How To Purchase An Amazing Gift For A Baseball Fan

So you know someone who is a baseball fan and you would like to buy him or her a game-related gift. But you know absolutely nothing about baseball, the players, the teams, or the history of the game. What do you do?

Buying a gift for fans of baseball requires a little reconnaissance on your part. Your mission is to determine their favorite team and players. You could just ask them, but what fun is that? And it would potentially tip them off while raising expectations that a major gift is at hand. It is better to just observe them watching a game. If they're jumping out of their chair and dancing around the living room every time a team scores a run, that's probably their favorite team. If you are not in a home setting, then the die-hard fan will probably start standing on tables or barstools under similar circumstances. Unless, of course, a middling team is beating one they hate with a passion.

You must dig further.

A more accurate sign of true love for a specific team is when they verbally berate random players at the top of their lungs for the tiniest indiscretion. When their favorite shortstop does not rocket a double play shot to second base with millimeter accuracy while in mid-air doing a backflip, that player becomes the worst person to play baseball - ever; expectations run high for favorite players.

Watch for signs of lingering mental illness in the wake of a loss. The team whose loss leaves them depressed for days is probably their favorite. Be careful about which team is which, though. You definitely do NOT want to mix up the Chicago Cubs with the Chicago White Sox, the New York Yankees with the New York Mets, or the Tampa Bay Rays with the Miami Marlins. That kind of error is simply unforgivable.

Now that you're armed with the right team, here are a few gifts that most baseball fans will love.

Memorabilia

Baseball memorabilia includes a wide range of mementos and souvenirs including baseball cards, baseballs, baseball bats, pictures and autographs - pretty much anything that was used in a game, associated with a game or just contains a player's image or signature.

In general, older and more rare or significant pieces are the most expensive. But prices are also determined by good ol' supply and demand. On the supply side, a game-used bat might be literally one-of-a-kind while there may be millions of copies of certain baseball cards. Demand for memorabilia featuring specific players waxes and wanes with the player's performance, milestones, celebrity, and induction into the Hall of Fame, for example.

You can spend anywhere from a couple dollars to several million buying sports memorabilia. But just a quick word of caution - buyer beware! Don't buy anything outrageously expensive unless it's authenticated! It's easy to fake an autograph, for example. Modern autographed baseball cards contain a hologram sticker authenticating the autograph. Other autographs, like those on baseballs or pictures, can be authenticated by a reputable authenticating service and will come with a certificate of authentication. (Wow! Three different forms of "authenticate" in the same sentence; has to be some kind of record.)

Stuff With Logos

Baseball fans like to show off their favorite team (and simultaneously mock others who dare to wear their rival's logo in public). What better way to let the world know which team is best than to don the team's baseball cap, jersey, t-shirt, jacket, jewelry, etc. You name it, you can probably find it with a logo.

One of the more amazing logo-laden gifts you can purchase is a cap, shirt, or jacket with a retro design or lettering. Logo designs change over the years. Find something with an old logo, the older and more obscure, the better. And you have more options than just a team-related garment. You can go with a jacket emblazoned with the Hall of Fame logo. Or you can go with a cap with the logo of a minor league franchise team. My favorite shirt is one I got from Larry LaGrande and features every logo patch from the Negro Leagues arrayed around the entire shirt.

Game Tickets

Whether you make a day of it or the trip of a lifetime, tickets to a baseball game are great gifts. There's nothing like the atmosphere of a baseball game and spending time together enjoying the game, the people and the food. Every game and ballpark is unique. Real fans will enjoy an afternoon watching the local AA team almost as much as watching the World Series. Ok, who are we kidding? They will be your slave forever if you get them World Series tickets. Home team side halfway between home and the corresponding base. Second row. Aisle, please.

Game Accessories

If your baseball fan attends baseball games regularly, you might consider gifts to accompany their trip to the ballpark.

My wife suggested, "How about some binoculars, some comfy seat cushions or a baseball glove?"

Really? A true baseball fan would never bring binos to a game. He would never use a seat cushion. And if you even try to buy him a glove you open the door to advanced ridicule and derision. I mean, do you get a first base glove? An outfielder's glove? What brand? What color? Do you know the difference? Forget the glove.

Rather, go with the best gift you can get someone who attends a lot of games - a radio with a discrete ear bud. Yes, as much as a true baseball fan enjoys the leisure of watching a game live, doing so misses out on a tremendous amount of the pleasure of listening to announcers bring you facts, figures, stats and stories. Make it cool, very high tech, and with one of those Secret Service-like earphones and you will be loved forever.

Where To Buy

We've compiled a brief list of our favorite places to buy baseball related items.