1934-36 Batter-Ups

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Posted By: Chris Counts

I have a couple questions about this set ...

1) I presume only low numbers come in different colors; are all low numbers available in multiple colors or only certain cards? Also, are certain colors rarer than others? For every red card I find, it seems like I see a half dozen or more magenta cards. I don't see as many greens or blues as well, but reds seem to be the scarcest. Any thoughts?

2) Were the high numbers released in 1936? The uniforms of certain teams would seem to indicate that. And how rare are they? The few available on eBay aren't cheap!

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Posted By: Mike Campbell

Cards 1 to 80 were issued in 1934 while card numbers. 81 to 192 were issued in 1936 and in a smaller width, and in fewer numbers which accounts for the higher prices. All cards come in all colors. I have seen pink,(or magenta) light blue, light green, and a sepia type color. But never red. I have seen gray also. I have always found the lower numbers to have more of the light pink, than the high numbers, which would make them more common. Other than that anomaly, I have not found any one color to be more common than another. I have both Foxx's in grade 7, with the low number being a grey, and the high being the light brown or sepia as they call it.

Maybe someone else who specializes in these can add more to this thread. But these have been my observations.

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Posted By: Chris Counts

Thanks for the info, Mike. I'm pretty sure the red tint cards do exist. While I have seen magenta cards that range in shade from light pink to purple, I have also seen what appear to be red cards. Here is a link to a card Mike Wheat is currently offering ...

1934 Batter-Up of Al Lopez

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Posted By: Mike Campbell

We all know Mike Wheat is as reputable as they get. I have not seen this color before. It must be a variation of one of the others, or maybe it is faded. Or maybe I just have never seen that color before. Something new everyday. Good luck in your quest. I do love the batter ups. To find them in grades 5 or up, is very tough. Obviously not only did they suffer the same fate as all other cards, but they were folded and stood. two strikes against them.

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Posted By: Brad Green

Here are 5 of the 6 colors that Lefty's low-number card comes in. I believe the six colors are blue, green, brown, sepia, red and purple. I'm missing only the brown, which is really hard to distinguish from the sepia. IMO, the red, purple and green are the scarcest. The blue and brown/sepia are the most abundant. I just have a hard time telling the brown and sepia apart.

I have only seen Lefty's high-number card in black.

It's also interesting to point out that all of Lefty's cards have the two print lines on his belly and right arm. Those two lines are also on the original picture that was used for this card.

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Posted By: Chris Counts

Brad,

Wow! Thanks for the great scans of Lefty Grove. I believe it's safe to say that the red card is not a variation of magenta. I've been searching eBay for Batter-ups the past few months, and I've been surprised at how many magenta cards I've seen. Just now, I did a quick survey of Batter-ups on eBay. I looked at about 150 cards and I came up with the following numbers of color cards ...

green — 1
red — 1
magenta — 10
blue — 5

It's was difficult on eBay to tell the difference between the b&ws and sepias, but most cards I looked at were one or the other. But I continued to find more magentas than the other three colors combined. I also saw about 30 high numbers, all of which appear to have a slightly brown tint, but not quite sepia. I don't believe I've seen a high number in another color. Could the color cards — especially the red and green — be harder to find than even the high numbers?

I consider Batter-ups to be an underrated set. The poses are fantastic and the images ultimately more realistic-looking than the Goudeys and Diamond Stars of the same era. Plus, the stars in particular are far more affordable than their counterparts, especially in the Goudey sets. I recently picked up a moderately-worn Hubbell for $30 at a show in the Bay Area — if it had been a '33 Goudey in the same shape I would have paid over $100 ...

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Posted By: Brad Green

Here is Lefty's high-number card. As I said above, I have never seen this card in a different color than this one.

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Posted By: identify7

Chris: The batter up cards offer several advantages over their competitors. But, in my opinion, their competitors also offer many advantages as well. Specifically, the main duotone cards which I focus on are those of the Exhibit Supplt Co. (please see Lipsett Auction Lot #213), and related cards termed w517.

The w517s comprise a greater variety of duotone colors than the others, while the Exhibits have colors which are most striking.

Regarding Batter Ups, the colors available for the low numbered series are defined on the Old Cardboard website, with the possible inclusion of a grey tint. As far as the higher numbered series, the colors available are often more subtle and more integrated. I recently lost a bid on a card which was primarilly grey, but included purple highlights. I own cards which could be accurately described as forest green, and steel blue with tan highlights. I own other high number batter ups which exhibit less attractive coloration - but by no means are high number batter ups only available in black and white.

As shown by Brad Green above, it makes for a relatively tremendous presentation the assembly of multiple colors for a single card. This is the point of the Lipsett Lot #213 (I am not the seller). This can be achieved with the most number of (color variety) cards if you choose the w517 option.

However, if you prefer batter ups, you can select a player who exists in both the high and low numbered series, although likely in different poses.

Edited to add: And there are some serious collectors of this material. I can only imagine what their collections include, and what their awareness level is.

I recently had a friend buy an entire set of w517s. He was impressed with the colors. The next thing he purchased was a partial set of w517s.

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Posted By: jay behrens

My Hornsby is somewhat dirty and can't tell if it's red or magenta.



Jay

I'm incompetent at being incontenent.