Sports Cards Live

• Education vs Boycotts in the Hobby + PSA 9s Turning Into 10s + How Much Power Do Creators Really Have?

  Jeremy Lee and co host Joe Poirot stay locked on two of the toughest topics in the hobby right now: shill bidding and the latest PSA controversy. Jeremy continues unpacking the listener email from a former prosecutor who feels that phrases like “essence of shill” normalize fraud. The chat weighs in, with some agreeing and others arguing that honest talk about how widespread shilling really is is exactly what protects newer collectors. Jeremy pushes back on the idea that he is endorsing anything, explaining why he refuses to pretend the market is clean while still choosing to participate in it. From there the conversation moves into what “going after” bad actors actually looks like. Jeremy walks through his work with multiple auction houses, including REA, to tighten up terms and increase transparency around active reserves, non paying bidders, and house bidding. Joe raises the distinction between true shill bidding and active reserves, and they dig into why transparency and education matter more than empty outrage, especially when it comes to giants like eBay. The back half of the segment shifts to the PSA buyback story that has the hobby buzzing. Jeremy and Joe react to reports that a batch of PSA 9 Pokémon cards sold through the PSA offer program later appeared as PSA 10s under the same cert numbers. Even allowing for missing facts and possible explanations, they walk through the optics, the conflict of interest concerns, and what it means when 11 out of 30 cards can swing from a 9 to a 10 after the fact. The bigger question becomes grade reliability itself and how much subjectivity collectors are really willing to live with. Follow or subscribe for free, leave a rating and review if you are finding value in these conversations, and join us live on YouTube Saturday nights to be part of the chat. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• T206 Cy Young Flight Complete + Is Talking About Shill Bidding Normalizing It? + Who Keeps Hobby History Alive

  Jeremy Lee and Joe Poirot kick off this four-part run from Sports Cards Live episode 292 with a big vintage mailday and a tough ethical question for the hobby. Joe walks through his latest pickup, a T206 Cy Young “bare hand shows” in a PSA 1 slab with elite centering, color, and eye appeal that completes his three-card Cy Young T206 flight. That card opens a wider conversation about which Hall of Famers will actually stand the test of time and how storytelling keeps players like Cy Young, Larry Doby, Joe Jackson and others relevant for future generations. From there, Jeremy reads an email from a new listener and former prosecutor who worries that phrases like “essence of shill” risk normalizing shill bidding. Jeremy lays out his position on calling fraud what it is while still being honest about how much of it is already baked into comp data, and why pretending the market is clean does more harm than good for collectors trying to protect themselves. The segment wraps with a discussion on why hobby drama videos tend to out-perform thoughtful history content, how “evergreen” storytelling works on a different clock than breaking scandals, and why the community still needs both. Sports Cards Live is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever you get your podcasts. Follow or subscribe for free, leave a rating and review if you enjoy the show, and join us Saturday nights on YouTube for the live conversation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• Gambling Debate + What A Better Hobby Culture Looks Like + Bankrupt On Wax

  The conversation moves from Card Ladder and comps into a bigger, uncomfortable question: is opening modern product basically gambling, and what kind of culture do we actually want in the hobby going forward? Jeremy, Chris McGill (HoJ), and Josh Adams dig into group breaks, pack odds, “hits,” and the reality that some collectors have gone bankrupt chasing boxes. They balance that against the fun and nostalgia of ripping with kids, Tim Hortons packs, and building sets the way many of us did in the 80s and 90s. Along the way they tackle advertising, culture, and where the hobby goes next. Topics in this segment include: • PSA upcharges, comps, and why some people think PSA should have to buy your card at the value they assign• Arena Club criticism, “where collecting begins” marketing, and whether repack-centric products are aimed more at gamblers than collectors• Is opening any sealed product gambling, or does it depend on intent, price point, and expected return?• Pack odds, box price vs expected value, and why the emotional hit of losing on wax feels exactly like losing at the casino for some people• Breakers, gamblers, and the argument that the hobby “needs” high-volume product rippers to create singles for everyone else• Direct-to-consumer vs LCS distribution and whether cards should always come from packs or could one day go straight to auction• Getting more women in the hobby and how to treat everyone at shows as collectors first• What kind of culture shift the hobby actually needs: less divisiveness, more mutual understanding, more integrity from individuals and institutions, and less “my way is the only right way”• Leadership, voting with your wallet, and why content and conversations matter in shaping where the hobby goes next Sports Cards Live streams live on YouTube every Saturday night, and this audio comes from that live video show. If you enjoy the podcast, please follow, subscribe, and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, and check out the full video replays on the Sports Cards Live YouTube channel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• Beckett Conflict Questions + “Where Collecting Begins” Claims by Arena Club + Card Ladder Value Myths

