Johan Santana Receives Renewed Hobby Spark

With all of the trade discussions going on recently, Johan Santana is receiving some renewed hobby interest. His 00 Finest RC #'d 3000 was a steady seller in the $55-70 range throughout the season. Now, with the possibility of Santana going to a true contender (Boston or NYY), that same rookie has been averaging $106.75 so far in December. His 00 Bowman's Best RC #'d 2999 averaged in the $50-60 range this past season. I haven't seen any for sale this month, but you can bet they'll be selling at elevated levels as well.

Back in July, Santana was my top pick for "Top Pitcher Investments: Age 28 to 30", and nothings changed since then. I still think that he is, and will be the best in his age group (and age groups above & below him) till the day he retires. Since becoming a full-time starter in '04, he has 983 K's in 912-1/3 IP (9.7 K's/9 IP), a 2.89 ERA, a 70-32 record, and has only allowed 1.95 BB/9 IP.