Investigating Customer Racial Discrimination in the Secondary Baseball Card Market

• Published in: Sociological inquiry Vol. 81; no. 1; pp. 110 - 132
• Main Authors: Primm, Eric, Piquero, Nicole Leeper, Piquero, Alex R., Regoli, Robert M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.02.2011; Wiley-Blackwell; Wiley Subscription Services, Inc
• Subjects: African Americans - education; African Americans - ethnology; African Americans - history; African Americans - legislation & jurisprudence; African Americans - psychology; Athletes; Athletic Performance - economics; Athletic Performance - education; Athletic Performance - history; Athletic Performance - physiology; Athletic Performance - psychology; Baseball - economics; Baseball - education; Baseball - history; Baseball - physiology; Baseball - psychology; Collectibles; Commerce - economics; Commerce - education; Commerce - history; Cultures and civilizations; Ethnic relations. Racism; Fame; Hispanic Americans - education; Hispanic Americans - ethnology; Hispanic Americans - history; Hispanic Americans - legislation & jurisprudence; Hispanic Americans - psychology; History of medicine; History, 20th Century; History, 21st Century; Human Characteristics; Humans; Marketing - economics; Marketing - education; Marketing - history; Markets; Prejudice; Professional baseball; Race Relations - history; Race Relations - legislation & jurisprudence; Race Relations - psychology; Racial discrimination; Racism; Skin; Skin Pigmentation; Social Conditions - economics; Social Conditions - history; Social Conditions - legislation & jurisprudence; Social Problems - economics; Social Problems - ethnology; Social Problems - history; Social Problems - legislation & jurisprudence; Social Problems - psychology; Sociology; Sports; Trading cards; United States - ethnology; Values; United States; Ethnicity; Player; Baseball; Racial Discrimination; Race; Professional career; Skin colour; Sports
• ISSN: 0038-0245; 1475-682X
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1475-682X.2010.00360.x

A growing body of literature in a variety of disciplines has appeared over the last 20 years examining customer racial bias in the secondary sports card market; however, consensus on the matter has yet to emerge. In this article, we explore the more subtle ways that a player’s race/ethnicity may affect the value of his sports card including a player’s skin tone (light‐ to dark‐skinned). Data were obtained for 383 black, Latino, and white baseball players who had received at least one vote for induction into Major League Baseball’s Hall of Fame including their career performance statistics, rookie card price, card availability, Hall of Fame status, and skin tone. Findings indicate that card availability is the primary determinant of card value while a player’s skin tone has no direct effect. Subsequent analysis demonstrates that a player’s race (white/non‐white) rather than skin tone did have an effect as it interacts with Hall of Fame status to influence his rookie card price.