Kit Kiefer was a former editor of Baseball Cards Magazine and the VP of Professional Hobby Consultants, so he knows a thing or two about sports cards. Here’s his list of the 10 most significant action photos of all time, in order of importance. Not bad, huh?
The list was part of a much longer article in the February 1997 issue of Sports Card Magazine, in which he mentioned that “action photos on sports cards were non existent for the first 100 years, but today they are as common as a new pack of cards.”
In terms of popularity, you have to consider adding the 1991 Topps Carlton Fisk card featuring Cecil Fielder barreling toward him; here’s the Desert Shield version (4 Sharp Corners was offering it on eBay for $759 in November 2024).
After the success of their baseball set in 1989, Upper Deck jumped into the hockey card market with a 1990-91 release that they promoted with cards of Wayne Gretzky and Patrick Roy (cards 241A and 241B). However, just as they did with baseball, Upper Deck also promoted their hockey set in the early 90s with serial-numbered commemorative sheets. Hockey didn’t have an established Old-Timer Series for Upper Deck to sponsor and highlight their cards through, so they predominantly distributed these sheets at NHL games. In this article, I’ll highlight four Upper Deck Hockey Commemorative Sheet sets.
1990-91 Upper Deck Hockey Commemorative Sheets
TCDB lists 11 total blank-backed 8 1/2″ x 11″ commemorative sheets in its checklist for this “set” of sheets. Upper Deck distributed them at various NHL games to promote their first hockey set. They’re all serial-numbered.
Upper Deck released the first sheet at the game between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Detroit Red Wings on November 17, 1990.
1990-91 Upper Deck Hockey Commemorative Sheet – Maple Leafs Vs. Red Wings
Here are a few other examples.
1990-91 Upper Deck Hockey Commemorative Sheet – Rangers vs. Whalers
1990-91 Upper Deck Hockey Commemorative Sheet – Blues vs. Sabres
Upper Deck released two sheets as part of the 42nd NHL All-Star Game at Chicago Stadium on January 19, 1991, as well.
1990-91 Upper Deck Hockey Commemorative Sheet – Provence of Wales Conference All-Stars
There was also a sheet dated June 21, 1991, to honor “six players selected by the Professional Hockey Writer’s Association as the most proficient at their respective positions in their first year of competitions in the National Hockey League.” Given the date, I’m unsure how Upper Deck distributed this sheet. Notice the gold emblem in the lower right corner doesn’t have a 1990/1991 date like the others; it’s a 1991 Limited Edition Collector Series Sheet.
1990-91 Upper Deck Hockey Commemorative Sheet – 1990-91 NHL/UD All-Rookie Team
1991-92 Upper Deck Hockey Promotional Sheets
TCDB lists the 1991-92 Upper Deck sheets as Promotional rather than Commemorative Sheets for some reason, so I’ll stick with that for the section heading, but the concept was the same as the previous series of sheets. However, there appear to be 19 different ones that were used to promote the 1991-92 set.
Here are a pair of examples: one used as a promotion at the Flames vs. Rangers game on November 4, 1991, and another that was used at the Rangers vs. Capital game on February 7, 1992.
1991-92 Upper Deck Hockey Promotional Sheet – Flames Vs. Rangers
1991-92 Upper Deck Hockey Promotional Sheet – Rangers Vs. Capitals
And while I mentioned that Upper Deck didn’t sponsor a Heroes of Hockey Series as they did in Baseball, this year, there was an Alumni Heroes of Hockey game that was played on January 17, 1992, between the 1974/75 Stanley Cup Champion Flyers and a team of legendary NGL stars the day before the 43rd NHL All-Star Game.
1991-92 Upper Deck Hockey Promotional Sheet – Philadelphia Heroes of Hockey vs. NHL Heroes of Hockey
The next night, on January 18, Upper Deck distributed sheets honoring the Wales and Campbell Conference All-Star Teams.
1991-92 Upper Deck Hockey Promotional Sheet – All-Star Teams
1992-93 Upper Deck Hockey Commemorative Sheets
There are 17 items listed in TCDB’s checklist of Upper Deck Commemorative sheets used to promote the 1992-93 hockey set. The majority were given away at NHL games; again, there was a pair for Campbell and Wales All-Stars, but there was also one for the 1991-92 Upper Deck All-Rookie Team, a Hockey Heroes pair for Gordie Howe, and one for the New York Rangers as the Defending NHL Regular Season Champions. Here are a few examples.
