Baseball Cards

Filed under: Card of the Day

One of only ten known examples of the ultra-scarce 1914 Baltimore News Babe Ruth rookie card sold for a record price of $450,300 at Robert Edward Auctions’ 2013 Spring Catalog Auction early Sunday morning.  The card, graded PSA 1 (Poor) and featuring the young Babe as a pitcher with the minor league Baltimore Orioles, sold for more than twice what a PSA 2 (Good) example sold for just six years ago, continuing a remarkable growth trend for a card rapidly becoming the most popular and valuable of all-time.  It was one of a number of cards selling for record prices in the REA auction, which traditionally attracts some of the most avid and determined baseball memorabilia collectors in the world. In all, 1807 of the 1811 lots offered in the auction were sold.  The auction closed after several hours of extended bidding and generated record total sales of $10,177,000.  Prices include an 18.5% buyer’s premium. Bidders participated online and by phone, placing 25,437 bids in all as they chased hundreds of rare individual cards, sets and pieces of memorabilia dating back to the 19th century.  A total of 172 lots sold for at least $10,000 each. In addition to the ultra-scarce Ruth card, collectors had the chance to bid on the instantly recognizable ‘holy grail’ of the hobby, a 1909 T206 Honus Wagner.  Once owned by actor Charlie Sheen and subsequently stolen from a New York City restaurant in the 1990s, the Wagner card set a new record for its PSA 1 grade, selling for $402,900 via REA when the dust finally settled. Yet another new mark was established when one of only two 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle cards graded PSA 8.5 (NM/MT+) sold for $272,550.  The last 8.5 Mantle sold at auction for $154,700 just three years ago, illustrating again the strength of iconic cards, regardless of era. A rare advertising piece, the only known 1912 Boston Garter uncut panel featuring Fred Clarke, Frank Chance, Hal Chase and Bob Bescher, was sold for $177,750. A rookie card featuring one of Wagner’s late career contemporaries also captured collectors’ fancy.  A 1910 Old Mill Joe Jackson, featuring the tragic baseball icon during his minor league days in New Orleans and graded SGC 30 (Good) sold for $118,500. The auction wasn’t just old baseball cards, however.  The battle for the highest graded dual-signed Babe Ruth/Lou Gehrig baseball turned into quite a donnybrook.  In the end, one collector emerged the winner with the PSA/DNA 8.5-graded ball realizing $343,650, a new world record price for a signed baseball.  A rare and high grade single-signed Gehrig ball vaulted to $142,200. A game-worn Sandy Koufax Dodgers flannel jersey from the 1963 season in which the Hall of Fame lefty won both the National League MVP and Cy Young Awards, still in superior condition, sold for record $201,450. Other auction highlights included: ·         T206 Eddie Plank SGC 60  $106,650 ·         T206 Eddie Plank  PSA 4   $88,875 ·         T206 near set of 518  $118,500 ·         1916 Ware’s/Sporting News M101-4 Babe Ruth PSA 3  $130,350 ·         1911 Philadelphia Athletics World Series Press Pin  $53,325 For complete results, visit RobertEdwardAuctions.com.

Dave Bettendorf had a good year for Kent State in 1987. It was good enough to win Mid-American Conference baseball player of the year honors.Bettendorf won the award by hitting .412, knocking 15 home runs and 15 doubles, according to The Associated Press.Bettendorf's performance that year also won him a selection in that June's draft. But Bettendorf's pro performance could only get him four seasons. He also never made the majors.Bettendorf was taken that June by the Orioles in the 20th round, out of Kent State. With the Orioles, he started at rookie Bluefield, hitting .249 over 61 games.For 1988, Bettendorf moved to single-A Hagerstown, hitting .327 over 115 games. In late August, Bettendorf knocked a double and a triple in a game against Prince William, he also got the game-winning hit.Bettendorf moved up to AA with the city of Hagerstown for 1989, hitting .276 on the season. He knocked three singles in one July game against Canton-Akron. Later that month, he also knocked in three runs in a game against Reading.Bettendorf also received multiple other honors in 1989. He was named to that year's all-star team. In early June, he was named player of the week with an 11-for-24 run.For 1990, Bettendorf returned to AA Hagerstown again. This time, though, his stay was brief, just 23 games. He homered in a July game, one of three he had total. But he hit just .211. It was his final pro season.Owosso Argus-Press, Associated Press, May 20, 1987: Lamphere Again Earns All-MAC Honors1990 CMC-Pro Cards Tally Players/Coaches Featured:1,137Made the Majors: 664 - 58.4%Never Made Majors: 473-41.6%-X5+ Seasons in the Majors: 28710+ Seasons in the Minors: 173