  IN this installment of SCL the conversation turns to conflicts of interest, price guides, and how the hobby leans on data. Jeremy, Chris McGill (HoJ), and Josh Adams unpack a pointed question about Beckett running both a price guide and a grading company, and whether that structure was ever as conflicted as people now claim it to be. From there, they move into how PSA uses Card Ladder as one data source, what Card Ladder Value actually is, and why no single comp should ever be treated as “the” price of a card. Topics in this segment include: • Beckett’s price guide plus grading model and whether the real concern is what would happen if someone launched that structure today• How conflicts exist everywhere in business and why safeguards and transparency matter more than pretending they do not• Chris’s breakdown of Card Ladder Value, confidence levels, and why different sales of the same card can show different CL values• Dan’s Gene Hackman one-of-one example and why getting a “good buy” can make algorithmic estimates look off• The problem with overreliance on comps and why the hobby is nothing like an efficient stock market• How shill bidding, thin markets, and buyer ignorance can distort individual sales• Josh’s card show story about sellers who freeze when there is no recent comp and what real critical thinking should look like• Arena Club’s “where collecting begins” slogan and a candid debate on repacks, gambling, and what collecting actually is• Whether Card Ladder is a price guide or simply a historical data tool that PSA and others use for due diligence Sports Cards Live streams live on YouTube every Saturday night, and this audio comes from that live video show. If you enjoy the podcast, please follow, subscribe, and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, and check out the full video replays on the Sports Cards Live YouTube channel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• How To Share Pickups Without Pumping + Autograph Grades + Legibility Debates + What PSA 10 Really Means

  Episode 291 continues with Jeremy Lee, Chris McGill (HoJ), Leighton Sheldon, Joe Poirot, and Josh Adams dig into two big threads: what autograph grades actually mean and how to tell real stories about your cards on social media without slipping into pump mode. They start with whether a PSA 10 autograph should factor in legibility, contrast, and visibility, then pivot into how collectors can write posts that go beyond “look what I got” and actually teach, connect, and document why a card matters. Topics in this segment include: • What grading companies might be grading on autograph labels: legibility, placement, contrast, or just ink quality• Why some collectors refuse autos they cannot read or see clearly, no matter what the label says• Using objective facts (print runs, set history, parallel structure) to balance out personal hype in card posts• Jeremy’s approach to pickup posts: why he wanted the card, how it fits his collection, and giving credit to the source• Leighton’s framework for when a pickup deserves a story and why provenance, history, and feelings matter• How to share genuine excitement about a card without coming across as a pumper• Joe’s behind the scenes perspective from writing auction house descriptions and trying to add value without empty sales fluff• Why posts that explain “why this matters to me” stand out more than pure flex shots• Josh’s Ice Bowl ticket win as a quick case study in concise, memorable storytelling Sports Cards Live streams live on YouTube every Saturday night, and this audio comes from that live video show. If you enjoy the podcast, please follow, subscribe, and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, and check out the full video replays on the Sports Cards Live YouTube channel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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