Glossary

By John Buonaguidi & George Keniston

Below are some terms that are used in collecting sports memorabilia. If there are some terms you think we should have included, email us at sports@ebay.com with the term and the definition.

Mint - Just like new.
Excellent - Very strong copy, no creases, minimal edge wear.
Very good - Slightly rounded corners, minor creases, if any.
Good - Rounded corners, some creasing, but a decent copy.
Fair - Very rounded corners, serious creasing.
Poor - A rough card. Very knocked about.

Below are some terms that are used in collecting sports memorabilia.

Bowman - Chicago-based card company that became defunct in 1955.

COA - Certificate of authenticity.

Exhibit cards - Black and white and sepia cards issued in vending machines from the 1920s through 1960s that are post-card size on cardboard stock.

Fleer - Philadelphia-based chewing gum company which still issues cards today.

"Gamer" - Alludes to a game-worn or game-used piece of equipment.

Goudey - Prominent gum company and card issuer of 1930s.

Gum Cards - Refers to cards issued with chewing gum in wax packs.

HOF - Hall of Famer. Used when denoting a special player.

LOA - Letter of Authenticity (used for autograph guarantees).

Mint - Just like new. Denotes condition of card or memorabilia.

N.L. - National League. One of the two leagues in American baseball.

PSA - A company in Southern California that grades cards under a rating system (1 is lowest and 10 is highest).

"S.I." - Sports Illustrated magazine.

Tobacco Cards - Cards that were issued with tobacco. Mainly pre-1920 cards but also made in the 1950s.

Topps - Prominent chewing gum company of the 1950s. The company still issues cards today.

The preceding material was written by John Buonaguidi and George Keniston. These are the opinions of the author, not the opinions of eBay, and therefore eBay does not validate the accuracy of or endorse these opinions.