There is, however, one exception. When Goldin was 16 years old, his late mother, Carole, said he had to get a “real” summer job. He worked at York Steakhouse in the“You can’t make money playing with baseball cards your whole life,” Goldin, 58, recalled his mother saying. “ ‘You need to understand how to have a boss.’ She was certainly incorrect with both of those statements.”Goldin enjoyed the gamble and niche of sports collecting, a hobby he started as a child.
After that, he was hooked. Goldin, who graduated from Friends Select School, spent countless hours trying to figure out how much an item was worth so he could sell or trade to acquire more cards, preferably baseball cards. “My first autograph from a professional athlete had to be 1977 Yankees spring training,” Goldin said. “My grandfather took me — it was Ron Guidry, who went on to have the most amazing year two years later.. I still have my ticket stubs and the program from that year. I also remember when Pete Rose broke Stan Musial’s hit record in 1981. I went around and bought 250 programs at the game because I thought they would be valuable.
“I was trying to figure out what to do next,” Goldin said. “I came up with the idea for an auction house since I know all these athletes, I’m good friends with Barry Bonds. I worked with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Willie Mays, Muhammad Ali, Joe Montana, Cal Ripken, and Mike Schmidt. All these people I put into collectibles in the ‘90s that are probably worth 10 times as much now.”He started the business with $100,000 cash.
Among the Philly flavor items he has come across: One of Kobe Bryant’s championship rings that he gave to Kobe’s parents. He also sold Joe Frazier’s jockstrap from his 1971 Fight of the Century against Ali. Goldin said that’s in his top five for most bizarre memorabilia.series on ESPN. After he spent the day with Goldin, Schell wanted to create a show about the business.