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Just wanted to let you know that I liked reading your article “You May Not Want to Meet Your Favorite Stars,” which was written around the misfortune of meeting Mr. Reggie Jackson.

I’d like to start off by saying that I am a 33-year-old from Toronto and a long-time baseball card collector.  I buy Beckett price guides a couple times a year, as I mostly buy older cards, specifically 1950s and 1960s, and I figure they don’t change in value that much … not that I collect for the value, anyways. For me, it is mostly collecting guys who I respect or who have met, and that is why your article spoke volumes to me.

I go to Cooperstown, N.Y., every summer for the annual Baseball Hall of Fame induction ceremony, and I have had the privilege to meet many Hall of Famers who have generally all been very nice, with the exception of a miserable Whitey Ford, but that is another story.  I recently met “Mr. Cub” Ernie Banks who is most likely the nicest man you’d ever want to meet. Put it this way, I am now in the market for an Ernie Banks Rookie Card. He was awesome, and he even hit on my wife which I didn’t mind because he’s Ernie Banks!

It is always a conflicting moment when we can meet our favorite athletes, because you don’t want your boyhood image of them to be tarnished, but like with Reggie Jackson and your encounter with him, sadly that happens.  When I read your article, I thought about everything I had heard about him from people in Cooperstown, and your encounter with him is not an isolated one. He is not well-liked, and I have always avoided him while in the mecca of baseball … many people do. He often has the shortest lines for autographs and this past summer, he didn’t even show his face mostly because of the negativity he spoke [with Alex Rodriguez] this past summer.

I enjoyed your article, but was not surprised that you had the experience you did with Mr. Jackson.  You’d think that he would be kind or even a bit polite, especially at the National Convention … especially because he needs to make a living some how nowadays … and his autograph is still wanted, for now that is.

– Jon Laframboise, Toronto

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Thanks for the response. There were many emails about that column — some from people in the industry and others who have just had similar encounters. It was exciting to hear from some people I hadn’t expected to hear from — and unfortunate to hear that so many had experiences similar to mine. — Chris Olds

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

By Chris Olds | Beckett Baseball Editor | Commentary

A few years ago, I picked up a somewhat obscure  game-used jersey of my favorite player, Nick Swisher, and I can’t prove without a shadow of a doubt that it was used.

I repeat … can’t.

I’ve done some research but I still can’t prove without a shadow of a doubt that it’s real. And you know what? I’m OK with that.

It’s a white 2001 USA Baseball jersey, and it’s not got a single statement of authentication to go with it — but I do know, to a degree, its path into my hands. I picked it up on eBay through someone who bought it in a bulk lot from an auction house where it was consigned as part of an even bigger lot back in 2009.

So, naturally, what did I do back in June when its buddy, a matching blue jersey, popped up on eBay from the same collector/seller?

I bought it, of course, even though my efforts to confirm the identity of my first jersey came up short of what might be wanted by most collectors.

Why am I fine? The details and the situations of its arrival onto the market would simply be just too complicated to make up — and, well, Swisher didn’t play a whole lot for Team USA, anyway.

At worst, I have a pair of game-issued jerseys or jerseys he wore while not playing which, in reality, were used during a game. Or, I might have two jerseys he wore while playing — but there are no glaring examples of use besides some small stains on the white jersey. (Could be from use, could be from bench time, could be from storage. I’ll never know.)

In a collecting world where people often demand that the details of an item are documented heavily — and that their own personal definitions of game-used must be met or an item is still seen as questionable– my two jerseys are probably lackluster. And yet I am satisfied.

When I learned of the first jersey a few years ago on a post via the Game Used Universe website, a place where collectors and dealers wheel and deal and show off their game-used stuff,  I tried to research the jersey before buying but came up short.

First stop? Baseball cards for strike one. Swisher appears on just one USA Baseball card, a 2004 Upper Deck card that used an image from his Oakland A’s days. Interestingly, Upper Deck, which made USA Baseball cards at the time, had made memorabilia cards the year before and the year after Swisher’s class but not in 2001 — so it made sense that these jerseys could still exist. (So maybe it wasn’t a total strike, after all.)

