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#1
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: MurphyBrooks
I recently inherited a Zimmer's Baseball Game from 1893 in excellent condition (besides missing the bat it almost looks new - I'll post a picture tonight). I am not a collector, but from what my father told me I understand this game is very rare. My father picked it up at a farm auction maybe 20 years ago, and I know before he died he told a memoriabilia auctioneer he owned one, and the auctioneer didn't believe him! |
#2
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: Dan Bretta
The Zimmer game is exceedingly rare and valuable. It is the king of all baseball board games...I'm not sure what it would sell for nowadays, but it is surely in the 5 figures. Also not sure when the last one sold. |
#3
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: barrysloate
The Zimmer Game is the finest of all baseball board games, and the most valuable. It's hurts it somewhat that the bat is missing, but more importantly, how clean is the game's surface? Are all the player portraits clear? That is probably the most important factor. |
#4
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: Butch & Co.
Murphy, great item, thanks for the pics. It's in exceptionally nice shape, the broken bat notwithstanding -- that should be an easy and inexpensive bit of restoration, so it should have next to zero impact on any auction price. Whether Zimmer's is the finest of all games is very much a matter of taste and opinion (we'd say it's the T206 Wagner of games, with all that implies), but Barry's right, the overall condition is key and yours is exemplary. Five figures should be a shoo-in. |
#5
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: Corey R. Shanus
From the pictures the game appears to be in exceptionally fine condition. As to its value, it is a classic auction piece. To my knowledge there have been no transactions of high condition Zimmer games in a good several years. As noted, the bat should be restored. What impact that will have on its value is hard to say but IMO it will have some impact. The one Hunt sold some years ago for 27.5k, besides also being in exceptional condition (though not as nice as what your's appears to be) also I believe came with the box lid (and in very nice condition at that) which is very unusual. Shortly after the Hunt sale one sold privately (again in exceptional condition with the box lid and with some of the game pieces) for a price around what Hunt realized. |
#6
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: barrysloate
The condition of the board is exceptional, and I think the piece would do extremely well at auction. |
#7
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: Corey R. Shanus
I might add that missing the bat can from a certain perspective be regarded as having ADDED value to your game. Often times these games appear with tremendous wear around both the pitching and the batting mechanisms. After all, if was a game meant to be played and every time a ball was pitched or the bat swung a tiny bit of degragation was generated on the board service. Without the bat, the game could not be played thereby preventing this degragation from occuring. Yes, not having the bat will most likely reduce the price somewhat. But that reduction, due to the tremendous eye appeal of the board, IMO will probably be considerably less than the reduction had there been material wear on areas of the board surface. |
#8
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: Brock G.
That is a true treasure my friend. To think that game is some 115 years old and shows so little wear and has such vibrant colors is really amazing, especially considering it was intended to be played with. As Corey said, the fact that the bat is missing may be a blessing in disguise as it probably kept the game from being used much, in turn preserving its condition. Get the bat repleaced, send it to REA, and cash in on the small fortune its worth. Congrats. |
#9
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: MurphyBrooks
Thanks for the information everyone. |
#10
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: bruce Dorskind
This is an extraordinary piece of baseball history |
#11
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: Max Weder
All I can say is: what a great piece. Unbelievable. |
#12
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: CarltonHendricks
Congrats Murphy on a great piece, and $getting$ it into REA last minute…you’ve contributed some excitement to our hobby! We were just discussing Zimmers not long ago, in a Nov 9th 2007 string, link below: |
#13
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: John H.
Awesome piece! Congratulations and good luck in the auction. |
#14
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: Dan Bretta
Heh. Rob should be giving us a commission. How many items have been featured here by a newbie and directed to REA? |
#15
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: MurphyBrooks
Your responses and emails are the reason I gave it to REA...and the fact I work about half an hour from their office. |
#16
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: Dan Bretta
Well, you can't go wrong with REA. Your game is well out of my budget, but I look forward to watching it go off in the auction. |
#17
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: Joe K.
Murphy - Where do you work? I live in Westfield - a stones throw from REA. Maybe I can come over one night and we can play the game He He. That is if I can ever dig my car out from all this snow we are getting. |
#18
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: Jon Canfield
Joe - where is Westfield do you live? I lived there for a summer a few years back while finishing law school but now live in NYC. |
#19
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: MurphyBrooks
Ha - you need to visit REA if you want to play the game - I dropped it off with them yesterday. |
#20
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: Jeff W.
Just want to add that this board game is an incredible piece! Congrats and good luck with the auction. |
#21
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: Dan Bretta
Here's that video...it profiles our very own Bruce Dorskind who has already posted to this thread. |
#22
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: Rhett Yeakley
Funny how Dorskind doesn't speak in the royal "we" in person. What a great story about pulling a fast one over on the school teacher. I guess we all can't be "winners" like him. |
#23
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: Butch & Co.
It appears yet another previously undocumented example surfaced from the storeroom of an old home in Missouri just a couple of days ago, allegedly in "excellent" condition. Awaiting photos... |
#24
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: Jodi Birkholm
Is there something wrong with my eyes? I viewed the video of the Bruces and I swear, I'm seeing single! |
#25
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: howard
Bruce didn't pull a fast one on the school teacher. It took a four year campaign which should have been plenty of time for the guy to seek out someone willing to pay more. Furthermore, the school teacher actually got a higher return on the card than Bruce did. |
#26
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: Jim VB
Howard, |
#27
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: dennis
i wonder what year the bruces purchased the card? my guess it was longer than 20 years ago and maybe the teacher did shop the card around.remember even a 52 mantle was under a grand back then. $1400 for a family of 4 to fly it had to be awhile ago. |
#28
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: howard
Good point, Dennis. I'll also point out that the school teacher must have known that card had some value even before Bruce contacted him. Why else would news of the purchase have appeared in a newspaper/magazine article? Seems like it might have been him that pulled a fast one on the original seller. |
#29
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: Butch & Co.
Apologies for not following up more promptly on the news of the discovery of another example of Zimmer's Base Ball Game. We received photos from one of the owners, who asked us to post them on our own website. Indeed we have those posted there ("had" them posted, by the time most of you read this), and were just about to post a couple of those shots in this thread as well when the ownership contacted us again and asked us to remove them, thinking their presence might undermine the REA auction of Murphy's Zimmer's. |
#30
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Zimmer's Baseball Game
Posted By: barrysloate
It's a thoughtful decision to pull the game from your website, but the one in REA will do great either way. The appearance of two at the same time wouldn't have much of an effect on the realized price. |
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