This weekend, a 16-member Modern Baseball Era Committee will gather to consider nine players and one former executive for induction to Cooperstown. Obviously, Hall of Fame election tends to mean a boost for a player’s rookie cards. As of now, all but the highest graded examples of most of the players’ cards are inexpensive. With results due to be announced Sunday at … [Read more...]
1971 Topps Super Baseball Set Ended Brief Era
It was one of many ideas drummed up by Topps decades ago to create more sales. There had been pins, stand-ups, posters, stamps and glossies. For two years, the company gave its standard cards the super size treatment, creating sets that filled up a good chunk of the shoebox. The 1971 Topps Super baseball set would be the end of the brief experiment. … [Read more...]
Vintage Pack Facts: 1971 Topps Baseball Wax
After boosting its set to 720 cards in 1970, Topps went even bigger the following year. Their 1971 baseball set grew to 752 cards (they'd top it again in '72 with a whopping 787). This week's edition of Vintage Pack Facts courtesy of VintageBreaks.com takes a look at the products released by Topps during that 1971 season, one that ended with Roberto … [Read more...]
Notes: Collectors Profiled; 1971 Topps Sheet; the $1.98 Football Hartland
Their post-season lasted just one game and while fans in and around Baltimore were disappointed, there was at least one guy in Iowa who was also a little down in the dumps. Terry Sullivan doesn’t have to look far, though, to recall when the Orioles were on top. Sullivan lives in Davenport, about 850 miles from Camden Yards. While most folks in that neck of the woods root … [Read more...]
5 Brooks Robinson Cards Capture Career of the ‘Human Vacuum Cleaner’
When I attended junior high school in early 1971, one of the sports magazines I read contained a clever poem that paid tribute to the 1970 sports season. One verse summed up the defensive skills of Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson. "Pity the poor Big Red Machine, Brooksie stripped its motor clean." The poem might have come from Sport magazine, but I am not 100 percent sure. But … [Read more...]
Vintage Set Break of the Week: 1971 Topps Baseball
The 1971 Topps issue stands out when compared to Topps previous offerings. Issued in seven series, these black-bordered beauties are bold, but they are very susceptible to wear. The black frames show every flaw, making this issue one of the toughest sets to assemble in high grade. Sporting more than 40 cards featuring Hall of Fame members, the 1971 Topps set was a little … [Read more...]
1971 Topps Baseball Was a Dark Ride for Collectors
Spring training in 1971 washed over baseball fans with a wave of relief, assuring them that the strange dream world they had endured for nearly a year was finally over. The mighty Baltimore Orioles reported to their Miami base that February flashing the confident smiles of World Series champions, intent on helping the game recover from the shock of the Amazin' Mets' run to a … [Read more...]