Baseballs signed by Trump explode in value as crazy fans obsess over anything linked to the president
While Donald Trump may be making the headlines for all the wrong reasons as far as his administration's response to the coronavirus pandemic goes, it has not stopped people from shelling thousands to buy baseballs with his autograph.
While his popularity has taken a downturn in recent times, the value of Donald Trump-signed baseballs has more than doubled in price since he took to the Oval Office in 2017, TMZ reported.
Authentic Trump-signed baseballs are selling for anywhere between $2,000 and $3,000 when they were selling for somewhere around $1,000 in most memorabilia shops when he first moved to the White House almost four years ago.
Steiner Sports, one of the biggest sports autograph dealers in the country, is currently asking buyers to pay $2,633.99 for an authentic Trump signature on an MLB baseball.
Ken Goldin, who runs Goldin Auctions — which describes itself as "the leading sports memorabilia auction house" and features the industry's "highest percentage of fresh items" — said the demand for Trump memorabilia has not died down despite his controversial stint as commander-in-chief.
"The more he's in the news, the more demand there is," Goldin said.
He revealed that he had recently sold a copy of Trump's impeachment documents with the president's signature for a whopping $81,000 and that, surprisingly, the buyer was not a fan of the mogul.
He added that some of the biggest collectors of Trump gear were those who hated him. "People who even are not fans of his probably would say, 'Hey, I'd like to have a signature baseball, this is kind of unique'."
USA Today similarly reported that a baseball signed by both Trump and Vice President Mike Pence and which came with a certificate of authenticity had sold for $4,999.99 on eBay.
The same month, another listing for original artwork said to be drawn and signed by Trump in 2000 sold for $4,200 plus a $100 shipping fee.
Trump had also previously bragged to eBay’s interim CEO Scott Schenkel about how he had seen a pair of sneakers with his autograph listed on the website for $5,000.
"I sign things, and the next night, I see them on eBay," he said. "They’re sold. They’re sold for a lot of money. 'Sir, could I have you just — would you sign my sneaker?' 'Yes.' Then, two nights later, I see it on eBay, selling for $5,000."
The president then turned to South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham and quipped, "I say, 'What kind of people are these, Lindsey?’ Terrible. Sometimes it’s the senators and the congressmen that do it."
He's not wrong either. Hundreds of autographed collectibles with high price tags are now commonplace online.
Ron Puechner, national president of the American Political Items Collectors, a political memorabilia and historical collecting and preservation group, said this kind of interest in political memorabilia is not surprising considering the contentious nature of the presidency.
"Right now, because of the controversy and the number of people that are avid supporters, there probably is a somewhat inflated value, just because of how many people want something with his autograph on it," he said.