[jrwhtmr]

Hi everyone. I have been hanging around the boards now for quite awhile. I check in once or twice a day to see if any interesting topics are being discussed. Usually if I am curious about something I can find a post somewhere that touches on the topic. However I am taking a more direct route for this question. First a little background so you can understand where I am coming from…

I am a St Louis Cardinals fan. I started collecting in 1986. At the time I was putting together complete sets. As more sets arrived in the ‘90’s I shifted to a team set collector, with an emphasis on Ozzie Smith. When McGwire arrived in St Louis I shifted once again and focused mainly on his cards. McGwire was immediately followed by Pujols so my collecting focus naturally moved to him. As we know now Pujols has moved out west and for the first time in my time collecting cards, there is no clear cut hall of fame caliber player on the team to collect. This also means there is not one player that will likely have at least one card in almost every set produced. I am looking forward to focusing on new (and cheaper) players.

I will also say I enjoy the history of the game and of the organization so I have an interest in cards of the Cardinal Hall of Famers (and recently, of the St Louis Browns).

So I am at a crossroads on what I want to do when the 2012 cards arrive and where to take my collection in general. I have never been very strict on what I add to my collection and so have picked up cards of players I like over the years even if they werent my main focus. That is something I would like to change.

The first issue I have to decide on is whether I want to choose players from all eras of Cardinals (and Browns) history, or do I only collect players from my lifetime that I have watched and had a connection with? While the second option is certainly going to be cheaper, I can’t deny there is a certain pleasure in picking up a card of a legend of long ago like Musial or Hornsby.

If I go with the first option, I need to find a way to limit the options for monetary reasons and my own sanity. So these are the guidelines I am considering:

No cards from before 1971 (the year I was born)
All players on a multi player card must be in a Cardinals/Browns uniform.
Any multi player card must only picture players I collect
No parallels, printing plates or duplicates
A limit on how much I will spend on any one card (haven’t decided what that should be)
An undetermined limit on game used cards
Two players from each decade

So what I have come up with is this:

Legends-Musial and Hornsby
1970’s-Lou Brock and Keith Hernandez
1980’s-Ozzie and Willie McGee
1990’s-McGwire and Ray Lankford
2000’s-Pujols and Jim Edmonds
2010’s-Matt Holliday and Adam Wainwright

Also, from the St Louis Browns I would add George Sisler and Satchel Paige

These players allow me to collect at least one of most of the cards from the sets that have been produced in the last 30-40 years. It also combines the best of the franchises with lesser players who are personal favorites. I know this still leaves a huge amount of material out there just for these players and I have no desire to try to collect all of it, just the stuff I like that meets my guidelines.

So what I would like to know from everyone is do you collect from all eras of your team’s history or just from your era? And what are your personal guidelines or rules that you use to keep your collection manageable?

Sorry for the long read and thanks for any insight you can offer.

[Krangry]

Im a Reborn collector myself. Collected Heavily back in they 90s, almost only collected Cardinals, Blues, and Martin Brodeur cards. I have decided upon my return to collect Berkman! Guy is a standup awesome player. Also collecting any cool Cardinals auto i can get my hands on, other then Pujols.

I would love to collect vintage / cut autos but there is no way i can afford it. I do however have a Sisler cut that is my favorite card in my collection.

[motu79]

I've decided on collecting Dustin Ackley exclusively, and the only guideline for myself and the collection is I don't/won't go after anything serial #'d under 10. There are exceptions, as I have a few Tristar cards #'d to 5, but that's it. No 1/1's for me! Good luck whichever direction you go.

[zeprock]

I think you just need to collect what you want and what makes you happy. I'm not sure I could be a Cardinals fan and not collect Bob Gibson. If you see a card that appeals to you and you can afford it, get it.

Personally I started collecting in 1970 and put together complete sets as I was growing up. In the mid-90s it became overwhelming with so much product and I decided I couldn't keep up with all the complete sets so at that point, I decided to just do the Topps set each year and collect all the stars from the other sets including insert sets. My thinking at the time was that someday I might complete my sets and I'd at least have the stars and would only need to acquire the commons. My thinking today is I will never complete those sets but I have become a player collector and try to get as many different cards of all the stars that I can. It doesn't matter to me if it's a worthless sweepstakes insert or a 1/1 card. If I don't have it then I can find a place in my collection for it.

[mikmouse24]

you hade me with "cardinals"
i am from springfield, mo - so naturally i can relate with you and the love of the game and the redbirds.
AS for the collecting aspect. don't limit yourself, and dont say ' no parallels! ' and as for who you do collect for current players...ummm yadi! YAdi YADI! guy is an amazing catcher and definitely considered one of if not THE best catcher in the league.
consider this- Cardinals prospects! bowman does a great job on getting tons of prospects in their sets- and there are many to collect there before at decent prices before they blow up.
MAtt Adams
Ryan Jackson
Shelby Miller
i get to see these guys play and i cant wait til they get called up..
Collecting the cardinals- you will always have someone to collect that actually will hold value/ be valuable/be worth collecting
one more thing- don't pass up other people on the team just because of your "rules". don't be the one that misses the next big 13th round draft pick because he was a no name a the time

[alfredoleal2001]

I am looking forward to focusing on new (and cheaper) players.

