Collectable, a sports memorabilia company that offers fractional ownership to collectors in an effort to make big-ticket items more accessible, is set to launch a new item on Thursday night, which will be of particular interest to Yankee fans.
The piece of baseball history, which goes live on Collectable’s website at 8 p.m., is a full game-worn Alex Rodriguez jersey from game six of the 2009 World Series, the last time the Yanks won a title.
The full uniform, both jersey and pants, are each autographed by Rodriguez, where he also inscribed “World Series champions.”
Rodriguez has a complicated Yankee history, and baseball history overall, but he was a pillar of the 2009 championship team, breaking his previous stigma of being a poor October performer by putting together a magical postseason run that included a game-tying home run in game two of the ALDS.
“You obviously love ARod or you don’t,” said Collectable CEO Ezra Levine, who was in attendance at game six of the 2009 World Series. “I think it’s a cool moment in NY sports…it was a very tumultuous season for ARod. He had the whole steroid scandal and got injured but then went on this rampant tear…and had this great postseason and really cemented his legacy as a true Yankee. This uniform really represents that pinnacle moment of ARod as a Yankee.”
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While Rodriguez’s career might be affected by his steroid use and suspension, at least in the eyes of the Hall of Fame voters, Levine still sees this item as one that will be coveted given Rodriguez’s career accomplishments and his post-retirement career, which has kept him in the spotlight via baseball broadcasting and now ownership of the Minnesota Timberwolves.
“What we see in the collectibles category, when personalities remain relevant in the lifetime of not just their playing career, but stay in the limelight, that does well for their collectible values over time,” Levine said.
Collectable, which launched its app in September of last year, offers fans and collectors the opportunity to buy shares in a piece of memorabilia, and once a user has bought shares in an asset and it becomes fully funded, they now own equity in that item, and while the company can’t guarantee a profit, the value of shareholders’ interests will rise as the value of the piece rises. Earlier this year, a Wilt Chamberlain jersey from his rookie season had a chance to be sold for $2 million before roughly 800 of the 1,000 owners of the jersey voted not to sell, instead electing to see if its value would continue to rise.
The initial value of the jersey was roughly $1.25 million.
As for the Rodriguez jersey, Levine hopes it could one day be found inside Yankee Stadium, displayed on the same grounds where it was worn when the Yanks were last atop the baseball world.
You can find the jersey and purchase shares here.
Follow Ryan Chichester on Twitter: @ryanchichester1
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