All the seller could tell me was that the jersey came from a lot of USA gamers sold by Hunt Auctions — lot No. 1,051 in its Feb. 25, 2009, auction. So, I tracked down the auction and it noted the Swisher jerseys along with others in the lot — a few of which were up for auction at the time via the owner’s eBay account. (Swisher wasn’t.) The owner said he had two Swishers, both with minimal obvious use, so I picked one and made my purchase, knowing that at least it came from a bulk lot — which was one of 72 separate USA lots sold by Hunt during that event.

So, realistically, given that volume of items sold through Hunt — which included other big-league stars — either USA Baseball or Upper Deck had a massive inventory of jerseys and other game-used items it had no choice to get rid of all at once. (Hunt did not issue any kind of paperwork with the auction or note where the items came from.)

When I received my jersey, it was the No. 11 shown in the photo above but with no nameplate (USA jerseys don’t have them) or any markings on tagging noting the player. Still curious, I contacted USA Baseball to see whether it had any photos of Swisher in his USA uniform. They did, and all the details matched –  the styles, brands and patching — but he was wearing No. 7 for the photo shoot. I asked about that, too, and I’m told he wore No. 11 when in uniform for the team, though he only played two games  and went hitless in six at-bats. Fortunately, they were able to find a second photo of him, this time in his blue jersey, and it appears to be a No. 11. So I have a bit more proof that my items are legit — but it’s not much. I have no idea whether it’s my jersey in the photo.

Short of trying to track down newspaper photographs from more than a decade ago –  hoping Swisher was somehow seen in uniform while mostly on the bench during a traveling caravan of a USA Baseball tour and that a single photo might show the small stains on one of my jerseys  — I have about all of the proof I can. Sure, there are questions of potentially how many jerseys could have been issued to players — and there are red jerseys in the mix, too — but there’s also not a lot of time for me to obsess about it. Meanwhile, additional information that we are more used to for the pro levels and pro leagues just isn’t necessarily available in this case. My USA Baseball contact indicated that records from even back then are a bit spotty for details about when Swisher might have played — or even what color uniforms were used for which games back then.

And, just think, that was roughly a decade ago.

Stories like this one are commonplace in the game-used memorabilia world but they are also examples of the challenges we face as collectors. Look for tips, resources and more about collecting game-used in the next issue of Beckett Sports Card Monthly coming soon.

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

By Chris Olds | Beckett Baseball Editor | Commentary

With the exact postseason picture not quite clear just yet — but five American League teams definitely in — now’s the time to be readying those cardboard caches for potential movement if you’re a seller.

If you’re a buyer, you’ve probably already picked off a few favorites from the bunch.

And if you’re the rest of us? Well, it’s time to sit back and watch it all unfold — and watch the cardboard madness that follows.

There have been more than a few surprises this season — from explosive starts, much-ballyhooed call-ups, dominance on the mound and more, to the dramatic finishes that will unfold in the coming days.

While we’ll let it all shake out in the next two days, here are five players to watch this postseason.

Miguel Cabrera, 3B Tigers (Click here for a checklist or OPG)
With two games remaining, Cabrera is in contention to win the first Triple Crown since 1967. His .329 average is four points higher than newcomer Mike Trout in second, while his career-high 44 homers are just one ahead of Texas’ Josh Hamilton. His 137-RBI total is 10 above Hamilton as well. Presuming Hamilton doesn’t play spoiler, Cabrera’s key Rookie Cards and autographs could see quite a surge in interest with the Triple Crown. His 2000 Topps Traded and Topps Traded Chrome cards check in at Nos. 7-8 on the next Beckett Sports Card Monthly Baseball Hot List with upward-moving values of $40 and $60 respectively. Meanwhile, his 2000 Topps Traded Autograph typically sells for $300 to $500. You can expect added interest in those autos showing him as a Tiger — especially if the AL Central champs improve upon their showing in the postseason this year — though they often aren’t all that cheap as it is.
One to grab: 2012 Topps Allen and Ginter Autographs #MC, $100

Josh Reddick — OF, Oakland Athletics (Click here for a checklist or OPG)
If you’re asking “Who?” then clearly you haven’t been watching much of the Green-collar Baseball happening in Oakland these days. (And based on their attendance last night hosting the Texas Rangers with a postseason berth on the line, you’re not alone.) However, the unlikely surprise that is the Oakland A’s this year — the team ranks 29th in salary at roughly $55 million — and their postseason showing could be, in part, attributed to Reddick, who has hit a team-leading 32 home runs and driven in 84 in his first season with the club. In three past seasons with the Red Sox, he hit just 10 homers in 365 at-bats. When it comes to cardboard, he has plenty (dating back to 2007) but not that many options for those who want a card — or an autograph — of him in his Oakland uniform. This Tier One card is a Photoshoppped creation, but since he’s an affordable guy — like many in Oakland — you’ll likely be seeing more of him to come when it comes to the ink. (A’s rookie Yoenis Cespedes is a bonafide hitter for the team and could get attention, too, but with his $9 million salary he’s likely to vanish quickly like many of the team’s past stars. Reddick could stick around.)
One to grab: 2012 Topps Tier One On The Rise Autographs #JR /350, $15

