Which Greenberg card as “one and only”
 

I think my next HOF big card purchase will be to land my one/only Hank Greenberg and I’d love some input from Hank collectors to be sure that I think about all options.

My budget is between $800-1000 so his 34 Goudey is probably a non-starter. I do like his Diamond Star issue a lot (wouldn’t pay up for the error, not really my thing)

So many issues of his are either kind of dull looking black and white issues (no offense to others who like these!) of they just don’t look much like him to me (‘41 play ball, for instance)

But I wonder if there are other Greenberg issues that I should consider? I’d welcome advice from the Net54 community - thx for any ideas an opinions!

Jeff

'41 Play Ball
 

I think you could get a decent EX-MT copy of his 1941 Play Ball issue. I like it because it's the 'color version' of his '40 issue. Just my thoughts.

I'm not sure how condition sensitive you are, but you can certainly get a lower grade 34 Goudey in your price range.

1936 " R322 " by Goudey Gum
 

.. If you don't mind corner wear and signs of poor storage , these 1936 cards go at E-Bay auctions ending during mid-week in your price range ; But don't try to be the high bidder on a Sunday night though.

http://imagehost.vendio.com/a/204295...22HANK_NEW.JPG

Batter Up
 

Not a bad choice - tinted photo that looks more like him than the 41.

Maybe an R309-2 if you can find one. This is from my last collection. It's black and white but a pretty cool pose.

That said, if you want color and only 1 card, I too, like the Diamond Stars. Good luck!
.

My choice is the 1936 World Wide Gum #41.

You probably can find a lower graded one towards your budget's top end.

Good luck with your search.

Hank Greenberg is a big-boy HOFer. I don’t think you skimp on players like Hank. I would save my money, bide my time, and get the best 1934 Goudey you can get. If that means you get lesser issues of lesser players for a while, so be it. But don’t skimp on Hank

I would go with the Diamond Star. Classic card that is still undervalued. Color, good pose. Another option is the batter Up or the 303B.

I think you can make a 34 Goudey work and that's where I'd go. I'm a big 41 Play Ball fan but I agree with you it doesn't necessarily look like him (always thought it looks like he has a moustache). Diamond Stars definitely a great alternative too. 38 Goudey is a good one too but I'm not sure on pricing there.

To me his two best cards by far are 1934 Annis Furs and 1936 WWG. If I were you I'd try to stick that 1k somewhere and wait for the right 1936 wwg to show up and go for it. If you don't really want to wait an uncertain amount of time, I agree with previous posters about 1934 G and 1934 DS being great options.

Diamond Stars for me

I would go with the Diamond stars
I own a bunch myself

My childhood friend just asked me to help him sell his collection...Hank Greenberg was a member at the Beverly Hills Tennis Club. And of course so was my friend, so he got some of his cards to get signed.

Here is a sweet 34 DS with the error name version signed. I have not seen another and condition is really

nice.https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1664380143

Any of the above before his R302 1943 M.P. & Co. No example to share, but look it up. I still think the M.P. & Co. cards have a simplistic charm, but definitely not to be chosen as an 'one and only' of a player.

Brian (looking out for fellow collector's best interests long before
the historically low interest rates of recent yore)

Wow! what an amazing card... and cool backstory too

He really is... which is why I want to be so careful with my "one and only" choice. So many great ideas here, as always

Don't overlook his 1938 Goudey. People either love or hate 38 Goudeys, but I love them.

I think the 1936 WWG captures Greenberg as well as any card captures any player in the hobby

Another vote
 

for the 1934 Goudey. If that's off the table, the 38 Goudey #277 would be next.

Really like the 38 Goudey. Here's a cool one - - a Cuban issue.

Many nice issues to be honest. His 34 Goudey is iconic, but I like both his Diamond Stars and 36 WWG better. Black and white cards don’t bother me one bit, I think I’ll be picking up a 39 playball Greenberg + moe berg by the end of the year.

You might also consider the R312 if you don't want a black and White.

For what you want I think I would choose the Diamond Stars.

Personally I like oversized cards. The R311 B&W or the R312 Pastel are nice and on the low end of your range. They also have the R313 which is like the R312 but smaller and B&W. I also collect Wheaties, but I don't like the jumping pose. I also collect Exhibits.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...0b32b55dac.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...e2020ac391.jpg

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I also like adding a variety of cards to my display - sometimes oversized cards break up the look of my collection, which can be cool.

How big are the R 312 cards? Can I be a pain to ask to post an image of the Hank R312 next to a more traditionally sized card?

Thx again for the ideas

Jeff

Some more Greenberg items, including a rare 37 OPC, a great Wheaties pose (sorry for the sideways!), an R314 type 3, and a Truly Yours postcard with a cool batting photo.

His Diamond Star is my favorite card of his. You can find one with nice color and in low grade for about $600-$800 if you can be fortunate to not have competition.

This is the current placeholder in my HOF collection . . .

Attachment 536378

You all have totally piqued my interest in the R312 pastel "cards" - I just posted a "WTB" in the BST section for the Greenberg - if I land one, I'll post it here (am also actively looking for the 1935 Diamond Star but, man, that one is hard to find centered and affordable!)

Thanks again-

Jeff

Would everyone consider both his 34 Goudey and Diamond Star as a “rookie”?

Old Cardboard lists those two plus his Batter-Up card and a 1934 team issue as his rookies.

His Diamond Star was produced in 1935.

for the price, I like the Greeenberg/Newsom 1941 Double Play.

Hank Greenberg
 

Hey Ryan

Here is a seldom seen Hank Greenberg card from the 1948 Blue Tint set.

And, it's a profile portrait



https://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan...kgreenberg.jpg


TED Z

T206 Reference
.

Sorry I didn't see this sooner. Here is a R312 Tris Speaker / Kiki Cuyler next to Goudey and T206.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...9d978ff7cf.jpg

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Ah, never realized they were all labeled 1935. PSA didn’t either! Later PSA copies changed that.

Nice looking Blue Tint

These are great!

I'm a big fan of the classic 1939 Play Ball card.

https://i.psacard.com/cardfacts/1939...182.jpg?h=1000

If you want his earliest 1935 Diamond Star card, you have to get the one with his last name misspelled.

Brian (if you are this type of collector, you also have to get the National Game Grover Alexander card instead of his near identical twin in the Tom Barker Game card, both issued in 1913, because a team change in the Hal Chase cards seen in the sets dictate that the National Game set was released before the Tom Barker set)