Fortunes of collectors of sports memorabilia rise and fall with teams

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Truly invested in the big game
Fortunes of collectors of sports memorabilia rise and fall with teams

By Sasha Talcott,
Boston Globe Staff | February 5, 2005

Like any New England Patriots fan, Larry Studebaker wants his team to stomp the Philadelphia Eagles in the Super Bowl tomorrow. But as he watches the game, the Mattapan computer network engineer also will be rooting for three players in particular: wide receivers Deion Branch and David Givens, and quarterback Tom Brady.

Studebaker bought their rookie cards before the beginning of the season, awaiting just this moment. If they come up big in the Super Bowl, Studebaker will be back in the store next week selling them off -- at several times their original price.

Speculating on sports memorabilia has long been a hobby among New England's fans. But with the Patriots making their third trip to the Super Bowl in four years, and the Red Sox taking home the World Series title, the practice, once a gamble on teams in a championship drought, now has become more lucrative.

Studebaker said he has made $300 to $600 in the past year off such bets on Patriots and Red Sox players. The proceeds, he said, become "beer money."

"It's like the stock market," said Phil Castinetti, owner of the Everett sports memorabilia store Sportsworld, of the collectors. "Anytime people win a big game, their stock rises."

Though the Patriots already are Super Bowl champs, Castinetti said he has seen a run-up in the values of Patriots memorabilia as the team neared the Super Bowl this year.

The rookie card of linebacker Tedy Bruschi sold for less than a dollar several months ago, Castinetti said. Now, as Bruschi has helped anchor a defense beset by injuries and been named to his first Pro Bowl, his card goes for $10. Running back Corey Dillon, who joined the Patriots amid questions about how well he would fit in with the team, went on to post more than 1,600 rushing yards this year. His rookie card now sells for about $8 or $9, versus about $2 or $3 before the start of the season, Castinetti said.

Those values will increase if the Patriots win another championship, he said. And if a player makes a big play in tomorrow's game, it could help determine how much. For the Patriots' wide receivers Branch and Givens, one touchdown catch could make a difference.

"They make one big play, and their cards are going to go straight up," Castinetti said.

Sometimes, a bet on an obscure player can pay off: Studebaker, the Mattapan collector, snapped up a dozen cards with the image of Red Sox second baseman Mark Bellhorn in May at three for a dollar. His reasoning: Bellhorn might turn out to be good and, besides, women seemed to think he was attractive.

Bellhorn, of course, went on to hit key home runs in both the playoffs and the World Series. Studebaker sold the cards afterward at $3 apiece, nine times his original investment.

But other times, betting on obscure players means ending up with piles of useless cards.

"I bought a lot of guys who didn't become super stars," said Jim Kerasiotes, a Medfield collector and the former chairman of the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority.

When he first started collecting seriously in the 1980s, he invested in young players such as the Red Sox's Mike Greenwell and Ellis Burks, hoping they would become superstars. Instead, he wound up with some solid players, but few Hall of Famers.

With the Patriots headed to the Super Bowl again, even the less famous players are fetching higher prices as buyers anticipate this weekend's game.

Sports fans bid cornerback Randall Gay's card up to $7.50 on online auction site eBay. Some rookie cards for Troy Brown, who earned accolades this year for playing both offense and defense, are listed at $40. "Last chance to get this card before he wins another Super Bowl or MVP and his cards raise in value," the seller wrote in the listing.

Though eBay lists a handful of Brady cards at nearly $2,000, some versions of his rookie card remain relatively cheap.

Studebaker, the Mattapan collector, said he bought five Brady cards for $20 two weeks ago. After the Patriots star led his team to win the playoffs, Studebaker sold them back to Sportsworld for $35.

He said he would have held onto them until after the Super Bowl, but he plans to use the proceeds to invest in a more coveted Brady rookie card in hopes it will go up in value after the game.

With the prices of cards increasing, some of the cards tend to be recirculated as collectors cash in.

"Some of the same cards we're selling this week, we'll probably buy them back next week for more money," Castinetti said. He is not too depressed about that, though: "Then we'll sell them for more," he said.