Field of Dreams = Shoeless Joe Overrated?

[EvilKing00]

Originally Posted by yanksfan09

another reason is that there really aren't a lot of different issues of him from his playing days...

Basically all other stars from the era are featured in much more card issues I think.

this is the reason I think as well. There is just a more limited number of cards. And a very limited number for sale.

[brewing]

To say the movie has zero effect on his card prices is short sighted. You can add the movie Eight Men Out, too. It is similar to advertising, which is known to influence opinion.

You can sit there and say with your vast knowledge of baseball, you knew all about him. To think the American public isn't influenced by Hollywood productions, is foolish. Think about these movies and the way they blurred the truth; Cobb, JFK, The Babe, and very current The Butler.

Also, don't forget it's the American public that determines the value of his cards. The same public that determines the price of a PSA 10 common.

To what effect the added advertising has done to his card value is debatable.

[scooter729]

Do any of the old-timers recall (or maybe a price guide could help) - in the early / mid 1980s, before Field of Dreams came out - how did Jackson cards compare to Cobb or others?

A good comparison might be the CJ set - for example, a CJ Shoeless Joe might sell for 2x-3x what a CJ Cobb in the same condition would sell for now. (Of course, VCP is down right now as I try to get some evidence of that.) Was that the case in 1985? How about the E90-1? Was the Shoeless Joe rookie that superior vs. the Cobb from the same set back in the 1980s pre FOD?

[E93]

Joe Jackson was huge among collectors long before the movie.
JimB

[Leon]

Just added this 1910 Pelicans team photo (approx 11 x 15), taken from a large magazine or folio, to the collection yesterday. I agree with MattyC about Joe...he was so respected by his peers that it's hard to imagine his cards are valuable because of a movie. Maybe a little more valuable, but they would be even if no movie were ever made. He was a great player.

[ShoelessCrusader]

You guys make some good points here. I think it's a combination of factors that make Shoeless Joe so popular. Like many of you stated, there aren't many cards of his, and even less autographs as he was illiterate. Rarity=$$.

Then you have to factor in the Black Sox scandal, which I think is the biggest reason for the bump in $$$. Even average Black Sox players usually enjoy a little premium in the marketplace. If American history tells us anything, we love notoriety: Bonnie and Clyde; Al Capone; Jimmy Hoffa; "Shoeless" Joe Jackson. JFK was a beloved president, but would he have achieved the same level of esteem had Oswald(or whoever) not pulled that trigger--or if Zapruder had not been filming that day?

And then there's the case of Shoeless Joe's talent, which always helps in terms of $$$. The best players of the time and beyond thought so. Babe Ruth. Ty Cobb. Ted Williams. They all had nothing but praise for Joe's ability, and these were guys that were at the top of their profession. Why is the T206 Wagner worth so much? Because it's rare, yes, but also because he was one of the best players of the dead-ball era. Just like Shoeless Joe.

[brob28]

Fair enough question Jason. I personally just feel the movie may have brought him back into the general public's eye once again. But his status within baseball circles and the collecting hobby was already well established by his on-field abilities and connection with one of baseball's most memorable & dubious events.