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Derek Jeter — SS, New York Yankees (Click here for a checklist or OPG)
There are plenty of stars in New York but the focus will be on one guy if they add yet another World Series title. The Captain had a strong year compared to the recent past and he’s signed through next season, which will be his 19th in the majors, all in pinstripes. What will the future hold? How much longer will he play? Where will he rank in MLB history when it’s all said and done? He’s the iconic player of the Yankees so no matter what happens, his baseball cards will get attention. And he’ll continue to overshadow, on cardboard, even the superstars around him.
One to grab: Any certified autograph.

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Josh Hamilton — OF Texas Rangers (Click here for a checklist or OPG)
Can the two-time defending American League champion Rangers finally win it all? Or will they even win the American League West? On paper the Rangers look dominating but against Oakland they just haven’t been. On paper, there’s been no bigger star this season than former MVP Josh Hamilton, who is second in the AL in both home runs and RBI. While the questions for the team loom large, there’s an even bigger one for the team and their franchise player — will he leave via free agency after the season? Whether he heads elsewhere or remains in Texas, there’s no doubt that he’s got a place deep in the hearts of Texas fans — the franchise’s unprecedented recent run of success could not have been done without him. His RCs and early graphs are strong, but his Rangers sigs such as this Triple Threads patch Relic will generate some good heat, too.
One to grab: 1999 Topps Traded Autographs #T66, $500

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Manny Machado — 3B Baltimore Orioles (Click here for a checklist or OPG)
Like the Oakland A’s, not many saw this one coming at the beginning of the season — the rise of the Baltimore Orioles, who finished dead-last in the AL East last season. On the stat sheet and on cardboard, there’s not much to see here — a group team of guys who once had their primes on cardboard but aren’t going to be lighting things up any time soon: Matt Wieters, Chris Davis, Mark Reynolds, J.J. Hardy, Nick Markakis and even Adam Jones, a talented player who spent part of his Sunday trash-talking haters on Twitter, including Hall of Famer Peter Gammons (that tweet since deleted). That lack of superstar power leaves the highly touted rookie as one guy who could move the needle quite well on cardboard with a good game or two in the postseason. He’s hit .267 with seven home runs and 26 RBI in his 49 games this season — so he’s just getting warmed up.
One to grab: Any of his certified autographs.

–

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

 By Chris Olds | Beckett Baseball Editor | Commentary

The National Sports Collectors Convention is the place you visit to pick up memories, add to your collections that you have built over a lifetime and, in a way, shape your own personal view of the sports world.

With my final hour of my final day at the show winding down, it was now-or-never time for finding a certain memorable item to add to my collection since I had purchased just a couple small items — nothing necessary, nothing remotely memorable — while working. Before this year’s event, I had told myself that I should find one item — a better piece — that I could remember the show by, so that was what was in my mind as I made my way out of the Beckett bullpen with one of our writers and we headed down one aisle.

What I got in that last hour was something I never in my life could have expected — something I could have never want-listed or dreamt about. It wasn’t a Rookie Card or an autograph, it wasn’t an unusual piece of memorabilia I couldn’t find anywhere else.

What I got was Reggie Jackson.

What I got was not Reggie on a signed 1969 Topps Rookie Card (something I had eyed the previous year; above) or Reggie on an old candy bar long past its prime. I got the Reggie that made Billy Martin even angrier. I got the Reggie that made reporters cringe. I got the Reggie that made teammates scowl.

I got what made Reggie  ”The Straw That Stirs The Drink.” I got the Reggie that I have heard stories about from show promotors and autograph-acquiring companies in the past.

I got berated for taking photo of Reggie Jackson by Reggie Jackson.