1992-93 Upper Deck Hockey Commemorative Sheet – Blackhawks Vs. Red Wings
1992-93 Upper Deck Hockey Commemorative Sheet – 1991-92 NHL/UD All-Rookie Team
1992-93 Upper Deck Hockey Commemorative Sheet – Gordie Howe Birthday Tour
1992-93 Upper Deck Hockey Commemorative Sheet – All-Star Teams
1992-93 Upper Deck Hockey Wayne Gretzky Hockey Heroes Commemorative Sheet
The Gretzky Heroes sheet wasn’t available at a game; it was a mail-in wrapper redemption that numbered to 29166.
1992-93 Upper Deck Hockey Wayne Gretzky Hockey Heroes Commemorative Sheet
The terms required users to send a sheet offer card, 15 foil pack wrappers from’ 92-93 Low Series Hockey, and $2.95 via check or money order to:
Wayne Gretzky Hockey Heroes Commemorative Sheet Offer – Front and Back
There was a series of Hockey Heroes: Wayne Gretzky cards inserted in Low Series packs at a rate of 1:18.
Conclusion
Just like the baseball sheets, the Upper Deck hockey commemorative sheets can each be picked up for just a few dollars; however, a few examples exist (like the Gordie Howe pictured above) that are signed, which will cost quite a bit more. I suspect there aren’t a lot of collectors who have tracked down all 48 Upper Deck hockey sheets; it would make for an incredible collection to view in a binder. Now, don’t forget to come back to the site so you don’t miss the next two parts of this series on Upper Deck Sheets. The basketball and football sheets come out next!
Whenever there’s a market, there are cheaters. This piece was written by Rocky Landsverk and published in the April 1997 issue of Sports Card Magazine. It provides a fantastic 101 on spotting 1951/52 Parkhurst fakes that hit the market in the mid to late ’80s.
To reiterate, look for the creases in the illustration, dot patterns using a magnifying glass, and the smoothness of the cardboard backs.
Ryan Nolan’s book Spotting Fakes has a section on the 1951 Parkhurst Gordie Howe card; on the fakes, he says:
the colon after born is missing
equal thickness and color borders left and right
red lettering at the bottom is thicker
many reprints have this bottom red lettering as black text
many reprints also have a really dark background
don’t expect a perfect card, very few copies exist in a high grade
Unfortunately, Bob Lemke and Sally Grace’s Sportscard Counterfeit Detector doesn’t specifically include any vintage hockey cards printed before Gretzky’s 1979/80 OPC RC. However, it has so much other solid advice; it’s definitely worth buying.
With their 1989 baseball set, Upper Deck brought the hobby its first premium product. They backed that up with another innovation in 1990 with the first major chase card. But Upper Deck also innovated in how they marketed their products. All the major brands put ads in hobby publications and sports magazines along with providing sell sheets and pamphlets directly to dealers, but Upper Deck decided to target collectors directly in another way by distributing promotional/commemorative sheets.
This article kicks off a four-part series dedicated to these Upper Deck sheets, starting with those for baseball sets (later, I’ll cover hockey, basketball, and football sheets). There are two categories when it comes to baseball. In 1989 and 1990, Upper Deck provided Limited Edition Commemorative Sheets at card shows, announcing their entrance to the hobby, while from 1991-1994, they had commemorative sheets and Heroes of Baseball sheets that they distributed at sporting events. They’re all ~8 1/2″ x 11″ and blank-backed.
In 1989, Upper Deck distributed a pair of Limited Edition Commemorative Sheets at two events to promote their first set. The first was at the 10th National Sports Collectors Convention in Chicago, held from June 29 – July 2. The sheets are numbered out of 25k.
Upper Deck gave out the other sheet at the National Candy Wholesalers Association Exposition in Washington, D.C., between July 27 and 29. This sheet is scarcer and costlier (probably because it includes the Ken Griffey Jr. card photo) than the NSCC one.
And a final version, and the toughest to track down, was available at the 1990 All-American Sports Collectors Convention, August 31-September 3, in San Francisco, CA.
Around this time, The Upper Deck Company replaced Equitable Financial Companies as the sponsor of Baseball’s Old-Timer Series – which was renamed the Heroes of Baseball Series.
The following article from The Journal Times in Racine, Wisconsin, from February 1991, explains that the 1991 24-game exhibition series benefits the Baseball Assistance Team (BAT) and that Upper Deck would donate $10k to BAT for each of the Heroes of Baseball games that were set to begin on April 14.
Old Timers Series Renamed
So the next Upper Deck sheet is this single version dedicated to BAT, the Foundation of Baseball, and is numbered to 1500. Notice that it’s dated to 1991 on the seal.
