Collectors Believe Prices Will Soar : Conviction May Be Windfall for Owners of Rose Cards

Owners of Pete Rose baseball cards may be in for a windfall if the Cincinnati Reds manager is convicted of betting on baseball, according to card collectors.

Two of three local baseball card shop owners agree that Rose’s 1963 rookie card, estimated at $500, will soar if he is found guilty.

“If he’s banned for life, he could really be worth a lot,” said John Stirling, owner of Johnny’s Sports Nostalgia stores. “As long as someone’s in the public eye, their card will go up.”

Rose’s rookie card could rise to $1,000 but would never sink lower than $100 because it is so difficult to find, Stirling said Tuesday.

20,000-Card Collection

Brent Johnson of Indy Connection Sports Collectables has almost 20,000 baseball cards and intends to continue buying and selling Rose cards.

“I don’t look for him to go down at all because he was too good of a ball player,” Johnson said. “We’re still buying his card, and we wouldn’t do it if we couldn’t make any money off it.”

But Jim Brooks, co-owner of Big Daddy’s Baseball Cards in Beech Grove, warns collectors of investing in Rose.

“I would be hesitant about putting my money on Rose,” he said. “I think people will try to get rid of him to recoup some money.”

He said, however, that Rose’s card could never become worthless.

“As people forget about the scandal, the price probably will go back up,” Brooks said.

Rookie cards for Johnny Bench and Carl Yastrzemski also are expected to bring more than their current $250 with the former players’ recent inductions into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Although some collectors may still trade for fun, a rapidly appreciating market in the 1980s has made baseball cards a good investment, the experts say.

“Everyone’s getting involved these days--doctors, lawyers, bankers. And they’re all looking for a long-term investment,” said Brooks, who has increased the supply of baseball cards at his Big Daddy shop from 30,000 in 1983 to more than 3.5 million today.