We had walked a distance from our bullpen toward some dealers on that side of the Baltimore Convention Center, breezing by some tables, stopping at others. We came up on a table where, a bit earlier in the day, Jackson had been posing with a bat while looking at items one dealer had for sale. After all, he was at the show to sign and he’s also been known as a collector of memorabilia, cards and sports cars (much of it lost in a fire long ago). Turns out, he was still there. We were 10 to 15 feet away from Jackson when two of our writers came up to tell us they were leaving for the day, giving us their last contacts before hitting the road.

Those of us remaining took a few more steps forward, stopping at the table to look at whatever treasures were there when I said, “I guess I should get a picture of Reggie” and started fidgeting with my iPhone, raising it once but it was on my video setting from filming wax breaks and other videos before. I switched its settings and took a few more steps forward when a couple of other collectors walked off after taking a picture of the Hall of Famer from across the two tables.

From six or so feet away, I framed up the image of him and card industry legend  Ken Goldin, who was beside him, looking at a baseball and clicked once (the image at the top) as Jackson himself just started to click.

“How many you need?” he quipped (at least I think thats what he said as it was all a blur). “Take a couple and move on.”

A bit surprised, I looked to my right but nobody was there and spun around to see where my writer had went. Jackson was talking to me and he wasn’t done.

“How many do you need? Six, seven … 10, 11?” clearly agitated and not kidding. “Take a couple and move on.”

“I got one,” I said, holding up a single finger. “One.”

For a split-second, I contemplated saying something to Goldin — a “How are you doing?” and an introduction to break the unnecessary tension as I had talked to him before last year’s show, make Jackson realize he might have screwed up by berating a member of the media. But I was stunned, and I doubted Jackson would care.

All I could come up with was “I’m an A’s fan.” in a flustered response, raising both of my hands over my head, not believing the surreal circumstances.

Jackson wasn’t done barking at me like I was one of the reporters in those 1970s news clips.

“Buy my drinks and I’ll pose for photos with you all night,” he said (or something close to it) as the few other people around on his side of the table chuckled. I quickly quipped “sure” as the laughter died down, but he didn’t hear it and I was done with it. I wondered whether that was his way of making up for being Reggie.

It might have been, but I wasn’t sure so I walked off.

–

I was stunned for the rest of the show — the single image was taken at 5:10 p.m. on Aug. 4, according to my iPhone — and I tried to replay it all to myself and to the writer who witnessed it, a few recaps muttered with adjectives that couldn’t be written here.  (“Man, TMZ would have loved that on video,” I later thought.) We worked our way down a few other tables and found a dealer selling ticket stubs, stopped and looked — I was instantly reminded of Jackson again when one Yankees stub showed Jackson from the 1977 World Series.

I was done, annoyed once again. I didn’t buy another thing at the show. Less than 1/10th of the money I brought with me for buying was spent — a record-low.

At first it was shock as this life-long Oakland A’s fan was being trash-talked by one of the guys he’d have on his Mount Rushmore of A’s collecting — Reggie, Rickey, Jose and Swish. Then I thought back to the old notion that “you never want to meet your favorite player” because he might quash your entire image of him and why you collect. But that wasn’t it for me — I’ve met Canseco and I’ve met Swisher — neither was like this. (Heck, I could have met Henderson had I been in the Beckett booth for the whole show — he stopped and took a picture with members of our crew. That’s something I would not have expected out of Rickey.)

Instead, by a short time later and still feeling conflicted, I realized I got Reggie. I got the Reggie that isn’t the Reggie showing when the dog and pony show of the TV cameras are around at an event like the National. No, no. I got the real Reggie.

For me, he’s one of a kind. For him, I’m one of a million (or two). None of this really shocks me — put yourself in his shoes. Doesn’t make it right, but he’s been in the spotlight longer than I have been alive. I’ll give him that. But when I’m in the shoes of the one being treated poorly? Well, it’s different.

I got Reggie — one part of that puzzle that made him an enigma, a star. I got Reggie — the part that we may not always like, but it’s there.

He stirred me up. I hear he’s good at that.

Never once did I have any inclination of asking Reggie for an autograph — one that, oddly, I don’t have through all these years — I preferred just a snapshot from afar. I got much more, and it oddly sort of made my 2012 NSCC, too — but not in an overwhelmingly positive way.

I was ready to sign off on this entire story by the end of the night, but it ironically presented itself once again the next morning.