1991 Upper Deck Commemorative Sheet
1991 Upper Deck Heroes of Baseball Sheets
TCDB lists 23 total sheets in the 1991 Upper Deck Heroes of Baseball Sheet series, including two cover sheet versions with the schedule. One is numbered to 10k, the other to 20k, and both feature the same Reggie Jackson Heroes of Baseball card. The seal has a 1991 date, but the Upper Deck logo says 90/91.
1991 Upper Deck Heroes of Baseball Sheet – Cover Sheet Version 1
The rest of the items were distributed at various events throughout the year. Interestingly, and perhaps it was based on expected attendance, the sheets are numbered to different totals. Here are a few examples.
1991 Upper Deck Heroes of Baseball Sheet – Battle of Missouri
1991 Upper Deck Heroes of Baseball Sheet – 1971 Pirates vs. Orioles
1991 Upper Deck Heroes of Baseball Sheet – A Tribute to Joe DiMaggio & Ted Williams
1992 Upper Deck Commemorative Sheets
TCDB describes this series of five 1992 commemorative sheets as those distributed at Upper Deck-sponsored events but doesn’t include the Heroes of Baseball series, which they listed separately. The five events were the Yankees Second Annual Fan Festival (Jan/Feb 1992), Opening Day at Oriole Park at Camden Yards (April 6, 1992), two versions were available at the All-Star FanFest in July 1992, and the last version honored the Atlanta Braves 1991-1992 Back-to-Back National League Champions.
1992 Upper Deck Commemorative Sheet – Yankees Fan Fest
1992 Upper Deck Commemorative Sheet – Opening Da at Camden Yards
1992 Upper Deck Heroes of Baseball Commemorative Sheets
The following article from the Tampa Bay Times, from February 1992, explains that in 1992, the Upper Deck Heroes of Baseball “tour” would be visiting all 26 stadiums plus Mile High Stadium (the original home of the Rockies who would join MLB the following season). Again, Upper Deck Co. donated $10k to BAT for each game.
Old-timers – Tampa Bay Times
TCDB lists 31 items in their checklist for this series of sheets. Here are a few examples, and again, serial numbering varied.
1992 Upper Deck Heroes of Baseball Commemorative Sheet – The 200 Club
1993 Upper Deck Heroes of Baseball Sheets
Again, Upper Deck gave these sheets away during the Heroes of Baseball Tour. The checklist on TCDB includes 27 blank-backed sheets that again have varied serial numbering.
1993 Upper Deck Heroes of Baseball Sheet – Inaugural Season
1993 Upper Deck Heroes of Baseball Sheet – May 15, 1993
1993 Upper Deck Heroes of Baseball Sheet – A Tribute to Billy Martin
1994 Upper Deck Heroes of Baseball Sheets
The following article from the Journal News in White Plains, NY (March 1994) explains that Upper Deck was now donating $225k for every Heroes of Baseball game played to BAT and that in 1993, they donated $300k.
Sports Collecting – Journal News
TCDB’s checklist includes just eight sheets in 1994 that the article explains Upper Deck gave away to every fan attending the various games.
1994 Upper Deck Heroes of Baseball Sheet – Brewers Silver Anniversary Season
1994 Upper Deck Heroes of Baseball Sheet – Hollywood Softball Game
I’m unsure what happened to the Hereos of Baseball series; Wikipedia implies the final game was played in June 1995 at Dodgers Stadium. And while the following ad from the LA Times from Tuesday, June 6, 1995, still includes Upper Deck’s sponsorship, the advertisement shares regular Dodgers games and the Saturday game against the Phillies at 7:35 (that they lost 3-0). I’m unsure if there was a Heroes game before the first pitch or if it was just a sponsored night where stars of the past appeared. Commemorative sheets aren’t mentioned in the ad for the Saturday game, and I haven’t found any from years after 1994.
Upper Deck Heroes of Baseball Night Ad – LA Times
Conclusion
You can find most of these Upper Deck baseball commemorative sheets for just a few dollars, but they hold a lot of historical value to the hobby and baseball. So whether you’re an Upper Deck card collector or just looking to make a display piece, these sheets would be an excellent way to spice up a collection or hobby cave. Ultimately, they’re a fantastic journey through Upper Deck’s contribution to the sports card industry. Don’t forget to revisit the blog over the next few days since I’ll be covering Upper Deck’s hockey, basketball, and football commemorative sheets, too.
