Top 10 tạp chí minh họa thể thao có giá trị nhất năm 2023

Cards, autographs and player memorabilia have generated most of the headlines in sports memorabilia lately, but there's another passionate wing of the hobby that deserves some attention:

That is magazine collecting.

One of the keenest observers in that area is longtime publications dealer Al Ross, who runs a flourishing firm called Big Al's in San Mateo.

"Sports Illustrated is the backbone of the sports-magazine business," said Ross, who has customers all over the world. "They're the most collectible. Everything comes off of them."

Ross estimates he has 125,000 copies of Sports Illustrated in stock, dating to the magazine's beginning in 1954.

"Some people are team collectors, and going after copies with their favorite teams on the cover," Ross said. "Others collect articles, and cannibalize the magazines to pick out certain articles and put them into scrapbooks. And then there are people who buy the magazines to get the covers autographed. That includes a number of people in the Bay Area and throughout the country who literally want to die with the most signed Sports Illustrateds. "

The unsigned S.I.s retail from $3 each on the low end to $350-$400 for the second issue of the magazine. That's the one that contains a group of black and white baseball "cards" that are extremely popular with collectors.

The first issue of the magazine included some colored baseball cards, but that issue is worth a bit less according to Ross, $250-$300 or a bit more in excellent to excellent-mint condition.

"You never really see mint copies," Ross said.

Two 1955 issues, featuring Willie Mays and Al Rosen on the covers, also contain cards, and retail for about $125 and $65, respectively.

Among other popular and expensive issues, according to Ross, are ones with a 1955 Ted Williams cover, $175; a 1964 Muhammad Ali ("He was still Cassius Clay at the time," Ross said), $150; a 1956 Mickey Mantle, $150, and a 1970 Steve Prefontaine (the late track star), $100.

"First covers of any athlete are worth more," Ross said. "Some people collect only Sportsman of the Year covers, others only swimsuit issues, but those are really hard to sell. I have a lot of them in stock."

The second-most-popular magazine, Ross said, is the now-defunct Sport, which began in 1946 with a Joe DiMaggio cover, an issue that brings about $135 in top shape. Later issues range down as far as $5-$6 in price.

Sport magazines are probably worth 30-35 percent less than Sports Illustrated when they feature the same players on their covers, although, on the general topic of pricing, Ross said, "The dealer never makes the prices; the consumer does."

The basic difference between Sports Illustrated and Sport is that S.I. focused early on developing a mailing list, and Sport did just the opposite, concentrating on newsstand sales, Ross said.

"Sports Illustrateds that have no mailing labels sell for about twice as much as those that do. Only about two percent of the S.I.s up through, say, about 1980 are found without labels. I don't have a hundred of those, and given the size of my stock, I should have 2,000 or 3,000."

As in all areas of sports collectibles, condition is a crucial factor in value.

"My recommendation," Ross said, "is that if a magazine is not in very good-excellent condition or better, you shouldn't buy it. What I term very good is something with a large crease or maybe a pulled staple. With excellent condition, you would have none of that, but the magazine wouldn't be as sharp as excellent-mint. Over the years, I've probably handled only about 25 Sports Illustrateds I would consider flat-out mint."

Ross can be contacted at (650) 341-5735 or at .

This and that: Topps has signed an exclusive trading-card deal with the estate of Negro League legend Josh Gibson. The New York-based company will have rights to produce all insert cards, cut autograph cards and memorabilia cards, as well as use Gibson's image on packaging and advertising.

The Hall of Fame catcher joins Barry Bonds and Alex Rodriguez as Topps exclusives.

Speaking of Gibson, a 1950-51 Toleteros trading card from Puerto Rico, issued three years after his death, recently sold for nearly $59,000 in a Lelands auction. The card likely is the gem of Negro Leagues issues.

Correction: The Web site for Vintage Authentics, the firm that on Aug. 11 will be auctioning the bat Honus Wagner used to make his original Louisville Slugger was listed in error in a recent column. The correct address is www.vintageauthentics.com.