What would it take to collect modern cards again?

[Leon]

Wow, I have been on this board since inception, which is around 10 yrs. I have always thought I was one of the only ones with my view of baseball today. I don't care for it at all. As I have always said (for the last 25 yrs anyway) there are no baseball players I really like. And if there is "one" (I can't think of one right now) then it's not enough for me to go back to watching today's major league baseball. I can't stand the way the players are overpaid, whining babies. That is at the heart of it. If you don't like the players on the cards, or the MLB itself, it makes you less likely to collect them.

I guess if I could change the rules and make it where I might collect again, I might make 1 set of TOPPS, with 750'ish cards, 10 cards to a pack for a dollar...with a piece of gum in it and issued in 3 series. Not gum that tastes any good but gum that won't make you sick and has some white sugary powder on it. Make mine kind of brittle, like it used to be. But then again I am probably just being nostalgic, longing for those summers in Houston, of the late 1960's, listening to the Astros on the radio in my front yard with the next door neighbor; Spitting sunflower seed shells into the green grass, with nary a worry in the world. Oh those days of summer....Fond memories.

[tachyonbb]

When I started collecting as a kid in the 1950's I never thought of future value for the cards I enjoyed. I collected St. Louis Cardinal cards as the Omaha Cardinals played a few blocks from our apartment house. TV was just starting and the game of the week was in fuzzy black and white. To actually see a picture of the player was part of the enjoyment. To have their stats at your fingertips was cool. The core of most teams stayed together for years. I followed the National League and there were 8 teams. Cozy enough for even a kid to know the key players on every team. Today there are as many teams in the National League as there were in all of major league baseball in the 50's. Few players stay with one team for very long.

This week I walked into a local card store for the first time in 20 years. There were a couple of junior high age kids in there opening packs of cards. Their only interest was in getting a "hit" on an insert card. It was more like gambling than collecting. They opened 20 packs and left all of the common cards on the counter. I asked the owner if I could have them. As we talked I asked about early cards. Early to him was 1960. He did not even know about Goudey or T cards.

All that being said my daughter and I are trying to complete a 2002 topps t206 mini set. There are "old" players in the set and modern ones also. It is more family time and the collecting is simply an excuse to get together.

[marcdelpercio]

I collect and enjoy modern cards as well. I feel that some of the modern sets are very well done and extremely interesting. I think that a lot of responses reflect the way cards were when that person first started collecting so there will of course be that nostalgic feeling of wanting things to be like they were in the good old days.

The biggest difference to me is that collecting used to be player-based. Even during my childhood in the 80s, I bought packs hoping to get a Cal Ripken or George Brett or Nolan Ryan card. There were no inserts or chase cards so it was all about getting my favorite players and completing sets. Now, collecting is mostly product-based. Your pack or box is only a success if you hit a high-dollar, low-numbered chase card. My favorite modern set is always Bowman Chrome, I think because it is still very player-based with all the rookies.

I think the combination of the product-based sets and the lack of connection to today's players that Leon and others mentioned, has caused countless longtime collectors to abandon the modern sets and look backwards to the vintage. I don't think there really is a solution to this. The game and the cards will continue to evolve in ways that will draw some people in and alienate others. Me...I love pretty much all cards so will continue to collect everything. But I completely understand why others feel differently.

[tbob]

The temperature in Hades falling below 32 degrees farenheit.

[rdixon1208]

I like to buy a few packs here and there. I'll even build a set every once in a while. But when I open up a new pack of cards now it's not much different than it was when I was a kid. I just want to get my favorite players. Or maybe an up and coming rookie.

I don't care how many there are. I don't care what they're worth, or what they'll be worth down the road. I don't collect them as an investment. I just like baseball, and I like baseball cards.

[ALR-bishop]

My Topps set and pack run goes 1948 to 2011 so I still collect the modern stuff. I never reeally stopped collecting since a kid.

I also enjoy putting together the Topps Heritage sets in master form.

It has always been and still is just a hobby for me, though I did become a little obsessed with the Topps insert and test issues, both issued and not. But, my pursuits have never involved any money my family will ever need, so that I could be sure it would remain just a hobby

[Ejm1]

The Pirates winning in all,the return of wool uniforms and less teams in the major leagues. I would start to buy modern when these demands are met.