Hank Aaron card values

[Exhibitman]

I don't think Aaron cards are undervalued; Mantle cards are overvalued. He benefits from being white and a Yankee during the Stengel era.

Williams' cards are little tougher to evaluate against the others, for two reasons:

1. His rookie cards were prewar and cannot really be compared with Topps and Bowman RCs in terms of availability, quality, etc.; and

2. He had an inordinate number of #1 (and last card in the set in 1954T) cards in the postwar era: 1954T, 1957T, 1958T. Mays had one that I can think of (1966), I don't think Mantle had any, and Aaron had 1 (1974).

[rats60]

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

I don't think Aaron cards are undervalued; Mantle cards are overvalued. He benefits from being white and a Yankee during the Stengel era.

I don't think Mantle cards are overvalued. I think 12 pennants and 7 championships in his first 14 seasons is why they are as high as they are. Mantle was the best player on most of those teams. I think the triple crown, 18 World Series Home Runs and monster seasons in 56, 57 and 61 made him a hero to even non Yankee fans collecting cards at that time. Those kids coming back to baseball card collecting in the 80s, that is what drove his values from a little more than other superstars to where they are today.

[ALR-bishop]

I am holding on to mine, just on the chance Rats is right

But Aaron too... in case everyone else is right

[MCoxon]

Even statistics can be subjective depending on what you're optimizing for (strength during peak years, longevity, accumulated stats, WAR, championships, etc)

A different question is: what would cause Aaron's values to move now, when all his stats are known? What new information would move his card prices:

1) A new movie? e.g., 61* and Maris, the recent Jackie Robinson movie
2) An assault on a record (e.g., when McGwire passed Maris in 1998 for HR, Maris got a bump in publicity. Mike Payne's book, published in 1999, showed at least 6 Maris cards)?
2) Death? e.g., Banks died, but I don't think we saw a big difference yet in Banks card prices (though I'm hoarding)
3) Scandal? Rose cards, I think, went down after his 1990 ban but I am not sure. They are surprisingly strong still.


Some players have gone up and down over time - why? Yaz and Carlton cards have fallen relatively over the past 20 years or so. I was reading old 1987 Beckett Monthly's this weekend (not that I'm proud of it). And I noticed some trends, which relate to this post.

Back in 1987, the early 1960s Yastrzemski cards were more expensive than Clemente, Mays, etc. cards for those years, even though they had all retired. Today, those Yaz cards are worth far less than the Clementes/Mays'.

Beckett Monthly Dec, 1987 - Beckett High value
1962 Topps: Yaz = $100, Mays = $40, Clemente = $18
1963 Fleer: Yaz = $18, Mays = $18, Clemente = $16
1964 Topps: Yaz = $32, Mays = $27, Clemente = $18


PSA SMR, Oct, 2015 - all cards PSA 7
1962 Topps: Yaz = $125, Mays = $325, Clemente = $155
1963 Fleer: Yaz = $70, Mays = $145, Clemente = $140
1964 Topps: Yaz = $45, Mays = $115 , Clemente = $165

Carlton cards moved similarly relatively down. why?

[tjenkins]

Originally Posted by MCoxon

Even statistics can be subjective depending on what you're optimizing for (strength during peak years, longevity, accumulated stats, WAR, championships, etc)

A different question is: what would cause Aaron's values to move now, when all his stats are known? What new information would move his card prices:

1) A new movie? e.g., 61* and Maris, the recent Jackie Robinson movie
2) An assault on a record (e.g., when McGwire passed Maris in 1998 for HR, Maris got a bump in publicity. Mike Payne's book, published in 1999, showed at least 6 Maris cards)?
2) Death? e.g., Banks died, but I don't think we saw a big difference yet in Banks card prices (though I'm hoarding)
3) Scandal? Rose cards, I think, went down after his 1990 ban but I am not sure. They are surprisingly strong still.


Some players have gone up and down over time - why? Yaz and Carlton cards have fallen relatively over the past 20 years or so. I was reading old 1987 Beckett Monthly's this weekend (not that I'm proud of it). And I noticed some trends, which relate to this post.

Back in 1987, the early 1960s Yastrzemski cards were more expensive than Clemente, Mays, etc. cards for those years, even though they had all retired. Today, those Yaz cards are worth far less than the Clementes/Mays'.

Beckett Monthly Dec, 1987 - Beckett High value
1962 Topps: Yaz = $100, Mays = $40, Clemente = $18
1963 Fleer: Yaz = $18, Mays = $18, Clemente = $16
1964 Topps: Yaz = $32, Mays = $27, Clemente = $18


PSA SMR, Oct, 2015 - all cards PSA 7
1962 Topps: Yaz = $125, Mays = $325, Clemente = $155
1963 Fleer: Yaz = $70, Mays = $145, Clemente = $140
1964 Topps: Yaz = $45, Mays = $115 , Clemente = $165

Carlton cards moved similarly relatively down. why?

