OT - Does anyone have the 1911 Strat-O-Matic Card set?

[barrysloate]

Mike- as I recall you could buy the entire league with Strat-O-Matic; or, you could purchase a sampler with only five or six teams of your choice. I guess those smaller sets were quite popular.

[milkit1]

thanks cy, wow that does look really confusing. what do some of those numbers mean on the wagner?

[Hot Springs Bathers]

Barry I also think that Strat went retail much earlier than APBA? The store model sets probably were the 5 team sets? I have intended to buy the new book on the history of Strat but just have not done it yet.

Sean the numbers correspond to the charts, there is a chart for each game situation such as bases empty, man on first etc... After a dozen or so games you know what the numbers mean 90 percent of the time; a 13 is a strikeout, 14 base on balls and the big numbers are 1 a homer, 2 homer or some level of extra base hit, 6 a double and such. I agree that having the results on the card for Strat is nice but you also have to cross reference quite a bit. Both games are great I think preferences come from the one you played when you were young.

I also think that both games tug at collectors like us since they have such long histories and so many sets and special teams to collect.

By the way both APBA and Strat football are just so-so at best and APBA basketball is just plain terrible while APBA golf is fantastic!

Good luck Sean and have fun with your choice!

[milkit1]

Thanks for the heads up. The strat cards look less confusing to me. I think im just going to have to buy one and see for meself. Ill keeep ya guys posted on my progress

[barrysloate]

Mike- APBA goes back to 1950 or 1951; Strat started in 1962.

[Hot Springs Bathers]

Richard Seitz started APBA in 1951 after he was so excited about the Whiz Kids 1950 season. I think he had been creating his own sets and refining a game called National Pastime from 1931 that he played as a kid.

I bid against Mark M. for a copy of National Pastime several years ago but lost, I think there has been a reproduction of it sold in the last few years.

While Strat was sold in toy stores going back to the 1970s I think APBA first tried it around 1995 during their "dark" years of change.

The 1950-54 APBA original sets are very scarce with the 1955 & 56 seasons also pretty darned tough to find. Thankfully the company has reprinted these seasons so that everyone can own them. The reprints are vastly different in appearance from the originals.

I think the early Strat seasons are very tough too.

[barrysloate]

Mike- about ten years ago someone consigned a set of 1953 APBA to one of our auctions. My partner took it as a favor and started it at $100. I think it sold for about $1000 with a ceiling bid much much higher than that. That's when we learned the early sets are rare and in demand.