1988 Budweiser
Phillies Season Calendar

Over the weekend I came across a small cache of Phillies schedules that I have amassed over the past 25 years. The mix of magnets, season ticket brochures and of course, pocket schedules had been shoved away after games or Winter Caravans and were all but forgotten at this point. Some were older, like a 1981 Season Ticket brochure with the 1980 World Series Trophy on the front, others were from the current era - a 2009 pocket schedule featuring Cole Hamels.

Looking at my "collection" I realized I had no real clue what was in front of me. Like bobble heads, autographs or game-used equipment, schedules are their own memorabilia category...one I know little about. I'm never going to be an schedule collector, but I am resolved to learn more about them. Here's a little primer for anyone out there who is an amateur, like me...

Season Ticket Brochures

These are pretty common during this time of year. Historically I have picked a particular year's offering at either the old Winter Caravans, or now during the Holiday Sale.

Pros:

Good sized for framing (generally 8x10)
Feature interesting cover pictures reflecting the season's "theme" (remember "Bring It On"?)

Cons:

Size can be a hinderance if you have space issues

Value: From what I have been able to research so far, anything from the past 30+ years will not bring more than $1-2. Earlier versions still TBD.

Pocket Schedules

I am willing to bet that everyone who reads this post has at least one pocket schedule. They are one of the tried and true methods of distributing a season's calendar. I found this cool site that shows some good examples of past Phillies pocket schedules: pocketschedules.net.

Pros:

Small size, good for storage
Offers an odd-ball opportunity if you are a collector of a particular player, or advertising

Cons:

Small size makes it an unattractive medium for autographs
Not good for much except keeping track of the upcoming home stand

Value: Like the season ticket brochures, you won't make a living selling anything after 1970. But, there does seem to be some money in older ones, especially if the sponsor or artwork is interesting.

Large Format Advertisements

1976 Placemat Schedule

Because pieces in this sub-category often hung in stores or bars they are usually much bigger, and visually attractive than their smaller, more utilitarian brothers. I found a few really cool items on ebay over the weekend that demonstrate the best there is to offer.

Pros:

Good size and potentially good subjects for displaying
Cool sponsor advertising

Cons:

Size

Value: Of each of the sub-categories discussed here, this one has the most potential to hold some value. Like the pocket schedules, image subject will strongly influence how much you'll need to pay to add a piece.