MLB’s All-Star FanFest Filled with Collectible Opportunities
This weekend, the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York will be home to the world’s largest interactive baseball exhibit. Major League Baseball’s annual All-Star FanFest, sponsored by T-Mobile, will provide attendees a wealth of collectible opportunities. Shopping at baseball card and memorabilia dealer booths will be just one aspect of the festivities. Paid admission to the event provides patrons with access to numerous multimedia and historical exhibits.
The most popular draw to the event is the host of former players, including many Hall of Fame members, who will be in attendance signing autographs for free. The schedule of appearances is as follows:
Friday, July 12
Edgardo Alfonzo, Ed Charles, John Franco, Rollie Fingers, Dwight Gooden, Ed Kranepool, Dale Miller, Jim Robinson, Art Shamsky, Bob Scott, Pedro Sierra;
Saturday, July 13
Edgardo Alfonzo, Orlando Cepeda, Andre Dawson, Rollie Fingers, Bud Harrelson, Ferguson Jenkins, Juan Marichal, Felix Millan, Joe Pignatano, Rafael Santana, Mookie Wilson;
Sunday, July 14
Lou Brock, Andre Dawson, Cliff Floyd, George Foster, Ferguson Jenkins, Cleon Jones, Dave Kingman, Felix Millan, Kevin Mitchell, Joe Pignatano, Ozzie Smith, Rusty Staub
Rollie Fingers, Turk Wendell;
Monday, July 15
Lou Brock, Sid Fernandez, George Foster, Ron Hunt, Howard Johnson, Fred Lynn, Barry Lyons, Phil Niekro, Jesse Orosco, Gaylord Perry, Darryl Strawberry, Tim Teufel;
Tuesday, July 16
Orlando Cepeda, Rollie Fingers, John Franco, Juan Marichal, Phil Niekro, Jesse Orosco, Amos Otis, Gaylord Perry, Darryl Strawberry
Additionally, former players from the Negro Leagues and All-American Girls Professional Baseball League will be on hand signing autographs and participating in Q&A sessions. This is a tremendous opportunity for fans and historians of the game to learn more about these important aspects that helped shape baseball culture. Complete details can be found here.
The National Baseball Hall of Fame will be on hand displaying more than 100 artifacts and relics, many related to area teams, particularly the Mets, who are hosting this year’s All-Star Game, including:
• New York Yankees jersey worn by slugger Babe Ruth, c. 1930;
• Mets manager Gil Hodges home jersey worn during the 1969 World Series;
• Dwight Gooden worn cap when he broke the National League rookie strikeout record on Sept. 7, 1984;
• Giants jersey worn by outfielder Willie Mays in 1957.
A live auction by major sports memorabilia auction house, Hunt Auctions, will take place Tuesday, with over 800 items up for bid including:
• Jackie Robinson Debut Game Used Baseball
• Item’s from Ken Griffey Jr’s personal collection (all proceeds going to charity)
• The Warren Spahn Collection including his Cy Young Trophy
• Items from longtime MLB umpire, Artie Gore
Every day of the event is themed and provides numerous opportunities for prizes and giveaways. A detailed look at each of these can be found on the Major league Baseball website.
Further Details:
Location: Jacob K. Javits Convention Center 655 W 34th St New York, NY 10001
Cost: $35 for adults/$30 for kids 12 and under, senior citizens and military personnel.
Tickets: Available by phone at 1-888-FANFEST (326-3378) or online at www.allstargame.com.
Days: Friday, July 12 through Tuesday, July 16.
Hours: 9 a.m.-8 p.m. EST, (Tuesday closes at 6 p.m. EST).
Rob Bertrand has been an active collector of sports cards and memorabilia for more than 20 years. His involvement in the hobby community is well documented, having been the content manager for the Card Corner Club website before the company’s merger with CardboardConnection in 2011, where he is now a staff writer and multimedia content producer. Rob is also the co-host of the sports collectibles hobby’s only live and nationally broadcast radio show, Cardboard Connection Radio. He is the author of the highly respected and trafficked blog, Voice of the Collector and you can follow him on Twitter @VOTC. A dealer himself, Rob runs an online business through eBay, and is frequently asked to consign collections.
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