Nonsense Newsletter No. 156: The dangers of scarcity? Black Friday deals and More!
Well, the turkey coma should be about worn off by now for most of us. The fear-riddled Lions football game is also comfortably in the past at this point for fans like myself. And, it’s the perfect time for a post-Turkey Day edition of the Nonsense Newsletter! This week I discuss the hobby’s gorilla in the room — the scarcity of scarcity, while John Dudley dives head first into Black Friday deals! So, let’s really take some time to enjoy this week’s edition of the Nonsense Newsletter!
By John McTaggart
At a local card show recently I was speaking with a guy in the industry that I’ve known for more than 30 years — a dealer who makes his living traveling to card show after card show buying, selling and trading everything from the new stuff to the old — and has for many years.
He mentioned something to me that blew my mind, something made me take a step back.
“You know, John,” he said, holding up a slabbed version of a ultra-modern basketball card. “You know there are more than 300 different Victor Webanyama rookie cards?”
I didn’t believe him at first, but after browsing over an entire showcase he had set up containing nothing but graded Wemby rookies — each one different — it sunk in.
“And, about the same amount of Connor Bedards, too.” He added.
It’s frightening, honestly.
By John Dudley
It’s Black Friday! Card retailers have some strong deals, but I’m more interested in what singles one can snag on the cheap. So, here are five players whose cards have dipped substantially in the last year. These might not be official Black Friday deals, but the hobby has conspired to drop the prices on these five standouts enough that I’m considering them my Black Friday card deals.
Note: The percentage value drops listed for each player are how much their Card Ladder Index has dropped in the past year.
Albert Pujols (-70.72%)
Pujols’ precipitous drop is a stark reminder of the dangers of buying even a first-ballot Hof player when they are in the news. Pujols cards spiked with his not suspicious at all stellar final season that saw him get to 700 homers. The buzz has died down and so has his card prices.
He’s still one of the top five players in my lifetime (Bonds, Griffey, Henderson, and Trout round out the rest). He tops my Black Friday deals list easily.
Quick Hits
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The Sports Card Nonsense newsletters reflect the opinions of only the authors and contributors. They are for informational purposes only and are not a recommendation for purchases or of an investment strategy or to buy or sell any assets.