1981 Baseball Cards Magazine Index [in-progress]

Baseball Cards, Spring 1981, Issue #1, Volume 1, No. 1

Cover: Honus Wagner, 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle, 1974 Topps Dave Winfield
Articles:
"Errors Discovered in '81 Fleer"by Larry Fritsch, p14. Detailing the errors/corrections in the 1981 Fleer set.
"In'the Beginning..." by Vivian Barning, p18.  Collecting strategies to fit a budget.
"Is PVC Destroying Your Cards?" by Bob Lemke, pp28-30, 79.  A detailed explanation about the dangers of storing cards in PVC pages.
"Players in Plastic" by Bob Parker, pp32, 64.  Hartland Statues from the 1940s-1960s.
"An Investor's View of Baseball Cards" by Tony Galovich, pp37-40, 80-83.  An in-depth look at the finer points of various factors to account for when viewing baseball cards as investments.
"Collecting Your Favorite Team" by Doug Watson, pp42-48, 84-85.  St. Louis Cardinals collectibles.

"Before the Surgeon General's Report" by Lew Lipset, pp52-57, 78.  19th Century tobacco cards.
"The Cards That Go 'Clink' " by Jim Nicewander, pp58-63.  Baseball coins by Armour, Salada, Topps, Old London and Citgo.

Baseball Cards, Autumn 1981, Issue #2, Volume 1, No. 2
Cover: 1953 Topps Andy Pafko, tobacco cards
Articles:

1986 Baseball Cards Magazine Index

Baseball Cards, April 1986, Issue #15, Volume 6, No. 1
Cover: Vince Coleman
Articles:
"On The Baseball Beat" by Irwin Cohen, Tom Seaver interview
"What's New" by Steve Ellingboe and Vic Knight. pp22-23, 42, 44, 46.  Sets referenced: 1986 Fleer; 1986 Topps; 1986 Donruss; 1986 Donruss All-Stars and Pop-Ups; 1985 Fleer Update; 1985 Topps Traded; 1985 Donruss Highlights; 1985 7-Up Chicago Cubs; 1985 Minnesota Twins Fire Safety; 1985 Toronto Blue Jays Fire Safety; 1985 Kondritz Vince Coleman; 1985 Mother's Cookies; 1985 Star Company; 1985 Hostess Atlanta Braves; 1986 Sportflics; 1985 Topps Football; 1986 Donruss, Topps and Fleer box bottom cards; 1986 Fleer Star Stickers, 1986 Topps Pete Rose set.
"Eddie Mathews" by Paul Green.  pp24-29.
"Stand-out Stand-ups" by Robert L. Parker. pp30-31.  Johnny Pro Orioles and Phillies.
"The hottest cards of '86: Checkin' up on Coleman collectibles". pp32-34. Vince Coleman rookie cards.
"Autograph Addresses" by Tom Owens. pp 50-52.  The Sport Americana Baseball Address List.
"Liz & Dick cover for Mantle & Maris". p56. 1962 Post Life Magazine inserts.
"Spring training autograph tips" by Dave Miedema. pp 70-72.
"The complete Tom Seaver cover checklist". p76.  Checklist of publications with Tom Seaver on the cover.
"Baseball & baseball cards in 1969: Celebrating a centennial" by Tom LaMarre. pp78-84. 1969 Topps issues.
"Do you remember these?" by Stewart Jones. pp86-91. 1940-1965 regional and food issues, Glendale Meats, Kahn's Weiners, Wheaties, collectible tickets, pins, Seattle Ranier items, Leaf, Sugardale Meats, Bell Brand Chips

Baseball Cards, June 1986, Issue #16, Volume 6, No.2
Cover: Rare Topps proof cards
Articles:
"What's New" by Steve Ellingboe and Vic Knight. pp20-22. Sets referenced: 1986 Topps Mini Leaders, 1986 Topps Glossy All Stars and Glossy Send-Ins, 1986 Fleer Limited Edition, 1986 Fleer League Leaders, 1986 Fleer Classic Miniatures, 1986 Donruss All-Stars and Pop-Ups, 1986 Quaker Granola Bars, 1986 Fleer inserts.
"On The Baseball Beat" by Irwin Cohen. pp24-26,48,50. Don Sutton interview.
"Those great Fleer 'Greats'" by William Warren. pp 28-30. 1960 Fleer Baseball Greats set.
"1953 Bowman: Color Them Hot" by Ted Zanidakis. pp32-36.  1953 Bowman set.
"Autographs: Who signs, who snubs" by Dave Miedema and Chris Burleson. pp38-44.  Signing habits by league.
"1961: Maris-mania" by Paul Green. pp70-72. Roger Maris' 1961 season and Topps cards.
"The '$20,000 Garage Find'" by Keith Olbermann. pp76-81.  Rare Topps proof from 1960-1985.
"Joe Rudi" by Paul Green. pp82-87.  Joe Rudi interview.
"Collect Your Favorite Team: Philadelphia A's" by Ted Taylor. pp88-92.  Philadelphia A's collectibles.

