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Game-Worn Jerseys

Sport Memorabilia is big business nowadays. There are millions of people who make their living buying and selling items such as baseball cards, game-worn jerseys, bats, hockey sticks, autographed baseballs, hats, and so on.

There are both collectibles made by companies and then items used in the actual event called Game-Used Memorabilia. If it has to do with sports, someone is probably collecting it and trying to make money off of it. Some people do this on the internet by setting up their own web page, posting items for bidding on eBay, or posting advertisements on sites such as Craigslist in the hopes of shipping their memorabilia to customers all over the world. Some have simply opened up store front shops where customers can walk in, look at, and bid on or outright purchase some sport memorabilia.

Some collectors dabble in every sport, some only focus a select few if not just one. Some collectors might specialize in certain teams or players too. No matter which collectibles the seller is into, there is big money to be made if they have the right stuff.

The business of sporting memorabilia is a dynamic one as evidenced by the daily online auctions that are now the norm. As with any lucrative industry it has produced greedy people, both dealers and collectors, who are giving the industry a black eye. These people have lost the true meaning of sportsmanship and what collecting should be about. Lots of major collectors will use young children to gain an advantage. They will pay the child a few bucks to get a bunch of equipment signed by a player in an attempt to create a valuable autographed baseball, for example. This type of behavior is embarrassing and the grownups who are plotting these schemes should be ashamed of themselves. Some real fans wait a long time after games for an opportunity to meet their hero and maybe score a game-worn jersey. These true fans should not have to complete with someone who is there simply to profit off of the athlete’s signature.

Major League Baseball is trying to authenticate memorabilia like a game-used jersey and other items as to stop the counterfeiting that is plaguing the industry. Now that it has become business instead of a hobby, it seems that anything goes with all of the money involved. MLB and other professional leagues should be applauded for stepping in and trying to insure that all items are authentic. Ideally this will keep everything on the level, but more likely than not the game of cat and mouse will continue.