James Beckett III (born May 10, 1949) is an American statistician, author, editor, and publisher.
Beckett earned a Ph.D. degree in statistics at Southern Methodist University in 1975 and then joined the faculty of Bowling Green State University as an associate professor.
While at Bowling Green, Beckett began preparing baseball card price guides, which he offered free upon request.
(Rival publication Tuff Stuff was also founded that year.)
He is married to the former Diane Burgdorf, daughter of a Dallas car dealer and ex-wife of Sir Mark Thatcher.