CLEVELAND — The first two things to understand about the National Sports Card Convention at the IX Center are that it’s a ton of fun and that it might be a little overwhelming for sports fans with deep pockets.
You’ll want to buy everything. Everything is cool. And there are rows and rows of booths and tables filled with sports cards, autographed items, helmets, baseball bats, old magazines, uniforms and jerseys, framed photos, and more.
And most of it is pretty pricey, so for most people, you have to be somewhat selective. Moderation is hard, but important. There are baseball cards for $1 and Babe Ruth jerseys for $30 million, all in the same giant room.
I went to the first day of the 2024 NSCC at the IX Center on Wednesday. It runs through Sunday, but the reservation list for autograph sessions is pretty impressive for sports fans.
We’ve ranked the most amazing items you can find at conventions right now, as well as the best collectibles you can find for under $50.
Also, for me personally, I wanted to find fun ways to spend $100 at a convention, but frankly, I was pretty overwhelmed by the number of really cool items there were. There are 10,000 different ways to spend $100 at a convention like this. From a few items to 100s to even 1 for $100, you can buy a box of unopened baseball cards to rummage through at home, bobbleheads, rookie cards, autographed items, autographed life-size football helmets, and more.
Now, personally, I thought it would be better to buy one item rather than multiple items for the same amount of money, but we’ll see. (Note: many vendors only accept cash, so bring cash with you).
Let’s get started. This search will be somewhat related to my personal preferences, but it might give you some insight into the choices and thought process that goes into digging through a million possibilities.
The first thing you’ll notice is that the place is overwhelming. It’s basically a maze of cool sporting goods. There were so many times I found something I wanted and made a mental note to remember it, only to later have completely lost track of where that table was. One helpful thing is that there are pillars throughout the area with numbers and letters on them to help you find previous booths, but I didn’t notice them until halfway through my exploration.
I decided to simply go to the far corner and meander my way back through the room, which would have been a maze otherwise, but I think there were still a few tables I missed while I was searching.
First potential collectible: A uniform worn by Babe Ruth.
Just kidding. The piece is expected to sell for over $30 million on Heritage Auctions, but our budget is $100. The search continues, but it was good to see it.
The first actual potential collectible: Willie Mays’ 1972 Topps baseball card.
This one caught my eye immediately. Although not autographed, it is a very cool card from the 70’s of a baseball legend who unfortunately recently passed away. Admittedly, it was over our $100 budget, but I was confident I could get it down to $100.
But there’s still a long way to go and a lot to see, so I’ll remind myself later (though there’s always the risk that by the time I get back here it will be gone).
Second potential collectible: Bob Gibson baseball cards
Bob Gibson is a legend and a favorite of mine, so this would be a pretty cool item, and it would free up $50 of my budget for other things.
Third potential collectible: Roberto Clemente 1968 baseball card
This is a really strong candidate, a Roberto Clemente card from the late 60’s with the word “Bob” in it, and if this was from 1972, his final year in the major leagues, the search might have ended sooner.
At this point I’m only about 100 yards from my starting point, but I already have some good options.
I’m not kidding when I say it will make your head spin trying to see it all.
Fourth potential collectible: Stan Musial baseball cards
Stan the Man is a legend, and I was able to acquire this card, along with the Bob Gibson card mentioned above, as part of my Cardinals legends collection (kind of by coincidence).
Fifth potential collectible: Alex Rodriguez rookie card
How often do you find merchandise from A-Rod’s time as a shortstop with the Mariners? And this one was only $25. But we want to make sure we have every penny of our budget available, so let’s keep looking.
Potential collectible number six: Ken Griffey Jr. baseball cards
This is a great 90s style baseball card that brings back a lot of nostalgia for me, and who could be cooler than Jr?
Potential collectible number seven: A card with a piece of Joe DiMaggio’s bat on it.
This was mind-blowing to me. It is said to be a card with a portion of Joe DiMaggio’s bat cut out of it, and is one of only 15 made. This is pretty awesome. It was listed for $120, but I knew some of the items were marked up a bit in hopes of haggling, so I was pretty confident I could get it for $100.
Potential collectible number 8: A Dwight Gooden autographed baseball.
$50 for a Dwight Gooden autographed baseball seems like a pretty good deal and a cool item.
Potential collectible number 9: A baseball signed by Frank Thomas
This was another “Oh, that’s cool” moment. I was a big fan of the movie “Big Hurt” when I was a kid. When I was first allowed to pick my uniform number on my Little League team, I chose #35.
At this point, I had looked around the entire surrounding area for booths and tables, but I hadn’t found anything that would be a good option for me for under $100. So now it was time to remember the nine finalists and where they were. If you saw anyone wandering around looking obviously lost, it could have been me.
Winner: Joe DiMaggio card and part of his bat
This item was just too cool. The complete bat set was much better but it was also more expensive. The cards were in poor condition but that was the only reason I was able to get it within my budget.
The simple question, “Would you pay $100 for this?”, was quickly settled and the entire $100 was spent in one fell swoop, so to speak.
The hardest part about this convention wasn’t finding the good stuff, it was giving many of them away.
When is the 2024 National Sports Card Convention taking place at the IX Center?
The ’24 NSCC will run from Wednesday, July 24th through Sunday, July 28th at the IX Center in Cleveland.
Tickets to the 2024 National Sports Card Convention at the IX Center
Tickets for the NSCC can be purchased for $30, and early admission tickets for all five days can be purchased for $149.99.
Parking for the National Sports Card Convention at the IX Center
Parking is available at the NSCC for $10.
