having successfully navigated industry ups and downs for half a century.

Today, Average Joe’s remains a beloved institution, passing from one generation of collectors to the next. While the sports card market has evolved tremendously, the stores still fulfill their original mission – bringing people together through their shared love of America’s pastime. From its humble beginnings in a small Midwest town, Average Joe’s journey exemplifies the spirit of local businesses and communities that have been the backbone of this country for generations. Through the memories they helped create, Average Joe’s Baseball Cards secured its place in baseball card history and the hearts of fans everywhere.

SHOELESS JOE’s BASEBALL CARDS

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Shoeless Joe Jackson is one of the most iconic and controversial baseball players of all time due to his alleged involvement in the Black Sox Scandal of 1919. While Jackson’s career and legacy on the field were forever tarnished due to match fixing accusations, his story and fame have lived on through the production of baseball cards featuring his likeness over the past century.

Some of the earliest known Jackson baseball cards come from the era shortly after his playing days in the 1910s and 1920s. Jackson debuted in the major leagues in 1908 and had a successful career playing for the Philadelphia Athletics and Chicago White Sox up until he was banned from baseball in 1921. During his playing career and in the subsequent years, a number of small baseball card companies produced cards with his image such as T206 and E90 sets.

It was not until the 1930s that Jackson’s card options started to significantly increase as the baseball card hobby began booming in popularity. In 1933, Goudey Gum Company released their famous 1933 Goudey baseball card set which included a Joe Jackson card among the 200 players featured. This is widely considered one of the most iconic and visually appealing early 20th century baseball card designs. Since Jackson’s career had ended over a decade prior, the Goudey card captured him as the legend he had become rather than an active player.

Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, Jackson was included in many regional baseball card sets created by various candy, gum, and sticker companies. His 1933 Goudey card remained the most high-profile depiction of him for collectors at the time. It wasn’t until 1951 that Jackson’s next truly landmark baseball card was created. In that year, Bowman Gum Company released sets with photographic images of players rather than hand-drawn designs like previous issues. Their 1951 Bowman baseball card set included a Jackson photo that is similarly prized by collectors today as the 1933 Goudey.

The 1950s saw a huge boom in interest in the baseball card hobby as it took hold nationally rather than regionally. Virtually every major card company of the time included Joe Jackson in their tobacco, bubblegum, or candy enclosed card sets from that era. Topps, Fleer, and Leaf all featured him prominently. Despite being banned for over 30 years at that point, Jackson’s on-field exploits and notorious role in the Black Sox Scandal kept him an attention-grabbing figure that drove collectors to seek out his cards.

In the 1960s-70s, Jackson remained a common inclusion in the bazillions of baseball cards produced each year. However, Topps in particular gave him special treatment at times. In 1968, as baseball celebrated its centennial anniversary, Topps devoted one of their “100 Greatest Baseball Cards” to Joe Jackson. They recreated the iconic image from his 1933 Goudey card in color for the special commemorative issue. Then in 1972, Topps went even further by honoring Jackson in their prestigious “Traded” issue, which was reserved for only the most legendary players throughout history.

As the decades wore on, interest in Jackson the player and person never fully subsided. His name and reputation continued to intrigue casual fans and serious historians alike. Modern card companies from the 1980s on generally included at least one Jackson card in most classic reprint and retro-themed sets they produced alongside current stars. Some standout issues featuring “Shoeless Joe” came from Upper Deck in the 1990s. Their premiuim quality cards portraying Jackson sold briskly and highlighted how enduring his appeal was for collectors.

In the current era, Jackson remains a sought-after inclusion. While there are now thousands of unique cards of him in existence due to the enormous size of today’s industry, individual especially rare and high-grade examples climb to astronomical prices. Modern reprints from companies like Topps, Bowman, and Panini continue introducing him to new generations. Jackson has surely secured his place as one of the most famous figures to ever adorn cardboard in the over century-long history of baseball cards. Whether commemorating his Black Sox disgrace or on-field heroics, his story that just won’t quit is ideal material for the collectible card industry.

From the dawn of the baseball card era in the early 1900s all the way to today’s modern market, Joe Jackson’s controversial career and notorious reputation have ensured an endless fascination with him that collectors just can’t seem to get enough of. His cards from important early 20th century issues like T206, E90, 1933 Goudey, and 1951 Bowman are tremendously valuable. But many common mass-produced cards from the 1950s-70s also have collector value due to how frequently he was featured. And reprint companies won’t stop supplying new generations with reminders of the irascible “Shoeless Joe” Jackson anytime soon.