Collectors Enjoy Researching Young Players
Living in west central Florida, Tim Trently has a distinct advantage when it comes to prospecting MLB players.
Trently frequently attends spring training and minor league games near his Bradenton residence to check out all the young talent on the diamond. When it comes to card collecting, Trently sees firsthand who could become a future MLB star. His analytic-based research then helps him determine which prospects to start collecting.
Dan Kuligowski is also big into digging into the background and crunching numbers on the best up-and-coming players; he also uses his research when it comes to collecting cards.
“I’ll do research on guys; from there, I’ll usually pick five to 10 guys to kind of chase in breaks,” Kuligowski said. “After that, I’ll usually buy some singles as well.”
One of the favorite products each year for Trently and Kuligowski is Bowman Draft, which releases on Dec. 4.
“For the Bowman Draft, you have the what-ifs,” Trently said. “You get some of these guys and maybe a fourth-rounder; next thing you know, he’s the next Albert Pujols.
“I like that there are no rookies in it; that’s the main part.”
Kuligowski is big into collecting Bowman because he feels the product holds value longer than other sets.
“While guys are in the minors, sometimes they come out of nowhere when they were nothing; now they’re something,” Kuligowski said. “That’s why I like Bowman.”
Kuligowski believes 2023 Bowman Draft was a top-notch release with so much hidden talent.
“I get into stats and reviews on the different players, kind of see how they did in college vs. their own level of talent,” Kuligowski said. “So, Skenes, obviously, was a big one. People, I don’t think, did not expect what was going to happen so quickly. Guys like Kristian Campbell came out of nowhere. I chase Jacob Gonzalez a little bit. The White Sox aren’t particularly hobby-relevant right now.”
A Stacked Product
This year’s Bowman Draft checklist includes cards of 21 of the 30 first-round picks from July’s MLB Draft. Eight of the top 10 selections appear in the product, led by No. 1 overall pick Travis Bazzana and No. 6 pick Jac Caglianone.
Trently finds this year’s checklist intriguing because of its great range of prospects.
“It’s really exciting,” Trently said. “I’m a Yankee fan, so they have the pitchers this year. It’s still exciting to see because I like to do breaks a lot, and for once, the Yankees are cheaper. I can go after them without spending tons of money.”
Trently believes this year’s Bowman Draft class features some intriguing talent.
“I think they’re a little bit underrated compared to the bigger names like Skenes and all that,” Trently said. “I think some of these guys are going to surprise.”
The first round of last July’s draft was interesting. Of the 30 players selected, 20 were in college.
“At least this year specifically, there’s way more college guys than high school guys in the first round,” Kuligowski said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if close to half the guys are sniffing MLB level next year, at least Triple-A.”
Players/Teams to Watch
Kuligowski is taking off his day job on Bowman Draft release day to dedicate the entire day to his favorite hobby.
“It will be a big day to kind of see how people are valuing different guys,” Kuligowski said. “There are the big names like Bazzana, Caglianone, (Nick) Kurtz, (Chase) Burns, and I think people are kind of scared to jump on them right now because a lot of people chase primary position players. In this draft class, there are not many shortstops or outfielders in the first round, which people tend to chase. I’m very intrigued to see how people are evaluating these guys.”
Kuligowski is running three breaks on release day after scoring two cases from Topps. He also plans to buy into some breaks. Kuligowski will nab teams that he thinks are priced low.
Two teams that are middle of the pack in terms of their prospects in 2024 Bowman Draft are the Chicago Cubs with Cam Smith and Braden Montgomery with the Boston Red Sox.
“Cam Smith, I would say, is my number one value chase,” said Kuligowski, who lives in Buffalo. “I’ve seen the Cubs priced all over the place, from cheap to really expensive.”
Another team high on Kuligowski’s list is the Anaheim Angels.
“I really, really, really like Christian Moore,” Kuligowski said. “When he came to the minors, he destroyed it. But I watched him in the College World Series a good amount; Tennessee, obviously, was a big team to follow.”
Kuligowski is also big into first-round picks Bryce Rainer, shortstop for the Detroit Tigers, and—since he’s a New York Mets fan—Carson Benge.
As for Trently, about one week before release day, he had already bought into three case breaks. He put his money down on the New York Yankees, San Diego Padres, and Tampa Bay Rays. Trently tends to pick teams that don’t have big-name prospects and have value instead.
“It’s more fun to watch them come up through the minors,” Trently said.
Trently is going after the Yankees’ top two picks, both pitchers, Ben Hess and Bryce Cunningham. The Rays are the nearest MLB team to Trently, so he follows them pretty closely. Trently likes the Padres’ class, too.
“They always seem like they have some good prospects as well,” said Trently, who started collecting Bowman Draft in 2022. “One of the writeups I saw was with Kash Mayfield, and, you know, Kash is money.”
