America's favorite pastime has been bringing people together for more than a century and the Baltimore Orioles are rich in that history. 

Baseball dates back to the 19th century in America. The Major League Baseball (MLB) group was founded in 1903 when two professional leagues – the National League and the American League - established a truce to what was known as the "baseball war," according to Britannica.

The rising popularity of the game also created a hobby for people of all ages: Baseball cards, which some say is as nostalgic and exciting as the game itself. 

Collecting baseball cards in Harford County

In Harford County, baseball cards are as popular today as they have ever been. 

The 71-year history of the Baltimore Orioles also means more than seven decades of the Orioles fandom. 

"We hope they start off fast and stay in front," said Mel Lundgren, owner of Bel Air Sports Cards. 

"I'm ready to smell the hot dogs, smell the crab cakes and really just watch the birds go to the playoffs," Executive Director of Visit Harfod, Tyler Zeisloft said. "I'm confident for a World Series this year." 

America's favorite pastime continues to bring fans together around the diamond and out of the park, too. 

"You're talking to your parents, you're talking to your friends, you don't tell them you're going to the basketball card shop or you're going down to the football card store, or even the sports card store," said Kyle Mathias, Owner of Simm's Sports Cards. "Generally, it's always been known as the baseball card store." 

Baseball cards feature favorite players and teams that date back decades if not centuries, allowing fans of all ages, genders and generations to become part of the game. 

"When COVID struck, I had nothing to do, and I just went through my dad's old baseball card collection from when he was a kid. And I just got intrigued with baseball cards and baseball since I play it," 12-year-old Colin Berret said.

For Colin, it's a newer hobby, but he's managed to build quite a collection. 

"These two are some of my favorite players. Nolan Ryan, Randy Johnson, it's at a ten. So when it's at a 10, there's only 10 of these in the world with this specific card autographed from both of them," Berret said. 

The business of baseball cards

Store owner Lundgren has been collecting baseball cards for at least 60 years. 

"It was back in about 1965-66 when I started collecting, and the packs were in what was called a flat rack pack, a grocery pack, and they were six for a quarter," Lundgren recalled. 

Now, the cards range in price, with some as high as thousands of dollars. There's also a rating system to mark the value of a card. 

It's a hobby and a business at Ludgren's store, Bel Air Sports Cards, one of three sports card shops in Harford County. 

"I never thought, never dreamed when I was buying baseball cards back then that I'd still be doing it," Ludgren said. 

It speaks to the passion behind his paycheck. 

The same can be said for Matt Richardson, owner of Hitmen Sports Cards and Collectibles.

"I grew up in the early 80s, and in the late 80s, early 90s, there was a boom with sports cards," Richardson said. 

So many others experienced the same boom. 

"When I was younger, my grandfather was a huge sports person," one person told WJZ. 

"I collected baseball cards with my father growing up," said another. 

You'll hear it over and over. Baseball card collecting is a hobby engrained in tradition, much like the sport itself. 

"It just comes full cycle," said Jason Berret, Colin's father. "It's stuff that I did with my dad. He would come home with a box of cards for me and the two of us would go through it, so now, it's come full circle now that I'm a dad, and I'm doing it with him [Colin]." 

Seeing families like the Berrets or Josh Ring and his sons, Henry and Brooks – named after Hank Aaron and Brooks Robinson - is the best part of owning Simm's Sport Cards, Kyle Machias said. 

"It's great to see fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, whether it be whatever sport they may collect, just coming in and sharing that common bond," Machias said. 

Orioles excitement helps sports card shops

With a team like the Baltimore Orioles, Zeisloft with Visit Harford said it's easy for the county to maintain three sports card shops, because it's easy to get behind a team rich in history and all-time greats. 

"I think that when you can be a 7-year-old or a 10-year-old boy and pull a throwback card of Brooks Robinson or a throwback card of Cal Ripken, and you know who that is, that keeps the excitement," Zeisloft said. "Because if dad is excited, because dad collected that card, now both of you are excited. And it's really just a trickle-down effect of excitement."

For card collectors, the excitement comes in the ballpark or in the living room, and home runs can be hit off the field.