Who is the most collected baseball player of all time??

[mrvster]

I'm sure this has been covered before.....Ruth, Mantle, Cobb???

could we attempt a top 5???

[rats60]

Babe Ruth. For prewar Ruth, Cobb, Wagner. Joe Jackson, Gehrig. For Postwar Mantle, Clemente, Jackie Robinson.

[CobbSpikedMe]

I think Mathewson should be in the top 5 instead of Jackson simply because there is more to collect of Matty therefore more collectors of his cards. I'd love to have a lot of Jackson cards, but Matty is more affordable and available. Thoughts? Am I way off base?

[Kawika]

Originally Posted by mrvster

could we attempt a top 5???

We should attempt a top six. Matty needs to be in the list. He's number one for me.

[Peter_Spaeth]

If you're counting through the present, I would guess Griffey and Jeter are on the list.

[ValKehl]

For all time, I'd be surprised if it is anyone other than Mantle. Of course, the answer should be WaJo!

[mrvster]

lets have fun everyone.....

how about an attempt of the top 20 pre and post war????????? including trout jeter whoever you want....

in order of popularity

[oldjudge]

John-What do you mean by most collected? Does that mean that most people have at least one card of that player in their collection, or does it mean that, in aggregate, more of his cards are in collections than any other players. If the former, which is what I think you mean, for people on this board it would probably be Ruth, Cobb, Mantle, Wagner and maybe Jackson. If your question refers to all collectors then it is probably none of those players except maybe Mantle. I would think that the majority of collectors have very few or no pre-war cards.

[bswhiten]

I know not everyone has graded pc’s but at least for one tpg-PSA see attached for number of sets for each player. Poor resolution from my phone but top 3 pre-1970 Mantle, Clemente, Aaron.

[mrvster]

a little clarification........."most popular" most "coveted"

either owning a piece, or not, just most popular which would lead to collecting


your personal feelings of who is the most popular/collected/ desired players to own a piece of something


a quick example:

Ruth
Mantle
Cobb
Mays
Anson
Wagner
Robinson
Johnson
Gehrig
Young
Jeter
Aaron



past and present


up to 20 players

etc etc

[rats60]

I think people collect Ruth over any other player including Mantle. Mantle 2nd then Cobb, but from there who is next? I have been out of the modern market for about 5 years, but I think Mike Trout might be next. It is really tough to cross eras because many collect exclusive to one era. You can't go by volume, then it would be 5 modern guys. Prewar guys have the fewest cards in terms of both number and different, but everyone wants Ruth (and Mantle).

[oldjudge]

As a point of reference, albeit maybe not a representative one, I own no (zero) cards of Mathewson, Young, Foxx, Williams, Mays, Gehrig, DiMaggio, Clemente, and every player whose career started after 1960.

[mrvster]

another great point.....

1)last attempt! top 10 prewar and post war up to 1980

2) top 10 from 1980 to present


example:


up to '80 ' 80 to present

Ruth Griffey
Mantle Jeter
Cobb Trout
Wagner C Jones




sound good??

[Touch'EmAll]

To be the most collected I assume sheer quantity of cards collected. There are a whole lot more cards out there available to collect from post war. Maybe hazard a guess Nolan Ryan might be the highest number of cards out there that are collected.

[clydepepper]

I think it's Mantle...and not even close.

[mrvster]

attempt a list , but I have to think about it...


remember 10 before 1980

10 from after 1980

[bcbgcbrcb]

I think if you pick one, it's Mantle.

[tedzan]

Originally Posted by mrvster

I'm sure this has been covered before.....Ruth, Mantle, Cobb???

could we attempt a top 5???

Hey Johnny

Cannot keep up with your "changing environment"


So, here is my answer to your initial question...…Who is the most collected baseball player of all time ?

Absolutely, there is NO doubt....quantitively speaking.... it's Mickey Mantle.

Mantle's galore......there were many MILLIONS of his cards produced......and, there are still MILLIONS of his fans collecting his cards.



Type 1 .................................................. .........……........... Type 2






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TED Z
T206 Reference
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[Peter_Spaeth]

I bet more people overall collect Griffey than Mantle.

Just as a random example, PSA has graded over 27,000 of Griffey's Donruss rookie -- a strong rookie but not nearly his most popular. (Checked the Upper Deck -- 68000.)
Compare that to a very popular Mantle card, the 65 Topps -- just under 4000 graded.

[Arazi4442]

If you're talking about all-time, when I first started collecting in the 1980s, it seemed like Pete Rose was second only to Mantle.

Of course, he kind of put an end to the Pete Rose market himself.

[Throttlesteer]

Harold Baines *ducking*

[rats60]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

I bet more people overall collect Griffey than Mantle.

Just as a random example, PSA has graded over 27,000 of Griffey's Donruss rookie -- a strong rookie but not nearly his most popular. (Checked the Upper Deck -- 68000.)
Compare that to a very popular Mantle card, the 65 Topps -- just under 4000 graded.

And I bet more people collect Mike Trout than Griffey. I don't think you can go by volume because there are more and more different cards made of current players every year. The entry level is also a lot lower. Mantle cards are too expensive for many collectors, so they don't bother.

[tedzan]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

I bet more people overall collect Griffey than Mantle.

Just as a random example, PSA has graded over 27,000 of Griffey's Donruss rookie -- a strong rookie but not nearly his most popular. (Checked the Upper Deck -- 68000.)
Compare that to a very popular Mantle card, the 65 Topps -- just under 4000 graded.

Come on, Peter....you know better than to use pop reports to compare numbers when it comes to Mantle vs "any player" !


Since you used Griffey as an example, I well remember (and I'm sure others here do, also)…...when these Griffey UD and Donruss cards were first
available, PSA was rejecting (and re-grading) many of them claiming they were "evidence of trim". And, I'm talking about fresh-out-of-pack" cards ! !

Your numbers are NOT representative of the actual population.


TED Z
T206 Reference
.

[ValKehl]

Originally Posted by oldjudge

As a point of reference, albeit maybe not a representative one, I own no (zero) cards of Mathewson, Young, Foxx, Williams, Mays, Gehrig, DiMaggio, Clemente, and every player whose career started after 1955.

So Jay, what you are saying is that you do have a Mantle card - right?

[CurtisFlood]

I don't know about the rest of you guys, but it always seemed like there were a lot of Pete Runnels cards in the packs I opened up in the early sixties. That guy seemed to be in every pack, so he must have been highly collected.

[oldjudge]

I actually have two, plus an exhibit card. I have a card or two from many of the guys who played for the Yankees when I was growing up. Somehow I have missed getting a card of my favorite player on those teams, Bobby Richardson.

[Jdoggs]

Babe Ruth