Nostalgia and Prospect Collecting with The Wire Actor Chris Ashworth

Virginia Beach, Va. – Whether the passion is focused on sports, non-sports, or trading card games, one of the greatest things about collecting cardboard is how it brings people together. The idea of being welcomed no matter who you are, where you come from, or what you do for a living was proudly on display at a 757 Card Show event in Virginia Beach in early May.

While thousands of people gathered for the 757 Card Shows event searching for cardboard treasures, former athletes signing at the show included Howard Johnson (MLB), Terry Kirby (NFL), D.J. Dozier (NFL, MLB), and Chris Slade (NFL). Also in attendance was actor Chris Ashworth.

The Power of Nostalgia in Collecting

In the early days of collecting, enthusiasts gauged demand and popularity through card shop owners and the few people who hung around the shop, swapping stories about sports heroes and their exploits. For kids collecting before the 1990s and advent of online chat forums, it was about seeing the faces of the players whose names they heard on the news, read about in newspapers, or learned of from family and friends – that was the visual connection to greatness.

With the rise of Beckett Magazine and now thanks to social media, the love and knowledge of trading cards is shared around the world. Welcomed members come from all walks of life, every profession, and every economic sector.

Hailing from a small town in Virginia, rising to popularity as an actor in HBO’s hit show The Wire, Ashworth combines all that is a collector and reseller.

Years before becoming the feared character Sergei Malatov, aka “The Russian,” on HBO’s critically acclaimed series, Ashworth’s beginnings resonates with the vast majority of collectors.

Asked what got him excited about collecting early on, Ashworth replied, “It has been baseball cards for the most part. Later on in life, I picked up basketball and football. I think my first cards were from the early or mid-‘80s – ’84, ’85, ’86.

“I remember my grandfather taking me to a store to get some. They had packs of baseball cards for $.25, I think. (Smiles) I should have skipped over to the ’86-87 Fleer basketball.

“I remember taking those baseball cards and putting them in front of the television when I watched games as a kid. I found some late-1970s Topps cards at a house I was staying at when I was younger. They were commons, but I thought they were really cool, and it was really cool where I found them – in the basement and in the wall.”

Reflecting on the cards he loved from his childhood, Ashworth fondly shared memories of his favorites, almost as if he were holding them in his hands at that very moment.

“There are so many. I think of ’87 Topps (Mark) McGwire, (Barry) Bonds, and Bo Jackson. 1984 Topps – Darryl Strawberry, Cal Ripken, Don Mattingly – just legends. We thought they were going to be worth a huge amount of money. It started to make a comeback in 2020; they were worth a lot more then.

“The value doesn’t matter to me. Those are iconic cards for me. Those names will always take me back to my childhood. And of course, the 1985 Topps Mark McGwire. During the home run chase with him and Sammy Sosa, that card took off. I was buying and selling those. Those cards from the ‘80s will always resonate with me.

Buying, Collecting, and Selling

Like most collectors, at some point offloading inventory is needed. Ashworth has seemingly been buying, selling, and trading sports cards his entire life.

“I started in the ‘80s and have always bought, sold, and collected from an early age,” Ashworth said. “I remember growing up in the middle of nowhere, being on the school bus, trying to use my lunch money, trading, or whatever I could do to get their cards. I was working trades. I have always liked buying and selling cards. As I got older and it progressed, it helped me pay my bills.”

Ashworth humorously expanded upon his card-selling journey.

“When I was in college in 1997, when Bowman Chrome came out, I was calling around to different Walmarts to put the Bowman Chromes on layaway, knowing I wasn’t able to pay for any of it. (Laughs) That’s a crazy story. I was always trying to get money to sell cards, eating at Taco Bell. I had big dreams but no paycheck.”

The entrepreneurial hustle as a young man expanded into a reliable side business.

“1997 was when I was turned onto Bowman Chrome,” Ashworth said. “I had a lot of that, I was buying and selling at the Hillsville Gun Show and Flea Market in Virginia (Carroll County). It was huge back then; a couple hundred thousand people would attend. I would put up a table there, selling packs and singles.

