Tag Archives: million

1 MILLION BASEBALL CARDS

Leave a reply

Owning one million baseball cards would be the dream of any avid collector. Envision the space needed to properly store and organize such an immense collection. It would take considerable effort and money to accumulate that many cards over the years. Some key details on what owning 1 million baseball cards would entail:

Storage and Organization: The most significant challenge would be finding an appropriate spot to keep 1 million cards. Even spread across hundreds of boxes, the collection would take up a large room. Many serious collectors dedicate an entire room in their home just for cards. Wall-to-wall long boxes or heavy-duty shelving would be required. An efficiently organized system helps locate specific cards amidst such volume. Color-coded sheets, binders by team/player, and computer databases are popular options. Precise record-keeping is essential at this scale.

Collection Scope: It would be impossible to focus on just one player, team or era at this magnitude. The collection would need to cast a wide net spanning baseball history. Examples of targeted subsets could include complete for sets from the last 50+ years, vintage greats like Babe Ruth, insert/parallel/refractor parallels of stars, and autograph/relic cards. High-dollar icons would remain elusive but affordable copies could be acquired with so many cards. Filling gaps year over year keeps the project progressing.

Monetary Investment: Building a 1 million card collection would represent a huge financial investment even buying in bulk. Based on current market values, such an accumulation could be worth over $1 million. Of course, costs depend on grades, player selection, and set concentrations. Buying factory sets and common cheaper lots allows steady progression with less money spent per card on average. Bargain hunting at garage sales and auctions can save significantly long-term. Patience and discipline are important traits for a commitment of this scale.

Condition Quality: With one million cards, not all could realistically expect to grade gem mint. Common cards in played/good range dominate dollar stores and bins. A healthy portion should be presented in protective penny sleeves and toploaders or magnetic holders within storage boxes to maintain quality over time. The signature RCs, rare chase cards, and vintage standouts deserve encapsulation in grading slabs like those offered by PSA, BGS, SGC. Solid 8s and 9s make more sense financially than spending exponentially more per point of grade.

Authenticity Concerns: Sadly, the scale of a 1 million card collection warrants serious authenticity inspection of each new addition. Even bulk lots may harbor fakes that could taint sets or value overall. Knowledge of tell-tale signs of reprints is critical for self-examination. Having notable cards officially authenticated may provide comfort, especially those that will appreciate significantly in price over time. While reputable sellers minimize risk, no collection is immune to an occasional forgery slipping through. Diligence remains key with such a prized investment on the line.

Display Opportunities: Not all 1 million cards could practically fit into a binder or box at once. Rotating card walls, specialty tiered stands, protective tabletop cases, and museum-style displays offer creativity for presenting only a portion accessible at a time. Highlight cases keep favorite vintage stars, autograph RCs in focus. Periodic reconfigurations keep it fresh. Public showings attract fellow collectors to share appreciation of the complete collection. Legacy provisions consider donating the archive to a club, library or Hall of Fame someday.

Obtaining a baseball card collection numbered in the millions would rank among the most ambitious feats in the hobby. With strategic sorting, climate control, cataloging and safeguarding – a true collector could preserve over a lifetime such an historic aggregation and create an unparalleled resource for future generations of fans to admire.

ONE MILLION BASEBALL CARDS BALLWIN

Leave a reply

The Million Baseball Card Collection in Ballwin, Missouri

Nestled in the suburban St. Louis town of Ballwin, Missouri sits one of the most impressive baseball card collections in the world. Amassed over 50 years by retired sales manager Jerry Myers, the collection contains a staggering one million baseball cards that span the entire history of the sport. From vintage 19th century tobacco cards to modern era inserts and parallels, Jerry’s collection showcases the incredible growth and popularity of baseball cards as a hobby and an investment.

Jerry first became interested in baseball cards as a young boy in the 1960s. He would purchase wax packs of Topps cards from the corner store with his allowance money and began organizing them into shoeboxes. As he got older, he would trade and buy cards from other collectors to fill in the missing pieces and variations for his growing collection. Throughout high school and his career, Jerry always made time to frequent card shows, shops and online auctions to find rare and unique cards to add to his holdings.

In the late 1980s, Jerry committed to building the largest private collection in existence. He began cataloging each card on detailed spreadsheets and installing custom shelving units in his basement to organize and store the ever-expanding mass of cardboard. By the mid-1990s, Jerry had amassed over 100,000 cards and decided to turn his full basement into a climate-controlled card “vault” with dehumidifiers, fans and UV lights to preserve the condition of the fragile pieces of history.

