PSA 10 Dale Murphy RC...$1,000 really?

ClockworkAngel

I paid about 1200 from this same seller for a Andre Dawson RC in June 2012.

To illustrate how rapidly these cards are rising the Dale Murphy from the same set just sold for almost the same price. Not rare by any stretch of the imagination...28 out of 1700. There are only 18 Dawsons...

Dale Murphy was a very good player, never a hall of famer. I always liked him and wanted his RC PSA 10 for sentiment sake, but that's insane. It was $500-$600 a few months back...we can add this on to the Ozzie Smith thread!

Murphy

grote15

Murphy is a lot like Mattingly and Munson, IMO...players who didn't maker the HOF but who have a very passionate collector base.

ClockworkAngel

<< <i>Murphy is a lot like Mattingly and Munson, IMO...players who didn't maker the HOF but who have a very passionate collector base. >>



I did not know that. Mattingly I knew...not Murphy.

The card has doubled

grote15

<< <i>

<< <i>Murphy is a lot like Mattingly and Munson, IMO...players who didn't maker the HOF but who have a very passionate collector base. >>



I did not know that. Mattingly I knew...not Murphy.

The card has doubled >>



McAdams was probably the underbidder..

emar

Murph always hit well against the Phils. I'd like to see the VC elect him some day.

Another sky high hammer price.
My want list will soon be priced out of the market. Crazy. Constantly re-adjusting my budget prices.

JustinsShoebox

The 1977 Topps set has gained some popularity in the sense that more people have been chasing it. Not 1 of the top 10 sets in the registry have that card yet in a 10 specimen. Add that to the Murphy collectors and that can start hiking the price up. IMO this card still has room to grow.

Justin

emar

I believe I counted correctly:

14 different bidders over $500

CubsKiller99

Not only are the early Murphy cards in demand, but his later Topps cards from 1985-91 are rising
in PSA 10.

IMHO he was a better all-round player than Rice, but he didn't play in a big-market
city and his teams didn't get to the post-season much. An underrated player that may
be a future Hall of Fame veterans comittee selection.

mygotta

I also think it has to do with a lot of eyes on that guys collection. But yeah, I am surprised it reached $1000, but also agree his cards fall into the category of Mattingly-type fans.

MintMoondog

I need that card...but I bailed early at that price! I was as shocked as you. But remember the Fidrych 10 is now between a 2K and 3K card and the Dawson 9 went from around 120 to over 200.00 last year and has maintained that price even though number of sales have increased. The 1977 is incredibly difficult to complete in high grade and the number of cards getting holdered is around the pace of 1971 more than it is 1975.

mcadams

The 77 Murphy 10 has been a $1000 - $1500 card for about a decade. From 2004 - 2007, it was routinely a $2,500+ card both on Ebay and in private transactions. If anything, the card has come down in value the past 3 years for several reasons.

1) The population of 10's has reached 28.
2) It has become more evident that he will not be elected to the HOF
3) One of the top 3 collectors of high end Murphy stuff passed away in an auto accident last yr. He bid on anything and everything Murphy and his absence impacted prices.
3) There are about 15 or so die-hard Murphy collectors in the registry. Once all of us had 1 example of the card, we don't bid against each other anymore. I personally have 2, but don't think many people desire or need more than 1 unless a stunner with better centering comes to market. There are some of us who like to upgrade our 10's.

The copy that sold this afternoon was one of the poorer examples of the card that I've seen, including the L/R.

grote15

<< <i>The 77 Murphy 10 has been a $1000 - $1500 card for about a decade. From 2004 - 2007, it was routinely a $2,500+ card both on Ebay and in private transactions. If anything, the card has come down in value the past 3 years for several reasons.

1) The population of 10's has reached 28.
2) It has become more evident that he will not be elected to the HOF
3) One of the top 3 collectors of high end Murphy stuff passed away in an auto accident last yr. He bid on anything and everything Murphy and his absence impacted prices.
3) There are about 15 or so die-hard Murphy collectors in the registry. Once all of us had 1 example of the card, we don't bid against each other anymore. I personally have 2, but don't think many people desire or need more than 1 unless a stunner with better centering comes to market. There are some of us who like to upgrade our 10's.

The copy that sold this afternoon was one of the poorer examples of the card that I've seen, including the L/R. >>



Interesting insight (esp for a Braves fan) from an insider on the often tenuous factors that will influence market value one way or another.

