Know how much your baseball cards are worth

Baseball cards – which have become part of popular culture – are well over a hundred years old; the earliest ones are considered to date from the second half of the 19th century. Today’s cards, with their high-tech production process, and vivid color and design are a far cry from the older cards; although of course it is often the older cards that are more valuable.

Although many people collect baseball cards for the fun of it, and for a love of the sport, at some point most collectors become interested in the value of their cards. It is fairly easy to determine the approximate value of your cards by using one of the many price guide books available, or one of several web sites offering the same information. Beckett’s is considered the authoritative pricing guide for the industry; its huge guide, updated annually and with smaller supplements issued every few months, lists over 500,000 cards. Even Beckett’s can’t list every card – many cards issued before the 1940s may not be included.

Baseball cards are graded in the same way that other collectible items, such as coins or stamps are graded. Cards grades are generally standard across the industry, although individual dealers or collectors may have their own definitions or opinions. In the Becketts guide, grades range from the most valuable – mint condition – down through several grades, to the least valuable – poor condition. Unopened sets of cards, are by definition, considered to be in mint condition. Some guides don’t use the grading system and instead list two prices for the card – the highest price the card has recently sold at, and the lowest.

Most baseball price guides will use the standard grading system. If you aren’t sure which grade your card falls into, you can use two different values; example Mint and Near Mint, and use the median value as a guideline. When assessing the value of your cards, no allowance is made for age – a potentially valuable card from the 1950s is judged by the same standards as a more recent card, even though it is usually going to have more wear and tear.

The condition of your cards is going to have a huge impact on the card’s grade and ultimately its value. As with stamps, any tears, stains, creases or scratches can significantly lower the price of a potentially valuable card. Discoloration or fading colors is common with older cards and can lower the card’s value. Look for straight and smooth edges on cards. The concept of ‘centering’ is also important in determining the value of cards - this refers to the evenness of the white border around the cards picture, any image not exactly centered will instantly decrease in value. The quality of printing can lower the value too – uneven letters, or a player’s name that is not printed fully on the card.

Generally speaking of course, the older the card, the more valuable it is going to be. With older cards, it can be the player that gives the card its value; with newer cards it can be the limited amount of cards that were printed. In limited edition cards, your card will have the number on it somewhere, for example it may be number 267 out of a print run of 500. If you have card number 1, it is usually worth more. New trends in baseball cards include producing more of the limited or numbered editions, and autographed cards. Some sets contain ‘insert cards’ which can be worth more than the regular cards – an insert card is usually a unique or different card. The chances of finding an insert card are printed on the back of the box or pack.

Finally, be sure to handle and store your valuable cards properly. Very valuable cards should be handled as little as possible and stored – sturdy boxes work well for long-term storage; although transparent plastic storage sheets are a better option, especially if you plan to show your cards.