Baseball Cards, August 1986, Issue #17, Volume 6, No.3
Cover: Dwight Gooden
Articles:
"What's New" by Steve Ellingboe and Vic Knight. pp20-22.  Sets referenced: 1986 Topps Woolworth's; 1986 Drake's; 1986 Fleer Walgreen's; 1986 Leaf; 1986 Kay Bee; 1986 O-Pee-Chee; 1986 Topps stickers; 1986 Topps Super; 1986 Topps bronze and aluminum miniatures: 1986 Big League Chew Home Run Legends: 1986 True Value: 1986 New York Mets fan club issue: 1986 Kansas City Royals National Photo: 1986 Cain's, Kitty Clover, Kas and Jays photo chips discs; 1986 Dorman's Cheese.
"Rookie cards: a close-up look" by Bob Lemke, pp24-30.  Lemke's rookie card investment recommendations.
"BBM Interviews: Tom Lasorda" by Paul Green. pp32-38. Tommy Lasorda interview.
"1986 rookie card line-up". p40.  List of 1986 rookie cards.
"Solo Rookie Cards" by J.R. Green. pp42-46. 
"On The Baseball Beat" by Irwin Cohen. pp60-62. Reggie Jackson interview.
"Autographs: Who signs, who snubs; Part 2" by Dave Miedema and Chris Burleson. pp 63-65. Signing habits of players by league.
"5¢ today, $5 tomorrow: Successful rookie card speculation" by Robert L. Parker. pp66-71.  Tips and tactics for evaluating rookies for investment.
"Collecting Topps "trophy cards," the 1960-1978 All-Star Rookies" by Dave Steidel. pp72-81.  Profile and checklist of Topps All-Star Rookie cards.

Baseball Cards, October 1986, Issue #18, Volume 6, No.4
Cover: ??
Articles:

Baseball Cards, December 1986, Issue #19, Volume 6, No.5
Cover: Wally Joyner
Articles:
"New Issues Gallery" by Steve Ellingboe and Vic Knight. pp22-28. Sets referenced: 1986 Topps Traded, 1986 Fleer Update. 1986-87 Fleer Basketball, 1986 Star Company sets, 1986 Donruss Rookies, 1986 Fleer Baseball's Best, 1986 Fleer Classic Miniatures, 1986 Houston Astros Police, 1986 Provigo Montreal Expos, 1986 Burger King All-Pro, 1986 Sportflics, 1986 Milwaukee Brewers Police, 1986 Los Angeles Dodgers Police, 1986 Lite Beer Houston Astros, 1986 Gatorade Chicago Cubs, 1986 Beatrice Foods, 1986 Mother's Cookies, 1986 Toronto Blue Jays Fire Safety, 1986 Topps Football, 1986 Coca-Cola Chicago White Sox, 1986 ProCards, 1986 Smokey the Bear.
"On The Baseball Beat" by Irwin Cohen. pp30-32,64-65. Wally Joyner Interview.
"Non-Topps proof cards are a non-stop challenge" by Keith Olbermann. pp34-39.  Proof cards for tobacco, Bowman, Donruss, Fleer, Goudey, Hostess, Kelloggs issues.
"Those Great Fleer Greats" by Tom LaMarre. pp40-42,76.  1961 Fleer Baseball Greats set.
"1951: The real Topps rookie cards" by Bob Lemke. pp66-70. Profile of 1951 Topps sets.
"Tug McGraw" by Paul Green. pp71-75. Tug McGraw interview.
"The "forgotten" set: 1974 Topps" by Jeff Zeigler. pp78-82.  Profile of 1974 Topps set.
"Autograph inquiries" by Dave Miedema. pp84-85. Answers to common autograph questions.

1987 Baseball Cards Magazine Index

    Back in my school days, around the grades when we were expected to be able to research a subject and write a report about it, our teachers would march the class down to the library.  There the librarian would enlighten us on the wonderful world of reference books at our disposal.  The dictionary, the thesaurus (Latin for "treasure"?), the Encyclopaedia Britannica, it's much lesser used cousin, the Encyclopedia International, it's more colorful niece, the World Book Encyclopedia, an assortment of gazetteers and almanacs, and piles of other books whose covers we would never crack, were paraded out for our perusal.

