By sixty, most sports fans have done something important without much fuss: they have handed the team down. A son or daughter picked it up at the kitchen table, and now there may be a grandchild in the colors too. Many sixty-year-olds are also looking at the end of a long career and more free afternoons for games. The 60th gifts that land best honor both of those things: what they have seen, and who they have shared it with.
Everything below starts from the real game records of their lifetime. Here are the strongest ideas for this birthday, with prices and what to gather before you order.
Three Generations of Fandom, for the family team
Three Generations of Fandom is made for the family where one team runs through two to four lifetimes. Each person gets the real line score from the day they were born and their record since, and one shared timeline below shows every season of the team with each life as a bar and every title marked with how old each of you were. Sixty is when this print really comes into its own: the birthday fan's bar runs long, and the kids' and grandkids' bars line up underneath it. Grown children can easily give it together. From $45.
Lifetime Birthday Book, sixty birthdays to page through
The Lifetime Birthday Book is a hardcover with their team's game on every birthday. A print shows a life at a glance; a book is something to sit with on a Sunday afternoon, and to hand a grandchild who asks what the team was like back then. Sixty birthdays make a book with some weight to it. From $69.
The Lost Ballparks I Saw, for the fan who remembers the old park
A fan turning sixty may well have watched games in a park that no longer stands. The Lost Ballparks I Saw maps forty-two ballparks the big leagues left behind, with the years the majors played in each. They check off the ones they saw and add the year. Expect stories: where they sat, the walk in from the parking lot, who took them the first time. If you are not sure which parks they visited, bring it up casually over dinner a few weeks before you order. From $45.
The Wait, for the fan who sat through a long drought
Some fans spent years, even decades, waiting for a title. The Wait counts the years between two titles in big numbers, then shows every season of the drought as a tile with its record and how it ended, the near misses in brass, and the game that finally ended it as a full line score. If their team broke through somewhere in the last sixty years, this is the print that tells the whole story behind that one night. From $45.
The Career, when retirement is part of the year
Plenty of 60th birthdays come with a retirement date on the calendar. The Career sets every year of a working life, first season to last, as a time card with their team's record that season and how it ended. The first and last years are stamped in brass and the title seasons are highlighted. It works for a birthday that doubles as a send-off, and it is an easy gift for coworkers to go in on. From $45.
Born on Game Day Wall Clock, for the den or the workshop
For something they will use every day, the Born on Game Day Wall Clock is a 10-inch clock with a deep green face and brass hour marks, their name above the hands, and the birth date and final score of their birthday game below. It suits a den, a garage workshop or the wall above the TV. From $69.
Picking the right one
Start with who the gift is from. From the kids and grandkids together, Three Generations of Fandom says the most. From a spouse, the Lifetime Birthday Book or The Wait. From coworkers at a retirement party, The Career. From an old friend who used to go to games with them, The Lost Ballparks I Saw.
On budget: $45 for any single print, $69 for the book or the clock, and about $115 for the book and a print together. Two or three siblings splitting a gift can cover that comfortably.
Details to gather
Every gift here needs their name, birth date and team. For Three Generations of Fandom, add the name and birth date of each family member on it. For The Career, you need the first and last years of their working life. For The Lost Ballparks I Saw, the parks they went to and roughly when. A spouse or a sibling usually knows more of this than the birthday fan would guess.
Shop this guide
Three Generations of FandomFrom $45
Lifetime BookFrom $99
The Lost Ballparks I SawFrom $45
The WaitFrom $45
The CareerFrom $45
Born on Game Day Wall ClockFrom $69
Ordering
- Personalize: enter the names, dates and team on each product page.
- Checked by hand: every order is reviewed by a person before it is made.
- Shipping: free in the US. Allow about two weeks for it to arrive.
- Christmas: if the gift is going under the tree, order by early December at the latest.
See more lifetime and family gifts in the Family and Retirement collection.