Sunday, January 17, 2016

Recently Unearthed in the Christmas Haul

I'm not going to be around much this week to post anything or comment thanks to a work trip to San Francisco I have coming up this week. So, I thought I'd post a couple of highlights I found recently from that massive pile of binders I got for Christmas.

Yes, more.

First, I found three Brewers I needed for my team sets or my player collections:

The Ted Higuera was the surprise of the bunch, because I didn't think I needed any Studio. Funny thing though: if you look at the checklist for 1991 Studio Brewers, you don't see the name Ted Higuera. That's because this is a Studio Preview inserted into the 1991 Donruss set. Hell, I didn't even know I needed this.



It's just a Sneak Preview, after all. I don't speak German so I haven't the foggiest idea what ASD are rapping about there. But it's got a good beat and you can dance to it, so I'd give it a 78, Mr. Clark.



Okay, a few other cards I found were a bit more exciting. The first trio of cards popped up in a binder with "stars & Superstars" and, for a change, the title was accurate:




Considering that the guy who collected these cards originally was from Columbus, Georgia, and that he collected these cards in the early 1990s and after comparing these to certified exemplars, I'd guess these are the genuine article. I just wish that the previous owner had take more care not to smoke or leave the cards some place where the white cards can partially yellow.  Oh well -- it was free to me, after all.



And the closer to free, the better -- at least according to my fellow Wisconsinites, The BoDeans.

Then, finally, I found something interesting. It was a binder full of those "Front Row" draft pick sets from 1991 and 1992. Staring smugly out at me from the pages of the binder with his maroon high school uniform was this guy...twice:



The certification with each set said that each was one of "only" 5000 printed. 

These two cards have me wondering if I should undertake my first ever foray into a card grading shipment. It would be purely for purposes of resale -- I really don't care about Derek Jeter, after all. Recent versions graded 9 sold for north of $150, while ungraded versions sold for around $75.  

What do you guys think: should I give in to the money monster and re-sell them? Should I grade them first if I do that?

Or should I just hold on to them until Jeter is elected to the Hall of Fame in 2019/2020, thereby hitting a cycle of higher interest in him?



Let me know your thoughts below.

10 comments:

  1. Maybe grade and sell one now but after looking at Griffey cards lately waiting for the hall call may be smart. Great find on those Smoltzy autos, looks like his signature to me.

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    1. I'm leaning toward keeping them until then at this point.

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  2. A trio of Smoltz autos? Not bad. Good luck if you decide to grade the Jeters.

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  3. Tommy Emmanuel-love him! I say hold a Jeter and sell a Jeter. It's certainly a card I wish I owned. What a baby face. And what's that little tail of hair on the back of his head?? Great find!

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  4. I don't remember seeing a high school photo of His Jeterness before... Although I got a good laugh out of the Kalamazoo Central High School logo. Hmm, that "KC" looks kinda familiar. I wonder if anyone ever colorized one of those photos to give Jeter fans a "Royal" heart attack. :-)

    I'm far from an expert on these things, but I would hang on to the Jeters until he's back in the spotlight.

    I have a complete 1991 Studio set, but found out a year or two ago that the Previews set is an entirely different beast with some different people... I think Joe Torre is another one who's in Previews but not the set.

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    1. I think making him a Royal would be a perfect custom card for you to make!

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    1. I was shocked at how much those two loved the absolutely horrendous songs that they rated. And, I laughed at how they guaranteed that the second song was a big hit. Wrong!

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  6. If you want to grade the Jeters solely for the purpose of reselling them, you'd better do it before 2020 to capitalize on Jeter's induction into the HoF.

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  7. I'd say no to the grading. What would it cost to get those graded by Beckett or PSA $25 a pop or so? And then you better pray they grade 9 or better to get that realized return. I think if they are only going for double the price of a nrmt raw card I'd just sell them raw, but that's just me. As for holding on to them I'm no help. I mean of course Jeter's going into the Hall and more than likely first ballot, but yeah if you wait I'd wait till then if not now.

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