Some of the highlights of Jerry’s one million card collection include:

An 1880s Old Judge cigar store tobacco issue card of George Wright considered the “Mona Lisa” of cards valued at over $2.8 million.

A 1916 M101-4 Babe Ruth Sporting News rookie card from his time as a pitcher, one of only a handful known to exist in excellent condition.

A complete set of the pioneering 1949 Bowman set including stars like Jackie Robinson, Bob Feller and Ted Williams.

Nearly complete runs of the iconic 1952, 1955, 1957 and 1959 Topps sets which jumpstarted the post-war hobby boom.

Rare parallel and parallel insert rookie cards of every major modern star like Ken Griffey Jr, Derek Jeter, Adrian Gonzalez and Mike Trout.

Authenticated game-used and memorabilia cards of Mickey Mantle, Hank Aaron, Nolan Ryan and others signed directly on the cardboard.

Uncut sheets, proofs, sample packs and assembly line detritus from Topps, Fleer and Donruss spanning 6 decades of production.

In addition to the cards themselves, Jerry has amassed mountains of pop culture ephemera related to the sport over the years. This includes thousands of vintage baseball magazines, team yearbooks, ticket stubs, programs and other signed memorabilia. He even owns original artwork, ad proofs and graphic designs used on some of the most iconic baseball cards ever made.

Since retiring a decade ago, Jerry has opened his collection to fans and researchers by appointment. He enjoys sharing the untold stories behind each rare find and piece, imparting his immense knowledge of the player, the card issue and its historical significance. Several documentarians have filmed segments at Jerry’s “Million Card Vault” to showcase his one-of-a-kind collection. He also hosts an annual open house each baseball season where hundreds flock to glimpse cards they may never see anywhere else.

While digital platforms like Topps BUNT and Hearthstone have pushed physical cards to the sidelines for younger collectors, Jerry’s epic assemblage stands as a proud testament to the trueorigins and decades-long popularity of the baseball card industry. For any fan of the game and its vibrant card culture, a visit to the Million Baseball Card Collection is a pilgrimage worth making to witness history packaged in fine-print cardboard. With Mr. Myers diligent care, his labor of love will be preserved and shared with future generations of baseball enthusiasts for many years to come.

1 MILLION BASEBALL CARDS ST LOUIS

Leave a reply

The story of 1 million baseball cards located in St. Louis is one that began with a dream and blossomed into one of the largest private baseball card collections in the world. At the heart of this massive hobby is a lifelong fan named Bill Chastain.

As a child growing up in the 1950s, Bill became enamored with baseball and started collecting whatever baseball cards he could get his hands on. He spent hours looking through his small collection, studying the stats and photos on the back of each card. This initial spark of interest soon grew into a lifelong passion for the sport as well as the business of collecting baseball cards.

After graduating college in the late 1960s, Bill decided to pursue his passion more seriously. He began regularly attending card shows and auctions, searching for deals to grow his collection. In the 1970s and 80s, when the collecting hobby first started to explode, Bill was there making important finds. He amassed boxes upon boxes full of cards from the early 20th century all the way up to the modern era.

It was in the 1990s when Bill’s collection truly started ballooning in size. This was the height of the speculative baseball card boom, where investors were snatching up unopened boxes of cards, hoping to make a profit down the road. Bill took a different approach – instead of sealed product, he focused on building complete sets through diligent hunting at shows, auctions, and through online dealers. His collection grew from only a few boxes into an entire room dedicated to storage.

By the late 90s, Bill’s collection had grown so large it encompassed multiple rooms in his suburban St. Louis home. He had assembled complete and near-complete sets from the 1910s all the way through the 90s. His most prized cards included Honus Wagner, Babe Ruth, and several 1910 Tobacco cards in pristine condition. With over 500,000 cards now in his possession, Bill realized he had one of the largest single-owner collections in the world.

In the early 2000s, Bill made the decision to turn his massive private collection into a full-time business. He converted part of his home into a large warehouse and retail space, which he named “Chastain’s Baseball Card Shop.” Here, potential buyers could browse his enormous inventory in person. He also ramped up his online sales presence on eBay and through a fledgling website. Word began to spread nationwide about Bill’s seemingly endless supply of vintage and modern cardboard.

Through the 2000s, Bill’s business boomed as the collecting hobby continued growing rapidly. He was purchasing entire collections on a regular basis to fuel his growing inventory. By the late 2000s, Bill’s card count had exploded to over 1 million individual baseball cards housed in his St. Louis warehouse. It had become one of the largest organized card collections under one roof anywhere. Visitors traveling from across the country specifically to see Bill’s famed warehouse collection.

