I have come into possession of approximately 10,000 baseball cards. I don't collect them myself and so have no desire to keep them, but I'm wondering what I should expect if I took them to a local shop and just made a deal for the batch, and is that even a possibility?

For those knowledgeable in this area, here's a little more info:
- The cards are all in excellent condition but have NOT been individually wrapped or anything like that. They're simply stacked in boxes.
- A quick survey didn't reveal much in the way of potential megabuck cards (rookie cards of famous players, etc), but I haven't even gone through 10%.
- Survey also revealed the cards range from the late 70's to mid-90's and are from a number of different brands (Topps, Donruss, etc).

I've thought of E-bay, Craigslist, etc, just not sure how I'd approach it. I don't expect to get thousands of dollars, but if they're worth just a nickel apiece that would be $500. If I though I could get that, I'd take it right now and the buyer is free to exploit whatever "hidden treasures" they might find in the collection. Is that unreasonable? Any guess as to just what might a batch like this be worth?

 

tbone--it's been a while since I messed around with baseball cards, but I think you'd do yourself a favor if you took the time to catalog what you have. Selling the batch in bulk may net you quick cash, but if I were a card vender and you brought me a big box of cards--I'd think you didn't know what you had and I could lowball the heck out of you. Also, you can send your list to dealers rather than lugging the whole box around.

Just my two cents.

 

The overwhelming majority are going to be commons and worth a penny apiece, If you find a good way to capitalize on them, let us know, I have over 100,000 in my basement that were bought with what I thought was tuition money.

 

They are probably worthless.

However, I would go through them and pick out the names that you know. Those might be worth a buck or two. As for the commons -a dealer will give you .1 of a cent per card if you are lucky. There is no market.

Baseball cards from the 80's and 90's were mass produced. Many of us not have them taking space in basements and attics. My Dad collected plate block stamps in the 50's and 60's that were suppose to fund his retirement. Now he uses them for postage. A 42 cent letter now has 4 - 8 cent stamps and 1 - 10 cent stamp.

Beanie Babies were also a bust - usless you got the first ones on the market and never played with them.