The Famous Collapse

The Red Sox had the worst collapse in their team's history, and even Major League Baseball history.  It parallels the current state of the economy, where as an observer it got worse and worse and continues even 5 days later to seem to get worse and worse.  With the way the team played, it's amazing that anyone even has an interest in the Red Sox, especially seeing that they used Francona as a scapegoat for the lack of the players ability to win.

Therefore, with the current collapse still fresh in our minds that has generated many questions and conversations about the state of the Sox.  Especially, in my case, many have asked, "so what are the autographs worth now?".  I've been asked enough, I thought it was time to comment on that question.

Here's the reality of the current Red Sox autograph situation:
1.  The players who won a world series with the Sox in 2004 and/or 2007 will maintain the same price/value.  David Ortiz, Tim Wakefield, Jason Varitek, Kevin Youkilis won as members on both teams and most definitely should not drop off.   Dustin Pedroia, Jacoby Ellsbury, Jon Lester, Josh Beckett, Daisuke Matsuzaka, JD Drew, Jonathan Papelbon, and Clay Buchholz may drop off slightly, but that is more a function of them being over priced to begin with, than the collapse.  They all have individual accomplishments, that may trump them being a part of the famous collapse.


Jon Lester and David Ortiz autographed world series baseballs.

2.  The players who we acquired via free agency such as Adrian Gonzalez, John Lackey, Carl Crawford, Marco Scutaro, and Eric Bedard should definitely lose value in this high priced market, until they win a world series in Boston.  Although they own individual accomplishments, until they prove they can win or succeed in Boston, they won't have any type of major demand.


Carl Crawford and Adrian Gonzalez autographed baseballs.

 3.  The jury is still out on players such as Josh Reddick, Daniel Bard, Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Ryan Lavarnway, Jed Lowrie, Lars Anderson, Darnell McDonald.  They have never had high demand and certainly shouldn't cost anyone so much that they'll break the bank.  I would recommend purchasing Lavarnway's autographs now, because he showed a ton of positive potential in the last week and his memorabilia will be on average $25 or less.

One tip I have for everyone is that if you want to purchase any current Red Sox player autograph, this is the time to negotiate the price down.  Most of the players have been here the 2 seasons in which the team came in 3rd place.  Any collector/customer should be able to get at least 30% off current retail prices through Christmas.  I know for a fact there is a ton of Red Sox signed memorabilia on the market and the supply out weighs the demand about 2-1 right now.  So get your Red Sox deals now and rebuild your collection from this unprecedented collapse.