New! Top Ten Baseball Card Classics Set

BJ

Hi Everyone,

We just posted a new set in the Key Card area that we thought you might find interesting. Here's what Joe Orlando has written about the set:

The Baseball Classics is a set comprised of the cards that symbolize collecting; the rarities that challenge the most advanced collectors in the hobby. From the King of Cards in the T206 Honus Wagner to the Sultan of Swat featured in full color on the 1933 Goudey issue to the symbolic 1952 Topps Mantle, this 10-card set includes a combination of difficulty and popularity at the highest level. For the collector who appreciates the finest the hobby has to offer, this is the set for you. Each card, in its own way, represents a historical significance that cannot be disputed. It’s the ultimate collector wantlist that only most collectors can only dream of filling.

Click here to view the composition.

Coming up are the new "mega sets" we discussed earlier this year.

Cubfan

Where is the Pepe Frias rookie card?

speeder

hi bj,

wow, very impressive. can`t wait to see who competes and completes that awesome set !!

that said, how about a more reasonable ($$) set for the working man.

like an "all century team set" you know, all the guys that made the all century team. bench, schmidt, ryan, etc.......

i think it could be more reasonable ($$) to put together.

just a thought.

your friend, lee

MRyanF

Fancy set, but I am not likely to get excited over it anytime soon. Not even realistic for 98% of the people out there. I hope no one wasted too much time coming up with this one.

ajw

Is this really a set that people will be competing to complete? Or, is it a set that the top few collectors in the world can just plug their already owned cards in to? My guess is that there will be VERY little movement on this set from year to year (unless someone takes previously unlisted cards and enters them.)

I'm not saying it's a bad thing or a useless set for the registry...but I really don't think it's much to get excited about.

Now, if you require people to include nice, big, two sided scans of the cards, then I'll get excited.

CON40

You know this is a serious list when the '34 Gehrig is only weighted a 3!

mikeschmidt

Hey all-

I'm excited about this Registry set - and hope that PSA collectors actively use it. Yes - it is not accessible to most. Nonetheless, it is of great hobby insight to "normal" collectors I think.

Remember that most of what goes on in the PSA Registry is the legacy of a "success" over at the PCGS Registry, as coins have much more money following them, so there are more resources allocated to serving those collectors needs. The PCGS version of this is located here. and it was discussed in the PCGS forum here.

At the end of the day - many of the cards in the Baseball Classics sets are either close to non-existant in high-grade, or so freaking expensive that 99.99% of collectors could not afford a decent example. But who cares? Whether this registry set exists or not - these are ten of the top cards in the baseball hobby. Although there may be some disagreement about which cards round out the second five of the Top Ten, they are all nonetheless key, important cards.

I would love to see, five or ten years from now, a legacy in the PSA Registry whereby some of the best set ever were retired as such in the PSA Registry. I think it adds a mystique to your set collecting if you can trace a card all the way back in ownership to Burdick, Copeland of Gelman. Most cannot - and certainly a lot of that cannot be re-done in retrospect. Nonetheless - if one of our hobby's current top collectors decides to sell their collection or something - I would love to have this resource available to see what they had, and maybe trace an ownership path to its current owner. At present, this is most able to be done with some of David Hall's sets from the 1950s.

This isn't a competition set - it was never intended to be that way. There are some key ultra rarities in our hobby - and many times advanced collectors will obtain the rarities but not necessarily collect the set. This probably applies for quite a few Wagner, Plank and Lajoie owners - although there are some set collectors that will include those as well. I think this is great - and I hope that some out there will use this Registry set so that all can have this as an information resource ten years from now.

~ms

MorrellMan

BJ

Very impressive set; thanks to all for the effort.

Is there some way, for this set alone, to rig up a swipe resistant scan? I'm not a computer techie, and I'd love to see scans of the cards in this set, but opening those kinds of cards up to the thieves and scam artists would definitely be a no-no.

downgoesfrazier

With all due respect, I think we're confusing the term "advanced" with "very wealthy". We all know about those cards so the list isn't very interesting or enlightening. The only hurdle in obtaining many of those cards is affordability. No one is going to be looking through a vending box or pulling singles out of a binder and go, "Wow! a Satch Rookie!...Boo-Yah!". Nice idea, but only appealing to the guys who won't find it so appealing as those cards have already appealed to them...where's Yogi Berra when you need him...I, personally, would find a greatest players who's last names start with each letter of the alphabet interesting. Or how about a set comprised of lead-off hitters or greatest catchers, etc. The 10 most expensive cards just misses the mark with me.

dgf

downgoesfrazier

<< <i>This isn't a competition set - it was never intended to be that way. >>



Huh??? What??? Wat are you talking about? That comment is just out there. You can frame it any way you like. The registry is competitive. You can talk history, legacy...we all know about these cards. There's nothing to be learned here. It's a muscle flexing set and nothing more. I don't mind the sanctimonious brotherhood and feel good garbage that people post here, but keep it real man!


dgf

mikeschmidt

<< <i>
Huh??? What??? Wat are you talking about? That comment is just out there. You can frame it any way you like. The registry is competitive. You can talk history, legacy...we all know about these cards. There's nothing to be learned here. It's a muscle flexing set and nothing more. I don't mind the sanctimonious brotherhood and feel good garbage that people post here, but keep it real man!
dgf >>



Perhaps at some point it is, dgf. But at the end of the day, people talk about Louis Eliasberg in the coin world as a hero. People talk about the "pioneers" of the baseball world in respect to Burdick, Gelman and others. Yes - David Copeland was a competitive collector - who paid top dollar for the best. Nonetheless - he put together an awesome run of cards that still garners a ton of respect 15 years later. When Mastro unveiled the "Wagner Reunion" at the National - it wasn't with an assortment of placards saying "This Wagner belongs to Mr. Soandso - gee, isn't his Johnson big?" It was just really neat to see nine Wagners in one place. Egos aside, etc. I'm sure each Wagner owner was proud to see his card as part of the display - but I don't think any of them were revelling in the glory afforded them by passer-byes who were oohing and aahing.

downgoesfrazier

Schmitty,
You're too classy and likeable for me to get into this with. You give too much to the hobby and these boards. We'll respectfully disagree on this one. I find the set to be pretentious and elitist. Many will agree with me, some may not. This is not a creative set by anyone's means, however. Perhaps my failure in appreciating it is that I would enjoy...



