ABSTRACT
Baseball memorabilia in general proved to be a lucrative business during the 1980s, gaining its highest visibility via traveling conventions. While serious collectors have tended to be attracted to original artifacts (e.g., a home run ball hit by Babe Ruth, a glove worn by Brooks Robinson), the market for reproductions–particularly articles comprising major league uniforms–also expanded significantly during this period. The chief outlets for baseball apparel were the big league clubs–who frequently hawked their respective lines on the radio and television stations broadcasting their games–and mail order and chain store retailers offering specially licensed merchandise (in effect, the same products offered by the teams themselves).
