vintage vs modern – conclusion

Almost three months ago I started weekly posts on differences between collecting vintage and modern cards. Here’s what I came up with in ten different areas.

Opening packs – easily an advantage for modern

Players – a toss-up, depending on what you like – I like being able to watch the players I collect.

Affordability – a toss-up

Value – hands down vintage

Grading – a total hassle and modern has less grading – a win for modern

Trading – more people means more trades – advantage modern

Coolness – another easy win for vintage

Community – both have nice folks with modern having a lower percentage of flakes – score modern

Marketplace – top vintage cards are mostly restricted to auction houses, but most collectors (vintage and modern) can find plenty on eBay – no real advantage either way

Research – vintage cards have lots more unknowns than modern

According to my scorecard, modern collecting is better. That’s not exactly a surprise since I collect modern cards. A vintage collector would find a way for vintage cards to come out on top. Opening my own material and the huge modern collecting community are two big pluses in my eyes. I admit that I’m on the fringe of modern collectors because I don’t actively collect the latest releases.

I hate to let this series – vintage vs modern – die, but I think I’ve written all that I can on the subject. I could make up some stupid topics – which smell better, have prettier colors, etc. – but I think I’ve pretty much beat this topic to death already.

At the end of the day, as many (many) people have already said, “Collect what you like.”

Where have all the series gone?

Is it my imagination, or are sets all becoming one series these days? In the early days (of Topps), all the annual sets were issued in series – sometimes lots of series. That tradition ended after the 1973 set. As a kid, I always thought that 1973 was more special than later years just because it wasn’t a one-series set.

By the 90s sets were back to being issued in series. Stadium Club even went to putting out three series for a number of years. (I’ll be posting a 1994 Stadium Club 3 box break in a couple weeks.) Into the 2000s most everything was in two series.

Today, what do we have? 2010 Topps 1 and 2. That’s it. Everything else is a single series. It doesn’t help that Topps is pretty much the only game in town for baseball cards.

What is the deal? Why have multiple series sets all but died off. Did Topps kill them off, or did collectors quit buying them?

Memorable card – 1998 Fleer Tradition Zone Roger Clemens

Here is the card.

I pulled this card from a 1998 Fleer Tradition pack back in 1998. The insertion rate on the Zone inserts was 1:288. I had just started opening packs for the first time since 1983, and pulling this insert was pretty exciting at the time. Inserts were unknown when I collected as a kid.

The card itself is very timely. After a 10-13 season with the Red Sox, Clemens was exiled to Toronto and went 21-7 for the Blue Jays in 1997. His 292 strikeouts was the highest season total he had in his entire career. Roger then went 21-10 in 1998 before jumping to the Yankees to the Yankees in 1999. Was Clemens remarkable turnout in Toronto because of PEDs. A jury will decide that now.