By Steve Marinucci
Published July 16, 1993, San Jose (CA) Mercury News
CARDS, JERSEYS, HATS, POSTERS, BALLS . . .
BRINGING BASEBALL HOME
BASEBALL is America's National Pastime, and baseball memorabilia collecting may be America's national hobby. Attending games doesn't seem to be enough. We like to take pieces of the hobby home with us, whether they be autographed balls, cards or jerseys.
Although the hobby has settled down from the near frenzy of a few years ago when card prices were rising almost overnight, there are still many places where you can bring the memory of baseball, either your favorite player or favorite team, home with you.
Here's a look at a few of our favorites in the greater Peninsula area. (Note: We picked them based on the variety and amount of stock that we could see on hand in the store. Customer service was not taken into account.)
COLLECTOR'S CORNER III, 959 El Camino Real, Menlo Park, (415) 327-1085; open 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday.
Walking into this tiny shop is almost like taking a trip back through time. The store opened 14 years ago under different ownership and has an older look to it, adding to the historic atmosphere created by the memorabilia in stock.
Owner Jim Pitts has had the store three years, but some of the items for sale are timeless baseball treasures.
How about a Ty Cobb autographed baseball for $1,000?
Or a poster signed by the 11 living members of the 500 Home Run Club, including Ted Williams, Willie Mays and Willie McCovey, for $400?
Not everything is that expensive, of course. The shop has new and old cards, including "commons" -- lower-priced cards to help finish out sets.
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SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS DUGOUT, Valley Fair Shopping Center, 2855 Stevens Creek Blvd., Santa Clara, (408) 247-5580; or 208 Stanford Shopping Center, Palo Alto, (415) 323-9790; both stores open during mall hours.
If it's Giants memorabilia you want, these two places are the first stops you should make. Operated by the Giants, they have almost anything you'd want: clothing, posters, baseballs, cards and magazines, plus a place to buy Giants tickets.
The Valley Fair store has been around for seven years, the Stanford store six. There is some merchandise for other area teams, but it's not a good selection. Anyone looking for merchandise from out-of-area teams would be better off looking in sporting goods stores, where the selection is likely to be better. The stores also carry expensive memorabilia of historic value. In the past, we have seen game-used bats, for example, and they're not cheap, even for lesser-known players.
Anyone wanting to hear a Giants game on radio or television can usually find it on in the Dugout, though the day we went to the Valley Fair store, we found the Oakland A's game on the radio in front while the Giants game was on TV in back.
Occasionally, the stores will hold autograph sessions by current and former Giants. Stanford Shopping Center employees say Giants team members have been known to frequent the store when the team is in town. (By the way, the A's have similar stores, called the Oakland A's Clubhouse, at Southland Mall, Hayward, and Hilltop Mall, Richmond.)
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BASEBALL CARDS AND SOUVENIRS, 3220 Stevens Creek Blvd., Unit D, San Jose, (408) 243-1120; open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday.
Baseball Cards and Souvenirs is now in its third location since opening 10 years ago. The family-owned business is run by Kevin Johnson, son of Jerry Johnson, who originally opened the store.
Besides the newest cards, the store carries a very good selection of hard- to-find older cards from the '40s to the '60s, including many from local teams, plus a huge selection of commons to help collectors fill out sets from past years.
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SOUTH BAY SPORTS CARDS, 1350 Grant Road, #11A, Mountain View, (415) 961-8028; open 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. Sunday.
Open since 1986, the store is small but packed with an excellent selection of cards from all years, including many unopened boxes of older cards. There is also a great selection of local team cards, plus commons. They have some memorabilia, including an autographed Will Clark bat priced at $105.
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CAPITOL COMICS & CARDS, 532 S. Bascom Ave., San Jose, (408) 280-7257; hours noon to 6 p.m. Sunday and Monday, 11:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday.
The first thing that catches your eye when you walk into this store is the sheer number of cards. They're packed up the walls almost to the ceiling.
The year-old store, part of a three-store chain, carries mostly new sports and non-sports cards (no commons), but there's a lot to choose from. One of the more unusual older items is a double baseball card of Ted Williams and Hal Smith priced at $225.
Steve Marinucci is a copy editor and in charge of television listings. He loves watching baseball at ballparks where the Wave is not allowed.
