Venezuelan Topps

A Complete SGC-graded 1967 Topps Venezuela Retirado Series Set

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Putting together a complete run of 1967 Topps Venezuela Retirado cards is pretty hard, particularly ones in decent condition, making this complete set of 50 that were auctioned off together in April 2006 all the more impressive.

The lot description noted that Pat Quinn assembled the set one card at a time and upgraded it during his half-dozen 1980s buying trips to Venezuela. This set’s makeup included three cards graded as sevens, four sixes, four 5.5s, 14 fives, 19 fours, and six threes.

PSA’s Pop Report shows around 15-35 graded samples of each card in the set, with the majority graded in the 1-2 range. SGC has graded around ten of each of the 50 cards in the set with similar results.

Hake’s auctions sold a lower-conditioned set of 50 SGC-graded Retirados, from Richard Merkin’s collection, for $7,843 in June 2011. I can’t fathom how much they’d sell for today!

Here’s PSA’s 1967 Venezuelan Retirado set profile:

The 1967 Venezuelan Retirado baseball set is the second segment of a three-part set that also includes the Venezuelan League (#1-138) and the Venezuelan Topps (#189-338). These three sets run contiguous numbers through all three with the Retirado numbering from 139-188. While the first group features the players of the Venezuelan League and the third group consists of Major League Baseball’s stars, the Retirado portion highlights Hall of Famers dating back to the first induction class as well as a handful of more recent stars and potential future inductees. Each card boasts a player portrait in sepia-tone against a blue background with the player’s name printed at the top and “RETIRADO” boldly printed in red at the bottom of the photo. The backs show the player’s personal statistics and a brief biography printed horizontally. Because the set was printed on crude stock paper/cardboard, coupled with a likelihood that many may have been pasted into a scrapbook, the 1967 Venezuelan Retirado set can be difficult for find in high quality. This set is anchored by the likes of Walter Johnson (#139), Lou Gehrig (#141), Honus Wagner (#143), Joe DiMaggio (#145), Ty Cobb (#146), Babe Ruth (#147), Ted Williams (#148), Christy Mathewson (#151), Stan Musial (#157), Sandy Koufax (#162), Satchel Paige (#177) and Jackie Robinson (#184). 

Identifying Venezuela Topps Baseball Cards: A Basic Guide

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Topps began releasing unique baseball card sets in Venezuela in 1959, targeting the country’s strong baseball fan base. These sets, released in 1959, 1960, 1962, 1964, 1966, 1967, and 1968, closely resemble their American counterparts but can be challenging to differentiate. So, I thought I’d share the basics to help collectors identify them.

First, the consistent attribute across all years of Topps Venezuela baseball cards is that the card stock is darker, rougher, and less glossy than the American cards. Additionally, each set has a few unique characteristics, like copyright/trademark information, language, color, and size differences that I’ll cover below.

1959 Venezuelan Topps

1959 Venezuela (Left) and American (Right) #50 Topps Willie Mays – Fronts
1959 Venezuela (Left) and American (Right) #50 Topps Willie Mays – Backs

The unique thing about the 1959 set is that some cards have a Venezuela trademark; however, some don’t. That trademark that some cards have says, “Impreso En Venezuela Por Benco C.A.”

1959 Venezuelan Topps Trademark

1960 Venezuelan Topps

1960 Venezuela (Top) and American (Bottom) #10 Topps Ernie Banks – Backs

The 1960 Venezuelan Topps cards are the hardest to identify, so having the card in your hands is the best thing. But there is some information that can help with online sales. For the first series of cards, the Venezuelan ones are on gray paper stock, and the Topps are on white. For the second series, both are gray, so the best thing to look for is the gloss on the American cards and the matte finish of the Venezuelans. Also, I’ve read that the whole first series has a trademark, other than the three-team cards (but those Topps cards don’t have a trademark either). In the second series, 46 cards don’t have the trademark, and 42 cards do.

1962 Venezuelan Topps

1962 Venezuela (Top) and American (Bottom) #50 Topps Stan Musial – Backs

1962 Venezuelan Topps cards are pretty easy to identify, so long as you have a scan of the back because they are printed in Spanish.

1964 Venezuelan Topps

1964 Venezuela (Left) and American (Right) #216 Topps Mike de la Hoz – Backs

The 1964 Venezuelan Topps cards are easily distinguishable from the American versions because their backs are black, and the cards are usually cut a little smaller.

1966 Venezuelan Topps

1966 Venezuela (Left) and American (Right) #50 Topps Mickey Mantle – Backs

It can be tricky to identify without an American example nearby, but the biggest thing to notice about the 1966 Venezuelan Topps cards is that the back’s color is orange while the American cards are more pinkish. The Venezuelan cards can also be found cut slightly smaller.

1967 Venezuelan Topps

The 1967 Venezuelan Topps cards are also super easy to identify. There are three distinct groupings of cards in the 338-card run. 

Cards 1-138 are Winter Leaguers.

1967 Venezuela Topps #92 Francisco Moscoso

Cards 139-188 are Retirado cards. 

1967 Venezuela Topps #146 Ty Cobb

And cards 189-338 were active players (but the backs were totally different).

1967 Venezuela Topps #270 Pete Rose

1968 Venezuelan Topps

1968 Venezuela (Left) and American (Right) #144 Topps Joe Morgan – Backs

The 1968 Venezuelan Topps cars have a trademark on the back that reads, “Hecho en Venezuela – C.A. Litoven.” Since the printing was of a lower quality, sometimes the ink bled, so it can be hard to see the white lettering, and occasionally it’s not really there at all. The back is a different color too.

In conclusion, it’s important for those interested in collecting Venezuelan Topps cards to educate themselves on the card’s nuances to avoid misidentification. There are a lot of resources available, including a few experts who tend to hang out in a dedicated (private) Facebook group to help with this. While graded cards can be helpful, third-party graders have made some mistakes. Keep this in mind if you decide to tackle this tough hobby niche. Happy collecting!