     One of those resources the librarians introduced us to was the Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature, which was basically an index of mainstream American magazines.  I say "mainstream" because it included all the usual titles like Sports Illustrated, Time, People, Jet, National Geographic, Field & Steam, but never included any hobby magazines.  No references to Beckett or Sports Collectors Digest or Baseball Cards Magazine.  I always felt this left a tremendous gap in the tool belt of the average hobby researcher.  We have no organized reference guide to help us in our quests for the obscure amid the murky depth of our field.

     In an effort to fill that gap, I've begun work on an index of the baseball card magazines I own.  Hopefully, it can be expanded to encompass other sports and more recent periodicals.  If this gets any traction, maybe I'll see if I can interest one (or more) of the current hobby websites to host a copy so everyone can use it and contribute to it.  It might make a good addition to a site like BaseballCardPedia.com.

     As a work in progress, I'll start with the 1987 issues I have of Baseball Cards magazine, and use this a a venue to seek suggestions from all you out there in TV Land as to the ideal format.  Due to the sheer volume of information, this will only include references from the actual articles and columns, not the advertisements.  If anyone finds this useful, let me know and I'll proceed with this project and index the rest of the various issues I have of Baseball Cards, Baseball Hobby News, Tuff Stuff, Baseball Card News, etc.

Baseball Cards, February 1987, Issue #20, Volume 7, No. 1
Cover: Jose Canseco
Articles:
"What's New." pp20-22. sets referenced: 1986 Renata Galasso Don Mattingly, 1986 Renata Galasso Dwight Gooden, 1986 Coca Cola Los Angeles Dodgers, 1986 Southern League All-Stars, 1986 Memphis Chicks, 1986 Kondritz Ozzie Smith, 1986 Sportflics Rookies, 1986 McDonald's NFL, 1986 Lite Beer Texas Rangers, 1986 Performance Prining Texas Rangers, 1986 Texas Gold Cincinnati Reds
"On The Baseball Beat" by Irwin Cohen. pp24-2. Jose Canseco interview.
"High hard ones" by William Warren. pp30-36. 1967 Topps.
"A tip of the (baseball) cap" by Dave Miedema. p38-40. 1960s National League caps.
"1977" by Tom LaMarre.pp58-63. 1977 Topps.
"Joe Garagiola" by Paul Green. pp64-69.
"Sure-fire Investment Sports Illustrated" by Joseph Hammann. pp 70-79. Sports Illustrated magazines.

Baseball Cards, April 1987, Issue #21, Volume 7, No. 2
Cover: Don Mattingly
Articles:
"What's New." pp22-24. sets referenced: 1987 Donruss, 1987 Fleer,1987 Topps
"Years ahead of their time"  pp26-28. 1970,1972 Topps test stickers.
"Checklist: Don Mattingly". pp30-36.
"Can't beat them for price." pp38-42. 1977-1978 Royal Crown cans.
"Have you lost your marbles?" pp60-62. 1968 baseball player marbles.
"Test issue or $400 party favor?" pp64-66. 1953 Topps reprints.
"Learning about Linnets." p68. 1976 Linnett Superstars.
"Triple-play Topps test issue." pp70-71. 1968 Topps Action Stickers.
"Superstars at 1976 prices." p72. 1969 Globe Import playing cards.
"O-Pee-Chee? Topps?" pp76-77. 1977 OPC & Topps,
"With Viewmater, 'cards' came alive" by Robert L. Parker. pp78-81. Viewmaster baseball reels.
"7-Eleven cups." pp82-84.
"A scarce 'Smokey' issue." p86. 1984 Jackson Mets Smokey Bear
"A tip of the (baseball) cap" by Dave Miedema. pp88-89.  1960s American League caps.

