Man's collection of 2.7 million baseball cards earns Guinness record

Jan. 2 (UPI) -- A baseball card collector in Idaho has achieved a Guinness World Record by amassing a collection of 2.7 million cards.

Paul Jones, 34, was awarded a Guinness World Record for the largest private baseball card collection when the record-keeping organization verified he had more than 2.7 million cards.

Jones' parents said his love of baseball and card collecting began at the age of 10. They said he has Asperger's syndrome and learning disorder, so it was difficult to find hobbies that interested him.

"Baseball in our house is a big deal because it did save Paulie," father Barry Jones told KHQ-TV. "It taught him how to count. It taught him how to read. Well, it definitely helped his reading and spelling and everything. I mean, it was a tool."

Paul Jones said he uses Facebook and other tools to correspond with players during the winter and get them to autograph his cards. During the spring and summer he attends games with his father and tries to get autographs in person.

"The players, the sounds, the smells. I just love the whole entire game of baseball in general," Paul Jones said.

Jones is often found at games wearing a "foul ball Paul" hat, a reference to the time a foul ball hit him in the head.

"Yeah, it's my trademark," he said.