Flash Market Report — What Old Baseball Cards Sold Big this Week? (6/17/2018)

Once upon a time, we thought that all baseball cards would go up in value forever.

Then came the market bust, and for years, it has seemed like our cards would never be worth anything.

Now, though, we know the truth is not so black-and-white.

Sure, there is plenty of “junk” out there that struggles to bring a few pennies per card, but there are plenty of BIG ticket baseball cards changing hands all the time.

And, while we may not be able to afford them ourselves, it sure is fun to live vicariously, isn’t it?

So, grab your cardboard dreams, sit back, and enjoy these tales from the vintage card market for June 17, 2018.

(Note that these listings contain 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.)

1949 Bowman Larry Doby Rookie Card PSA 8

For many years, Larry Doby was sort of a forgotten hero, but he has received a bit more of his due in recent times as the first black player in the American League.

Not only did he break the AL color barrier just a few months after Jackie Robinson made history for the Brooklyn Dodgers, but Doby appears on some incredible cardboard.

His 1951 Bowman, for example, is one of the most beautiful baseball cards ever.

This  1949 Bowman card is not quite in that caliber from a visual perspective, but it’s Doby’s rookie, and it grades a strong PSA 8.

Not a surprise, then, that this card brought in a final tally of $1150.

See the original eBay listing here (affiliate link).

1979 Topps Pete Rose PSA 10

That Doby card made its debut two years before Topps made their entry into the baseball card market and seven years before they tossed Bowman onto the scrapheap of history.

Near the other end of Topps’ long cardboard monopoly is this 1979 Pete Rose card that grades a perfect PSA 10.

Not only does this baby show a slashing Rose who was still prime even as he neared 40, it’s also the last card from his first go-round with the Cincinnati Reds.

Issued just two years before Fleer and Donruss crashed the Topps party, this Rose card can’t be considered scarce under normal circumstances.

But these aren’t normal circumstances — out of 1230 Roses graded by PSA, only 85 have achieved a GEM-MT score.

This specimen drew 26 bids and sold for a healthy $4051.

See the original eBay listing here (affiliate link).

2000 Superstars, Hall of Famers, Rookies, Commons from 1950s and 1960s

Awesome graded cards are, well, awesome, but I maintain there are two sights that make collectors’ mouths water like nothing else …

A pile of unopened stuff, from wax packs to rack packs to vending boxes to cases, and …

A pile of loose old cards where you can see a few stars or rookies poking out here and ther.

All the better if “old” is of the 1950s and 1960s vintage rather than just our own junk wax era.

And that’s exactly what this lot offers up — more than 2000 cards from the middle of the 20th century featuring names like Mickey Mantle, Sandy Koufax, Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, and Nolan Ryan (in rookie form, no less!).

Now, there are plenty of commons in the mix here, and these aren’t pristine, graded pasteboards like the beauties above, but man!

How can you not get cardboard hungry just looking at that big mess of greatness?

Thirty-two bidders felt the same way, and this lot sold for $2300+.

See the original eBay listing here (affiliate link).

1977 Topps Baseball Unopened Wax Box

This lot represents the other side of the most droolworthy stuff, and it’s the type of thing we dive into all the time on the Wow! Wax of the day.

The difference here is that this 1977 Topps baseball unopened wax box actually sold, and it brought in a cool $2950 on 21 bids.

That sounds pretty steep, but what is it worth to have the chance at pulling a perfect Dale Murphy or Andre Dawson rookie card?

Well … um … $2950, apparently.

See the original eBay listing here (affiliate link).

1967 Topps Baseball Vending Box (500 cards)

Like the 1977 wax box above, this lot also feeds our need for the unknown.

Fifty-one year old cards in a their original vending box? And 500 of them, at that? Yes, please!

This red, white, and blue Topps treasure sold for $1900, which comes out to about $4 a card.

In case you’re wondering, these are 1967 Topps Series I cards, so you might expect to find guys like Frank Robinson, Mickey Lolich, George Scott, Ron Santo, and Al Kaline in the mix.

See the original eBay listing here (affiliate link).

(Check out our other posts about card values here.)