Ruth sporting news psa 4 rookie in REA

[nolemmings]

Originally Posted by MattyC

Actually looks like they’re going down price-wise if the latest REA example doesn’t see more action. Moreso if it didn’t actually sell last time at REA.

Yes and no. IMO, a blank back will and should always fetch less money than a card with an advertising reverse, at least in similar grades, as blanks are far more plentiful. The two Ruths that went for over $200K since 2016 both had ad backs.

[GaryPassamonte]

How is it a PSA 4 with back damage?

[pcoz]

Originally Posted by GaryPassamonte

How is it a PSA 4 with back damage?

Gary, the front on the PSA 4 looks just like some of the Ruth 6's and 7's being off centered. It may have been a 6 if not for the stain imo.

[MattyC]

Originally Posted by nolemmings

Yes and no. IMO, a blank back will and should always fetch less money than a card with an advertising reverse, at least in similar grades, as blanks are far more plentiful. The two Ruths that went for over $200K since 2016 both had ad backs.

I agree with this.

So the final hammer price on the 4 was less than the last time it sold at REA, and well below the 200k-level that others (with different backs) commanded earlier. Seems like a softening.

[pcoz]

This card sold stupid cheap, and I do think it's a 200k card that someone got a steal on. I had previously owned this and the image, color and corners are really sharp, although a little off center. The back never bothered me, as i'm more of an image guy. I think a lot of the high end Ruth stuff was soft last night with the exception of the Collins-McCarthy, which wasn't very attractive to say the least. Maybe too many good things in one auction.

[Jdoggs]

Originally Posted by pcoz

This card sold stupid cheap, and I do think it's a 200k card that someone got a steal on. I had previously owned this and the image, color and corners are really sharp, although a little off center. The back never bothered me, as i'm more of an image guy. I think a lot of the high end Ruth stuff was soft last night with the exception of the Collins-McCarthy, which wasn't very attractive to say the least. Maybe too many good things in one auction.

I agree with you.
Ruth PSA 7 sporting news blank back rookie sold for $600k. SMR is $565k.
Ruth sporting news rookie cards on the aggregate are trending upward.
And they are more stable than post war rookies such as Koufax, Clemente, Ryan, Rose, etc.

[MattyC]

Originally Posted by Jdoggs

I agree with you.
Ruth PSA 7 sporting news blank back rookie sold for $600k. SMR is $565k.
Ruth sporting news rookie cards on the aggregate are trending upward.
And they are more stable than post war rookies such as Koufax, Clemente, Ryan, Rose, etc.

SMR is notoriously low across the board, so compared to that everything is going up in price, lol.

[Jdoggs]

Originally Posted by MattyC

SMR is notoriously low across the board, so compared to that everything is going up in price, lol.

Actually you are wrong.

51 mantle bowman psa 7 sold for $20k on eBay auction recently.
Smr is $35k for psa 7 51 bowman.

Smr is not notoriously low across the board there are many more examples of this.

[JasonD08]

As previous owner it has went up 10 times since I sold it. It actually was holdered with wrong date years ago. Amazing what a call to Joe and a $100 bill will do. I was too shocked at the straight 4 grade.

[Bradyhill]

Truth be told that Standard Biscuit 4 is my Card and I needed to sell it back quickly because I wanted to win the REA 7.... which I did :-)

It’s a solid 4 in my opinion though.

[MattyC]

Originally Posted by Jdoggs

Actually you are wrong.

51 mantle bowman psa 7 sold for $20k on eBay auction recently.
Smr is $35k for psa 7 51 bowman.

Smr is not notoriously low across the board there are many more examples of this.

Actually, if you are looking at smr for anything beyond the articles, you’re doing yourself a disservice. In general, it is low— and behind the times. But you make your own valuations and I’ll make mine.

[Jdoggs]

Originally Posted by MattyC

SMR is notoriously low across the board, so compared to that everything is going up in price, lol.

Just wanted to point out you stated compared to SMR "everything" is going up in price and you stated SMR is notoriously low across the board. Not "everything" is selling for more than SMR and I gave you the 51 mantle PSA 7 recent sale on ebay example which was $15k less than current SMR for 51 mantle PSA 7. Other recent sales of other major cards have sold for less than SMR too but you can find those examples with your own research.

