Here Come the All-Stars! Droolworthy Baseball Cards for July 13, 2018

We’re just a couple of days away from the 2018 All-Star break now, and the MLB trade rumor mill is really heating up.

Maybe more than any other time of year, our minds are on the top stars in the game.

And what better way to get in a star groove than with some superstar baseball cards?

You’ll find plenty all-time greats among our droolworthy lots this week, as well as a few other amazing goodies.

So get ready for some ballpark fireworks and dive into these incredible listings from the week ending July 13, 2018.

(Note that this post contains affiliate links, which means if you click over to eBay and buy something, I’ll receive a small commission at no extra charge to you.)

1975 Topps Robin Yount Rookie Card Wrong Back

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There is no denying that the 1975 Topps Robin Yount rookie card is one of the premier baseball cards of the 1970s. Along with the George Brett rookie from the same year, the Yount rookie drove decades of price growth and exploding interest in the Chiclet-like 1975 set.

Not surprising, either, given Yount’s status as a two-time American League MVP, a member of the 3000-Hit Club, and a first-ballot Hall of Famer.

And when there is something extra special about a particular Yount rookie, you can expect to pay extra, too.

I mean, a PSA 10 Yount or a cherry mini version of the card will always bring a premium.

But what about a wrong-back — say, a Yount rookie front with … I don’t know … a Frank Duffy back? Would that be worth more or less than a “regular” Yount rookie?

How about if it has a Beckett grade of 7 (near mint)?

Then how much would you pay?

Well, if you want to buy-it-now, you’ll pay $9999.

Or Best Offer.

I’m thinking Best Offer will take this one, but it is a very cool card.

Here is the eBay listing (affiliate link).

1957 Topps Baseball Uncut Sheet (55 Cards) — Mickey Mantle, Warren Spahn, Ted Kluszewski

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Ask ten collectors what they consider to be the most beautiful baseball card set of all time and … well … you’ll probably get ten different answers.

But show those same ten collectors a stack of 1957 Topps baseball cards, and ten jaws will drop in unison.

The only people who don’t think these things are gorgeous are bitter descendants of 1950s Bowman employees and folks who are just chronically wrong.

Like Pepsi or Chevy people.

Those guys.

Not only does this lot bring you 55 of the 1957 Topps beauties, but it brings them to you in uncut sheet fashion. Are you kidding me?

The sheet is pretty packed with stars, too — Mickey Mantle, Warren Spahn, Ted Kluszewski, and … um … a combo of William Harridge and Warren Giles looking for all the world like a beardless Colonel Sanders and Dick Cheney.

And to top it all off  — for me at least — this sheet includes Jim Gilliam, maybe the best dadgum baseball card of the entire 1950s!

Here is the eBay listing (affiliate link).

1974 Topps Deckle Edge Uncut Sheet

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In 1974, Topps issued all their base cards in one shot for the first time ever.

Freed from the fetters of multiple series, Topps was free to invest their time and energy into creative endeavors.

One of those undertakings was a set of Topps Baseball Photos that showcased 72 players on sorta artsy black-and-white photos with facsimile blue autographs and scalloped edges.

Those uneven borders led to a nickname that stuck — Deckle Edge.

Oh yeah … the 1974 Deckles were a limited test issue that most experts think were limited to release in Massachussetts. That scarcity has led to pretty hefty prices over the years and planty of collector interest.

No wonder, then, that this framed uncut sheet of 36 Deckle Edges carries a Buy-It-Now price of just under five grand.

Of course, the interesting thing about the sheet is that the uncut nature of the thing renders the actual deckles indistinguishible.

Oh well … c’est la vie!

Here is the eBay listing (affiliate link).

1962 Topps Baseball Near Complete Set

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There are a handful of polarizing baseball card sets that are almost impossible to be ambivalent about.

The black-bordered 1971 Topps set.

The psyhedelic 1972 Topps set.

The burlap 1968 Topps set.

And, maybe the original divider of men, the woodgrained 1962 Topps set.

Especially during the early years of the hobby boom in the 1980s, collectors seemed to either love or hate these things. When Topps resurrected the design in 1987, though, both sets took on a the aroma of true classics.

For me, the 1962 set was always classic and high on my list of sets I’d love to own someday.

I never did reach that goal, but this eBay lot gives some lucky and fiscally liquid collector the chance to grab most of the set in solid shape.

Now, there are some key cards missing, like Mickey Mantle and the Gaylord Perry rookie card, but, hey — four grand doesn’t go as far as it used to.

Plus, the 24-card gap leaves you a challenge to tackle.

Here is the eBay listing (affiliate link).

1956 Topps Baseball Card Empty Wax Pack Display Box

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Mickey Mantle called 1956 his favorite summer, and he even wrote a book about his love affair with that particular season.

Winning a Triple Crown tends to help you form those sorts of strong associations, I suppose.

Meanwhile, collectors were dealing with the aftermath of Topps’ victory over Bowman in the baseball card wars.

Luckily, the only game in town — 1956 Topps — was a classic set that was imminently worthy of Mantle’s signature season and of carrying the torch in the first year of the quarter-century Topps monopoly.

While this eBay lot doesn’t give you access to any actual cards, it definitely gives you a whiff of the essence of that long-ago Golden Age of baseball and baseball cards.

This empty box is the same sort you might have found at your corner drugstore late that summer, maybe on your way home from that first miserable day back at school.

Endless days playing baseball in the backyard or on the deadend street were gone.

The ice cream truck was gone.

The parades and fireworks and fishin’ holes were gone.

The baseball cards were gone.

Summer was gone.

But this glorious box remained.

Here is the eBay listing (affiliate link).

Check out our other posts detailing baseball cards for sale here.