Quote:
Originally Posted by Matthew H
Steve, I always thought it was first card by manufacture... 51 bowman mantle, 52 topps. Isn't there also some 80s players that have RCs from multiple years, different card companies listed? Sorry I don't have any of my old Becketts any more, so I can't check.
|
They may have changed, but the 51 Bowman would be the rookie card and the 52 topps the first Topps card. Some people call it a rookie because it's the most expensive, but it's not.
The mid 80's stuff led to lots of confusion. like the McGwire. Do you count the 85 topps? It qualified under their rules, but it was from a subset and wasn't a major league card. The 87s fit the defenition better, but weren't his first card from a major national set.
The whole point of rookie cards has been silly since the early 80's, maybe a bit before. They were initially worth more because kids usually only collected for 3 years or so, and when the cards got tossed maybe a few got saved. Usually established stars. So the rookies were a bit harder to find. By 81 for sure lots of people were buying the promising rookies by the hundred or more and saving them.
But Beckett continued to push the whole "rookie" thing. As did many dealers, especially the typical underfunded clueless guys who drove the whole late 80's scene. Buy at wholesale, sell for a couple weeks at a good price, then at a cheap price then at around 6 months sell at a loss to raise cash for the next new product. Repeat till you have no money left then close.
Steve B