Good stuff here!

[KCRfan1]

I agree, that is very good stuff and a great read. Far from being an expert in anything, I believe the values all lie in perception of the player. The stats of Yaz, Mays, and Clemente have been known all along in 1987. Yaz was freshly retired, and headed to the Hall in 1989. Everyone rode the wave of speculation. So, it's reasonable that his cards had a " bump " in price. Let's face it, in 1987, Clemente was no where revered as he is today. As the greatest Latin ball player, Clemente is viewed in the same manner as Jackie Robinson, in the Latin community. Clemente has an award named after him and gets daily press from ESPN through commercials and their baseball studio which is the 21 Zone I believe.

Not sure where the tide turned for Mays. Perhaps it was the All Century Team in 2009, but I suspect it was Barry Bonds run on the home run record and his close ties to Willie Mays that brought the stats back to everyones minds. Willie Mays stats were relevant again. Mays stole bases and hit home runs, so did Barry. It would be natural to compare the two players as they were both great ball players.

Mantle? It was the 50's, played CF for the Yankees, the heir to Joe D. There was the tradition, the lore, the championships, and Mantle was white. He was in the media capital of the world, and baseballs Golden Boy. And he could play. MVP's, Triple Crown. Mantle was in the right place at the right time, the stuff Legends are born from, Legends that never die.

Aaron really didn't have anything to keep him in the public eye. He may do appearances from time to time, but he's not in public that often. Again, I believe it's our perception of the player that will drive the value of their cards. Aaron did not play in media markets, did not receive new publicity during Bonds home run assault ( Mays did due to his ties to Bond's family ), and isn't revered as Jackie Robinson or Clemente.

Aarons cards, imo, are tremendously undervalued. Until perception changes, cards of the GOAT can be had for a fraction of other stars from the same era. And yes, I said GOAT. The top 5 players of all time are interchangeable, and arguments can be made for either of them as the greatest.

Some here will disagree, but as an open forum, we can agree to disagree.

[Exhibitman]

As Mantle cards have soared out to the stratosphere people are looking for alternatives to collect. Mays and Aaron would be next.

[Volod]

Originally Posted by MCoxon

Even statistics can be subjective depending on what you're optimizing for (strength during peak years, longevity, accumulated stats, WAR, championships, etc)

A different question is: what would cause Aaron's values to move now, when all his stats are known? What new information would move his card prices:

1) A new movie? e.g., 61* and Maris, the recent Jackie Robinson movie
2) An assault on a record (e.g., when McGwire passed Maris in 1998 for HR, Maris got a bump in publicity. Mike Payne's book, published in 1999, showed at least 6 Maris cards)?
2) Death? e.g., Banks died, but I don't think we saw a big difference yet in Banks card prices (though I'm hoarding)
3) Scandal? Rose cards, I think, went down after his 1990 ban but I am not sure. They are surprisingly strong still.


Some players have gone up and down over time - why? Yaz and Carlton cards have fallen relatively over the past 20 years or so. I was reading old 1987 Beckett Monthly's this weekend (not that I'm proud of it). And I noticed some trends, which relate to this post.

Back in 1987, the early 1960s Yastrzemski cards were more expensive than Clemente, Mays, etc. cards for those years, even though they had all retired. Today, those Yaz cards are worth far less than the Clementes/Mays'.

Beckett Monthly Dec, 1987 - Beckett High value
1962 Topps: Yaz = $100, Mays = $40, Clemente = $18
1963 Fleer: Yaz = $18, Mays = $18, Clemente = $16
1964 Topps: Yaz = $32, Mays = $27, Clemente = $18


PSA SMR, Oct, 2015 - all cards PSA 7
1962 Topps: Yaz = $125, Mays = $325, Clemente = $155
1963 Fleer: Yaz = $70, Mays = $145, Clemente = $140
1964 Topps: Yaz = $45, Mays = $115 , Clemente = $165

Carlton cards moved similarly relatively down. why?

Some tasty food for thought there, Mike, but, as a lit major, i have to admit that stats have always hit my palette as something like moldy pasteboard. Still, it's great fun to indulge in wild speculation about what drives wild speculation in pricing. My guess is that, in 1987, the Sox had just reached the finals for the first time in 12 years, so maybe Yaz was a bigger icon at that moment than Willie or Roberto, simply by his association with the Boston team. The Giants and Pirates at the time were perennial losers. As to Carlton, perhaps his values took a hit from the somewhat lackluster ending to his career, as he bounced from team to team in an attempt to hang on way past his prime. His overall reputation may have taken a hit with fans, contrasted with other greats, such as Gibson, or Koufax, who retired with more dignity. I imagine these theories can be shot down easily by statistical analyses, but i'm too lazy to do the dirty work.