Scoreboards

• The origins of baseball player’s cards
• The most sought after card in the 1952 Topps baseball card sets
• The popularity of baseball cards collection

The History of Baseball Players Cards

As professional baseball took on a life of it’s own in the 1860’s, player and team pictures were taken to record history. Many business owners at the time saw potential in these grainy photos and soon produced “wallet size” cards to advertise their business. When a baseball equipment retailer named Peck and Snyder saw these baseball cards they knew that they had a top-notch advertising vehicle. The Peck and Snyder cards became the top baseball cards on the market at the time. In 1886, baseball cards collectibles were included in cigarette packs and other tobacco products.

In 1948, a company named Bowman became the first mass producer of baseball cards collections. They ran virtually unchallenged until another player came on the scene in 1952 and introduced the world to Topps baseball card sets. The Mickey Mantle card in this set is one of the most sought after baseball cards and is a revered baseball cards collectible. Topps and Bowman battled it out to sign the best baseball players and to capture market share.

The Rise of Topps Baseball Card Sets

By 1956, Topps was winning the battle for supremacy in the baseball cards collection industry so it purchased Bowman and its stable of “player likeness” contracts. It ran largely unchallenged until 1970 by offering “nickel packs” of 5 or 6 cards and a piece of chewing gum. With most players in the major and minor leagues being under contractual obligation to Topps it was difficult for other companies to break into this lucrative industry. In the mid 1960’s, Topps baseball card sets were licensed to a Canadian candy maker O-Pee-Chee and the top baseball cards were distributed to Canadian baseball fans.

A company by the name of Fleer took Topps and the Major League Baseball Players Association to court in 1975 to break the monopoly they had on baseball player’s cards. It worked and in 1981 Fleer began producing their own brand of baseball cards.

The Popularity of Baseball Cards Collection

The 1980’s saw a dramatic rise in popularity for collecting and trading baseball cards. A couple of price guides, Beckett Baseball Card Monthly and Tuff Stuff, came out on the market to assign values to the trading cards. As the demand for cards grew other manufacturers entered the market. Upper Deck used various tactics and innovations in order to introduce “premium” baseball cards collections. Collectors took notice, liked the new styles and had no problem paying the higher price. Other industry players followed suit and introduced premium products as well.

Topps and Upper Deck are the only two remaining players on the baseball cards collectible scene. The nature of baseball cards collection has also changed over the years. Buying and trading cards used to be done at specialty shops and trade shows. As with most industries, the baseball player’s cards market has moved online.