What Are Game and Event-used Cards?

These cards typically have pieces of game-used or event-used memorabilia incorporated right onto the face of the card design.  This equipment is usually player oriented (like jerseys and bats) but there are also cards that are location oriented (like stadium seat cards, arena baseboard cards, basketball parquet floor cards).

A Little History Lesson

These cards were introduced by Upper Deck in their 1997 products.  Both football and baseball products that year had these cards seeded into packs at extremely difficult odds.  Pulling one of these cards from a pack was not easy and that drove the prices of those cards into the stratosphere.  Several hundred dollars per card was not unusual.  Over time, every company began to manufacture these types of cards and put them into their products.  It soon became much easier to pullthese cards from packs.  By 2001, several product brands had been created that promised one game used card per pack.  These packs typically cost in the $20 range at the time.

Today, game and event used cards are fairly common in all products except the base retail brand product from each company (Topps Opening Day, Upper Deck First Pitch).  These packs typically cost $1-$2 and can usually be found in retail outlets such as Wal-Mart and Target.

If these cards are so common, you might ask, then what's the big deal?

The Allure of Game and Event-used Cards

To be honest, game-used cards are still a really cool innovation.  As a sportscard dealer, I sell many of these cards though I tend to specialize in players from my regional sports teams (New York/New Jersey).  Why do they sell so well?  They make great gifts, even for people who aren't necessarily into collecting sportscards.  For example, I am a die-hard Mets fan and a1986 Mets fan in particular.  I have lots of memorabilia from that time period (I was 13 at the time and I held onto everything!).  When these game-used memorabilia cards came out, I started to put together a collection of one piece from each of the major players from that team as a cool project.  I am happy to say that I have almost everyone worth having except Wally Backman (I do have a Backman autograph in the collection).  Who was the most difficult to find besides Backman?  Bet you would never guess Mookie Wilson....

In this collection I have several cards of my favorite player, Keith Hernandez.  I have several game used unfirm cards, game-used bat cards and various autograph cards.  These are among my favorite pieces as they connect me to my favorite player in a way a simple baseball card just can't do.  Even if I weren't into sportscards, this would have been a great project to put together.  While these cards make great gifts for non-sportscard collectors, they often help convert those people into true sportscard collectors once they have them. 

Game-used vs. Event-used

There arre two main differences to discuss in this section.  Within the major sports: baseball, football, basketball and hockey, most cards are considered game-used as the cads contain equipment used in actual games.  However, some cards that are issued are from events held by those sports like the NFL Rookie Photo Shoot.  While this is an important difference for you to note, it does not currently affect prices too much as many collectors simply don't make any distinction between the terms.  Other sports are actually Event-driven like tennis, NASCAR racing, golf and wrestling.  If you went out and bought a card with a piece of event used wrestling mat, thst actually makes perfect sense.

Important Difference Between Game-used/Event-used Cards

Be aware that not all game-used cards are created equal.  In general, game-used cards that feature a plain white or gray swatch (another term for the piece of jersey on the card) are the most common and the least desirable.  Cards that feature a pinstripe (especially a well-centered one) are far more desirable and will bring a premium price.  You will find that some cards feature pinstripe swatches with the pinstripe either diagonal or horizontal.  This doesn't usually affect price but it is visually inferior to a well mounted swatch with a vertical pinstripe.

Prices are affected by pinstripes as they are considered a second color.  Jersey swatches that contain more than one color are generally more expensive than single color jersey cards.  The same is generally true across the board - the more colors, the more expensive the card will be.  Game or Event-used cards often come serial numbered.  Obviously, cards that have a low serial numbering usual carry a premium.  What is considered low serial-numbering is a matter of opinion- some people would say 100 is low while others say that 25 is low.  I use 50 as the benchmark, myself.

What's on the Card Makes a Difference As Well

In all sports, jersey swatches are the most common of game-used cards.  In baseball cards, game-used bat cards rank a close second.  Cards that carry a premium are those that feature odd pieces of equipment from the player.  Baseball oddities are batting gloves, caps, fielding gloves and shoes.  In football, shoes and facemask have been used.  Basketball card oddities are limited to shoes and in hockey cards, goalie masks and stick cards can be found.  One further note, hockey game used stick cards are decidely not as common as baseball bat cards.

Event-used wrestling cards are limited to costume cards (for both the wrestlers and divas).  Tennis and golf cards are limited to shirt cards though I guess they could use tennis shoes as well (I haven't seen that yet).  Racing cards incorporate a wide range of equipment from both the driver (racing suit, gloves) and the car (tire, sheet metal) and they are equally desirable.

Note that cards that incorporate pieces of stadium seat (baseball), arena baseboards (hockey), parquet floor (basketball), or wrestling mat are not usually as desirable as player oriented game-used cards.  In addition, ball (baseball and football) or base (baseball) cards are also not nearly as desirable as the player oriented cards.  I think these cards are great and interesting but we usually attach to a player and not a place (though I do have a Shea Stadium seat card in my collection).

One Major Problem

This point is a quick one.  Any card that shows a player on one team but incorporates a piece of jersey swatch from a different team's jersey is essentially useless (and worthless).  Buyers from both markets dislike the cards.  I'll give you a quick example: early last year I pulled a Pedro Martinez game-used jersey card from a pack that pictures him as part of the Red Sox and included a Red Sox jersey swatch but clearly stated New York Mets on the face of the card and included a Mets logo.  Boston fans don't want the card since it has a big Mets logo on it and Mets fans don't want it since it's a Red Sox card and jersey.  A die-hard Pedro fan might be interested but that's not the point.  There is no reason to screw up a card in this way. 

One Last Important Point

Game-used cards of players from the 1950s and before are not common.    No matter which player you are talking about, whether a common or superstar, game-used material is not plentiful for these players (any sport).  Babe Ruth game used uniforms are not in great supply and neither in Hank Behrman (played for the Brooklyn Dodgers in the 40s and has a game used card in 2001 Upper Deck Legends of New York set).  If you are planning to invest in these types of cards, get the stars you can from this time period and sit on them for awhile (this may prove expensive).  If you can't afford the stars, then pick up the commons and minor stars as the same rule applies.

Well I hope this guide has helped you figure out the game-used card market for yourself.  These cards are great fun and can really make the hobby very personal for anyone you buy them for.  Maybe they'll  even build something like my 1986 Mets collection, you never know...

David Blyn
Kolius Collectibles