Baseball cards suffering a slump> Strike lessens collectibles’ appeal

The baseball strike has tempered demand for baseball cards, a business that usually thrives as the World Series approaches, but card dealers say they’re making up some of the slack elsewhere.

Football and nonsports cards featuring “The Lion King” characters, “Star Trek” or “The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers” are on the upswing, said Nelson Paine, owner of The Catcher’s Mitt in Kittery.

But merchants still notice the decrease.

“Really, baseball cards have been weaker the past year or two,” said Jeff Robinson of Top Shelf sports card shop on Main Street in Bangor. “There’s too much product,” said Robinson, who blames the drop in baseball cards on the overabundance of trading cards in general.

“It’s devastating,” said Ernie Nuttle, co-owner of Extra Innings Sports Cards in Portsmouth. “Shortly after the strike started, a lot of people were coming in to sell their stuff. People who are collecting are panicking.”

Nuttle said about three people per day would call, wanting to sell their baseball cards in a normal year. This year, with the season cut short 52 days early, the number of inquiries is up to about 20 calls, he said.

“Basically, we’ve cut back buying stuff unless it’s (Ken) Griffey Jr. or (Frank) Thomas,” Nuttle said.

It also is getting close to the time when sports card dealers start buying for next year’s baseball season, which may not become a reality if the strike continues.

“We have to decide which stuff is worth buying,” Nuttle said. “We probably won’t buy as much stuff as we have in the past.”

Card values haven’t decreased significantly, card dealers say. The problem is in the number of sales.

Cards touting popular players such as Thomas, the Chicago White Sox star first baseman, still sell for $75 and $85 each.

Before the strike, there was a rush for the cards of players who were within reach of a major league baseball record, Paine said. Several players, including Thomas, Griffey of the Seattle Mariners, and Jeff Bagwell of the Houston Astros, were vying for the single season home run record set by New York Yankee Roger Maris in the 1960s.

“There is still interest in baseball but not at the pitch it was,” Paine said.