Book Tells How to Score With Baseball Cards : Collecting: Self-published primer offers inside tips on buying and selling--and making a profit--in a market that has skyrocketed in popularity.

Walk into the financial section of a bookstore and you’ll find plenty of advice books on stocks, bonds and real estate.

Now a suburban Philadelphia financial adviser has added one to the shelf: a how-to book on what he considers one of the best investments around.

“Secret of the Pros” is a $12.95 self-published primer on how to collect, sell and buy baseball cards.

“The industry is still going up in popularity,” said Mel Cohen, 48, of Aston, who distributes cards on the side. “There are 15,000 new collectors each month with no drop-off.”

That influx has sent the value of baseball cards right out of the ballpark. Recently, a 1910 Honus Wagner was auctioned for $451,000 to Los Angeles Kings owner Bruce McNall and player Wayne Gretzky. Last year, some unopened 1952 packs sold for $2,500 at a sports collectors convention in Texas.

Cohen said the value of four premium brands--Leaf, Topps Stadium Club, Upper Deck Football and O Pee Chee Premium Baseball--increased 288% from May to August, 1991.

Over the past 10 years, baseball cards in general have increased in value by about 1,000%, and the cards of superstars have risen in value by as much as 2,000%.

By comparison, the Dow Jones industrial average has increased about 260%. Cohen said the NASDAQ composite index has increased about 112%.

He said card collecting involves many of the same principles as buying stocks. Just as a stock investor studies the newspaper for low-priced issues that might grow in value, a card collector is also on the lookout for up-and-coming stars.

The card for Philadelphia Phillie Wes Chamberlain cost a dime last spring. “At the end of the season, it was $8, because he was in the running for rookie of the year,” Cohen said.

Other popular bets are future Hall of Famers or players closing in on records. Mike Schmidt’s rookie card soared in value from $42 in 1983 to $450 today, as the former Philadelphia Phillie seems destined for a place in Cooperstown, N.Y. Schmidt is eligible for the Hall of Fame in 1994.

The rookie card for Hall of Fame hitter Rod Carew has increased in value to $450 from about $20 in 1983, Cohen said.

Tom Seaver’s rookie card from 1967 sells for about $1,150, Cohen said. Seaver was just voted into the Hall of Fame.

Seaver’s onetime teammate, Nolan Ryan, is an almost certain Hall of Famer. His 1968 card from his first full season with the Mets is worth $1,200.

He may have been banned from baseball, but Pete Rose’s rookie card is still hot among collectors. Cohen said that Rose’s rookie card from 1963 now sells for $575, up 3% to 5% since gambling allegations about Rose emerged in 1989.

But investors can also strike out if a player loses his luster. Cecil Fielder’s card jumped in value from 35 cents to $18 after he hit the first of his 51 homers in 1990. But Cohen said it’s still too early to tell if the card’s worth will stay that high.

“Don’t get caught in a frenzy,” Cohen warned. If the Detroit first baseman stops hitting those home runs, “his card will come down again. It might be worthless,” he said.

Nevertheless, home-run hitters are the best investments, Cohen said, followed by other power hitters and players who hit for average.

Pitchers are trickier because they’re out of the limelight except for those days when they pitch. For instance, Roger Clemens’ rookie card goes for $19, while Jose Canseco’s sells for $45.

Defensive skills matter the least.

“A guy could win 20 Gold Gloves, and it wouldn’t drive his card up,” Cohen said.

He also recommends that collectors buy the most expensive card they can afford. “It’s already proven itself to be valuable,” he explained. “If you blindly buy 10 packs, the odds are against you that you are getting a card that goes up.”

Cohen got involved in the baseball card business through his three card-collecting sons, ages 9 to 16. After driving them to shows on weekends, he began a small distribution service, supplying cards from the manufacturers to about 50 shops, card show dealers and private collectors in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware.

He juggles his career as a financial adviser with his side job distributing cards. During tax time, the former takes up the bulk of his time. But in the summer--baseball season--he can spend more time distributing cards.

Originally, he set out to write a six-page booklet on collecting baseball cards. But he found he had enough material for a book, and a local graphic artist put together the cover and illustrations. The book was printed through a company in Haverford.

From early indications, it appears to be a hit. It’s available in card shops in Aston, a suburb 15 miles southwest of Philadelphia, but B. Dalton and Encore bookstores have contacted him about national distribution.

Cohen also placed ads in two sports collectibles magazines last November. They’ve produced more than 1,000 orders from 48 states and Canada, and one from a military colonel in Japan.

“I knew it was just a matter of time,” Cohen said. With an investment of $35,000, his initial order was for 25,000 copies, and he expects to go back for three to four more printings within a year.

But the bottom line, he said, is that card collecting is fun.

“(If) you have some young investors, they can put their money into (certificates of deposit),” he said, “or they can go into a (baseball) card shop and buy a box for $50. A few months later, they can walk in and sell it for $100.”

“It’s speculating to a point, but it’s exciting,” Cohen said.