“As time went on, as I started making money in my career, I started buying and selling. The life of an actor, you are making money and then you are not making money. It is back and forth. Baseball cards would help me pay the bills. Sometimes I would have to sell stuff that I didn’t want to.”

Pinpointing MLB Prospects

“I did invest in a lot of prospects, most of which didn’t pan out. I remember in 2014, telling a girl that I was dating that I feel led to invest in Aaron Judge. I had invested in plenty of other people that I wish I could go back and change, but that is the nature of the game.

“I remember her saying, ‘What if he gets hurt”’ and me saying, ‘What if he doesn’t?’ I had a good feeling about him.

“Aaron Judge and I started following each other and communicating. I started buying a ton of his stuff in 2013 – Bowman Chrome specifically. I remember telling him, ‘I think God is going to do some amazing things for you. I think God has great plans for you.’ He was always appreciative of that.

“I just started buying up Bowman Chrome autographs of Judge. Maybe I was paying $13 or $14 for the base, $30 for the autographed Refractors. I bought a lot of his Bowman Chrome graded autos as well.

“I have sold most of what I had – I have sold most of my Judges, which has been a blessing. Anyone that put Judges away to sell at a later date, it has been a blessing.”

Another rising New York Yankees talent has Ashworth’s attention.

“For me, it is still just baseball. I have some people that I have put away for a rainy day, so to speak. Jasson Dominguez, he is a topic that I could talk about for a while. I don’t want to sell the cards I have of him yet. God willing, he will get it together and do really well. He has the ability.”

The passion that burned from an early age still fans Ashworth’s collecting flames.

“I still buy and sell,” Ashworth said. “I enjoy it. It takes me back to opening packs as a kid. I will have to book some really big jobs because Topps, with Fanatics now, the box pricing is just ridiculous. It is way too expensive and overpriced. Collector or investor, the odds of making your money back off a box are not great. But it is a joy to open.

“This was shared with me – you are paying for the excitement of opening the box. If you get something, that is the extra blessing. You are paying for the experience. You gotta enjoy the experience because, a lot of the times, that is all that you are getting.”

As Time Goes on, the Deep-Rooted Passion Never Wavers

That feeling of making a deal and buying cards on the school bus with lunch money stays with Ashworth. That camaraderie also connects Ashworth with 757 Card Shows owner and promoter Russell Savage.

“Russell Savage, the promoter of the show here at Virginia Beach, he was a fan of The Wire,” Ashworth said. “We became friends, and we would talk about the show and cards; we are about the same age. It is such a blessing to have fellowship with people that are my age, older, or younger around sports cards – even non-sports cards.

“It is a blessing because we can talk about cards that we had as kids, the packs we opened, the prospects that we loved, and the ones we missed out on – it is something everyone can relate to in the sports trading card world. We all have stories that others can relate to, a kid or an adult, if you buy or sell. The community is a joy to be around. That will always stick with me.”

Starting in 2000, Ashworth has a lengthy acting resume spanning film and TV. Some of Ashworth’s roles, in addition to The Wire:

• Without a Trace
• Terminator Salvation
• Justified
• 13 Sins
• Deepwater Horizon
• Hero of the Underworld
• 2020
• Sneaky Pete
• Elementary
• The Blacklist
• The Resident

The Article Card List

*Click the link to purchase any of the cards mentioned by Chris Ashworth during the interview.

• 1987 Topps #366 Mark McGwire
• 1987 Topps #320 Barry Bonds RC
• 1987 Topps #170 Bo Jackson RC
• 1984 Topps #182 Darryl Strawberry RC
• 1984 Topps #400 Cal Ripken AS
• 1984 Topps #8 Don Mattingly RC
• 1997 Bowman Chrome International Refractors #14 Cal Ripken AU
• 1985 Topps #401 Mark McGwire OLY RC
• 2013 Bowman Chrome Draft Draft Pick Autographs Gold Refractors #AJ Aaron Judge
• 2021 Bowman’s Best #41 Jasson Dominguez RC

Protect Your Collection With:

• Penny Sleeves — Amazon | eBay | Fanatics
• Top Loaders — Amazon | eBay | Fanatics
• Binders — Amazon | eBay
• 9-Pocket Card Pages — Amazon | eBay

*Feature image credit: Mike Capozzi