Collecting Sports Memorabilia Isn’t Just For Fans Anymore

Here’s a common question that many sports memorabilia collectors often ask: “Do the players themselves collect memorabilia too?"

Although most players are not full-fledged collectors, most players do enjoy taking home a few mementos to add to there personal collection. Things such as a player’s first hit or an award of sorts are things that most players typically hold onto long after there playing days are over. Because of the value of many of these items, some players will eventually sell off their rare pieces of memorabilia for financial reasons later in there life. Recently Hall of Fame shortstop Ozzie Smith decided it was time to sell several of his gold glove awards and World Series rings and will auction the items next month.

Baseball cards are another segment of the sports memorabilia market that a few players collect too. Recently, Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Brad Ziegler did a story with with Fox Sports Arizona about his collecting:

A few other player collectors are Cleveland Indians closer Chris Perez and former Tigers 1^st baseman Dmitri Young. Young’s card collection was known as one the most impressive rookie card collection ever put together. Young recently sold his collection in order to raise money for his foundation.

Tired of Scribbles, Retired Players Preach the Importance of Legible Autographs

Andre Dawson is one former player
with a beautiful signature

Are signatures from today’s athletes getting too tough to read? Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt tends to think so, as he explains in this article for the associated press. For Schmidt, a player’s autograph should be well written as a way to show respect and better connect with the fans. He explains that because his signature is readable, it continues to hold its value way after his playing days. Schimdt isn’t the first Hall of Famer to speak out about this either. For several years Twins legend Harmon Killebrew had been an advocate of legible autographs. In this article from Fox Sports, writer Tyler Mason describes how Killebrew would make it a point to explain to young Twins players each year the importance of having a readable autograph. Twins players such as Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau and Michael Cuddyer have all embraced this and as a result have pretty decent signatures.

On the other end of things, Toronto Blue Jays bench coach Don Wakamatsu takes the idea of neat handwriting to another level. Before each game, Wakamatsu writes the lineup card for his manager John Farrell using a type of visual art known as calligraphy. Although it may seem a little over-the-top, Farrell likes that the line-up cards are legible for when he needs to make in-game changes.