Everyone’s card collection is unique. 

There’s no single, “right way” to collect.  The most important thing is that the cards in your collection mean something to you.  The people I know who enjoy the hobby the most, are the ones who have a purpose and a focus that directs their collection. They don’t let others tell them what’s good, or what’s junk, or what they should be chasing.

In a recent episode of the @HouseOfJordans podcast they were talking with Josh of Cardboard Chronicles who has narrowed his entire collection to something like 17 cards.  Now that’s focus.  As I listened, I realized he had a story and a reason that those cards have found their way into his collection.  The cards may come and go as his journey unfolds, but it was evident that he has a clear purpose which provides direction as he goes.

That got me thinking.  If I had to significantly narrow my own PC, what cards mean the most to me?  What would I want to hang on to, and why do those cards mean the most?

In this post, I thought I’d share the seven cards that currently mean the most to me.  These seven each have a story behind them that gives them meaning, and here, for your reading pleasure, are those stories.

1986 Topps Thad Bosley

If you’ve followed the blog or the podcast for a while, you have undoubtedly heard the story of why this Thad Bosley card means so much to me.  It’s the card that started it all!  It was the card staring up at me from the first pack of Topps I ever purchased.  Thirty-four years later, the card still brings back the vivid memories of me picking it out of the box on the counter of a local department store.  I can hear the crinkling of the cellophane as I tore it open, and I still feel the excitement of looking through the cards in my first pack.  You can hear more about it in my “Origin Story” podcast!

2019 Topps Heritage Nolan Ryan “Real One” Auto

Nolan Ryan has been a focus of my PC since I was young.  With a career that was almost approaching 20 years as I started collecting, there were already a ton of Ryan cards available for me to pick up.  Because of that, he has always had a prominent place in my PC.  I loved his longevity, his grit, and his approach to the game.   Here’s another article I wrote with some of my favorite inexpensive Ryan cards.

As I opened my case of 2019 Heritage, it was looking pretty rough through the first 8 or 9 boxes.  That all changed when this Ryan auto popped out of a pack of one of the later boxes.  My emotions went from frustration to elation in a matter of seconds!  Getting a pack pulled, on-card auto of one of my favorite players was something special.  The fact that it’s on a card with a sweet vintage design and that I pulled it myself, solidify its place in my Top 7.

1969 Topps Brian Piccolo

This card came from my grandparents’ attic early in my collecting days.  At some point, I was looking through my cards while visiting my grandparents’ house, and my grandpa started asking about what I was looking at.  I told him it was my baseball cards.  He smiled, and he then uttered a sentence which had me doing back flips.  “Let’s go on up and take a look in the attic.  I think there’s a box of these somewhere up there.”

Whaaaat!  Was this for real?  My dad mentioned that he had a few cards as a kid, but never gave me any indication that they might still be tucked away in a shoebox, somewhere in my grandparents attic!  We did some digging, and with every creak of the board, and every box we moved, my anticipation continued to build.  Eventually we found the box, and inside was a couple hundred 1960s football cards including this Piccolo.

As a Bears fan, I loved anyone from the team I could find.  As I got older and learned the backstory to Brian(and this card), its meaning to me grew and grew.  The combination of how I got it, and who it is, make it one of my most cherished cards.

2011-12 Upper Deck Parkhurst Tony Twist Auto

When I was growing up we didn’t have cable.  That meant I had no access to NHL hockey.  What I did have access to was the Peoria Riverman.  The IHL affiliate of the St. Louis Blues was the next best thing, and they played about 30 minutes from me.  Prior to his 10 year NHL career, he demonstrated his proclivity to being an enforcer for parts of three seasons playing for the Riverman.  I still remember rising out of my seat with anticipation as he would start mixing it up with an opponent.  The gloves would drop, the PA system would start blasting Chubby Checker’s Twist, and the crowd erupted as the fists started to fly.

I came across this card in one of my local shops (@bustedwax), and I had to have it.  Every time I look at it, it takes me back to those jr. high days of sitting in the stands at the Peoria Civic Center, eating cotton candy, and watching some AAA hockey!

Lebron James Jersey Kings

I’m not the biggest Lebron fan, and I’m 100% on the Jordan side of the debate, but I respect him as one of the game’s best.  When I returned to the hobby in 2015, some of the first boxes I picked up were 2014-15 Donruss, and I pulled this card out of one of those boxes.  Jersey cards didn’t even exist when I stopped collecting in the mid to late 90s, so you can imagine my excitement when I got a card with a piece of jersey in it which was worn by one of the best in the game!

I credit this card with helping build the excitement and fun I was having in the early phase of my hobby reintroduction.  

1989 Upper Deck Ken Griffey Jr.

Ok, I know what you’re thinking.  How cliche.  

But the card is iconic, and it’s iconic for a reason.  I was 12 when this card came out, and it was my holy grail.  It was untouchable at that time for a couple reasons.  First, I didn’t have a hobby shop in my town, and you couldn’t find packs of Upper Deck anywhere local.  When I did get lucky enough to get my parents to make the 30 minute drive to the card shop, my limited budget wouldn’t allow for too many of these $1-$2 packs.  That was over double the cost of Topps, Donruss, and Fleer! Second, buying it as a single was outrageous and even more out of the question.  

I always wanted one, but could never afford it.  As I began selling cards on Sportlots, I built up some store credit, and I made the decision to pick it up and finally complete my quest.  After almost 30 years, I finally had my own copy, and it was ultimately “free”!  How great is that!

1909 T206 Harry Davis

I picked up this T206 Harry Davis, Sweet Caporal back at the 2019 National.  As my first T206 card, it holds a special place in my heart.  For me, and for many collectors, baseball cards serve as a bridge that connects us to the history of the game.  It can be hard to describe the feelings that come with holding a 110 year old card in my hands.  In 1909 someone pulled this out of pack of tobacco.  It survived two World Wars, it saw the rise of the automobile, and it has been cherished by several generations of collectors.  It’s got creases, it’s got rounded corners, it’s missing some paper, but it has character, lots of it, and it’s mine.

Wrapping It Up

As I reflect on these seven cards, a few things seem to pop.  Five of the seven cards have connections to my youth.  They aren’t all necessarily cards from that era, but the players represented take me back to those days.  I also find it interesting that there aren’t any Michael Jordan cards in the list.  He’s my favorite player of all time, he was a huge focus of my collection as a kid, I now have a couple hundred unique Jordan cards, but none make their way into my top seven.  

Finally, I realized that a card’s current value didn’t even cross my mind as I narrowed the list.  Sure, the Griffey’s value in 1989-90 contributed to why it’s was unattainable then, and why it’s so meaningful now.  The Ryan auto is worth a pretty penny, but that’s not why I love it.  

They may just be pieces of cardboard with pictures on them, but I love these cards because of the memories they bring to life.  They are part of a bigger story.  My story. 

I’ll be talking about more topics like this on upcoming episodes of my Podcast, The WaxPackHero Sports Card Minute! It’s available here via the podcast link at the top of the page, so you can subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Google Play!