1949 Leaf Rosar variation discovered

[Bob Lemke]

I just posted this on my blog. As far as I know, this is heretofore uncataloged.

rosar pair.jpg

If I was still editor of the Standard Catalog of Baseball Cards, I'd add it to the next edition . . . and I'd credit myself with the discovery!

Recently while researching a column on Buddy Rosar, I discovered that there are two distinct variations of his 1949 Leaf card, #128.

On one version the triangle under his butt at the right margin is white; on the other version, the triangle is blue. There are a couple of other minor differences at that area of the card, but the blue vs. white triangle is the most obvious.

On a recent day there were 47 examples of the '49 Leaf Rosar on eBay. Thirty-four of the cards were of the blue-triangle variation (72%); white-triangle cards numbered 13 (28%). I don't know if that ratio is significant enough to cause collectors to pay a premium for the scarcer white-triangle card. With its truly scarce short-prints, there aren't all that many collectors looking to complete a 1949 Leaf set, much less a master set.

But I thought I'd put it out there and let the hobby decide.

Rosar pair detail.jpg