The Post War Cards Newsletter #5
The Post War Cards Newsletter #5
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1948 Bowman Basketball Play Cards
Bowman did fans of the intricacies of the sport of basketball a favor by drawing up 12 plays and putting them in their 1948 basketball set; the only play cards I can recall in the hobby. But most kids weren’t interested in saving cards of a basketball play and tossed them in the trash. So collectors looking to fill out a set have stiff competition for the few nice examples. Plus, Bowman distributed the play cards throughout the set, so there are play cards in the high series (#37-72), and they are scarcer/pricier than those in the lower series.
This 1948 Bowman #65 Held Ball Play card sold for $1886 in February 2020.
Great Hobby Writing
Cardboard Gods: Mark Fidrych and the search for meaning
Collectors Dashboard: Why Collectors Want Ozzie Smith’s 1979 Topps Rookie Card So Much
The Topps Archives: Short Sighted
Night Owl Cards: These cards are elusive and I don't exactly understand why
Sports Collectors Daily: New 1960 Venezuelan Baseball Stickers/Album Discovery
Collecting Canadian Football: Logo Lineages - Part 2
Tubbs Baseball Blog: Mudcat Grant’s Underrated Late-Career Run as a Fireman
Pre-War Cards: Obscure Cards of the Month
Baseball Cards Come to Life: Art on the Back: 1976
A Big Sale - 1968 Topps Test Wilt Chamberlain
Occasionally, I want to highlight some unique auction results in the newsletter. And the pictured 1968 Topps Test Wilt Chamberlain that Goldin recently sold is certainly worth a few words.
PSA has only graded 14 1968 Topps Chamberlain Test cards, and it’s the set’s priciest card. Also, as a PSA 8, it’s a Pop 2 with none higher, so the $55,200 final price (with buyers’ premium) on May 21, 2022, isn’t surprising to me.
The card backs feature a puzzle of Wilt Chamberlain when pieced together…but good luck completing a set since, as a test issue, they are all incredibly scarce.
By the way, I’ve shared a few photos of the 3-card test packs Topps distributed the cards in on the Post War Cards Unopened Archive.
The Last 30 Game Winner
Denny McLain went 31-6 in 1968 and is the last Major League pitcher to win over 30 games in a season (only 11 players managed that feat in the 20th century). McLain started his career with incredible success, including two Cy Young awards and an MVP. But, he petered out quickly, and that could be because of his rumored association with organized crime.
From a collecting perspective, his 1965 Topps rookie card was starting to push $1k in 2021 in PSA 9 condition and routinely sells for between $125 and $150 in PSA 8 condition.
A Resource for Unopened Collectors
If you’re an unopened collector (packs, boxes, wrappers, or even cases), be sure to check out the Post War Cards Unopened Archive where I’ve been trying to preserve hobby history (and keep collectors from being cheated by fake products) by creating the ultimate source of unopened product photos in the hobby. I currently have 55 baseball, 26 basketball, 43 football, and 30 hockey sets profiled, with more added weekly.
The Baseball Card Exchange sold the pictured 1971 Topps Winner Baseball Box at the 2021 National. I wrote a pretty detailed article called ‘1971 Topps Winner Baseball Cards and the 4 Wax Boxes Seen at the 2021 National’ back in January 2022 if you want to learn more about it. And if you want to see all the 1971 Topps baseball unopened products, check out the set’s page on the archive.
In the News
Sports Collectors Digest: Big changes underway at Beckett with new tech-based approach
ESPN: Panini Flawless Triple Logoman LeBron James card sells for $2.4 million including buyer's premium
Sports Collectors Daily: PSA to Grade Star Company Basketball Cards
Sports Collectors Digest: Autograph signers, updates for 2022 National Sports Collectors Convention