If you’ve ever wondered what it was like when the wrapper came off a pack of 72-year-old baseball cards, you’re about to find out.
Heritage Auctions will present the first group of cards from a remarkably high- grade group of 1941 Play Ball cards in its upcoming May Sports Catalog Auction.
Consigned over the winter by a long time collector who had acquired them in the 1970s, the best cards were submitted to PSA for grading. Three cards came back as Gem Mint, doubling the PSA 10 population from 3 to 6. The three PSA 10s—Cecil Travis, Eldon Auker and Walt Judnich– will be offered in the auction.
According to Heritage, there were dozens graded 9 including several that have been the only examples ever graded at that level. Hall of Famers Chuck Klein and Bobby Doerr are among them.
Heritage says there were a large number of cards that graded NM/MT 8.
In all, 43 high-grade cards will be offered in the upcoming catalog auction. More will follow in upcoming sales. In all, Heritage graded about 150 of them from the collection. Company officials say the consignor was an avid lifelong collector but had never sold much of anything until his recent decision to consign a variety of cards for the first time.
The first group of high-grade Play Ball cards are part of an auction that will open April 20 and close over three sessions, May 11-13.
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