When was the term "Rookie Card" introduced into the Hobby ?

jason.1969 · #1 12-17-2019, 06:23 PM

Not what you asked but on a related note...

The first time the word Rookie appeared on the front of a baseball card was (I think) 1959 with the Topps "Sporting News Rookie Stars of 1959" subset and the Fleer Ted Williams card 14, "Outstanding Rookie of 1939."

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pingman59 · #2 12-17-2019, 08:57 PM

I was new to the organized hobby in early 1977 and hadn't heard the term until the summer of 1978 at the Chicagoland Sports Collectors Association 3-day convention. The 1954 Topps Hank Aaron card was referred to as a rookie card
and was 20 bucks for a nice one (EX-MT or better). Sigh...

Leon · #3 12-20-2019, 12:19 PM

It would be nice for a few old timers to chime in. I collected in the later 60s, as a kid, and just don't remember if we collected the rookies in particular or not. That was a long time ago.

rats60 · #4 12-20-2019, 01:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Leon

It would be nice for a few old timers to chime in. I collected in the later 60s, as a kid, and just don't remember if we collected the rookies in particular or not. That was a long time ago.

I do believe that the 1954 Topps Aaron was the first card referred to as a rookie card. Possibly as early as 1974 when he became the all time HR leader. My brother had gotten an Aaron RC from a "grab bag" at a swap meet and I remember it being a big deal after Hank hit 715.

I remember the multiplayer rookie cards were unpopular in the 60s and early 70s. I bought 2 Seaver Rcs for ten cents each in 1973, they were treated as commons. We had a bunch of Ryan and Bench Rcs because no one wanted them. When we "flipped" cards, those were among the first to go. Mantle, Mays, Koufax, Clemente, etc. cards were valued and kept.

drcy · #5 12-20-2019, 01:16 PM

Many "old timers" collectors say a common sentiment was to prize the latest not the earliest card for a player.

Worth noting that the early definition of rookie was very narrow in its scope and what cards could be included.

jerrys · #6 12-20-2019, 04:27 PM

Mark Lewis - Publisher of "Card Prices Update" (1978-80)? had a Rookie List page denoting rookie cards and their value in his monthly CPU. He was doing well until he used some of Jim Beckett's baseball data without permission. CPU folded shortly after.

riggs336 · #7 12-20-2019, 10:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drcy

Many "old timers" collectors say a common sentiment was to prize the latest not the earliest card for a player.

Worth noting that the early definition of rookie was very narrow in its scope and what cards could be included.

I remember that for a very short time premiums were placed on a player's "first" and "last" cards.

Gary Dunaier · #8 12-22-2019, 09:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drcy

Many "old timers" collectors say a common sentiment was to prize the latest not the earliest card for a player.

If memory serves me right, I recall reading somewhere that one of the reasons for this was because the newer cards had the most complete stats of the player.

Quote:

Originally Posted by rats60

I bought 2 Seaver Rcs for ten cents each in 1973, they were treated as commons.

Wow!

Fred · #9 12-22-2019, 10:14 PM

Assuming the OP is asking about the "rookie card craze" rather than cards noted with "rookie" on it, then here's what I remember:

I'm going to guess the REALLY crazy prices started somewhere in the early 90s.

I remember a dealer busting open cases of 84 Topps (the year the cards were released) trying to pull the Mattingly's so he could sell them for a couple/few bucks apiece. I thought the guy was nuts and anybody buying them was even crazier. I think things really got going with the Griffey Jr. 89 UD rookie cards. After that things went out of control.

I can still remember dealers selling 84T wax football cases and couldn't get more than $100 bucks a case (right after the football season ended), then people started trying to get the Marino's and Dickerson's. Somewhere in the early 90's those same wax 84T football boxes (not cases) were going for over $100 each because of the Marino rookie cards.

Old Beckett guides might provide a good clue regarding the time frame when things got stupid.

I never bought into the modern era rookie card craze because the thought of paying a ton of cash for a card where there were probably millions minted just didn't make any sense.

It looks like the "rookie card craze" did have a pretty big influence on market prices for "rookie" cards of vintage era players.

All of the above is from a memory that seems to be getting cloudier as time moves on.

Just for the heck of it I just checked on PSA10 89 UD Griffey rookies on fleabay. PWCC sold 5 different slabs for between $505 and $560 on 27NOV19 (alone) on fleabay. If I read the PSA pop report correctly, there are over 24,000 PSA10 89 UD Griffey cards graded. Pretty crazy stuff.

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