Scott Kelnhofer wrote an excellent article about World Series programs in the February 1997 issue of Sports Cards Magazine. The article referenced a “Market Report” later in the magazine, which included the following Top Ten list: cool, huh?
Here’s the article and the complete Market Report page. I’ve never been a program collector, so it’s interesting to me that pre and post-1974 issues separate the niche:
Now, let’s see what these programs cost today:
1927 Yankees vs. Pirates: ~$2k
1956 Yankees vs. Dodgers: ~$225
1969 Mets vs. Orioles: ~$200
1955 Dodgers vs. Yankees: ~$200
1973 Athletics vs. Mets: ~$25
1919 Reds vs. White Sox: ~$3k
1978 Yankees vs. Dodgers: ~$20
1975 Reds vs. Red Sox: ~$20
1959 Dodgers vs. White Sox: ~$50
1960 Pirates vs. Yankees: ~$30
My favorite is the 1965 ‘Out of this World’ Series program.
This article marks the conclusion of my series on collector issues, which began a few weeks ago with my look at Mike Aronstein and TCMA and was followed by an article about Larry Fritsch. This week, I’ll be looking at Mike Cramer, who, as T.S. O’Connell wrote, “parlayed his initial foray into minor league cards and collector issues into full-fledged licenses with baseball, football, and hockey. In other words, a collector-issue company became one of the big boys, no small feat when considering the size of some of his competitors.”
Hobby Figure Mike Cramer
Cramer was a fan of baseball cards from an early age. The details for his book Cramer’s Choice: Memoir of a Baseball Card Collector Turned Manufacturer note that before high school, he had a mail-order trading card business before founding Pacific Trading Cards.
Cramer’s Choice Book Cover
In his early days, Cramer would buy vending cases of Topps baseball cards and collate sets from them. In a Sports Collectors Daily article, he shared that his wife Cheryl did a lot of the work while he was off crab fishing to make money.
After doing this for a while, Cramer started making his own sets and also innovated collecting a bit around that time. They produced plastic sheets to put cards in binders and cardboard boxes designed for cards.
Key Mike Cramer Collector Issues
Before getting those big licenses with the major sports leagues, Cramer got his start with a few minor league sets and Baseball Legends releases.
1975 Phoenix Giants Minor League Set
1975 Circle K Phoenix Giants Michael J. Cramer
It seems Cramer actually produced a few different sets for the Phoenix Giants, but his first is cataloged as the Circle K Phoenix Giants set and included a card of Cramer from the Phoenix Giants thanking him for his work in helping produce the card set. It added that his collection had almost half a million cards!
A search on TCDB also turned up a 1976 Cramer Phoenix Giants set that included a sponsorship from CocaCola.
1976 Cramer Phoenix Giants Horace Speed
Some of his other late 70s minor league sets included ones for the Seattle Rainiers, Tucson Toros, Salt Lake City Gulls, Spokane Indians, Tucson Toros, Albuquerque Dukes, Tacoma Yankees, and Hawaii Islanders.
1980-83 Baseball Legends
1980 Cramer Baseball Legends #5 Joe DiMaggio
From a collector issue perspective, Cramer is probably best known for the four Baseball Legends sets he released between 1980 and 1983. The cards have a sepia-toned photo on the front with a black frame. The backs are brown and include personal data, stats, and career summary. The key cards across the series include Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, Jackie Robinson’s portrait card, Roberto Clemente, Ted Williams, and Joe Jackson.
Each series had 30 cards, but the 124-card total comes from the four fourth series cards Cramer printed on this box in 1986.
Baseball Legends Box Bottom
Baseball Legends Box Top
Notice the ad for Pacific Trading Collector Sheets on the wrapper! The wrapper and box have a 1985 copyright, but I usually see them advertised as a 1986 product.
Baseball Legends Wax Wrapper
Cramer would develop another series of Baseball Legends cards from 1988-90 under the Pacific name that were printed in color.
Conclusion and Further Reading
Along with Mike Aronstein and Larry Fritsch, Mike Cramer was pivotal in moving the hobby forward since they were creating many of their now-famous collector issues at a time when Topps had their monopoly. However, the role of collector issues slowly diminished after 1981 when three major companies, Donruss, Fleer, and Topps, started competing to produce the most popular cards. Given the current market consolidation under Fanatics, one has to wonder if the hobby might need collector issues again.
The Halper Collection is pretty legendary, but it’s also shrouded in controversy due to some fake/counterfeit items. I’ve hesitated diving deep into it for that reason. However, rediscovering a March 1997 Sports Card Magazine article on the collection gives me a great baseline from which to start on the blog moving forward.