The hockey world has been buzzing all season about the young stars that are sure to be selected in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft and In The Game has been extremely busy over the past few months with the preparation of their 2013 Draft Prospects product. While it has been a long time since a hockey card manufacturer has created a product specifically tailored to the Draft, In The Game is breaking ground by putting together the first set which focuses upon prospects before the big day comes. Set for release on June 20, the issue will include top names from the CHL such as Seth Jones of the Portland Winterhawks as well as Nathan MacKinnon and Jonathan Drouin from the Halifax Mooseheads. "The 2013 NHL Entry Draft is certainly one of the most intriguing ones in years because of all the tremendous talents that are available," said In The Game's President, Dr. Brian Price. "With the absence of a true rookie class from NHL-licensed products this season, collectors have embraced many of today's top prospects.” Each 12-card pack of 2013 Draft Prospects starts with seven Premium Foil Base Cards which are part of a 180-card set made up of several exciting subsets. The first 59 cards are 2013 Draft Prospects and in addition to the best players from the CHL, In The Game has signed several top international players including Aleksander Barkov, Elias Lindholm and Rasmus Ristolainen that could be popular with collectors. The next 30 players in the set are Future Draft Prospects which include 2014 eligibles such as Aaron Ekblad and Sam Reinhart along with the extremely popular Connor McDavid, who is already considered a front-runner for the top pick in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft. This subset also includes recent OHL draftees Travis Konecny, Dylan Strome and Sean Day along with future WHL stars Tyler Benson and Sam Steel. In The Game also created two great subsets for this base set that pay tribute to first round picks from years past such as Mario Lemieux and Eric Lindros and also Draft Day Surprises like Brett Hull, Ron Hextall and Henrik Lundqvist who became stars. Each of the 180 cards in the base set will have four different versions with varying levels of scarcity. Each pack will contain three Autograph cards and they are all hard-signed - something In The Game says it spent many months trying to achieve. There are over 50 players to collect and the lineup includes besides the "big three", top names like Darnell Nurse, Hunter Shinkaruk and Jordan Subban to name but a few. "With a bit of lead time on a product like this, we made the decision to take the route of having the players sign on-card," said Price. "We hope that this will appeal to collectors and make these cards special." Each pack of 2013 In The Game Draft Prospects will contain two limited game used memorabilia cards. In addition to standards such as Game-Used Jersey and Game-Used Patch, you can find Draft Year, Country of Origin, Teammates, Complete Jersey and First Round Pick Nameplates.

I thought I'd take this lazy Sunday afternoon to share a couple of recent eBay purchases in hopes of brightening your day. After all, after once again witnessing the Dodgers lose in spectacular fashion I figured some vintage Dodgers might perk you up... Well, at least, it gave me a smile. I recently came across a 3-card lot of 1922 Exhibits of Harry "Hi" Myers, Sherrod "Sherry" Smith and Walter "Dutch" Reuther for a steal of a price of $10.00 total. These cards are about the size of a postcard. As you can see, they are far from being in mint condition, but who cares? They are over 90 years old and are just plain awesome. --------------------- Hi Myers was a star outfielder during 11 seasons with the Brooklyn Robins. In 1922 he hit a robust .317 with 89 RBI's and 82 runs scored. Myers was known to be an effective top of the order batter and had the speed to match. He was also a great negotiator. After the 1916 season he sent a letter to Charles Ebbets (the Brooklyn owner) indicating that he would no longer be playing Baseball. He claimed that his farm back home was doing quite well (it was just modest), and he could not in good conscious play ball when he could provide better for his family tending to the family business. Seeing that Ebbets had several holdouts that offseason, he decided to visit each one in hopes of convincing them to sign a contract. Knowing of Ebbets impending arrival, Myers visited his wealthier neighbors to ask to borrow their livestock and proceeded to plant them on his farm. Seeing that Myers story about having a well-off farm were true, Ebbets decided he had to give in to his financial demands and quickly made a deal. Sherry Smith was one of the better starting pitchers for the Brooklyn Robins. He pitched in 7 seasons for Brooklyn; recording a accumulative ERA of 2.91 and a WAR of 11.5. His one claim to Baseball fame was his work in Game 2 of the 1916 World Series. The Brooklyn Robins faced off against the Boston Red Sox, and Smith was set to start against a young lefthander named Babe Ruth. Via Baseball Alamac: Through thirteen innings, both had allowed only six hits and one run each. In the bottom of the fourteenth, Dick Hoblitzell set the stage for a dramatic finish by drawing his fourth walk of the game. Duffy Lewis followed suite by sacrificing Hoblitzell into scoring position at second. With all his pieces in place, Red Sox manager Bill Carrigan prepared to checkmate his opponent by sending in Mike McNally as a pinch-runner and Del Gainor as a pinch-hitter. Gainor stepped up and delivered, driving in Hoblitzell and sealing Boston's 2-1 victory. --------------------- Below is a second purchase I recently made on eBay. It is a 1914 Baseball felt "Blanket" that was distributed in packs of Egyptienne Straights Cigarettes. They measure a little over 5" square. The player here is Brooklyn Robin, Jake Daubert. * Please follow on twitter @ernestreyes * * Like Dodgers Blue Heaven on facebook * * Dodgers Blue Heaven home page *