My flight out of Baltimore left at 7 a.m., which meant about two hours of sleep after a late-night VIP event I needed to attend on Saturday night. We got to the airport with no problems, and I quickly worked my way to a newsstand location for breakfast and the first food of any kind in about 10 hours. I made a beeline for a $4 bottle of Evian (that, to me was like finding a Honus Wagner in an attic), some pretzels, a sandwich and sleepily rolled to the check-out stand.

It was a line that couldn’t move fast enough as my head hurt just as much as the rest of me after a long show. I leaned on my suitcase, and I glanced up at what was on the counter in front of me to see what the hold-up was. In a sleepy haze I noticed three newspapers — two being New York tabloids — being stacked to be bought, and I remembered my days of working in the industry. “Oldschool readers are still around,” I thought to myself. “That’s good.” Then I glanced over and up … and that’s when everything seemingly went into slow-motion.

It was Reggie Jackson.

Again.

Part of me really wanted to ask him if I could buy his papers instead of his drinks just to see his reaction. But I really didn’t want to get Reggied one more time and we had a person in line between us. Yet, I also wondered if he’d remember me — after all, it might not be that hard to unless he made a habit out of berating fat guys in white dress shirts and khakis at the show. (That’s what I was wearing at the airport, too.)

Even though he treated me like something damp and useless beneath the napkin below The Drink just 13 or so hours earlier, I didn’t want to blow his cover to anyone around us. (I wasn’t a jackass before, wasn’t going to be now — not my style.) Instead, once again in shock, I watched as he paid and walked across the hall in a straight line to the Bayside Landing restaurant to sit and wait for a flight. I collected my things and moved on toward my gate. I ate my breakfast among the crowd and mentally recapped the whole thing, chuckling at it all.

But then I started to think about one more thing.

I collected my belongings and headed back toward the restaurant and the newsstand, intent on doing one more thing to cap this story if Jackson was still there and he was. It was 6:26 a.m. on Aug. 5, according to my iPhone, when facing the wall across from him using my two-way camera just in case he turned around to leave, I snapped this Nighthawks/Edward Hopper-style photo of Jackson, age 66, alone and far, far away from stirring anything.

It’s just my second photo of Reggie Jackson.

It’s the way I’ll choose to remember him for this trip.

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

By Chris Olds | Beckett Baseball Editor

The Topps Golden Giveaway just got a little more lustrous.

The company announced on Thursday that the code cards found in packs of 2012 Topps can now unlock cards of two of the most talked-about rookies in MLB so far this season — Texas Rangers pitcher Yu Darvish and Oakland A’s outfielder Yoenis Cespedes.

And not only that, they are autographed.

Darvish, a star in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball and ace of Team Japan in the most recent World Baseball Classic, is 1-0 with a 7.94 ERA after this first start. Meanwhile, Cespedes, who was a star for Cuba in the WBC, is batting .273 with three home runs and seven RBI after his first seven games. (Need a Darvish checklist or OPG? Click here. Want Cespedes? Click here.)

Both players will be added as standard cards in the program effective immediately and there will be 25 signed copies of each player’s card to be found as well as collectors await both players’ official Rookie Card debuts in Topps products that are forthcoming. (Darvish presently has autograph redemption cards that are strong sellers and will appear on the next Beckett Baseball Hot List.)

The Golden Giveaway code cards are found one per HTA jumbo pack of Series 1 Topps, six per hobby box as well as in retail packs. They can unlock unsigned diecut cards like these two, 24-karat gold cards or virtual coins that can be amassed for other prizes.

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

By Chris Olds | Beckett Baseball Editor | Commentary

Question: What happens when a highly touted Cuban prospect signs with a small-market team lacking many marquee names and he hits tape-measure home runs in three of his first five games?

Answer: Hot cardboard.

That’s exactly what has happened with new Oakland A’s outfielder Yoenis Cespedes, a 5-foot-10, 210-pound rookie who is hitting just .250 but might be the biggest Bash Brother in the Oakland lineup these days. Meanwhile, he doesn’t even have an A’s card yet — but thanks to his 2009 World Baseball Classic cards in various Topps brands, there’s still cardboard to be found.  (Need a full Cespedes checklist or OPG? Click here.)

Want proof? A 2009 Bowman Chrome WBC Prospects Blue Refractor /150 sold for $135 on Tuesday — a strong number. Meanwhile, a 30-card lot of his regular card in the set is commanding more than $500 in a current auction with time remaining today.

