When you think of baseball memorabilia and sports collectibles, what immediately comes into your mind? Do you visualize the sports cards, or do you think of the varied gear and equipment like signed jerseys, jackets, hats, and posters? Fans know that there are several ways of showing their loyalty and patronage by accumulating items of their favorite team or sports star. People collect for other sports as well, such as NASCAR, golf, baseball, football, and basketball. Some items that are found to be enjoyable to collect are die cast models, Bobble Heads, Hero Posters, and the newest items are The Fat Heads items. These are life-like, full-size reproductions of sports heroes that can be adhered to your wall. With all of the things you can collect, sometimes it is no wonder that some are confused as to where to start or how to start collecting sports memorabilia and sports collectibles. Collecting any sports memorabilia or sports collectibles is a very personalized pastime that has value based more on the individuals likes and passions as much as the success of the single player or team.

For those of us who want to buy a family member or a friend a gift that is related to their favorite athlete, team, or sport, what do we look for? If they are into baseball memorabilia, you might want to consider the New York Yankees. This baseball team is one of, if not the most celebrated baseball team in the world, plus their rosters from past to present has been studded with all-time greats. On the other hand, maybe they are into NASCAR. Then you have Dale Earnhardt Jr., Tony Stewart, and the reigning champion Jimmy Johnson. We cannot ignore the unforgettable Dale Earnhardt Sr. whose collectibles have not only doubled but tripled since his death, and seem to be growing in value even more each year. As with many great painters like Picasso, Earnhardt fanatics consistently decline to permit his ambition and legacy to give-up the ghost.

When it comes to NASCAR, you might want to not only look into the cars, but now they can get Plush Bears configured after the driver, year books and autobiographies, key chains and lighters, plates, and much more. You will even find out that baseball memorabilia and sports collectibles have spread into the Christmas decorations, with entire villages and decorations for the tree to the roof of your sports fan's home.

However, there are other great sports stars as well, like Ben Roethlisberger, Shaquille O'Neil, and Nomar Garciaparra. Moreover, let us not forget the legendary Michael Jordan. Sports memorabilia collectors may or may not have realized how much throwback jerseys have influenced sports memorabilia, but in 1980, when the major sports leagues started to market both new and used game jerseys, the collectors wanted even more.

Die-cast collectibles have also evolved. Fire trucks were a hot item at one time, but they have revolved back to the older muscle cars and the newer hotrod collectibles. Of course we always have the sports collectors who grab anything from a picture of Tiger Woods to a vintage Los Angeles Lakers team photograph. Even the seven-time conqueror of the Tour de France, Lance Armstrong, has an extensive fan base for memorabilia and sports collectibles.

When it comes to the monetary value of the objects you collect, remember that the more famous the star, the more costly the sports memorabilia will be. The value of the item will shoot up even more if the genuineness can be confirmed in some way. Be careful and don't lose any items related to your sports collectible or sports memorabilia. These would consist of the original box, any messages or signatures, receipts, etc. These will all help out to make the item more precious and collectible.