To those of us who were adults when Ken Griffey Jr. was a young player, it might have seemed a little strange to listen to the discussion after he was elected to the Hall of Fame. The overriding tone was one of nostalgia. The sweet swing. The leaping grabs at the wall. His rookie card. Wait, is Junior really old enough to be thought of as "nostalgic"? Yup, because … [Read more...]
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HOF Election Validates Early Faith for Griffey Jr. Collector
It really didn’t matter whether Ken Griffey Jr. got every vote from those who cast ballots in the Baseball Hall of Fame election. He was a slam dunk before the new millennium. The most popular player of his generation—and it wasn’t really close—Griffey was the rare athlete who had genuine skills and could still made highlight clip plays on a regular basis. The vote didn’t … [Read more...]
Griffey Jr. Dresses as His Rookie Card in New Macklemore Video
It doesn’t really matter if you’re into the musical genre or even if you know who Macklemore is, although after he appeared in the 2015 Topps First Pitch subset, you might even if rap isn’t your groove. What really matters is that director Jason Koenig, Macklemore and partner Ryan Lewis managed to insert Ken Griffey Junior—posing as his 1989 Upper Deck rookie card—into … [Read more...]
Ramblings: Fun With Busted Prospects
We really enjoyed sharing the memories about the hottest players in baseball as we turned the corner into the 1990’s but that me to thinking about some of the other incredible stories of hot cards that turned cold and never warmed back up. In some ways the overproduction age was like a penny stock market in that if you could buy cards at the right time for pennies and sell … [Read more...]
Most Popular Baseball Card Sets to Collect, 1950-1999
Not only do the words “popular” and “passion” both start with “p,” but they are also related in the hearts of many collectors. At least that is how it appears from some of the great reactions and statements that the piece on 1900-1949 generated. And that is how it should be. There is little joy in collecting something if there is no passion attached to it. And, if passion is … [Read more...]
eBay Set of the Week: 1990 Leaf Baseball
The early 1990's were not only a boom time for the sports collecting hobby but also a time in which the major card manufacturers really started improving their production techniques. The old expression "it's only cardboard" started to fade away as the cards produced showcased more modern printing technologies. Instead of incremental improvements, the cards stock started getting … [Read more...]
News & Notes: Junior on His Rookie Card; Potty Training With ’14 Topps; Giants Not Worried About Suit
It seems hard to believe but it really has been 25 years since the big news in the sports card industry was the arrival of a new company that put holograms (holograms!?!) on the back of its foil entombed baseball packs that cost 99 cents (99 cents!?!). In a few months, the card that everyone wanted was #1 in the 1989 Upper Deck set, a 19-year-old phenom named Ken Griffey Jr. … [Read more...]
All PSA 10 1989 Upper Deck Baseball Set on the Market
One can only imagine the cards that were eyeballed, inspected, submitted and collected to get there but the only completely PSA 10 graded 1989 Upper Deck set is on the market. All 800 cards plus the Wally Joyner promo card have been encapsulated and rated gem mint. The asking price? $39,995. That's just a shade under $50 per card. The set has been #1 on the PSA … [Read more...]
Griffey Jr. Rookie Symbolized New Era
He's on the doorstep of what will likely be one of his final career milestones. Ken Griffey Jr.'s 600th homer has taken awhile, but it will be celebrated by those who grew up collecting his baseball cards back when there was no player any kid wanted more. The card itself helped Upper Deck quickly become a serious player in the sports memorabilia industry, even if it really … [Read more...]
