• Loading stock data...
Sunday, August 17, 2025
Stephen A. Smith vs Clay Travis at Tuned In on September 16 in NYC. Don’t miss it. Buy tickets now!

Inside the Little League World Series Pin Trade

The rare little collectibles have fueled a niche market, where scarcity, design, and backstories can drive demand and value.

Bridgewater American 12U Little League player Micah Poulter holds a District 7 pin during a send-off rally to the New England regional tournament in Bristol, Connecticut, from Legion Field on Friday, August 2, 2024.
Marc Vasconcellos / Imagn Images
Michgan football
Exclusive

Fox Unlikely to Let ESPN Use Big Ten Games for College Football ‘RedZone’

The network doesn't want to cannibalize its own rights, sources say.
Read Now
August 14, 2025 |

Every August in Williamsport, Penn., the Little League World Series brings 20 teams from across the world to compete in one of the most iconic youth sporting events. On the field, players ages 10 to 12 vie for a world championship. But off it, an entirely different game unfolds: pin trading.

Within the Little League International Complex, players, fans, and coaches swap what is arguably Little League’s most valuable currency. The pins—small, wearable designs representing players, teams, towns, or events—have become a fixture of the global event. 

Pins are produced by teams, players, coaches, and the Little League itself. They’re distributed at the LLWS in a free-for-all style, where collectors gather to trade with one another, often right in the complex or in makeshift trading areas. To be considered an official Little League pin, each must display its state initials and district number, such as NY-18 for the 18th district of New York. Pins can either be sold or traded at the LLWS, and the rarest ones can command huge returns in trade.

“It’s pretty addicting,” says Jeff Frazier, a former Detroit Tiger who won the 1998 Little League World Series championship with Toms River, N.J. “I got here when I was 12, and here I am 43 and I got the same damn feeling.” 

According to the league, the pin-trading phenomenon at the LLWS started in the mid-1970s when a team from Taiwan brought their own custom pins to Williamsport to trade. Then, Little League International began producing its own pins in 1983: a small, simple design of a hot-air balloon that is among the rarest in circulation today. 

Over time, the designs have become more elaborate. Some feature schools, towns, or local landmarks, while others depict mascots, MLB players, or commemorations of major historical events. All pins that use the Little League name or logo must be licensed through the league’s website. 

Pin trading has since evolved into a year-round activity. Winter conventions bring collectors together in the offseason; and in August, the hunt shifts to Williamsport, where pins past and present can be found from sponsors, tournaments, and even makeshift trading halls set up in local hotels. While most exchanges are straight barter, there’s also a secondary market on eBay and other platforms, where pins can sell for anywhere from a few dollars to several hundred.

Like any collectible, the rarer, the better. Some pins, such as those commemorating major historical events, become valuable almost instantly. Frazier recalls collectors going “crazy” for designs featuring the World Trade Center after Sept. 11. 

Designs tied to baseball milestones are just as coveted. Last year, Aaron Judge’s home-run record Little League pin became one of the rarest in the trading circuit, Frazier tells Front Office Sports.

Production runs for most pins at the LLWS can be in the thousands, making scarce pins in the hundreds or fewer especially sought after. 

This year, one specific pin generated buzz before the World Series even began.

The “Batflip 2025” pin commemorates the moment 12-year-old Marco Rocco was ejected and suspended for a game after flipping his bat following a home run for his Haddonfield, N.J., team. His family successfully challenged the suspension in court, drawing reactions from MLB players, media, and fans across the country.

Courtesy of Joe Rocco

The design shows Rocco mid-celebration, with “Batflip 2025” at the bottom and “Haddonfield” inscribed along the side, as well as the “NJ-13” district code to mark its origin. There are only 75 of these pins, which also mark Haddonfield Little League’s 75th anniversary. They are available only through trades in Williamsport; none are for sale. The Rocco and Frazier families jointly handled the design, details, and production of the pin.

“That’s why this pin is going to be in higher demand,” Frazier tells FOS. “It’s an event that happened that would probably never happen again in Little League.”

Ken Goldin, founder of Goldin Auctions and star of Netflix show King of Collectibles: The Goldin Touch, sees the “Batflip 2025” pin as a prime example of the frenzy for rare pins. While there aren’t thousands of people who want it, he says, it will be a coveted piece within the Haddonfield and Little League community writ large.

The long-term value of Rocco’s pin could skyrocket if his baseball career takes off. “The number-one factor that will determine value 10 or 15 years from now,” Goldin says, “is if Marco Rocco becomes a professional baseball player. If he does, this is legitimately the first collectible he was ever part of.”

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

‘Labubu Gang’: The Creepy-Cute Dolls Sweeping Pro Sports

The creepy-cute doll is the hottest collectible—and fashion statement.
Nov 2, 2024; Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Michigan Wolverines cheerleader runs with a flag before the game against the Oregon Ducks at Michigan Stadium.

NCAA Hits Michigan With $20M Fine, Show-Cause Orders in Sign-Stealing Scandal

The NCAA found that Stalions called the sign-stealing network the “KGB.”
Braintree American batter Ryan Fennell hits the ball against Southeast pitcher Brody Miller during the Little League Baseball World Series at South Williamsport, PA on Thursday, Aug. 13, 2025.

Little League International Condemns Youth Sports Gambling Amid World Series

Licensed sportsbooks prevent gambling on the LLWS and similar events.

Featured Today

Middle Tennessee wide receiver Cam'ron Lacy (86) catches a pass and carries the ball during the season final home football game against New Mexico State on Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024.

How Middle Tennessee State Added $668,000 to Its NIL Budget

The Blue Raiders are creating a new blueprint for cutting costs.
Schultz of Israel-Premier Tech
August 12, 2025

Rice Krispies Treats Are Upending the Billion-Dollar Athlete-Fuel Wars

The world’s most elite athletes are eating like first graders.
Dec 14, 2019; Philadelphia, PA, USA; President Donald Trump wave during the second quarter of the game between the Navy Midshipmen and the Army Black Knights at Lincoln Financial Field
August 9, 2025

‘Political Gold’: Trump Putting His Stamp on College Sports 

Trump has embraced executive action on hot-button college sports issues.
August 3, 2025

Inked Under Anesthesia: Athletes Getting $50,000 Tattoos

High-end studios, elite artist teams, and hours under anesthesia.
August 14, 2025

NBA Embraces Streaming, Adds 75 National Games to 2025–26 Schedule

The NBA announced the 2025–26 regular-season schedule Thursday.
Grant Fisher
August 15, 2025

Grand Slam Track Admits It Is ‘Struggling’ To Pay Athletes Millions They’re..

It’s been weeks since a self-imposed deadline to pay athletes $3 million.
Sponsored

‘Run With the Competition’: Ultra Trail Runner Lotti Brinks Is Back With..

Ultrarunner Lotti Brinks is ready to make her first Courmayeur-Champex-Chamonix podium in her HOKA Mafate 5s.
Sep 22, 2016; Atlanta, GA, USA; View of the logo on a grandstand during the 2016 Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club.
August 13, 2025

PGA Tour Finale Revamp Brings Career Earnings Back in Play

From 2019 to 2024, winnings were only considered FedEx Cup bonus money.
August 13, 2025

Venus Williams Granted US Open Wild-Card Singles Entry

The seven-time Grand Slam winner is 45 years old.
August 12, 2025

Fever-Sky Viewership Dips As Clark, Reese Absences Take Toll

It was the eighth game between the two teams since last year.
August 12, 2025

Dana White Says Increasing UFC Pay on Table After $7.7B Paramount Deal

The fighting promotion is doubling its media-rights revenue.