Believe it or not, though, Cespedes has been hotter even before playing well in his first MLB games. His 2009 Bowman Sterling WBC Relics Red Refractor 1/1 (top) recently sold on eBay for $800. In March, a Orange Refractor /25 sold for $710, while a Gold (/50) went for $511 and a BGS 9.5 Gold went for $490.

And those are just the bigger examples.

“Since Cespedes signed in February, his cards have slowly been gaining momentum on the secondary market – his 2009 Bowman Chrome WBC Prospects has even made a few appearances on the Hot List,” said Beckett Baseball Senior Market Analyst Brian Fleischer. “His early season performances have gotten collectors’ attention and many of his serial-numbered and game-used cards have nearly doubled in value since the start of the season. One of his most-plentiful cards, the 2009 Bowman Chrome WBC Prospects, was previously priced at $5-$12, but is now selling the $10-$25 range. It’s much too early to start predicting Rookie of the Year, but Cespedes seems to at least be on the right track, which could mean great things for his cards.”

In all, Cespedes appears on 44 cards in the Beckett.com database but his Oakland A’s debut will come in 2012 Bowman, which will arrive in early May. There, he will be found as a Bowman Lucky autograph redemption card since Topps just recently signed him to a card and autograph deal. That card can be seen above.

How many moonshot home runs might he have by then?

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

By Chris Olds | Beckett Baseball Editor

Topps is hoping its latest autograph acquisition leads to some moneyball for collectors.

The company announced on Friday that it has signed Oakland A’s outfielder Yoenis Cespedes to an autograph deal, meaning the promising Cuban star will appear in products beginning with 2012 Bowman.

In that set, Cespedes will have an standard card, but he also will appear in packs via a Bowman Lucky autograph redemption — he’s card No. 1 with two other big names to be announced at a later time.

Meanwhile, Cespedes also will have signed cards in Allen & Ginter, Bowman Platinum, Tier One, Finest and Topps Chrome, according to the company.

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

By Chris Olds | Beckett Baseball Editor

Opening Day might be a few months away, but there’s another chance to examine more baseball soon as Moneyball arrives on DVD and Blu-ray on Jan. 10, according to Sony Home Pictures Entertainment which announced the news on Friday.

The Brad Pitt film based on the story of Oakland A’s GM Billy Beane and chronicling the team’s magical 2002 season is the No. 3 highest-grossing baseball film, trailing only A League of Their Own and The Rookie.

The DVD arrives two weeks before this year’s Oscar nominations are announced.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Based on the book of the same name, the DVD will include four behind-the-scenes features, deleted scenes and bloopers. The discs also will have Blu-ray exclusive features — “Drafting the Team” and “Adapting Moneyball” — along with a preview trailer for the MLB 12: The Show video game.

Extra features on the standard DVD release will include “Billy Beane: Re-inventing the Game” and “Moneyball: Playing the Game.”

Moneyball will arrive in three formats — DVD ($30.99), Blu-ray ($35.99) and Blu-ray/DVD combo ($40.99).

To find more stories from the Beckett Sports Card Monthly Sports Movies issue and Beckett.com, click here.

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

By Chris Olds | Beckett Baseball Editor

The arrival of the first Panini America baseball card set under its new deal with the MLB Players Association is just weeks away.

Today, we have for you a few exclusive preview images of autographed prospect cards to be found in 2011 Donruss Elite Extra Edition once the boxes start arriving on Dec 21.

Each 20-pack box will include six autographs. Meanwhile, four Hot Boxes per 20-box case will include 10 autographs. For those not quick enough to do the math, that’s 136 autographs per case.

There will be 150 prospects signing for the product, which will include several new insert lines, including Building Blocks (dual, triple and quad autographs), Best Compared To (a draft pick and a present major-leaguer paired) and Two-sport Stars. The base set will include 150 prospects and 25 present MLB players.

Other items worth noting for the product include 50 on-card autographs and a full array of the familiar diecut cards from the past — Aspirations and Status.

Look for another exclusive gallery — for 2011 Playoff Contenders, which arrives in January — in the next issue of Beckett Baseball.

If you absolutely can’t wait to see some other Contenders sigs, click here.

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

Beckett Baseball’s Chris Olds breaks down a mailday of purchases made over the last few months on Checkoutmycards.com.

What did he buy? How many of the cards were Swishers? Watch and find out …