The local mall here in Selinsgrove, PA (Susquehanna Valley Mall) holds a card show on a fairly regular basis. Every few months the 40 table show sets up. The show opened at 9:00 a.m. and closed at 5:00 p.m.
This time vendors were setup right outside one of those Spirit Halloween stores which seem to popup right after the Fourth of July. So the foot traffic was quite heavy. Other times of the year, specifically March and November, the show is moved to another part of the mall because they are preparing for kids to visit with the Easter Bunny and Santa Claus in the normal location. The card show gets the boot whenever a fictional furry creature is visiting.
Among the 40 tables you could find a decent combination of vintage and modern cards. I saw some sealed wax. A high school classmate of mine had one of the better looking booths. He had boxes filled with autographs, relics, parallels, and inserts all organized by team. Very fun to look through not knowing what you might find.
One of the oddest things I saw was a massive collection of Colton Hock 2017 Bowman Draft cards one dealer had. Hock is from Bloomsburg, PA and is currently playing with the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp (Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins). The lot looked to be all autographs (various parallels), and had a $1,500 price tag on it.
I picked up three cards for my Phillies collection. Ate a cup of cinnamon pretzel bites from Auntie Anne’s for lunch.
Scott Rolen 2022 Topps Pristine Slice Of A Star Auto/Relic
John Kruk 2022 Topps Series 2 1987 Topps Auto Black Parallel #’ed/199
Williamsport, PA and the surrounding areas are buzzing right now. Little League players from all over the world are currently playing in the 2022 Little League World Series. Collectible lapel pins are everywhere.
At one point in time I would head over to the Little League complex to visit the corporate booths to obtain pins for my collection. I haven’t done that since 2018. Little League has really made those free pins strictly for kids.
The Topps Truck made a visit to Little League this year. I don’t believe they had any pins made to distribute. That’s a missed opportunity in my book.
Around town many businesses have pins. That’s where my focus has been for the last few years. From Dairy Queen to Long John Silver’s I was able to round up about (30) new pins for my collection.
Dugout 75th Anniversary pin found at the Chamber of Commerce
Pins! Pins! Pins! Williamsport, PA is flooded with people from all over the country thanks to the Little League World Series. They, and many local businesses have lots of pins available to buy/trade.
So far for 2021 I’ve added (24) new pins to my collection. Stops made in Williamsport included Dunkin’ Donuts, Dairy Queen, Winner, Rise and Shine Nutrition, Genetti Hotel, Clothier, Lycoming County Visitors Bureau, Dolly’s Diner, Buffalo Wild Wings, Robert M. Sides, and Taco Bell. One of the major pin manufacturers, Infiniti Pins, is setup in a conference room at the local Holiday Inn. Tons going on in there. People making trades, and freebies.
Even though the official Little League Store & Museum is closed (despite the Little League World Series taking place) merchandise for this year’s games can be found at the Lycoming County Visitors Bureau, and online.
When it comes to Little League pins, I follow the Little League Pin Traders Club on Facebook. People are constantly showing off new pins they’ve found, and updating lists of places that have pins. Very good resource.
Honestly, I’m surprised we haven’t seen PSA, BGS, and SGC grading Little League pins yet. Vintage pins have been graded for years. It seems like an untapped market along with bobbleheads.
Although it wasn’t the plan at first, I began to purchase duplicate pins to flip. Except for a few, most Little League pins need to be obtained in person. Buying them directly from the source online isn’t really an option. If you’re a collector and not in the area, eBay and trading groups are you’re best places to go. The best pins to flip are newer ones which haven’t been listed for sale yet. Doing this while the Little League World Series is going on helps a lot too.
The 2019 Little League World Series is in full swing. Baseball fans from all over the world have found their way to South Williamsport. Pin trading is bigger than ever. Corporate sponsors and local businesses have pins for everyone. Some you need to buy, while others are freebies.
This is the first year that I did not visit the Little League campus. Obtaining pins from the corporate booths has really become an activity for kids. Years ago pins were easily handed out for filling out a survey or lining up at a booth at a certain time. Over the course of a few years mobile apps and registering electronic bracelets for the Family Fun Zone has become a requirement. That’s not something I’m interested in doing. Personally, I think it adds a bunch of unnecessary steps. I suppose it keeps the kids busy though.
Just because I skipped the Little League complex doesn’t mean I missed out on adding some new pins to my collection. Between Dunkin’, Dairy Queen, various businesses on 4th street, and Williamsport’s Golden Strip, I came home with (22) pins. Between the Chamber of Commerce and Dick’s Sporting Goods, I was able to pickup the pins I would’ve purchased over at Little League anyway. Some places which traditionally have pins like Pennsylvania College of Technology and The Crazy Tomato don’t have them this year.
