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New Sports Card Hall of Fame a fun project for collectors, voters
Ray Fonio loves baseball, baseball cards and seeing the greats of the game gain the ultimate honor, enshrinement into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.
He thought about the cards he has collected and loves and how, like the players themselves, some cards are held in higher esteem than others.
So he wondered: If there were a sports card Hall of Fame, which cards would get in, and which ones might be close but might not make it initially? Surely someone was already doing this right?
Subsequent research revealed no one was. Gears started turning. Could he do this? How do I do this? After pondering those questions, he jumped into the task. He would take the top 10 cards people mentioned and voted for as his inaugural class.
Collectors didn't disappoint and the first ever Baseball Card Hall of Fame class consisted of: the 1948 Leaf Jackie Robinson; T206 Honus Wagner; 1933 Goudey Babe Ruth; 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle; 1954 Topps Hank Aaron; 1980 Topps Rickey Henderson; 1989 Upper Deck Griffey Jr.; 1968 Topps Nolan Ryan; and both the 1951 Bowman Mantle and Willie Mays and Mantle cards.
After three years of write-in votes and with the endeavor gaining momentum, Fonio brought in hobby friends and knowledgeable baseball collectors Mike Steveline and Victor Roman in 2021 to join the Sports Card Hall of Fame team. Together they formed an annual card candidate list with the top 10 vote-getting cards inducted. They started a dedicated YouTube channel and Facebook page.
I've had all three gentlemen on the Sports Card Nation podcast and I'd love to see the National Sports Card Convention or a major auction house get involved in creating a display of the year's induction class at The National.
Many voters mentioned doing the same card Hall of Fame for other sports, something Fonio was already considering. He launched a Football Card Hall of Fame and brought in Bart Bartholomew and Scott Nathan, both knowledgeable and passionate football card collectors (Bart's Cards and Sconnie Tradition on YouTube), to serve as official football card commissioners and tasked them with coming up with a 45-card candidate list. All three joined me on a recent episode to preview the list. Voting began and, like the Pro Football Hall of Fame class itself, inducted players and cards were announced the day before the Super Bowl.
The inaugural football card class includes the following 10 great cards: 1976 Topps Walter Payton; 1958 Topps Jim Brown; 1965 Topps Joe Namath; 1957 Topps Bart Starr; 1957 Topps Johnny Unitas; 1981 Topps Joe Montana; 1986 Topps Jerry Rice; 1935 National Chicle Bronko Nagurski; and both the Jim Thorpe and Red Grange cards from the 1933 Sport Kings set.
This endeavor has become fun for all involved. Collectors each year get to cast their votes and elect their favorite cards to their rightful place in the Sports Card Hall of Fame. Might basketball and hockey cards soon follow?
— John Newman is a collector, dealer and the host of the Sports Card Nation podcast. Catch his Hobby Quick Hits on Monday and his guest interviews on Friday on your favorite podcast platform. You can reach him at sportscardnationpc@gmail.com or on Twitter at @ sportscardnati1
John Newman is the host of the Sports Card Nation podcast
