UD Griffey what is going on

[Peter_Spaeth]

PSA 10s appear to be going close to ..... 4K?????? Meanwhile, 10s of Randy Johnson -- probably a better pitcher than Griffey was a hitter, honestly, arguably top 10 of all time -- sell for 150. Bubble? Market manipulation?

[jchcollins]

I don’t know. There are about a trillion Griffey‘s out there. But it’s long been considered one of the iconic cards of the hobby.

The ‘89 UD Randy Johnson is not.


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[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by jchcollins

I don’t know. There are about a trillion Griffey‘s out there. But it’s long been considered one of the iconic cards of the hobby.

The ‘89 UD Randy Johnson is not.


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Sure but you can now buy 25 Johnsons for the price of one Griffey.

[bk400]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

Sure but you can now buy 25 Johnsons for the price of one Griffey.

Is there a large and loyal community of Randy Johnson collectors? At $150, his PSA 10 are priced the same as my Mookie Wilson 1981 PSA 10s. Don't get me wrong, Mookie Wilson is super awesome and is a top 5 all-time Met, but he doesn't have Randy Johnson's counting stats.

[OhioLawyerF5]

Card prices are often not driven by best career stats. Sure Johnson was better than Griffey as far as overall career goes. And Hank Aaron (and many others, take your pick) was better than Mantle as far as careers go. But there are a whole lot more Mantle and Griffey collectors than Aaron and Johnson for reasons other than just statistics. Throw in that the iconic nature of some cards increases demand and price exponentially, and you get a second year Mantle or a junk wax airbrushed Griffey rookie that sell for many times what other comparable cards sell for. It's supply and demand. Every collector wants a Griffey in their collection, if for no other reason than nostalgia over what that card used to be in the hobby. Just like a Mattingly or Canseco rookie. But there is no nostalgia for a Johnson rookie.

[Rich Klein]

The 1989 Upper Deck Griffey is considered an iconic card, almost from the day it first appeared in 1989. For many years, the kids of that era longed for that card to be the cornerstone of their collection.

Great as Randy Johnson was as a pitcher, he's never been considered a cornerstone collector card.

Plus, remember Griffey was an advertisers dream in the 1990's when our current generation of collectors were kids. RJ not so much.

Sometimes, yes, it is that simple.

Rich

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by OhioLawyerF5

Card prices are often not driven by best career stats. Sure Johnson was better than Griffey as far as overall career goes. And Hank Aaron (and many others, take your pick) was better than Mantle as far as careers go. But there are a whole lot more Mantle and Griffey collectors than Aaron and Johnson for reasons other than just statistics. Throw in that the iconic nature of some cards increases demand and price exponentially, and you get a second year Mantle or a junk wax airbrushed Griffey rookie that sell for many times what other comparable cards sell for. It's supply and demand. Every collector wants a Griffey in their collection, if for no other reason than nostalgia over what that card used to be in the hobby. Just like a Mattingly or Canseco rookie. But there is no nostalgia for a Johnson rookie.

For sure, I understand why there is a large gap, 25x just seemed rather astonishing when the second card is the RC of an all time great.

[OhioLawyerF5]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

For sure, I understand why there is a large gap, 25x just seemed rather astonishing when the second card is the RC of an all time great.

Yeah, it's hard to rationalize. When it comes to base cards, especially junk wax base cards, the supply is virtually endless. It takes incredible demand to overcome the supply. So only the iconic of the iconic can break through. But once they break through, and demand outpaces supply, the sky is the limit, because everybody wants the iconic and will fight each other for them, even when there are 4,000 floating around in a PSA 10 holder.

[Brent G.]

Originally Posted by OhioLawyerF5

Yeah, it's hard to rationalize. When it comes to base cards, especially junk wax base cards, the supply is virtually endless. It takes incredible demand to overcome the supply. So only the iconic of the iconic can break through. But once they break through, and demand outpaces supply, the sky is the limit, because everybody wants the iconic and will fight each other for them, even when there are 4,000 floating around in a PSA 10 holder.

179,000 graded copies — crazy. Anyone know what the #2 all-time graded card is? McGwire '85 Topps?

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by Brent G.

179,000 graded copies — crazy. Anyone know what the #2 all-time graded card is? McGwire '85 Topps?

I would guess 1989 Fleer or Topps Traded Griffey or some Pokemon thing.

[Balticfox]

Originally Posted by Brent G.

179,000 graded copies — crazy.

I've never been able to understand why/how collectors are willing to pay up for cards in plentiful supply. I just say "No!" when a surfeit of demand acts to push a card up to silly prices.