Spare some change for some cards, bro?
It took me longer than it should have to realize why the local retail stores (Target, mostly) are out of pretty much everything baseball in the dreaded trading card area. Prices are getting ridiculous for pretty much anything related to Aaron Judge and Cody Bellinger, so the product is drying up. Yes, even entry level base card junk is getting scooped up off the shelves. The few times I've made it out to a store to buy cards this summer, the shelves have been lined with football (gross) and college football (gah).
I managed to hang on to a few Aaron Judge cards before everything went nutso, after trading a couple off to The Lost Collector (of course.) I might put these last few on eBay or I might entertain offers. I'm not really sure what to do. I don't think any of these cards will ever be worth as much as they are now, but I'm also still not entirely sure I understand what's going on with unopened packs of 2011 Topps Update these days. (I even pulled out a few Topps flagship rookie cards of guys with names like Betts and Springer because they're suddenly commanding prices unseen in basic Topps cards since the rookie card craze of the '80s.)
I don't have any Cody Bellinger cards as far as I know. I did get a couple of these Judge/Austin cards thanks to all of those Heritage packs I opened. But I might... just might... visit a store in the hood I grew up in soon that seemed to still have a Bowman blaster in a dark corner the last time I checked. You just never know.
I almost feel guilty for the Judge cards people have sent me, and how many people must be cursing me. Rest assured I haven't sold any of them!
ReplyDeleteIf you don't send 'em to me (and I don't blame you), definitely consider cashing in. I keep saying this can't sustain, but it's only gotten crazier. Move 'em for cards you want...pick up some cheap Alex Reyes autos!
Like you, I've also been looking back and finding some flagship RCs. I was looking through some cards and found a Goldschmidt 2011 Uodate RC, and an Arenado 2013 Update RC. Nice finds given the RC craze.
I think Judge is doing wonders for the sport we love... and that's trickling down into our hobby as well. Will our hobby be able to sustain it? Who knows. Probably not... which sucks because nonchalant collectors who are paying top dollar for Judges right now are going to get frustrated with their investments if he ever crashes. But maybe Judge goes on to have a Mike Trout kind of career and his cards go even higher. Whatever happens... I hope our hobby continues to grow. Most importantly... I hope Topps doesn't screw things up and flood the market with Junk Wax Era print runs to try and capitalize on Judge and Bellinger.
ReplyDeleteMy Target and Walmart is barren. I've wanted to buy something from card aisle for weeks now just to satisfy the fix, but I can't because all that's there is Series 1, Series 2, Bunt and a few lonely Heritage packs.
ReplyDeleteHa! Lost Collector, I was one of those dopes who sent you a free Judge rc. But, as these things tend to go, some dope sent me it to me for free when I was looking for needs for my '17 set (I pulled it from a pack while the cards were en route). And, I still have one for my set. But I don't really care. If it hits $200... maybe then. But not now.
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