New York Yankees

When a player becomes a New York Yankee, a lot changes — and it’s got nothing to do with long hair (read the link … he had a great reason), beards, Hollywood wives, etc.

It’s got everything to do with deep-pocketed fans of, hands down, the most-successful baseball team in the world.

Nick Swisher being a New York Yankee means I end up paying more for his key cards — if I can land them at all.

One such example? This 2009 SP Authentic Signatures card is a short-print — and it’s one of just a few Yankees autographs. But it’s also just one of the many stickers he’s signed for a few years now — just like plenty of cheaper autographs out there. I got sick of missing out on the card — the few times it came up for sale — and I had to pony up to land it for the cost of about 4-5 other Swish autographs.

It’s the pinstripes. Guaranteed.

But this Beckett.com forum post is pretty entertaining, though.

Do you have a Swisher item I might want? Contact me on Twitter, @chrisolds2009.

Very few of my Nick Swisher baseball cards have been picked up at card shows — it’s like finding a needle in a haystack if you’re looking for looking for rarer cards like this 2011 Topps Gypsy Queen Stamp card.

Only 10 copies exist, and when I spotted one by complete accident in a dealer’s case recently at a show in Arlington, Texas, it had a $30 pricetag on it. That’s quite high for my Swisher Buying Standards™ — but I was with someone who knew the dealer and asked him whether he’d cut me a deal.

Peer pressure got me a bit of a discount, but not much. I thought I overpaid but I knew that none of the other nine copies had shown up on eBay in a couple weeks of collecors ripping GQ. I figured I’d never see one again.

As it turns out, I didn’t overpay at all as the first copy to arrive on eBay went for $66 — well beyond what I paid.

After all, I wouldn’t pay too much because even though it’s a rare card it’s just a parallel card and a loosely defined “Relic.” (Each player in the set has a card featuring a stamp from his home state or country.)

Gotta love those deep-pocketed Yankees fans.

Do you have a Swisher item I might want? Contact me on Twitter, @chrisolds2009.