I’m not going to show off all (22) pins. But I will show you some of the pins I got which I haven’t seen popup online yet and/or I find unique.
Woodlands Bank – in order to get this pin I had to trade-in a jar of peanut butter. Woodlands Bank will donate the peanut butter to the Central PA Food Bank and Firetree Place.
All eyes are on Williamsport, PA for the next week as the Little League World Series takes place. Baseball fans from all over the world have made their way to Williamsport. Hotels are booked. Restaurants are packed. Parking lots are full. And pins have become the next best thing to currency. Pins are all over the place. They’ve got commemorative pins made for everything.
While the Little League World Series is going on, I usually pick a day to go up and look around their campus. There is always a lot happening. I’m a big pin collector. I’ve got lanyards full of them. Over the last few years I’ve found it a bit more difficult to score free pins from the corporate sponsors. This is mainly due to you having to register with an electronic bracelet, and use all types of cell phone apps. Perhaps that stuff is all great for the kids, but for an older pin collector like myself I find it to be an inconvenience. Luckily, I take a handful of my Sports Card Info pins with me and use them to barter with these sponsors in order to get around all of that. In some cases it works, and others not.
Dunkin’ Donuts was my first stop. Little League came next. Following that was 4th Street downtown, Penn College, The Thomas T. Taber Museum, and then some more businesses on Williamsport’s Golden Strip. Pins just popup everywhere. I was able to get a lot more pins from the corporate sponsors setup at Little League than originally thought. My Sports Card Info pins really helped out.
Pin collecting at Little League is like opening a pack of cards. You don’t know what might happen. A man walked over and randomly handed me a pin. I didn’t catch his name, but I believe it was Troy Lare. He had what looked like a Little League World Series ring on. Judging by the pin, he is an umpire from Maine. Very cool find, and not something you can just pickup anywhere. I have very few umpire pins.
At the end of the day, I ended up with (24) new pins that filled up (3) lanyards.
The Phillies lost to the Mets 8-2 in this year’s MLB Little League Classic. Next year’s MLB Little League Classic takes place on 8/18/19 between the Pirates and Cubs.
I’d really like to see Topps have a corporate booth at Little League. It seems like a perfect fit. Hopefully someday they can work something out. Topps could have pins, special cards, make your own baseball card, and perhaps bring in a big league player to sign autographs.
We’re neck deep into the 2015 Little League World Series. Games are being played, merchandise is flying off the shelves, and pins are being handed out.
Its hard to believe the first time I went to the Little League World Series I never visited any of the corporate booths. Now its really the only reason I go. Sure its free to watch the games, but I can do that at home in the air conditioning. On Saturday morning I decided to make the annual trip up to South Williamsport to see what was going on.
Arriving early really helps to cut down on traffic. I arrived in South Williamsport around 10:00 a.m. and the first game didn’t start until 1:00 p.m. There was no traffic at all. Before heading over to Little League, I stopped at Reptiland. Reptiland is a zoo that you pass on the way to Williamsport. They have a Little League pin this year. Its a two piece pin. One part you get at Reptiland and the other you’ll find at the Little League Museum. In order to get one you have to fight a live gator… just kidding. After that it was on to Dunkin’ Donuts and Little League.
Most of the corporate booths didn’t open until 11:00 a.m. Some of these companies are making it more difficult to get pins every year. Companies like Lance, All, Bomb Pop, and Honda require people to fill out an endless amount of paperwork in order to get a bracelet which can make you eligible for a pin. I know companies like to collect data for marketing research, but I think in some cases its getting a little ridiculous. Luckily some of the people working for these companies will just hand you free pins if you ask without having to go through all the red tape.
After spending about three hours at Little League eating lunch and picking up as many pins as possible it was time to leave. As game time approached the crowd got much larger. This might have been the biggest crowd I’ve seen at Little League. Most likely because the Red Land team from York is playing in it. Lots of businesses in town have specially made Little League pins. On the way home I stopped by The Clothier and Genetti Hotel. You could probably spend all day everyday in Williamsport during the Little League World Series and not get every pin. There are just so many. Some are more difficult to obtain than others. ESPN and Oakley pins seem to be the most difficult to find. I ended up with twenty new pins for my collection. Just a few of them are duplicates. About half of them I got for free.
Collectible lapel pins are big throughout the Little League World Series. They aren’t limited to just the corporate sponsors that have booths setup on the Little League Campus either. Many businesses in Williamsport have pins made, and in a lot of cases all you need to do in order to get one is stop in. Dunkin’ Donuts, Dairy Queen, Penn College, Skylar Frozen Yogurt, Wegmans, and the Williamsport Sun Gazette are just some of the places you can obtain more pins. Its just like getting promos during the National Sports Collectors Convention, except its on a city wide scale versus being confined to one building. One thing I’m noticing this year is that companies are issuing different pins at multiple locations. Some companies are giving out different pins each day. Not every one of these pin promotions is officially announced either, but I did see a few billboards for companies advertising their pins. By not announcing all of the pin promotions adds a little mystery to some of the pins.