GDM67

Mr. Adams brings the facts.

mcadams

If anyone wants to see a comprehensive example of a 70's / 80's master set, go look at Anonymous1's Dale Murphy Master set. He's at almost a 9.5 weighted GPA on a 600+ card composite, many of which are random oddball issues from the 80's. He's a collector from Florida. I think one day his collection will be PSA HOF stuff. He is committed to having the finest example of every oddball and every sticker variation in his master set and no price is too high when a chance for improvement presents itself. Me and Ray Boone sold this guy most of our Pop1 PSA 10's a few years back to go along with his already stunning collection, so that they all reside in 1 place now.

MintMoondog

<< <i>There are some of us who like to upgrade our 10's. >>



Great insights, but shouldn't we all find this particular comment amusing?

mcadams

CubsKiller99

<< <i>

<< <i>There are some of us who like to upgrade our 10's. >>



Great insights, but shouldn't we all find this particular comment amusing? >>



A year ago I would have been. After a year of reading threads in this forum I'm not surprised.
Any one collector's neurosis can be very hard to understand unless you have one of your
own that is similar.

CubsKiller99

I'm not sure that Dmitri's card rated a 10.

In addition to the obvious tilt, the upper third of the card doesn't look like
the required 55/45 centering to get a 10.

MintMoondog

Maybe its because I haven't slept for a couple days but am I looking at the first parallelogram cut-card? If you want to really laugh, take a look at the Dimitri 1975 Mini Brett and Yount 10s...they are the first Mini-mini 10s

ReggieCleveland

Sounds like mcadams is buying the card and not the holder. A wise move.

mcadams

<< <i>Sounds like mcadams is buying the card and not the holder. A wise move. >>



I am guilty of buying the holder too when the card is not readily available. LOL...

TheCARDKid

I think Murphy has a lot of sentimental value (even if he isn't in the Hall).

-A lot of kids saw his '77 Topps rookie for $45 or $60 in a dealers display case as a kid. That was one of THE cards in the 80's. The only thing that would bring it down would be a big jump in population.

I wouldn't be surprised if the major PSA 10 rookies of the late 70's, early 80's continue to go up or hold their value. Murphy, Molitor, Henderson, etc.

CubsKiller99

<< <i>I think Murphy has a lot of sentimental value (even if he isn't in the Hall).

-A lot of kids saw his '77 Topps rookie for $45 or $60 in a dealers display case as a kid. That was one of THE cards in the 80's. The only thing that would bring it down would be a big jump in population.

I wouldn't be surprised if the major PSA 10 rookies of the late 70's, early 80's continue to go up or hold their value. Murphy, Molitor, Henderson, etc. >>



+1

halosfan

That was quite the impressive Murphy set referenced earlier.

mcadams

As further evidence of the continued strong demand for high-grade Murphy material, I give you this auction that closed earlier this evening

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1985-Atlanta-Braves-Police-3-Dale-Murphy-PSA-10-GEM-MINT-POP-1-ONLY-/370807296689

A 1985 Braves Police PSA 10. The auction closed at $355.01. It wasn't just 2 superfans bidding it up either.... There were 6 different bidders over $100 and 4 different bidders over $200 for a somewhat obscure 80's oddball card.

You just don't see those kinds of prices and that kind of broad interest for other non-HOFers.

corncobb

Im curious here. What can I pick up a nice sharp Mint 9 for? With the only difference being the label and the one day opinion of a Psa Employee,
Ive always been dumbfounded by the "10" myth. I can't help but think that P.T. was right, one really is born every minute.

CubsKiller99

I don't believe in "condition rarity".

I only believe in the total subjectivity of the PSA graders.

So I sell 10s but I don't buy them.

mcadams

Condition rarity is alive and well in the modern market. The market as a whole believes 10's to be far more valuable than 9's. We can debate the reasons though...

The guy that picked this up has purchased dozens of psa 10 Murf oddballs in this price range over the years.

CubsKiller99

No need to debate it -- I sell enough 10s to know that it's alive and well.

But for my own PC it's irrelevant since my interest is 1968-72 Topps baseball and football
and a PSA 10 is just not an option. I generally crackout the cards that I do buy for these
sets anyway so buying an expensive 9 or 10 wouldn't make much sense. I pick up a lot
of really nice 7s and that's good enough for me. I'll take a nicely centered 7 over a 9 that
isn't any day.

