Nothing Better Than Bargain Vintage; National Recap Part #1

One of the toughest decisions regarding my trip to The National didn't necessarily have to do with what to buy vs what not to be. A major decision occurred today while I was trying to decide how to begin the recap posts. Although I had options available, I didn't know exactly what I wanted to post for my very first recap blog post.

After contemplating for a while, I decided to gather some of the best bargain vintage cards I had bought at the show for the first recap post. I mean, who doesn't like vintage cards, let alone bargain vintage. If the cards are of players I collect and the condition isn't too bad, I don't think there are any 2 words besides "free cards" that I'd like to hear more than "bargain vintage." 

Take the 1964 Topps card of Lou Brock at the top of this post. I found this card along with all the others shown on this post from a vintage vendor originally from Indiana. In addition to the 1975 and 1976 Topps cards for my sets which I will show at a later date, they had a couple bargain vintage boxes that they continued to restock throughout the days of the show.

It was through that box that I was able to get my very first original card of Lou Brock on the Cubs for a very fair price. While I tried to focus on the want list at other booths, this was a time where I could dedicate resources to vintage cards for player collections at a price that didn't break the bank.

I was on the fence as to if I had Mark Fidrych's iconic 1977 Topps All-Star Rookie card when I saw it in the bargain bin for only $2. Though I had some doubts at first as to if I should get it or not due to the risk of having 2 of the same card, the more I studied it, the more unfamiliar the card became to me. I eventually decided that it didn't seem like a card I had already, so I went for it and came home to find out that my gut feeling was correct. 

Another fabulous thing about vintage baseball cards is the variety of images used in the sets. While the majority of today's sets include the same old picture of a position player hitting and the same exact picture of pitchers winding up and about to throw the ball, the angles, and timing behind the images on the cards above help to showcase how special this era was for baseball and baseball cards.

Of all the 1960's Topps sets, I am quite unfamiliar with the 1967 Topps set compared to all the others. To be fair, I don't feel that 1967 Topps is boring in any way, but it kind of loses itself especially when you consider the caliber of players and exciting set designs (1960, 1965, 1968) of that decade. This is likely why I've never seen a league leader card from 1967 Topps until picking this one up at The National for the Hank Aaron collection, showcasing the 1966 NL RBI leaders.

The simplicity of a set like 1966 Topps can be both a good and bad thing at the same time. It works if you have an exciting image that helps offset the simple design, but the same old images just won't cut it in a set like '66 Topps. Not only does this Joe Morgan card stand out because of the unique image and vintage Astros jersey, but the 60's All-Star Rookie cup is absolutely perfect on this card. Even though it takes up a lot of space, I kind of wish they included it in today's Topps Flagship sets.

If there's one thing I'm glad about, it's that Topps' airbrushing of new team logos doesn't look even close to as bad today as it did back in the 70's. Despite that, I'm happy to add this 1974 Topps Willie McCovey card to his PC after seeing it online for many years. While the airbrush job is still pretty bad, I can't say I mind too much given how few cards there are of Willie McCovey cards there are showing him on the Padres, let alone originals.

Probably my favorite thing about 60's Topps card is the combo cards that appeared a few times in nearly each and every set. Off the top of my head, I know that sets like 1967 and 1964 (shown above) have some of the best combo cards I've ever seen. I have to say that this Giant Gunners card of Willie Mays and Orlando Cepeda is a new one for me. I don't recall seeing this card before, even online, until I picked it up during my first full day at the show.

Just in case I haven't said this before, I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THE 1958 TOPPS ALL-STAR CARDS. Seriously, I don't think there's ever been a better All-Star design in any year of Topps baseball cards. The red background with stars for the American League and the blue background with stars for the National League is a prime example of excelling at something rather simple. Not to mention the fact that this card of the great Frank Robinson was only $6 dollars.

But quite possibly the biggest steal of the entire bargain vintage purchase was Fergie Jenkins' rookie card on the Phillies from 1966 Topps which set me back just $9. Growing up a Cubs fan, my dad tracked down certain Cubs players' rookie cards (Ernie Banks and Billy Williams included), but he never ended up with one of Jenkins. Maybe because he didn't collect much '66 Topps or maybe it's because Jenkins is shown on the Phillies. What I do know is that this card wound up being one of my favorites from the entire show, and that's a major statement.