Baseball Hall of Fame Rookie Cards Discussion

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Originally Posted by Lorewalker

Always a great topic when this has been discussed. There have been a couple of great threads on this. For pre-war issues I am just not sure there will ever be a consensus even if an appointed and respected group of people laid down the law.

I think Phil has put a great deal of thought into this and is far more of an expert on this than I am but I have a very liberal view on what a rookie card is in the pre-war category. I think it frustrates each of Phil's parameters, in fact. I am not a rookie card collector but when I am seeking a rookie card it is pretty much the earliest appearance by that player that was intended to be distributed for sale or to advertise or promote the player, a product or the team he played for so that item does not have to be a traditional card but preferably made of paper. Size and population would be irrelevant.

You crushed it with this answer!!

If anyone is interested in the most current and up-to-date checklist (with images) of the earliest “cards” for each and every Cooperstown HOFer, please check out my website:

https://imageevent.com/derekgranger/hofearliest

It’s still a work in progress, but it certainly allows people with differing views of what constitutes a “rookie” or what constitutes a “card” to find the item that’s right for them. Feel free to contact me directly with proposed updates or with scans/photos I might be missing.