1958 Topps # 54 Norm Siebern ROOKIE (Yankees)

1952 Topps Baseball Cards
Checklist & Values

1952 is often thought of as Topps 1st baseball card set, but it was not.
Topps issued several smaller baseball card sets prior to their huge 1952 set.
Topps buzz word was "BIGGER is BETTER" for their 1952 Topps set which Topps described as: "GIANT IN BOTH SIZE and NUMBER of CARDS" (407).

Key card in the 1952 Topps set is #311 MICKEY MANTLE. Often called Mickey Mantle's Rookie card - BUT IT IS NOT. That honor goes to his 1951 Bowman.
1952 Topps "High Numbers" (#311-#407), are very, very scarce with an interesting story:
This HUGE set was released in series weeks apart. By the last (6th) series, baseball season was over and football starting. Candy shops had plenty of baseball cards from earlier series so most cancelled their orders for the last series creating the scarcity.

Adding interest is how Topps disposed of the now un-needed cards including THOUSANDS of 1952 Topps MICKEY MANTLE's. They dumped them into the Atlantic Ocean like most of New York's trash in those days.

1952 Topps Baseball card checklist, values and prices.

1970 Chemtoy Superballs
Checklist & Prices

Chemtoy & MLB teamed up to offer a set of major league baseball player "Superballs" or "High Bouncing Balls". One of the more interesting collectibles from late 1960's, early 1970's and sought after by Team & Player collectors.

1970 Chemtoy Baseball SuperBalls The 285 player set with 12 per team except Twins, White Sox and A's with 11. Each "Superball" has the player's photo inside with name, team, position and Chemtoy inventory number on back.

1970 Chemtoy Baseball SuperBalls checklist & prices

1966-1968 Baseball Marbles

Vintage Baseball Card Auction terminology

Register:With name, address & email so we can contact you after auctions with your winning bids.
2 Types of Bidding:
[YES] / [NO] auction bids - Click on YES button to make only the next bid.
[MAXBID] auction bids - Enter MAXIMUM you would bid on this item. If outbid, auction software makes the next bid if is not more than your auction [MAXBID].
Minimum or Start Bid:
More expensive auction items may have minimum or starting bids. Saves time rather than auction bids going up .25 at a time, taking many dozens of bids to reach even fractions of value.
Reserve Bid: "Reserve" auction bids come into play after an auction ends. If "Hammer" price is less than "Reserve" bid no sale. Not very auction bidder friendly.

Click for more info on my Weekly Vintage BASEBALL CARD AUCTIONS

Baseball card collecting terms (part G)

Grade/Condition Centering, corner wear, photo clarity, edges, creases, print flaws ... all combine to determine a card's condition or grade. Along with rarity/scarcity it is the major factor in a card's value.

Graded Card As values increased the condition of cards and the determination of fakes and alterations became increasingly more important. Various companies became "graders" of your cards. For a fee they would grade your card (usually on a 1 to 10 scale) and then placed in a sealed plastic holder with labelling of the vital information.

From past experiences, most people are NOT HAPPY with the grades they receive. To keep values up, graders can be extremely picky. Things you don't see, they do so don't be surprized when the NEAR MINT card you send in ends up with an EX or EX/MINT grade.

There are TOO many grading companies - if you do, do choose carefully. PSA / SGC / GAI / BGS are some of the many companies. It is good to know that getting a card graded by a company that people do not recognize or respect will usually just cost you time and money and not help you in any way.

1958 Topps # 54 Norm Siebern ROOKIE (Yankees)

1952 Topps Baseball Cards Checklist & Values

1970 Chemtoy Superballs Checklist & Prices

Vintage Baseball Card Auction terminology

1952 Topps Baseball Cards
Checklist & Values

1970 Chemtoy Superballs
Checklist & Prices