That being said -- I do believe that PSA 10 is totally at the whim of the grader, so there
are a lot of 9s out there that can become 10s. There are also 10s that shouldn't be.
We all know this is true. So my point about "Condition rarity" is mainly aimed at the 9-10 diff
for post-1970 cards.

olb31

<< <i>Not only are the early Murphy cards in demand, but his later Topps cards from 1985-91 are rising
in PSA 10.

IMHO he was a better all-round player than Rice, but he didn't play in a big-market
city and his teams didn't get to the post-season much. An underrated player that may
be a future Hall of Fame veterans comittee selection. >>



I am/was a huge Rice fan, but I don't believe he belongs in the HOF. And I agree with you Murphy was at least as good.

MattyC

Murphy, like Mattingly, is a non HOFer who has a loyal and passionate collector base. And many collectors want to have their favorite player's best card in worthy 10 grade.

ClockworkAngel

This is a topic brought up quite a bit, but it's a fun discussion. I think for the most part the HOF has done a good job of putting the guys in that deserve it and they guys out that don't. I am/was a HUGE Dale Murphy fan mainly because I always like guys like Murphy and Gwynn that are humble and handle themselves with class on the diamond and off. That being said, Murphy does not belong in the Hall...

There are only 2 players that I think are hall worthy that are not it, steroids aside

Keith Hernandez
Tim Raines

Cakes

<< <i>I think Murphy has a lot of sentimental value (even if he isn't in the Hall).

-A lot of kids saw his '77 Topps rookie for $45 or $60 in a dealers display case as a kid. That was one of THE cards in the 80's. The only thing that would bring it down would be a big jump in population.

I wouldn't be surprised if the major PSA 10 rookies of the late 70's, early 80's continue to go up or hold their value. Murphy, Molitor, Henderson, etc. >>



Agreed in the over 40 crowd Murphy was beast for 3 or 4 years. I also think with Ted Turner having WTBS(I think that was the name) broadcasting in many regions nationally that didn't have baseball many fans adopted the Braves.(run on sentence)

mygotta

I remember in the late 90's, his card was selling easily between $50 and $60 and always seemed out of reach for me.

In regards to Mattingly/Murphy type players, I think young fans as card collectors remember the player and the card which might immortalize them in their own way and whether they are in the HOF is not as deep of a concern for some.

I bought a Dale Murphy T-Shirt and I get a lot of compliments, even out here in San Diego. The fact is, people remember him now in a time when he and the fans are alive in addition to being around the time of collecting his cards when they were young. The fans are older and perhaps rekindle their childhood star since they have better cash flow.

This would be my guess as to the rising prices of Murphy (that in addition to late 70's stuff getting expensive).

Mattingly, while I would put in the same category with a deep fan base, his rookie and early years are far more common and in more common in pristine shape.

If Bonds or Clemens never gets to the Hall, I their cards will follow a similar path.

CubsKiller99

I am a big fan of both Murphy and Mattingly and can totally understand why someone would
want a PSA 10 rookie of either player. Even I might want one.

If the price was reasonable.

But I've never bought a PSA 10 and not gonna do it any time soon because for the
cards I want it's not.

CubsKiller99

<< <i>It's science + art. >>



I'd like to see the science part more. They have something like 45 seconds to a minute to assess a card.
That doesn't sound scientific to me.

I've seen too many badly-centered 10s lately to believe that they actually measure it.

japhi

<< <i>

<< <i>It's science + art. >>



I'd like to see the science part more. They have something like 45 seconds to a minute to assess a card.
That doesn't sound scientific to me.

I've seen too many badly-centered 10s lately to believe that they actually measure it. >>



Agreed, there can't be much science involved or you wouldn't see so many crack and re-submit bumps. The current thread running right now is unreal, people getting bumped from a 9 to a 6 both ways. Not sure how 3 people look at a card two separate times and come to such different conclusions unless the process is very much subjective (or not being followed).

mygotta

<< <i>

<< <i>It's science + art. >>



I'd like to see the science part more. They have something like 45 seconds to a minute to assess a card.
That doesn't sound scientific to me.

I've seen too many badly-centered 10s lately to believe that they actually measure it. >>



I think the "science" might be more of an "intuitive discrepancy" more than breaking out rulers and templates. I dont know for fact. But I would imagine that after looking through thousands of cards, your ability to "see" becomes quick. Perhaps if they are spotting something that is a 9, they may examine it closer to determine the 10 Factor.

Just like anyone in any job, the more you do it, the better you are at making accurate decisions about it. But to be human is to err, right?