<< <i>... revelling in the glory afforded them by passer-byes who were oohing and aahing.

>>



Speaks to my human frailty, I guess.

dgf

calleocho

would you look at that ...

ajw

This just became one of the best threads of all time.

Thanks for posting the images. I'm sure we'll all be copying them to our harddrives so we can drool over them in the future.

That Wagner is just ridiculous. It looks better than any of the reprints. I forget...who owns it now?

Thanks again.

67standup

Great topic and viewpoints by DGF and MS. However, I'd rather see a top ten most rare card set, rather than a top ten most expensive and/or most popular. I'm exponentially more wowed by a U.S. Caramel Lindstrom, T206 Ty Cobb back, '61 Dice, '68 3D Brooks prototype, etc. than by a 1952 Topps Mantle or some of the others on the list. A few of the latter are usually offered in any major auction. The oohs and ahhhs regarding these ten usually have to do with the dollars spent on high-grade examples. The most rare cards would command similar dollars, but it’s more about the scarcity of the card, then about the low pop of the grade. With most of the aforementioned ten, there are hundreds of owners who have copy, and one king of hill with the highest graded example. With the most rare cards (and a few of the ten would probably qualify) there are only a few owners.

All that said, I tend to be more aligned with DGF's viewpoint, as this has the undertone of a big-man pissing contest. Nevertheless, this Classic Ten is a great set and certainly adds value to our hobby.

Buccaneer

This "set" is pretentious and very elitist. Since the cards are already known and currently viewable in the registry, what's the point beside promotion?

67standup

<< <i>what's the point beside promotion? >>



That is exactly the point. It's genius marketing (as is the Set Registry), and if I was a CU shareholder/employee I would certainly applaud this effort. Like most, I have pros and cons regarding grading, but would never fault PSA for continuous product expansion and re-invention. It's a classic cow herd mentality with the buyers, of which I am one.

"PSA, is my collection worthy?"
IT IS NOT WORTHY UNLESS YOU ARE #1.
"Okay PSA, I will buy-in to this concept and consider all cards below a certain grade as junk"
"I think it is mint"
IT IS NOT MINT UNLESS AN EQUALLY (OR LESS) TRAINED SUBJECTIVE EYE SAYS THAT IT IS.

Genius!

Virtualizard

BJ,

First, I'll thank you, Gayle, and Cosetta for all of the work you do for the Set Registry. You do a great job, and it is appreciated!

Now, I know that you did not come up with this set idea, and I'm sure you were asked to post this here by whoever did create it (assuming Joe O).

My question is: What is the target audience for this set and why post the thread here? Of the 1000s of members of this forum who read and post here from time to time, how many do you think will ever own any one of these cards, even in low grade? The answer is: VERY FEW!

Why doesn't the addition of a set that many (or even a few) of us here could possibly attempt, deserve a thread of its own? What was the motivation for posting this? I just don't get it.

Oh yeah, I just added my set!

JEB.

Griffins

Count me in as another insignificant 1% to throw his hat in this ring. I"m at least proud I didn't have to chase any ambulances to afford this one!

Virtualizard

Anthony, you're not helping me get my point across - so far, 2 out of the 13 posters on this thread now have a set registered!

JEB.

calleocho

The set registry is set up in a way that anyone could participate regardless of their budget.

while this set is certantly not for everyone...it is a wonderful that will hopefully showcase some of most beautiful and expensive cards in our hobby.

these cards are amazing in the sense that they are all rare ( enough) and that they all cost a fortune. this combo makes their appeal irresistable.

Cubfan

To each their own.

WinPitcher

i would list mine but would rather not draw attention to myself.

NickM

There is another problem with a set such as this - it was not done as a consensus of what are the top 10 cards among collectors, but rather may well be just one person's opinion.

Why a '54 Wilson Franks Williams rather than a '14 Cracker Jack Mathewson, or a DiMaggio, Jackie Robinson, or Ted Williams rookie? Why not an Old Judge Anson, or a N28 King Kelly? Why the T206 Cobb rather than a T3 Cobb? I could go on with more examples.

Calling this the top grouping of cards is overly presumptuous.

Nick

Virtualizard

<< <i>There is another problem with a set such as this - it was not done as a consensus of what are the top 10 cards among collectors, but rather may well be just one person's opinion... >>




Yes! I'd like to get a response from that person, but it doesn't look like that will happen.

This thread will die with no response and somebody with more money than he knows what to do with will win an 8.5" x 11" sheet of paper with his name on it from PSA next year because he was able to plug in enough cert #s from his massive collection. Oh well, life goes on and I'll still collect what I want to collect. I used to think that adding the same cert # to multiple sets was pretty cool, but this is getting ridiculous. Maybe I'll propose a set that consists of all of the 1 of 1 PSA 10s that I own. That would be fun - NOT!

JEB.