Baseball Cards, June 1987, Issue #22, Volume 7, No. 3
Cover: Mike Schmidt
Articles:
"What's New." pp22-24. sets referenced: 1987 Star Company sets, 1987 Fleer Glossy Tin, 1987 Topps K-Mart, 1987 Fleer Headliners, 1987 Fleer boxed sets, 1987 Topps Boardwalk & Baseball, Indiana University All-Time Basketball Greats, LSU baseball/basketball, USL athletics set, David Lipscomb College baseball set, 1987 Big Apple Pete Incaviglia, 1987 Topps Rookies.
"Spring Has Sprung" by Dave Niven. pp26-28. spring training.
"Making Misteaks" by Tom LaMarre. pp30-34. error cards.
"Autographs: Mets worst?" by Dave Niven.  p36-38.  Mets autographing habits.
"Grand old players, brand-new chance" by Paul M. Green. pp60-68. Hall of Fame Veterans committee.
"Mike Schmidt." pp70-76.  Mike Schmidt checklist.
"On The Baseball Beat" by Irwin Cohen. pp78-82. Rob Deer interview.
"Jim Bunning" by Paul Green. pp84-88. interview.

Baseball Cards, July 1987, Issue #23, Volume 7, No. 4
Cover: Bo Jackson
Articles:
"'87 errors." p14-16. errors in 1987 sets
"On The Baseball Beat" by Irwin Cohen. p24-28. Cory Snyder interview.
"The BBM 100" by Kit Kiefer. pp30-50. top 100 rookies of 1987.
"What's New." pp70-72. sets referenced: 1987 Topps glossy send-in, 1987 Kay-Bee, 1987 Toys "R" Us, 1987 Woolworth's, 1987 Sportflics Team Preview, 1987 Fleer boxed sets, 1987 Topps League Leaders minis, 1987 Topps Gallery of Stars
"Autographs: Signing their lives away" by Dave Miedema. pp74-76. Hall of Famer autographing habits.
"They're back!" by Dave Steidel. pp78-80, 1987 Topps All-Star Rookies.

Baseball Cards, August 1987, Issue #24, Volume 7, No. 5
Cover: Ryne Sandberg
Articles:
"Autographs: Some sign" by Dave Miedema. pp18-20. Hall of Famer autographing habits.
"On The Baseball Beat" by Irwin Cohen. pp24-28. Ryne Sandberg interview.
"Special Report" by Bob Lemke. pp30-48.  preview of 1987 rookies by team.
"Modern-day darkhorses" by Paul M. Green. pp66-69. veteran Hall of Fame candidates.
"What's New." pp70-72. sets referenced: 1987 Syracuse Chiefs season tickets, 1987 ProCards team sets, 1987 Kraft Home Plate Heroes, 1987 Leaf, 1987 O-Pee-Chee, 1987 Classic, Sports Illustrated posters, more 1987 Fleer boxed sets.
"All-Star Cards" by Tom LaMarre. pp74-77. investment potential of All-Star cards.
"1978" by Jeffrey J. Ziegler. pp78-86. 1978 Topps.

Baseball Cards, September 1987, Issue #24, Volume 7, No. 6
Cover: Pete Incaviglia
Articles:

Baseball Cards, October 1987, Issue #26, Volume 7, No. 7
Cover: Eric Davis
Articles:
"Dick Perez" by Greg Kraeer. p14-20. profile of the artist
"What's New." pp22-24. sets referenced: 1987 Bohemian Hearth San Diego Padres, 1987 Coca Cola Chicago White Sox, 1987 Nestle, 1987 General Mills Booklets, 1987 Hostess Stickers, 1987 MSA discs, 1987 Drake's Cakes, 1987 traded and update sets, 1987 Junior Mints, 1897 Pucko Buffalo Bisons, 1987 Mother's Cookies.
"Autographs: Unhealthy" by Dave Miedema. pp26-28. Hall of Famer autographing habits.
"Milestones" by Ted Taylor. pp30-40. 1951 Bowman.
"Eric Davis." pp62-63. Eric Davis checklist.
"On The Baseball Beat" by Irwin Cohen. pp70-73. Mark McGwire interview.
"The Nuts: Baseball's funkiest, freest spirits" by June Barsky. pp74-83. Jim Bouton, Jimmy Piersall interview.

Baseball Cards, November 1987, Issue #27, Volume 7, No. 8
Cover: Wade Boggs
Articles:
"Autographs: Regular Guys" by Dave Miedema. pp18-20, Hall of Fame autographing habits.
"New Stuff." pp22-24. sets referenced: 1987 Toronto Blue Jays Fire Safety, 1987 Donruss Opening Day, 1987 Fleer Classic Miniatures, 1987 ProCards, 1987 Best minor league team sets, 1987 Columbus Clippers Police, 1987 Topps Surf books.
"The Card Game: Overrated? Underrated?" by Jeff Zeigler. pp26-29. rookie cards.
"1987 Collector's Choice Awards." pp30-32.
"Set Review: The year was 1968" by Paul M. Green. pp34-40. 1968 Topps.
"Interviews: Jay Johnstone" by Paul M. Green. pp56-61.
"On The Baseball Beat" by Irwin Cohen. pp62-65. Dwight Evans interview.
"Checklists: Stan Musial" by William Felchner. pp70-74.
"All-Stars: '62 all-stars" by Tom LaMarre. pp78-81. 1962 Topps All-Stars.

