Do you have a favorite “other” player from famous rookie cards? Can’t think of any? Well, Jon Brecka broke down some of the best in this great piece from the August 1995 issue of Trading Cards Magazine.
Happy collecting!
Trading Cards Magazine
How The Dodger Great Was Ignored By Topps
Ever wonder how Maury Wills’ rookie card ended up in Fleer’s 1963 set instead of Topps? Daniel Stone explained the history in a great interview published in Trading Cards Magazine in August 1995—though the title might seem a bit clickbaity today.
It’s interesting that Wills also considers his first Topps card in 1967 a “rookie card”!
Happy collecting!
With $500, Which Hockey Cards Would You Buy?
In May 1995, Trading Cards Magazine ran a piece by Jim Stevens asking which hockey cards were worth buying with $500. I thought it’d be fun to see how John Moore’s picks have held up!
You can see that Moore recommended: One Ken Dryden 1971-72 OPC RC #45, $300; one Patrick Roy 1986-87 OPC RC #53, $140; two Dale Hawerchuk 1982-83 OPC RCs #380, $36; and four Paul Kariya 1992-93 UD RCs #586, $24. Total expense: $500.
Let’s assume he was talking about cards that would grade PSA 8s, which is a bit optimistic, but I need to compare against something.
It looks like Ken Dryden’s PSA 8 RC’s are ~$1475, Roy PSA 8 rookies are ~$330, Hawerchuk’s RC is ~$40 (times two is $80), and Paul Kariya’s UD RC is essentially worthless in a PSA 8 slab. So combined, that’s $1,885 from the original $500. But just a moment, the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI Inflation Calculator says that $500 in May 1995 has the same purchasing power as $1,043.60 in January 2025.
Not bad by Moore overall. But everyone probably should have stuck to Gretzky’s rookie cards, eh?
Happy Collecting!
Just How Great Are Gretzky’s Rookie Cards?
Even in 1995, collectors looked back at old card prices and wondered, “What if?” Jon Brecka dives into one such case in Trading Cards Magazine (May 1995) with “Just How Great Are Gretzky’s Rookie Cards?”
Happy collecting!
World Series Special – Topps Captured The Moments
Every ’90s hobby magazine wrote a feature on Topps World Series cards; in October 1995, it was Trading Cards Magazine’s turn!
Here are the links to the pieces about Topps World Series cards that were published in Topps Magazine (Fall 1990) and Sports Cards Magazine (April 1995).
Happy reading and happy collecting!
A Bobby Bonilla Advertisement For Ultra PRO Platinum Hologram Pages
Bobby Bonilla was a spokesman for Ultra PRO in early 1992. Do you think they’re still paying him today, like the Mets?
If you weren’t tracking:
After being traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers part way through the 1998 season, he signed with the New York Mets for a second time in 1999. When the Mets wanted to release him at the end of the year, he negotiated a settlement whereby the Mets would pay him $1.19 million on July 1 every year from 2011 through 2035, a date that has become known in Mets fandom as “Bobby Bonilla Day”. He is also paid $500,000 by the Orioles every year from 2004 to 2028 due to them also having a deferred contract with him.
Wikipedia
PS, I scanned the Ultra PRO advertisement from the April 1992 issue of Trading Cards Magazine.
Team Pennants Are Flying High In Stadiums Across The Land
How many of you display pennants as part of your collections? Well, if you don’t and are interested in a nice introduction to them, Michael Solomowitz penned this great piece that Trading Cards Magazine published in June 1992.