In recent years, as the hobby has matured and modern card production has slowed down, Bill has transitioned his focus. He now mostly runs his multi-room warehouse as a museum and research library for other lifelong collectors and scholars of the hobby. People can schedule appointments to peruse his meticulously organized collection and research sets from different eras. The collection is truly a love letter to the history and allure of baseball cards from the early 20th century boom all the way to today.

So in summary – what started as a childhood dream for one St. Louis native named Bill Chastain became a reality through decades of dedicated collecting. His amassed collection of over 1 million individual baseball cards stands as a landmark in the hobby. Chastain’s famed warehouse has become a sort of mecca for collectors worldwide, preserving the past, present, and future of our national pastime on cardboard. It remains one of the most impressive private collections in the sports memorabilia field.

MILLION DOLLAR BASEBALL CARDS

Leave a reply

The holy grail for baseball card collectors are those rare specimens worth over $1 million dollars. While the vast majority of cards have little financial value, there are certain vintage cards depicting some of the earliest and most legendary baseball stars that have transcended into million-dollar territory over time.

Perhaps the most iconic million-dollar card is the 1909-11 T206 Honus Wagner. Widely considered the rarest and most coveted card in the hobby, there are believed to be only 50-200 authentic T206 Wagners in existence today. The scarcity and prestige surrounding the legendary Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop has driven Wagner cards to astronomical prices. In 2016, one example sold for $3.12 million through Goldin Auctions, setting a new record. Other high-dollar T206 Wagner sales include a PSA-graded example that fetched $2.8 million in 2007.

Another early set harboring elite rarities is the 1909-11 White Border Set. Many of the 60 cards have significant value in high grades, but one stands well above the rest – the 1909-11 White Border Joe Jackson card featuring “Shoeless Joe” of the Chicago White Sox. Like Wagner, only a tiny number of authentic Jacksons are known. In recent years, a PSA-graded 5.5 copy sold for $1.47 million in 2016. Considered the finest known example at the time, it stands as the most ever paid for a Jackson card or any card from that 1909-11 set.

Jumping ahead several decades, the post-World War 2 era saw the birth of the most iconic modern card set – the 1952 Topps. Within its designs are legends like Mickey Mantle, Willie Mays, and Duke Snider. The true kings are the coveted gum-stained rookie cards of Mantle and Snider, which exist in microscopic supplies. A PSA- Mint 9 Mantle rookie changed hands for $2.88 million in January 2021, setting the new bar for modern cards. Even in lower grades, Mantle rookies routinely bring in seven figures. And his famed “Stripe” variation, featuring horizontal stripes behind his name, has been valued at over $5 million in the past.

Similarly, the ultra-rare Snider rookie is pursued by collectors with open wallets. Fewer than a dozen legit examples are known, so any that surface are instant candidates for an auction record. In 2007, a PSA-graded 6 copy realized $641,500. But as recent offerings have failed to conclusively emerge again, true valuations are difficult to pinpoint exactly. Needless to say, a pristine PSA 10 would likely shatter all existing prices and eclipse the $1 million barrier without hesitation.

But perhaps no set era exemplifies million-dollar potential more than the late 1980s Upper Deck era. Founded in 1988, Upper Deck disrupted the sportscard industry with its revolutionary modern manufacturing techniques and photorealistic high-quality cardboard. The company’s first two sets from 1989 and 1989 proved to be a goldmine, featuring the emergence of future superstars like Ken Griffey Jr., Frank Thomas, and Chipper Jones.

With extremely limited print runs compared to brands like Topps and Donruss at the time, key rookie cards have achieved spectacular returns. Foremost are the coveted Griffey Jr. and Frank Thomas rookies from 1989 Upper Deck. Considered the finest baseball cards ever produced, high-grade specimens now change hands for seven figures depending on condition. In 2007, a PSA 10 Griffey rookie sold for $2.8 million. And a decade later in 2017, PSA bumped a Mint 9 example to $3.12 million, further enriching one of the most prized card investments imaginable.

Similarly, PSA 10 1989 Frank Thomas rookies are valued north of $500,000, with anything less than perfect taking a considerable haircut. And rarer still parallel versions have realized astronomical sums privately. Other burgeoning million-dollar candidates from Upper Deck’s early years includeChipper Jones, Ivan Rodriguez, and Randy Johnson rookie cards in pristine condition. Even though production was minuscule by today’s standards, their availability in ungraded mint state appears to be dwindling with each passing year.