Contest Time – ‘Home Run Derby’ We’ve all see the ‘Home Run Derby’ before, but trust me this is not like ESPN’s version. It is however the theme for this contest. So, here is the deal – There are 15 major league baseball games being played on Wednesday, May 22nd. To win this contest, simply predict the total number of home runs hit on this day and win!! Review the schedules now and make your selection.  Once a total home run tally is selected it is off the boards and cannot be chosen again. Here is a peek at the games for Wednesday’s schedule; study it closely and submit your pick into the comments section of his post. What’s up for grabs this time around??? How about a sweet lot of 2013 Topps Heritage baseball cards?? Have a look: NICE!!! I will keep the entry window for this contest open until 9:00 PM on Tuesday so I have enough time to put all of the info together and post a final list of the players and their picks on Wednesday morning before any of the action takes place? Sound good? Great.  Get going and make your pick now!!!

[View the story "NFLPA Rookie Premiere Wraps in L.A." on Storify]

A 1947 Mel Ott jersey from his days as the player/manager of the New York Giants and an original Mickey Mantle Yankees contract are among the headliners in the upcoming 2013 Summer Games Auction set to open next month via Grey Flannel Auctions.  Over 750 lots are included in the catalog. The Ott jersey is accompanied by documentation from the consignor’s father, who was the general manager of the Burlington City Giants, a Minor League affiliate of the Giants. The jersey has a $25,000 reserve. “Mel Ott was also the youngest player to hit 100 home runs and the first National Leaguer to hit 500 home runs – a true phenom,” said Grey Flannel Auctions’ president, Richard E. Russek. Mantle Contract, Yankees Items Legendary Yankee slugger and Hall of Famer Mickey Mantle signed his first $100,000 contract with New York in 1963. In so doing, he tied Joe DiMaggio as the highest-paid Yankee ballplayer in history up to that time. What the auction company believes to be the team’s copy of the actual player’s contract Mantle signed in reaching that monetary milestone is entered as Lot 75 in Grey Flannel’s sale. Letters of authenticity from PSA/DNA and JSA on Mantle’s signature are included with the four-page document. A bonus item accompanying the contract is a Feb. 27, 1963 press release on Yankees stationery announcing that the Yankees and Mantle had come to terms on a new contract. The reserve is $5,000. Grey Flannel had been planning to offer a circa 1964 Mickey Mantle corked bat in the auction but after protests and legal threats from the family, which disputed its authenticity, the item was pulled from the company's website.  Thus far, Grey Flannel has not indicated whether it's possible the bat will eventually be sold or if they plan to challenge the family's demand that it not be sold. Several desirable game-worn Yankees player jerseys will be auctioned, however, including a Derek Jeter game-used home jersey photo-matched to three Red Sox games from October 2012. Accompanied by a LOA from Yankees-Steiner, the jersey carries a minimum bid of $2,500. Pete Maravich Memorabilia A selection of more than two dozen awards, signed balls, apparel and jewelry associated with basketball superstar “Pistol” Pete Maravich will be auctioned by Grey Flannel. Items range from what Grey Flannel says is the first basketball Maravich ever used as a boy ($2,500 reserve) to a late-1960s LSU shooting shirt ($5,000 reserve), which he wore during the period that he was making his indelible mark on NCAA history as a trailblazing jump shooter and genius of offensive play. Many of the Maravich lots are accompanied by LOAs from the Maravich family, including the gold ring he received at his 1987 induction to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Its reserve is $10,000. Larry Holmes Collection Boxing fans will have a chance to bid on items from the career of former heavyweight champion Larry Holmes.  Many of the items come with photos of Holmes holding the actual auction article. Among the highlights are the Edward J. Neil Memorial plaque awarded to Holmes in 1978 by the Boxing Writers’ Association of New York ($2,500 reserve), and the WBC Heavyweight World Championship Belt Holmes earned that same year when he defeated Ken Norton in Las Vegas ($2,500). The belt features a massive, decorative center medallion was signed by Holmes in black felt-tipped marker: “My original WBC belt – Larry Holmes.” Important Jim Brown Trophy The football section of the sale includes an historic award, as well – Jim Brown’s 1957 NFL Rookie of the Year Trophy. “It’s hard to believe, but 55 years later, Jim Brown still holds the record for total seasons leading the NFL in all-purpose yards, and he’s the only rusher in NFL history to average over 100 yards per game for a career,” said Russek.  “He was an astonishing talent, and it was obvious from the moment he came out of the gate in his rookie year.” Offered with a photo of Brown holding the award, the lot is entered in th