[oldjudge]

Brady-For a blank back card the 7 is a beauty. Personally, I don’t like blank backs but to each his own. The Standard Biscuit 4 is extremely nice. The centering annoys me a little, but otherwise it has the characteristics of a higher graded card. I would think that it will do very well. With all due respect to my friend Pete, I still do not like the blank back 4 from REA. That back really is a tough obstacle to overcome.

[T205 GB]

Originally Posted by MattyC

SMR is notoriously low across the board, so compared to that everything is going up in price, lol.

Or outrageously high!

[griffon512]

some previous posters have alluded to this, but i think the debate boils down to the REA PSA 4 Ruth having poor eye appeal relative to comps in the view of most auction bidders. don't get me wrong, it's a tremendous card and i would love to go back in time with the foresight to buy it 5 years ago...but the greatest foresight would have been to go back in time and buy only high eye appeal rookie or early year cards of iconic players.

absent any major flaws, the biggest drivers of attractiveness of a card are centering and image quality. both have gotten progressively more important recently, where the premiums on high eye appeal and discounts on low eye appeal are more pronounced. we see examples of this all over the place in recent auctions of high end cards. e.g., look at the premiums t206 cobbs are getting with strong centering and registration. same goes for ruth goudeys, and countless other high end cards. on the flip side, a poorly centered mantle psa 6 rookie went for ~$9,900 in lelands (https://lelands.com/bids/bidplace?itemid=84399), probably $5k less than what a well centered example would have gotten. obviously the higher dollar value the card is, the bigger the $ impact is going to be for high eye appeal vs. low eye appeal.

unlike some post-war iconic players, i don't see any consistent signs of a slowdown in prices in mid-range and high-end ruth cards that have high eye appeal currently. it's the opposite. in addition i think this higher premium/discount on eye appeal will continue, because it's become accepted practice by collectors and investors to not let vcp or smr dictate prices when eye appeal in both directions deviates greatly from the norm. high eye appeal is a way that the hobby has created greater scarcity value in the same way a third party grade has in the past, and i think that trend is here to stay!

[rats60]

Originally Posted by Jdoggs

I agree with you.
Ruth PSA 7 sporting news blank back rookie sold for $600k. SMR is $565k.
Ruth sporting news rookie cards on the aggregate are trending upward.
And they are more stable than post war rookies such as Koufax, Clemente, Ryan, Rose, etc.

A PSA 7 sold last year for 717k by Heritage Auctions.

[Baseball Rarities]

Originally Posted by rats60

A PSA 7 sold last year for 717k by Heritage Auctions.

I believe that Heritage sold another PSA 7 in the $550K range earlier this year.

[rats60]

Originally Posted by Baseball Rarities

I believe that Heritage sold another PSA 7 in the $550K range earlier this year.

Although that one had much worse centering than the 600k and 717k Ruths.

[Vintageclout]

Originally Posted by pcoz

This card sold stupid cheap, and I do think it's a 200k card that someone got a steal on. I had previously owned this and the image, color and corners are really sharp, although a little off center. The back never bothered me, as i'm more of an image guy. I think a lot of the high end Ruth stuff was soft last night with the exception of the Collins-McCarthy, which wasn't very attractive to say the least. Maybe too many good things in one auction.

Don’t tell that to the buyer that took me out on the Ruth HR Chocolate postcard for $15,600! Sorry Pete but most of the Ruth cards went strong including the exhibits and the PSA 5 Honey Boy fetching $24,000. Let’s face it, that PSA 4 Ruth Rookie is overgraded by TWO full grades and should either be a 2 or 4-ST. It also has been in auction at least 5 times! People are now buying the card more than the grade, and the 4 Rookie is 80/20 centered at best with unsightly blue staining on the back. Ruth rookies and all rare items (especially Red Sox related artifacts) are as strong as ever. The 3 Rookie card 7’s have now sold for $717K; $556K and $600K since 2016, justifying why $600K is not a soft sale by any means.