I think that is the one thing that made me change my direction. I am/was a ripken collector but the prices of soem cards make it hard to pick some of them up. Being a phillies fan, I shifted to modern phillies which have much more accesible prices, say Hamels, Victorino and even Howard, Utley, Halladay and Lee are cheaper than ripken. Im still keeping the ripken collection I put together and might buy one every once in a while.

[dougnash]

Hi everyone. I have been hanging around the boards now for quite awhile. I check in once or twice a day to see if any interesting topics are being discussed. Usually if I am curious about something I can find a post somewhere that touches on the topic. However I am taking a more direct route for this question. First a little background so you can understand where I am coming from…

I am a St Louis Cardinals fan. I started collecting in 1986. At the time I was putting together complete sets. As more sets arrived in the ‘90’s I shifted to a team set collector, with an emphasis on Ozzie Smith. When McGwire arrived in St Louis I shifted once again and focused mainly on his cards. McGwire was immediately followed by Pujols so my collecting focus naturally moved to him. As we know now Pujols has moved out west and for the first time in my time collecting cards, there is no clear cut hall of fame caliber player on the team to collect. This also means there is not one player that will likely have at least one card in almost every set produced. I am looking forward to focusing on new (and cheaper) players.

I will also say I enjoy the history of the game and of the organization so I have an interest in cards of the Cardinal Hall of Famers (and recently, of the St Louis Browns).

So I am at a crossroads on what I want to do when the 2012 cards arrive and where to take my collection in general. I have never been very strict on what I add to my collection and so have picked up cards of players I like over the years even if they werent my main focus. That is something I would like to change.

The first issue I have to decide on is whether I want to choose players from all eras of Cardinals (and Browns) history, or do I only collect players from my lifetime that I have watched and had a connection with? While the second option is certainly going to be cheaper, I can’t deny there is a certain pleasure in picking up a card of a legend of long ago like Musial or Hornsby.

If I go with the first option, I need to find a way to limit the options for monetary reasons and my own sanity. So these are the guidelines I am considering:

No cards from before 1971 (the year I was born)
All players on a multi player card must be in a Cardinals/Browns uniform.
Any multi player card must only picture players I collect
No parallels, printing plates or duplicates
A limit on how much I will spend on any one card (haven’t decided what that should be)
An undetermined limit on game used cards
Two players from each decade

So what I have come up with is this:

Legends-Musial and Hornsby
1970’s-Lou Brock and Keith Hernandez
1980’s-Ozzie and Willie McGee
1990’s-McGwire and Ray Lankford
2000’s-Pujols and Jim Edmonds
2010’s-Matt Holliday and Adam Wainwright

Also, from the St Louis Browns I would add George Sisler and Satchel Paige

These players allow me to collect at least one of most of the cards from the sets that have been produced in the last 30-40 years. It also combines the best of the franchises with lesser players who are personal favorites. I know this still leaves a huge amount of material out there just for these players and I have no desire to try to collect all of it, just the stuff I like that meets my guidelines.

So what I would like to know from everyone is do you collect from all eras of your team’s history or just from your era? And what are your personal guidelines or rules that you use to keep your collection manageable?

Sorry for the long read and thanks for any insight you can offer.

I started watching a lot of baseball in 1981 at the age of 8. My dad was a Yankees fan, so I became a Yankees fan. Skip ahead to 1984 and the arrival of Donnie Baseball. A good line by him in the boxscore would make my day. Jump to 1987 when I started really collecting cards. I had been collecting since 82 or 83 but in 87 was the first year you could easily find cards (at least I thought so) at the local department store, and also the year of my first card show. I have probably 10 or more of every 87 Topps card. For the next 6 or 7 years I collected every Mattingly I could get my hands on, including Kraft mac N cheese or Drake's Cakes box bottoms. I still remember the day I put that $65 aside and was finally able to buy my very own 1984 Donruss Don Mattingly rookie card, the card of all cards without the name Mantle or Wagner on it. I also put together every set, as at the time there were really only base sets, 5 or fewer manufacturers, and you could buy a box for about $15, until UD came around anyway. Then I went away to college and so did my empty wallet. Skip ahead skip ahead, now it's 2012 and cards have *slightly* changed. I just reclaimed 100,000+ cards from my parents house and caught the collecting bug again. Someone on these boards pointed me to to Topps Heritage, one of the last set builder's products out there. Needless to say last Sunday at a card show I picked up 2 hobby boxes and now I have my first commons list in almost 20 years.

While Jeter is far and away my current favorite player I would have to be insane to try to pick up his 1000+ cards since 1993. I've been chasing after a couple of his rookies -- I was fortunate to have snagged 1 SP rookie back in 93 -- and I think I'm going to get his full range of Heritage cards, base and insert. In addition to that I'm going to see how many of the Topps Heritage sets I can put together. It looks to be pricey so I might have to pick and choose.

So I ask you, what is your truest connection to baseball? The Cardinals, a couple players, or the game itself? Use that to drive your collection. No need to have rules, just buy what you like, whatever gives you that same thrill you got back in 1986.

Sorry for the long reply...

[waynetalger]

You could go for David Feese. I see a bright future in him.