I was very excited to find this 1910 Fred Beck at a card show this weekend! This is actually my 2nd Beck card - I shared his T205 a while back. Fred was a Bloomer for parts of 4 seasons (1905-1908) and played 5 seasons in the big leagues. I was happy there were a handful of vintage dealers at the show, including a decent amount of pre-War. (The streak across his face is a reflection.)

https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=beck--002fre

I’m pathologically averse to selling items I collect. I don’t know the psychology behind it but I’ve never sold a card (or piece of art, any records, anything I’ve collected) in over 40 Years of collecting. I have traded cards, but that was a while ago. How do you consider value when trading? Do you go in with a sense of this card being worth $X and this card being worth $X and I won’t below that amount if I’m trading? Conversely, how do you look at the value of the card you are trading for? Do folks usually try to get the amounts pretty even? I understand everyone wants to get the most for the least, but I’d love to hear some perspectives. I have a 52 Bowman Yogi and a 54 Topps Ted Williams that I won in breaks. They’re awesome and it’s neat that I have them, but could I get a cool Hank? A Luke Easter? Something that fits more into my PC(s). Thank you!

…and Happy Easter to folks who celebrate!

Picked up this faded signed ball with players and coaches on the 1977 White Sox. I’m wondering if it’s a ball from Spring Training because Sam Hairston’s sig (his SABR bio says he coached with the Sox primarily in Spring Training in the 60s and 70s). He, along with Hall of Famers Minnie Miñoso and Larry Doby, are 3 former Negro League players on the ball. And my all-time favorite announcer, Steve Stone, with a sweet playing days sig (I also have his auto from a Cubs convention years ago).

Picked up a sweet ‘61 Topps Jim Gilliam this weekend - found it in a $3 stack. Getting close to finishing his run, but the ‘53 is out there waiting. That will be a fun one to bring home.