When people ask me what type of sports memorabilia and sports autographs to buy, I always tell them to buy what they like. I never like to forecast the sports autographs marketplace as it is impossible to predict future prices due to many factors. Sports collectibles, baseball cards and memorabilia prices can go up and down like any market. However, in the past, if bought with due diligence, prices on high quality vintage sports memorabilia have virtually always sustained increases. Buy what you like and enjoy. That is what I do in my personal collection. If the value increases, fine. If it does not, I still enjoy what I have. I collect the teams I root for and the players whom I have either enjoyed seeing or players from the past who I admire, especially Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, Lou Gehrig and Ty Cobb.
Sports autographs have provided me with a lot of fun and enjoyment as well as a living, but I collect to enjoy what I have. I believe that passion and my eye as a collector has also helped me as a dealer. I have many autographed photos hanging on my walls and many autographed baseballs on my shelves. I truly enjoy collecting sports autographs and memorabilia, and consider myself fortunate to be involved in this fine hobby.
Unfortunately the plague upon the sports autographs marketplace has been the forger, and even with the efforts in the hobby to police itself and the FBI’s efforts to rid the hobby of forgers, it still exists. Forgers pray on the novice collector and see them as easy marks. I suggest you be extremely thorough in your own work when buying sports autographs. Make sure the dealer you are looking to purchase an item from has a reputation for selling authentic items and uses quality third party authentication such as PSA/DNA and JSA.
Do not buy if the price seems too good to be true. Sports autographs are widely collected. There are rarely bargains available in the marketplace, especially when it comes to rare sports autographs. Forgery sellers on the internet try to offer their sports autographs at seemingly bargain prices with no letters of authenticity and no provenance. However it is not a bargain when you are buying a worthless item.
I also suggest reading as much as you can about your hobby. There are some fine publications available, including SMR Magazine and SCD (Sports Collectors Digest). Also, I suggest you read “Collecting Sports Legends, The Ultimate Hobby Guide” by Joe Orlando. A hobby should be for fun and give you pleasure, neither of which will happen if you get cheated. Do you homework, network as much as you can, and find the reputable dealers and authenticators, and this hobby will be both enjoyable and profitable for you for a very long time.