Note: This is part 5 of a series of posts highlighting a trade package full of random goodies from blog reader David. You can find part 4 here (and subsequent back links from there). --- Now that we've taken a look at most of the stuff in the trade package, it's time to turn our attention to some of my favorites that I haven't yet discussed. We begin by going back to Gypsy Queen (you may recall I also landed some beautiful bordered cards in the trade envelope). This time, it's a nice handful of Reds minis - including Frank Robinson and Mat Latos (who is quickly becoming one of my favorite Reds). I happen to like the minis a lot (which is no surprise as they are basically the same as Allen & Ginter minis). I'm still trying to maintain an outlook of "don't buy Gypsy Queen" but ever card that someone sends me from the '13 set makes me want to go whole hog for the entire set. I must be strong though...it's almost Ginter season! The final Gypsy Queen card from David is this beauty: What an awesome, awesome looking card! The border, the photo, heck, even the theme of the insert set is great. I even like the little blurb on the back about Bench's method of avoiding injury on plays at the plate: "His approach was to stay off the plate until he got the ball, allowing the runner to get a full view of the dish. That encourages the runner to think 'slide' rather than 'smash.'" Moving out of professional baseball one more time, David sent me a bunch of assorted autographs. I've shown off most of them but here's two more that I haven't shown: The Mamie Redman card is nice but i kind of like the Fleming business card better - it's definitely something unique (and would fit in great with a Topps Heritage American Heroes type set). Now, I've teased this long enough - let's wrap up the series of posts on the trade package from David by showing off my two favorite cards (out of all the greatness) that he sent me. The runner up? This 1969 Deckle Edge card (number 15 of 33) of Tommy Davis of the Seattle Pilots. This is my first original Deckle Edge card in my collection - and you better believe I'll treasure it. I don't have much in the way of vintage stuff so anytime I get acquire something sort of old I'm happy - it's even better when it's a cool or interesting card like the Davis. Finally, there's one more card to show off and that's this beauty: Wow. That's a 1968 Fleer card celebrating the Reds winning the 1940 World Series over the Detroit Tigers (4 games to 3). I love the card and I love the fact that it celebrates the Reds winning! Thanks for the awesome, awesome trade package David. I hope this series of posts did it justice. And, as usual, if anyone else would like to trade - check out my want list and make an offer!

#44Jonathan H. PettiboneStarting PitcherBats: Left Throws: Right Height: 6'6" Weight: 225Born: July 19, 1990, Placentia, CAHome: Yorba Linda, CADrafted: Selected by the Phillies between the 3rd and 4th rounds of the June 2008 draftTeams: Phillies 2013Acquired: Via draftContract Status: Pre-arbitration eligible