Trading pins are a fixture of youth sports, especially Little League baseball. Players, coaches, officials and parents, enjoy swapping pins at games and tournaments every year. Given the success of trading pins in youth baseball, it’s no wonder their popularity has now expanded into other sports and into society at large.

As more and more youth baseball organizations have adopted baseball trading pins, other youth sports leagues such as those for soccer, hockey, and even football have developed their own trading pins. With each succeeding year, the popularity of pin trading grows ever larger.

Even theme parks are offering trading pins these days. Disney parks worldwide feature both pins for sale and cast members who walk around wearing pins available for trading.

Disney being Disney of course, the company doesn’t do anything halfway. Far from being a Mickey Mouse operation, the company jumped into the world of trading pins a decade ago with both paws. The company offers a full range of pins that represents virtually every aspect of Disney parks, films and other ventures. Disney pin trading has become so popular in recent years, that traders have established their own websites. There’s even a secondary market in Disney pins on auction sites such as eBay.

Disney supports pin trading at its parks worldwide, regularly sponsoring pin trading events. The company even issues special limited edition trading pins on a regular basis.

The limited edition trading pins sell out quickly after their release because they represent less than 5 percent of the pins Disney releases in any given year. These pins sometimes even increase in value on the secondary market for collectible trading pins.

Among the most popular Disney trading pins are the "Hidden Mickey" pins. These pins include an image of the trademark mouse hidden in the pin’s design. These generally premiere on cast members’ lanyards at the Disney resorts for trading between resort guests and the cast members.

Disney trading pins represent nearly a century of entertainment, so there’s sure to be a trading pin that has meaning to virtually every Disney fan, whether they’re 5 years old or 95. The pins have spawned an online community with multiple discussion groups about the trading pins.

While the great Mouse has a significant presence in the world of trading pins, nowhere are trading pins more popular than they are in youth league baseball. During the summer youth baseball season, thousands of players trade millions of baseball pins at games and tournaments.

At the Little League World Series, held each August in Pennsylvania, pin trading reaches a fever pitch. Many people come just to trade pins, and leave at the tournament’s end without even seeing a baseball game.

It’s understandable why players love trading pins. They’re bright, colorful and fun. They’re easy to store and carry. And they’re linked to specific events in the players’ lives, giving them meaning beyond just their appearance.

The bottom line is, trading pins offer an outstanding memento of a great time in players’ lives. The pins are sure to be something many players, their parents and coaches will treasure for years to come.