A company that I think would fit in well at Little League is OYO Sportstoys. Not only could they giveaway pins, but commemorative minifigures for the kids as well. Maybe one day this will happen.
I usually go up at least once each year. Mainly for the food and promos. Yesterday was the fullest I’ve ever seen it. The newly renovated World Of Little League Museum seemed to be very busy. It was a good idea that I took a tour last month.
Today I went to the Valley Forge Convention Center to attend the Philadelphia Sports Card & Memorabilia Show which is operated by Hunt Auctions. Hunt Auctions must have read my report on the last show because things seemed to run a bit smoother this time. Entering the show, I could tell there were a lot more places to sit to go through your purchases and grab a bite to eat. This time the show wasn’t on the basement floor and the bathrooms were a lot nicer and didn’t look like a crime scene from CSI. Making my way around the show I stopped at some of my favorite dealers such as Shaffer’s Trading Cards, Marty’s Sports Card Exchange, and MLS Cards. They all said they did about average during The National but nothing spectacular. The show seemed to be running a little slow and wasn’t that full (at least when I was there). About 90% of the dealers still go by “Book Value” which I think we all know means nothing in today’s hobby. Book Value is really destroying The Hobby and is one of the main reasons why dealers have such a hard time making sales. The dealers I talked to were also angry that Hunt Auctions didn’t advertise the show very well. For some crazy reason I get the feeling these show promoters get their money from the dealers and then pocket it for themselves and do little if any marketing. I heard a lot of dealers say “Its not like the early 90’s anymore”.
After browsing the show for awhile, I decided to make my purchases. I managed to pickup two really cool singles for my collection while busting a pack of ’09 Sterling Football and two boxes of ’09 Absolute Football. Check out what I got.
Hunt Auctions was a little more organized this time when it came to the autograph guests. I could clearly see where you were suppose to go when your signer arrived. I was able to meet Johnny Bench and Dave “The Hammer” Schultz, and obtained photos of everyone that was signing. Click on each photo for a closer look.
Johnny Bench was very nice. I’m glad I was able to get him on my bat.
Bench’s signature is right under “Sports Card Info”
Dave “The Hammer” Schultz really likes talking to collectors. He was the Left Wing for the Flyers and holds the NHL record for penalty minutes in a single season.
This is the first time I ever got a hockey puck signed. Dave “The Hammer” Schultz was the free autograph guest today.
Carlton Fisk
Muhammad Ali’s trainer Angelo Dundee
Joe Frazier came in wearing a cowboy hat and gold around his neck.
The next Philly Show takes place on December 4-6. So far the autograph guests include:
Pete Rose
Steve Carlton
Mike Schmidt
Cole Hamels
I have always enjoyed this show and will continue to go as long as they have it. I seem to find a lot of great stuff for my personal collection and the wax is usually priced reasonably. If anyone lives close to Valley Forge, I encourage you to attend.
One of my favorite things about the National are the promos provided by many of the manufacturers and various other dealers. I obtained most of my promos from Press Pass and Panini, but did pick up a few from Razor and Dave & Adams. In addition to the promos below, I also received everything that was stated to be in the VIP package. Click on each photo for a closer look.
Razor Promo Set – Rich Franklin, The Kardashian Sisters, Donovan Tate, Johnny Chan, and an ’08 Razor Metal Michel Inoa.
These are all promos from D & A, Press Pass, and Razor – Aaron Hicks ’08 Metal Plate, Brett Wallace Freedom Cardboard, Tim Beckham Freedom Cardboard, David Cooper Freedom Cardboard, LeSean McCoy ’09 Press Pass Legends #’ed/5, and I pulled a Red Ink auto of Ozzie Newsome as a promo from Press Pass
More promos from Press Pass & Panini – Matthew Stafford ’09 Score Atomic #’ed/50, Matthew Stafford ’09 Elite #’ed/499, Jeremy Maclin ’09 Elite #’ed/499, Michael Crabtree ’09 Elite #’ed/499 and a Tom Jackson Press Pass Legends #’ed/5
I pulled some really nice low-numbered cards at the National while obtaining some of the promos. Everyone got excited at the Press Pass booth when I pulled this Mike Alstott signed printing plate #’ed 1/1. This is the second 1/1 I’ve pulled during a National. I also picked up an Elston Howard 2000 UD Yankees Legends jersey and a Lou Gehrig ’07 UD SP Legendary Cuts 1 of 1 filmstrip piece.
Dick’s Sporting Goods
Chick-fil-A
Sports Card Info 
