Quote:
Originally Posted by E93
I would not consider minor league cards like the BN Ruth to be a rookie card. Just my opinion.
JimB
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It gets to be a little like beauty--its in the eye of the beholder, or in this case, the safe deposit box of the collector. IMHO, the 1914 Baltimore News Ruth is his first card, while the M101 is clearly his actual rookie. Considering the disparity in the number of examples in existence, demand seems to be shifting towards higher grade 1916 M101's (PSA 7 for $200,00--PSA 6 for $75,000??? Whoa!). But if you are fortunate enough to have either, I don't think you're going to stay up nights worrying about it. Both cards are enormously significant and will be mainstays of the hobby for many, many years to come. I was just re-reading Green and Kiefer's 1990 book, The Top 100, tonight for the fun of it. Now, these two didn't often hit the nail on the head with regard to predicting cards that would appeciate nicely, but they certainly did with the M101 Ruth, noting that at a top guide price at that time of $1,000, it was "lightning in a bottle." And it will continue to be, although certainly the greatest rate of appreciation has past. My prediction that both the 1914 Baltimore News and the M101 in higher grade (Exmt or better?) will be seven figure cards in the not to distant future is hardly a bold one.
Oh and by the way, Kiner's rookie is in the 1947 Tip Top Bread set, and if anyone has one to sell graded better than good, don't keep it a secret. Mine is an ungraded poor, with writing on the front of the card, the only one I could find in a single card offering in about ten years of searching. This guy was one tremendous, under-appreciated slugger--check out his stats on baseball reference.com, and play with the neutralized batting toy there. His only deficit was that he played just ten years, but it should never have taken so long for him to get into the HOF! What would he command on the free agent market today if he had access to it in the heart of his career?
Thanks for taking the time to read this rant, guys!
Best,
Larry