Beyond vintage tobacco cards and iconic postwar and 1980s rookies, several modern autographs are also shattering one million dollar ceilings. A rare signed National Baseball Autograph Registry insert of a 17-year-old Mariano Rivera fetched $1.29 million in a 2012 auction. And a signed Mike Piazza 1/1 printing plate passed the seven-figure mark privately. But perhaps most spectacular was a serial number 1/1 autograph collection of Mickey Mantle realizing a staggering $2.88 million in 2015, demonstrating the continued power and rise of the Mick’s signature nearly 20 years after his passing.

A perfect storm of rarity, star power, and aesthetics have transformed certain century-old tobacco issues, pioneering postwar releases, and exponentially scarce modern autographs into tangible million-dollar assets. While out of financial reach for most casual collectors, their blue-chip status has persisted and appreciated impressively over decades, further cementing them as the ultra-elite pinnacle of the sports memorabilia market. With prices almost certain to continue rising long-term amid limited replenishable supplies and passion from aficionados worldwide, the historic cards profiled will surely remain at baseball collecting’s apex for generations to come.

MILLION BASEBALL CARDS

Leave a reply

The hobby of collecting baseball cards has been a beloved pastime for generations. Ever since the earliest tobacco cards of the late 1800s featured images of baseball players, fans young and old have enjoyed amassing collections of their favorite players through the decades in search of rare finds. With millions upon millions of baseball cards produced since the hobby first began, completing a full collection including every single card ever made would seem like an impossible dream. For those few supercollector enthusiasts with a passion for the history of the sport captured in cardboard, undertaking the challenge of assembling a true “million baseball card” collection is the ultimate goal.

To give a sense of the sheer scale involved, it is estimated that over 18 billion baseball cards have been printed throughout the history of the hobby. Even narrowing the scope to just post-war cards from the modern 1950s era onward, the number climbs past 10 billion individual issues. Simply imagining sorting through and cataloging such an unfathomable volume is mind-boggling. Yet for the most dedicated of collectors, it is a challenge that holds tremendous appeal; to own a piece of every player and every season distilled down into the seven-inch squares that have fueled fandom for so long.

Building a million card collection involves meticulous long-term planning, vast financial resources, and constant searching across the globe to locate every obscure and hard-to-find issue necessary to reach that elusive final card. It is not a task for the casual hobbyist, but rather a lifetime quest requiring extreme passion and perseverance. The logistics alone of properly housing, organizing, cataloging, storing, and insuring such a treasure trove also make it a truly monumental undertaking reserved only for the most determined super collectors. The skyrocketing prices that accompany some of the true “grail” cards needed to crack the million mark push the overall accumulated value of such a colossal set into the millions of dollars range.

Some keen collectors get a head start on the million quest by focusing solely on accumulating complete comprehensive sets from every brand and year possible first before venturing into the realms of rare individual cards. This allows them to systematically check off wider sections all at once. Other strategies involve zeroing in on specific player collections first, such as amassing all 7,000+ issues of a legendary star like Stan Musial. Still others cast a wider search net to opportunistically snap up any bargain lots that come their way with the aim of sorting out what they need versus what can be resold or traded later. Regardless of initial approach, ultimately a million card collector must be prepared to dig into every nook and cranny, both virtually and physically, to find what they are missing to reach the pinnacle.

While online auction sites and trading card forums offer a global marketplace, some of the most important discoveries will come from serendipitous unrelated encounters. An elderly relative cleaning out an attic who remembers “those baseball cards you used to collect” could yield a priceless vintage treasure lost to the past. A small local card show may have a seldom-seen parallel issue hidden in plain sight. Garage sales, antique stores, former collectors liquidating estates – you never know where that one white whale card may surface. This element of the unknown and unexpected is part of what keeps super collectors on the constant hunt, ever hopeful of finding newly surfaced material to advance their quest another step closer to the million mark.

Feats of accumulation reaching into the hundreds of thousands of cards have been achieved to date, but actually putting together baseball’s equivalent of a Most Valuable Quilt with 1,000,000 stitches remains the territory of legend more than reality so far. Crossing that surreal milestone would stand as one of the crown jewels of collecting history. For those whose love truly knows no bounds, however, the dream of some day unveiling a million baseball card collection for the ages keeps the pursuit going. Cardboarding may seem like a trivial pastime to outsiders, yet for these ultra collectors it provides a lifetime of discovery, adventure, challenge and connection to our national pastime in a tangible and ever growing way. As more cards are printed with each new season as well, their magnum opus will continue expanding thestory of baseball one smallportrait at a time.