The Year of Autographs

Just as 2018 saw a rise of new talent in all of professional sports, 2019 seems to be just as promising. From signed football helmets, signed jerseys, or the classic signed baseballs, there is a lot of sports memorabilia to be found. However, let’s take a look back at 2018 and see some of the new things that came about. Let’s take a look back at why the success of 2018 is creating such a buzz for 2019.

There are many athletes that rose to superstar status in 2018. These include Mookie Betts, Ozzie Albies, Christian Yelich, Baker Mayfield, Saquon Barkley, Bradley Chubb, Luka Doncic, and Trae Young.

The 2018 NFL season has featured a lot of crazy ups and downs for many teams. The Cleveland Browns went from winning one game in two years, to winning seven in 2018! Both the Houston Texans and Chicago Bears went from worst-to-first in their divisions, though they fell short in the playoffs.

Also, 2018 will be remembered as the year that the Kansas City Chiefs exploded onto the scene, led by potential MVP quarterback Patrick Mahomes. While they did end up losing to the New England Patriots in the AFC title game, the future looks bright for Mahomes’ Chiefs.

With Super Bowl 53 right around the corner, there is a really interesting dynamic between the two teams involved. On one hand is the old favorite New England Patriots. They are playoff tested, and led by perhaps the greatest quarterback of all-time, Tom Brady. On the other is the young Los Angeles Rams, featuring stars Jared Goff, Todd Gurley, and Aaron Donald. The game could end up another classic!

The world of Major League Baseball also saw a familiar team take home the World Series title, the Boston Red Sox. The Red Sox had the league’s best record in the regular season and carried that momentum throughout the playoffs. They defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers in 5 games in the World Series, hoisting their 9^th trophy in their over 100 years of existence.

As you may expect from their record, the Red Sox also dominated the awards voting. Mookie Betts was voted AL MVP, with teammate JD Martinez finishing 4^th. Also, star pitcher Chris Sale finished 4^th in the AL Cy Young Voting, though he would lose to Blake Snell of the Tampa Bay Rays in the end. Over on the NL side, Milwaukee Brewers OF Christian Yelich overwhelmingly took home the NL MVP over Cubs IF Javier Baez. For the NL Cy Young, New York Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom also won by a wide margin.


The 2016 World Series champion Chicago Cubs autographs are still going strong. Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, and Ben Zobrist are among the most collected including the famous Chicago Tribune framed newspaper. You can read about the history of the Chicago Cubs here. Speaking of sports autographs, 4 new members of the Baseball Hall of Fame are now able to add the coveted HOF initials behind their name on anything they sign. The new members include Atlanta Braves 3B Chipper Jones, Montreal Expos and Anaheim Angels OF Vladimir Guerrero, Cleveland Indians, Philadelphia Phillies, and Chicago White Sox slugger Jim Thome, and San Diego Padres closer Trevor Hoffman.

In the NBA, one of the most epic rivalries in the modern era played itself out again in the NBA finals, seeing the Golden State Warriors sweep the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Warriors were of course led by team mainstays Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green, and Klay Thompson. The Cavs by King James himself, Lebron James. Sadly, this rivalry will likely come to an end, as James took his talents west, signing with the Los Angeles Lakers, giving fans a brand-new signed jersey to find!

The NHL season was as exciting as ever, and speaking of new jerseys to find, the Vegas Golden Knights joined the league, and ended up going all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals! However, one star was able to cement his legacy as one of the greatest of all time, as Washington Capitals Alexander Ovechkin finally led his team to hoist the Cup for the first time in the history of the franchise.

Also, sadly in 2018 we saw the deaths of a number of prominent athletes. These include Willie McCovey, Jim Taylor, and Stan Mikita, just to name a few.

Finding the perfect sports memorabilia is the perfect gift for any sports fan, and 2018 provided a lot of new moments to capture for eternity. The Red Sox, Warriors, and Capitals were all able to bring home titles for their towns, and the Patriots and Rams are looking to do the same in the Super Bowl.

No matter if you are looking for memorabilia from the NFL, MLB, NBA, Boxing, WWE, or UFC, Powers Sports Memorabilia has what you’re looking for. As the owner of Powers Sports, I promise that you will be more than satisfied with not only the quality, but also the authenticity of every product I sell. If you want to chat or are looking for something in particular that you can’t seem to find, give me a call and ask for Matt!

Let me be your sports memorabilia guy!