Decades before Venmo, PayPal, Bitcoin, debit cards, electronic funds transfer and endless plastic gift cards, cash was king. In 1962, Topps gave collectors a way to fatten their wallets by offering a 96-player Baseball Bucks subset. The unnumbered ancillary set contained many Major League stars and fine representation of all 20 teams. Besides player portraits, Topps included … [Read more...] about 1962 Topps Baseball Bucks: Show Me The Money
1960s baseball cards
Topps Baseball Cartoon Artwork – Part 3: Say What?
For this week’s final installment on Topps vintage cartoon artwork, I’ll show pieces that were used more than once, and others that probably shouldn’t have been used at all. I’ll conclude the 3-part series with a couple noteworthy cartoons and leave you with some mysteries to ponder. Oh yeah, and if you missed part 1 or part 2, feel free to read either or both before heading … [Read more...] about Topps Baseball Cartoon Artwork – Part 3: Say What?
Robin Roberts Cards Help Tell the Story of a Pitcher Who Usually Finished What He Started
Robin Roberts was a master at completing what he started. During his Hall of Fame career, the right-hander started 609 games and completed 305. He led the National League in complete games for five consecutive seasons, from 1952 to 1956, and that includes an amazing streak of 28 consecutive complete games that spanned parts of the 1952 and 1953 seasons with the Philadelphia … [Read more...] about Robin Roberts Cards Help Tell the Story of a Pitcher Who Usually Finished What He Started
1969 Topps Baseball Team Posters – Part 2: Giant Size! Assembly
As mentioned in Part 1, Topps cranked out 24 impressive large-scale baseball wall hangings for their 1969 team poster set, each with plenty of room to tackle 11 ballplayers from the different Major League Baseball clubs. While just about half the 264 faces that appear in the set were photos the collecting audience had not seen before, Topps deployed the remaining half on … [Read more...] about 1969 Topps Baseball Team Posters – Part 2: Giant Size! Assembly
1969 Topps Baseball Team Posters – Part 1: Big, Bold & Borrowed
Fielding 11 players on each of the 24 MLB teams on a hefty 12” x 20” canvas, Topps took wall art to a new level in 1969 with their colorful Baseball Team Posters set. Collectors lucky enough to come across these wax pack gems, which had limited distribution at best, surely enjoyed the teammates staring back at them. Check out the giant-sized slugger with huge guns touting the … [Read more...] about 1969 Topps Baseball Team Posters – Part 1: Big, Bold & Borrowed
1964 Topps Rookie All-Star Banquet Set Both Rare and Unique
Topps began honoring its annual Rookie All-Star team with a postseason banquet in 1959. Players were featured in a dinner program, but it soon became obvious to someone at Topps — it was a card company, so why not honor the rookie recipients with a card set? Topps did just that in 1964, issuing a 36-card boxed set for the annual dinner, which was held at the Waldorf-Astoria … [Read more...] about 1964 Topps Rookie All-Star Banquet Set Both Rare and Unique
1970 Topps Baseball Poster Set – Part 2: Production Insight Reveals Behind-The-Scenes Happenings
As I explained in yesterday’s part 1 article covering the first half of the 1970 Topps baseball poster set, my long-time baseball card collecting passion, coupled with operations experience at the Chicago Tribune printing plant, meshes well with understanding how Topps processed a variety of trading card products in their Duryea, PA factory and other locations. Today, I’ll … [Read more...] about 1970 Topps Baseball Poster Set – Part 2: Production Insight Reveals Behind-The-Scenes Happenings
Bob Uecker’s Baseball Cards Belong In The Front Rowwwwww …
Bob Uecker has made a career out of making fun of his baseball career. It got him to the Hall of Fame, but as a broadcaster. “I still think I should have gone in as a player,” he said when he won the Ford Frick Award. “Mr. Baseball” received a standing ovation this season as he began his 54th season broadcasting Milwaukee Brewers games. As an accommodation to his age — he … [Read more...] about Bob Uecker’s Baseball Cards Belong In The Front Rowwwwww …
SC Daily Contributor Roy Carlson’s Work Honored by SABR
Sports Collectors Daily contributor Roy Carlson has been honored with a 2024 Baseball Research Award by SABR (Society for American Baseball Research). Starting in the summer of 2023, Carlson has produced a series of stories uncovering previously unknown facts about vintage Topps baseball card photos, including team cards, background images and more. His good … [Read more...] about SC Daily Contributor Roy Carlson’s Work Honored by SABR
Mistaken Identities Update: 1969 Topps All-Stars Hall of Fame Discovery
Last month, I wrote about the 20-card 1969 Topps "The Sporting News" All-Star baseball subset, highlighting how most of the monochrome action shot background photos were not images of the colorful star players featured on the cards. Of the 20 in the star-spangled subset, I was unable to identify sources for six of those all-star backgrounds. Today I’m pleased to share with … [Read more...] about Mistaken Identities Update: 1969 Topps All-Stars Hall of Fame Discovery