Think baseball players didn’t crave endorsements many years ago? Even Christy Mathewson, held as almost a pious figure today, liked making money from his good name. Matty endorsed sweaters, shirt collars, leg garters, razors, a baseball game, Coca-Cola…and tobacco, among other things. It was his Tuxedo Tobacco endorsement that put his face on New York trolley cars … [Read more...]
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Signed 1928 Ruth, Gehrig Exhibit Cards at Auction
The market for vintage autographed cards has been heating up and two 1928 Exhibits are fanning the flames in an auction set to close next weekend. Heritage Auctions is offering the duo—Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig—in its August auction. Both are already nearing their pre-sale estimates of $20,000 in early bidding. While the cards show wear that would be considered typical … [Read more...]
Notes: Goldin’s Big Tease; Early Signed Mantles; Stolen Mail
Goldin Auctions says it will be offering “the most valuable and historically significant sports-related collectible ever to be sold” in its October Legends auction. Now that’s a tease. They’ll reveal it at a news conference soon. Sometimes such proclamations don’t live up to the hype but the company says “rest assured there will be zero doubt in anyone’s mind” it’s a … [Read more...]
Consignment of the Week: Cowboys Rookie Jerseys
How things can change in a year. In August 2016, Tony Romo seemed healthy again and the Dallas Cowboys were hoping for some production out of their new running back out of Ohio State. Instead, the NFL's glitz and glamour franchise would be led by a new rookie QB, the young, inexperienced back would become Rookie of the Year and Romo's next NFL game would be as a … [Read more...]
Consignment Of The Week: 1913 Marble Slab From Ebbets Field Rotunda
Sixty years ago, the Dodgers played their final season in Brooklyn before packing up and moving west to Los Angeles for the 1958 season. Their home from April 9, 1913, to September 24, 1957, was Ebbets Field, a bandbox of a stadium that was built on a garbage dump in a Brooklyn neighborhood called Pigtown. After the Dodgers left, the park languished for a few years, but on … [Read more...]
80-Year-Old Gehrig Flannel Could Fetch $800,000
Long before there was a “collector market” for game-worn baseball jerseys, those old button downs were often passed down through a team’s minor league system. Worn down but still useful, the lettering and numbers were changed but the jersey’s skeleton remained as it was when worn by a big leaguer. Jerseys worn by superstars were tossed in with the … [Read more...]
Lone Complete Run of MLB All-Star Tickets Could Fetch Six Figures
A complete run of 1933-2016 Major League Baseball All-Star Game tickets, never before presented for sale, will be offered during Heritage Auctions’ Platinum Night Auction next month. The complete run in the PSA Set Registry is comprised of tickets for 83 years of All-Star Game history, as well as all Home Run Derby and workout events from recent years, and the double games … [Read more...]
COTW: Aaron Judge Mother’s Day Jersey Could Fetch Big $
After a half-season that had baseball buzzing, it would have been no big deal if Aaron Judge had flamed out in the Home Run Derby Monday night. Instead, the Yankee rookie went out and won it on a night when the spotlight was bright and more people were watching than at any time since 2009. Prices for Judge's cards and memorabilia have been astounding. Last … [Read more...]
Signed 1939 First Day Covers Uncovered in Chicago
Sports memorabilia appraisal fairs don’t always turn up terrific pieces of history. More often than not, it’s a box of baseball cards from the 1980s or 90s or a box of souvenir type items that would be better suited for a garage sale than a major auction catalog. But sometimes… Heritage Auctions recently opened an office in Chicago and last month, an older man … [Read more...]
Consignment of the Week: W600 Wagner
Unless you’re a serious collector of pre-War baseball cards, you may not realize the famous image of Honus Wagner that serves as the face of the famed T206 tobacco card was actually made from a photo taken a few years earlier. The same Carl Horner portrait photo of Wagner was used in the Sporting Life cards including the ultra-rare W600 cabinet. One of the higher … [Read more...]
