As the Dominion threat to the Alpha Quadrant intensifies, Jake notices Sisko growing increasingly depressed. Hearing that Quark plans to auction off a collection of antiquities that includes a vintage Willie Mays baseball card, he decides obtaining the card for his father is the perfect way to improve his mood. Jake persuades Nog to use his life savings to bid on the collection, but a man named Dr. Giger outbids them, taking the card and crushing Jake's hopes. When Giger later offers to trade them the card for various pieces of equipment and medical supplies, Jake and Nog risk an intergalactic incident in their innocent quest to lift Sisko's spirits.