Baseball Cards, December 1987, Issue #28, Volume 7, No. 9
Cover: Kirby Puckett
Articles:
"New Stuff." pp22-24. sets referenced: 1987 Albuquerque Dukes, 1987 Everett Giants, 1987 Topps stickers, 1987 Fleer Baseball's Best boxed set, 1987 Minnesota Twins postcards, 1987 Atlanta Braves postcards, 1987 California Angels postcards, 1987 St. Louis Cardinals postcards, 1987 Topps football, 1987 Classic Baseball travel edition.
"Stuff: Rollin' numbers" by Dave Miedema, pp26-28, high number cards
"Milestones: '81 Fleer" by Ted Taylor, pp30-337, 1981 Fleer
"No. 1" by Mark Newman, pp38-42. First cards in Topps sets.
"Obscurities: Metal minis" by Bob Lemke, pp60-61, 1983-1987 Topps Gallery metal mini cards
"On The Baseball Beat" by Irwin Cohen, pp62-65, Kirby Puckett interview
"Football Cards" by Mark Rose, pp66-69.
"Raiders of the lost art" by Kit Kiefer. pp70-73. 1979-1985 Topps All-Star Rookies.

The Yankees Next Big Thing!

     In 1988, the baseball card industry, led by the nose by its publications, was neck deep in the hysteria of rookie card collecting and speculation. Look at the future Hall of Famers gracing this cover, for Pete's sake! (sorry Pete)

     However, this is also probably one of the first issues to announce the coming of Yankees minor league power prospect, Hensley Meulens. He even got a piece of the cover with his first baseball card from the 1987 ProCards Prince William set. Inside, the writers present a team-by-team analysis of the prospects who seem to be on their way to the big time. As would be a trend for a couple years after, most of the speculation for the Yankees was on the order of how much of their farm system would they continue to sacrifice for below-average middle-relievers and under-achieving infielders to pad out their roster. The writers here were of the belief that, while he had been declared by New York as "untouchable", there was still a strong likelihood Bam Bam would end up being traded for the likes of Ron Hassey or Roy Smalley on a whim. They also went on to say that beyond Meulens, there really wasn't much else to work with in the Yankees' farm system.
     Every June must have been their minor league system report issue, as a year later, despite Junior getting the cover all to himself (something usually reserved for BCM favorite Mickey Mantle), Bam Bam got no less than a FOUR PAGE spread all to himself!

     It's a pretty good article, covering his life in Curaçao, his signing with New York and the fact that he actually grew up a Dodger fan and hated the Yankees! In hindsight (and maybe even back then) one has to chuckle at the next to last paragraph of the story by writer, the late Pete Dobrovitz:

"I'll make one prediction. Grab that Meulens Donruss card, and hold on to your price guides. You thought the Jefferies craze was something? Wait 'til you see what rabid Yankee fans can do to the rookie card market. Forget a buck and a half for Leiter. Yes, $3 for Mark Grace was amazing. But how about $5 apiece for Bam-Bam? Don't laugh yet."

     As of this particular issue, the BCM price guide had that 1989 Donruss card at an over-priced $0.80, which is probably where it would top out.  When I started collecting Bam Bam in 1989, all my friends were just giving me his cards for nothing...not even trading.  It became something of a joke over 1989-90, and in a year, I ended up with about 70 or so of that 1989 Donruss card.  Since I got back into collecting a few years ago and really set to work at finishing up my Meulens collection, I started picking them up again as filler for trades.  A handful of 1989 Donruss Meulens cards will go a long way toward getting something I have for trade.

 

     Incidentally, despite sitting on a pile of this card for years, it wasn't until about 18 months ago that I learned about all those *Denotes and INC. variations among 1989-1992 Donruss cards. After shuffling through the stack, all four variations were present! There's an extensive discussion of card variations over at Freedom Card Board. The discussion began back on the old Beckett message board before the Beckett ran their site through the shredder in favor of impressing potential investors with style over substance.

     What I find most odd about the coverage Meulens got in Baseball Cards is that he never had a card in any of their magazine inserts. Sam Horn? Joey Meyer? Cameron Drew? Absolutely! Hensley Meulens? Nope.