Vintage Sports Cards – Baseball – Basketball – Football – Hockey
John T.S. O’Connell wrote an excellent article for Sports Cards Magazines’ April 1995 issue about World Series Cards; these were his Top 10. What do you think about the list?
Here’s the rest of the article, and be sure to check out The Complete Topps’ World Series Card Guide, which was published a few years earlier in the Fall of 1990.
My favorite thing about the hobby is interacting with other collectors and hobby historians and learning about new items. Well, on the morning of May 1st, 2023, a collector contacted me via e-mail after perusing the site with two photos of an empty box of cards I’d never seen before.
He thought maybe they were issued around Christmas time in 1964 to sell leftover cards after the season had ended and asked if I knew anything about it. I searched some of my older books and came up empty-handed. He mentioned the box didn’t have any code on it, so I asked if he’d be ok with my sharing it on Facebook to see if anyone else could help.
On Facebook, a collector mentioned he had seen a reference to the box before and shared the following sell sheet.
One collector on Facebook commented that the box on the sell sheet looks a lot like a carton of cigarettes! And another was pretty sure Topps only made this product in 64.
The box wasn’t really meant for Christmas; it’s a gift box for any occasion, “what better way to say ‘happy birthday’ or just ‘hello.’ The boxes came 24 per case for $14.40 or 60 cents a box. Each box had 20 5-cent packs (100 total cards), though given the gift theme, I don’t think they were meant to be sold by the pack.
A ton of collectors reached out to me asking if the owner was interested in selling the empty box, but he’s not. Given how much interest it garnered in such a short period, I presume bidding would be intense.
I’m unsure how you’d price such an item, though. However, one collector shared that there was one on eBay many years ago, and he thought it was for $500, or maybe $338, but acknowledged it would go for much more these days. Another collector thinks he saw one around 2004.
The owner later shared three more photos of the box with me.
An interesting thing about the box is that that’s not Whitey Ford’s 1964 Topps baseball card printed on it; it looks like a 1964 design, but with his 1963 Topps photo.
Some collectors surmised it could have come out as early as December 1963, given the difference in Ford’s card design. And maybe the low item number of 400 (on the sell sheet) indicates an early release, along with the image of the smiling kid being the same as the one on the 1962 Topps Baseball Bucks dealer sell sheet?
Funny enough, Topps did something similar with the 1964 Topps Giants set; the picture of Whitey Ford on the box isn’t identical to his card.
If you have more insight into this unique Topps product, please leave a comment or e-mail me.
Check out The Unopened Archive for more!
In 2005, Sotheby’s offered a collection of some of the scarcest Pacific Coast League cards in their “Important Sports Memorabilia and Cards” auction. The lot included 136 cards, plus a few original mailing envelopes, of the four Centennial Flour’s Seattle Rainiers sets issued between 1943 and 1947.
Here’s the lot’s description:
Produced by Centennial Flouring Mills this scarce regional consists of four sets of unnumbered cards featuring only players from the Seattle Rainiers. Includes the following: 1943-Complete Set of 25 mostly NM, 1944 Complete Set of 25 mostly NM/NM+ with original mailing envelope, 1945 Complete Blue Tint Set of 27 all but a couple NM, 1945 Complete Black & White Set of 27 EX-MT to NM but for 1/3 having a water stain in the corner (includes original mailing envelope), 1947 Complete Set of 32 mostly NM/NM+ (includes original mailing envelope).
I hadn’t even been tracking that the 1945 set had both black & white and blue tint variations.
Here’s how you can tell each of the sets apart.
Heritage sold a collection of all five of these complete sets (both 1945 variations) in April 2010 for $3,107.
If you got a grand or two, here’s a fun one to add to a baseball card man cave: Lou Gehrig’s Official “Plaball” Baseball Game.
Sotheby’s offered this example in their March 1993 Important Baseball Cards and Sports Memorabilia catalog. They described the piece as follows:
Lou Gehrig “Playball” Baseball Game, table top game pictures Gehrig in black and white batting pose in centerfield, the only thing missing is the original marble, minor aging, slight water stains at the very edges and a few wooden pegs missing but for this particular game the condition is exceptional, overall at least excellent to mint condition. 18in. by 18in.
Leland’s has sold a pair of them; the first went for $417 in December 2003 and included the following description:
A beautiful all-original rendition of this classic baseball board game made valuable by a patent tying it to Lou Gehrig. Vintage to the 1930’s, the green surface is uncommonly crisp with bold colors and almost no fading or damage. Printed with facsimile signature and inscription from Lou Gehrig, “Yours Truly Lou Gehrig” with a photo of the Yankee legend adding style and prominence. All pegs protruding from the board’s face are original and show the expected signs of tarnishing. 90% of all the pegs are still attached. The game is operated by a small mechanism in the top corner through which a marble was dropped and “rolled” onto the board, encountering the many pegs which altered its path to any one of the 21 “traps” denoting a “strike”, “foul out”, “double play”, etc. or a “1 base hit”, “home run”, etc. The title of the board game, as printed behind home plate is “Lou Gehrig’s Official Plaball – by arrangement with Christy Walsh.” Still attached to the bottom of the board, which is constructed completely of wood is the rules of the game, printed on an 8.5×11” piece of paper and the wooden “leg” which elevates one side of the game 1.5”, allowing for the marbles to roll down.
