Nolan Ryan vintage card question

cuda440

Had a interesting discussion with a friend recently as to why it is Nolan Ryan cards typically sell for far more than almost any other pitcher from his era. One example would be Steve Carlton. The two had equally great careers, some stats better than the other pitcher and vice versa. In the final analysis i'd say more people would favor Carlton slightly over Ryan as the better overall pitcher(i could be wrong though). Yet Ryan cards command much higher prices-- it's not even close. I think it's attributed to the sheer dominance and power he had on the mound. Almost had a rock-star like status. Whereas Carlton and other pitchers didn't seem to have that. At any rate, this is a minor card-related issue that i've wondered about for awhile. opinions?
thanks

jimq112

Carlton spent a lot of time not talking to the media and generally being aloof. I met nolan ryan about 20 years ago, he was signing autographs for a room full of people. Somebody said something like he could get rich signing them, and he said if he had his way he would sign so many that they would be worthless.

Ryan also had that dominance in that you never knew if he was going to throw a no-hitter tonite.

Just my opinion, I think Ryan was/is a fan favorite and that matters.

onlyanumber

Ryan also had that mystique about him for being dominate at an older age. It rated very well with the middle aged fans and they looked up to his accomplishments. I don't know how many young fans who never saw him pitch are fans/collectors of him, but I'm sure the ratio for older collectors is much higher.

cwazzy

I'm 26 and Ryan has been my favorite player since as far back as I can remember. There was just something about the guy. I think a lot of it has to do with him being a hard ass. I remember seeing him get hit in the face by the Bo Jackson grounder and pitched the rest of the inning with blood pouring from his lip, got stitches between innings and then went out there and pitched some more. Throw in the Robin Ventura fight (read: pummeling) and you have what amounts to the epitamy of cool. He just has a mystique about him that makes him appealing to card collectors. At least to me.

Chris

f2tornado

Playing for a couple big market teams with one of them being in New York doesn't hurt either.

themetalsign

Just imagine if he played on good teams his whole career. He played on some stinkers.......

CDsNuts

He was really only elevated to "Rock Star" status late in his career when he got the last 2 or 3 no-hitters in the late 80s and early 90s. All of the great pitchers of his era(s) had already retired, and he was the only verifiable superstar on the mound (starting pitcher) at the time- Clemens and Maddux were still young. When players continue their great play after all of their peers retire, it really puts the spotlight on their accomplishments.

From the 70s-mid 80s, Ryan was at the top of the list, but still lumped in with all the great pitchers of the era- Seaver, Carlton, Palmer, etc.... It was only until after they all retired and he kept mowin em down that his legacy was taken to the next level. If I remember correctly, up until about 1987, Ryan's RC commanded a slight premium over Carlton and the others, but then there started to become some real separation as Ryan continued to dominate in his later years.

Lee

Estil

Indeed, Ryans from 1970s sets typically are worth about the same or just below that set's main RCs. For example, the top rookies in the 1976 (Eck) and 1977 (Hawk/Murphy) book for about the same as the Ryan. However, Ryan's RC is only worth about a third what it was in 1993 (Mr. Ryan's final year), so I guess it works both ways?

TJMAC

Well put Lee.

To, me there are a lot of pitchers I would take over Ryan in their prime, but based on longevity he was one of the best. He was a flame thrower and many people love power pitchers just like they love power hitters. Phil Niekro lasted a long time and had similar numbers minus the no hitters and strikeouts, but he does not have the mystique that Ryan had. There is also something about his toughness and cowboy like persona that fits well within American pop culture. We are the land of rugged individualists and Ryan embodies that.

Just in case anyone was wondering who I would take over Ryan in their prime - Carlton and Seaver for sure and probably even Palmer. Of course I am only counting guys from when Ryan was considered in his prime. Regardless, it does not take away from how great a pitcher he was.

Good topic.

Stingray

<< <i>Well put Lee.

To, me there are a lot of pitchers I would take over Ryan in their prime, but based on longevity he was one of the best. He was a flame thrower and many people love power pitchers just like they love power hitters. Phil Niekro lasted a long time and had similar numbers minus the no hitters and strikeouts, but he does not have the mystique that Ryan had. There is also something about his toughness and cowboy like persona that fits well within American pop culture. We are the land of rugged individualists and Ryan embodies that.

Just in case anyone was wondering who I would take over Ryan in their prime - Carlton and Seaver for sure and probably even Palmer. Of course I am only counting guys from when Ryan was considered in his prime. Regardless, it does not take away from how great a pitcher he was.

Good topic. >>



Very well said!!

itzagoner

Ryan was quite similar to Reggie Jackson in his prime....i think the attraction of Ryan, besides his knack for throwing no-hitters, was that you never knew exactly what you were gonna get on any particular night....sometimes he was literally unhittable, all a batter could do was stand and watch....other times, though, he was enough to scare the paying customers out of the first few rows with his wildness

i saw Ryan pitch a lot when he was with the Angels....i went to see players like him because of the expectation that something special might happen....if you watched them enough, eventually you would see something special

MikeyLikesIt

When you look at the PSA registry and the number of registered basic sets, it further illustrates the point. Pretty amazing.

Catfish Hunter - 6 sets
Jim Palmer - 10 sets
Carlton - 15 sets
Tom Seaver - 23 sets
Ryan - 45 sets!!

cuda440

great replies; really puts it in proper perspective.

hypothetically, if Ryan and Carlton were on the same team in game 7 of the world series and i was the manger, Ryan would definitely be getting the call. a "slight" psychological disadvantage for the opposing team/hitter. too bad that situation never occured in Ryan's case. Carlton pitching in relief not a bad scenario, either...

RoarIn84

now THIS is a signed photo i'd love to frame!!!!

not sure if Brave Sir Robin would sign it tho......