The second Leland’s sale was more recent when they sold a copy in April 2023 for $1,250. The hobby must have learned a bit more about it since they added a few manufacturing details to the description:
Scarce baseball board game, titled “Lou Gehrig’s Official PLABALL,” produced by the Johnson Store Equipment Company of Elgin, Illinois, in 1932. (PLAGAMES was the name given to the company’s series of board games, “PLABALL” is not a misspelling.) This is just the second example of this attractive baseball game we have offered in the past twenty years and we have seen few others at auction during that time. The large game board, constructed of wood, features a colorful depiction of a baseball diamond, with an illustration of Gehrig and his facsimile signature pictured in the centerfield area. The game’s title appears in print behind home plate. This was a bagatelle game, with the “game action” determined by a ball that was released onto the game board. The ball would descend onto the “field” (the game board rests on wooden risers that tilt the board) , where it would be continuously deflected by the dozens of metal rods and wooden dowels until it finally came to rest in one of the compartments that determine the result of the “at bat.” The game board displays moderate use and wear, including several minor stains. Three of the wooden dowels surrounding the “Home Run” compartment have broken off and the original game ball is no longer present. In Very Good condition overall. 18x18x1″.
There’s a copy on eBay (Sept 2024) with an asking price of $1,675.
You know what’s cool? A plastic radio with facsimile signatures of Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle!
Christie’s East offered this example in their October 1993 Sports Memorabilia Catalog.
They described it as a “Circa 1961 Bakelite like plastic radio depicting a baseball player and facsimile plastic signatures of Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle. This working example is in excellent/mint condition and has the correct dial knobs of a bat on the tuner and a green baseball diamond on the volume control. Scarce in this condition.”
Their estimate was $1,200-1,500. However, it’s not that pricey today. REA, which dates the radio to 1962, has offered at least nine examples; in 2023, one sold for $720. The coolest one, though, included an original box!
The early 1990s have a nostalgic place in my collecting soul since I stopped collecting cards somewhere around 1997 before returning to the hobby as an adult. Today, my collecting and hobby interest is focused more on post-war vintage vs. this late “junk” era, but there are some important cards from this time. Some stand out to me today because I remember their popularity at the time, others because of today’s market prices, and others just because of the player’s career performance. No matter the reason, here are 18 early 1990s baseball cards that came to my mind that you might be interested in adding to your collection.
At its release, all the kids in my neighborhood wanted to get these Leaf cards, which we treated as a premium release at the time. I think I focus on the Frank Thomas card from this set today because our family had moved to Chicago, and he became the decade’s premier player.
Bo Jackson’s accolades across multiple sports led him to be considered one of the best athletes of all time. He was incredibly popular in the hobby, and this photo is simply iconic.
I think I focus on this card more as an adult because of what I said earlier about Frank’s performance on the field, and as a hobby historian today, the story of the No Name on Front card brings a lot of attention to 1990 Topps as a set.
The No Name on Front 1990 Topps Frank Thomas card is a bucket list card for a ton of collectors.
We now believe there are two versions of this card: glossy-coated cards that Topps gave to President Bush and ones without the coating that Topps probably didn’t intend for public release. Cards were peaking at this time, so the card got a lot of attention, and it still demands incredible prices today.
Chipper didn’t play much until 1995, so I think my inclusion of this card is based on the popularity of the 1991 Chipper Jones cards today and my memories of watching every Braves game on TV.
I mean…yeah, of course.
Upper Deck did a great job making exciting cards, and this Nolan Ryan and Rickey Henderson card captured a fantastic day in baseball history.
1992 Bowman was super popular when it was released, but the Rivera card being on this list is more a result of his career accolades than my younger collecting journeys.
I’ve written a lot about Cal Ripken Jr. in the past; add this one to the bucket list.
If you collected cards during the junk era, you absolutely knew about this card.
I’ve included the Fleer Update Piazza rookie card on this list due to its popularity today, which is in a tight race with his 1992 Bowman card. But I think, as kids, we all preferred his 1992 Topps Stadium Club card.
Another multi-sport superstar, Deion Sanders was a high performer on two fields and has continued to be relevant in sports as a commentator, public figure, and coach. Upper Deck did a great job on this 1992 Upper Deck card, blending football and baseball together.
Today, this is Jeter’s most desirable rookie card, and high-grade variants dwarf most sales of cards from this era.
Derek Jeter is one of the most popular baseball players of all time, and Topps is the most celebrated brand, so I feel like this card has to be included on any list of great 1990s baseball cards, though I prefer his Pinnacle rookie card.
Alex Rodriguez was a monster when he came into the majors, and this card was a beast when it first came on the market and was a quick addition to many top 100 baseball cards of all-time lists.
In the days before there were more inserts and specialty cards in sets than base cards, any insert/chase was popular. I think this card may be underrated (despite high prices) when you couple Mantle and Griffey with the way cards were made and printed in the first half of the 1990s.
Who didn’t laugh and get a kick out of the Griffey bubble gum bubble card?
Are there any key early 1990s baseball cards that stand out to you that I may have missed? Let me know in the comments; happy collecting!
When Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig appear in the same ad, you know it’s a legendary piece of baseball memorabilia.
REA offered this incredible advertisement in their July 2000 catalog. Here’s the lot’s complete description:
This visually appealing fold over H&B advertising piece was furnished to store owners for window display. The front features a large photo of Ruth and Gehrig examining an H&B Louisville Slugger bat. The interior portion pictures numerous baseball stars endorsing H&B bats as well as an order card for dealers. Unfolded front measures 12″ x 18″ Condition details include separations along the fold lines and tears. An extremely attractive advertising broadside which displays beautifully as is, but would benefit greatly from some minor professional restoration which could easily help return this piece to its original glorious state. This is the only example of this extremely rare advertising piece Robert Edward Auctions has seen to date.
Wikipedia has a great article for Hillerich & Bradsby if you’d like more history about the Louisville Slugger brand.