What's next? Semi-final #2: (7) 1963 Topps vs (3) 1974 Topps

How they got this far:

1963 defeated 1972 and 1960 Topps, gaining 12 votes in both rounds.
1974 defeated 1961 with 16 votes, and then 1969 with 15 votes.

To sum up the first two rounds:

I'm not surprised to see that '63 made it this far.  It is a colorful set and a favorite of mine.  '63 had a tougher road to get to the semi-finals, defeating two very good releases in both '72 & '60.  If it wins the tournament I believe that I would enjoy putting it together, as it will make a nice contrast to the much more plain '64 set that I am coming closer to completing. 

If there is one set that I didn't think would make it this far, it certainly would have to be the '74 set.  I would have to say that the luck of the draw helped '74 in the tourney, as '61 and '69 Topps aren't particular favorites of a lot of collectors (although the back of the '69 Topps cards are arguably my favorite of the '60s sets...).  Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying '74 is a bad set, in my opinion it just doesn't compare to a lot of the '60s sets that were eliminated earlier. 

What I think will happen in this round: 


I am predicting that the final will have a pair of sets that have circles on the front, as I believe that '63 will move on to the final, and end the surprising run of '74 Topps. 


Is everyone going to prove me wrong two weeks in a row?  Will '74 Topps pull off another win and advance to the finals?


You tell me.   Voting starts.....................


NOW!!


thanks for reading, Robert

Again, my prediction would have been wrong

In my head, I thought that the '60 Topps set would win this weeks match by about 3 votes.

Instead, '63 Topps is this weeks winner, by a 12-7 score.  This is the 1st time that the tournament has dropped below the 20 vote mark since the play in round.   Hopefully we'll see some more votes the next couple of weeks, as the sets from the '70s will be making their appearance in the quarterfinals.

The next match that starts tomorrow should be a good one, as the 3 seed '74 Topps takes on 6th seed '69 Topps.  The '76 set will make its quarterfinal appearance next week when it takes on '67 Topps.   Both matches should have some interesting opinions, which I always look forward to.

Thanks for reading, and voting, Robert

What's next? Quarterfinals: (2) 1960 Topps vs (7) 1963 Topps

Two very colorful sets take the stage this week as 60T takes on 63T.  I believe this will be another close match, similar to last week's great quarterfinal opener.  So, what do you think I should build next? 

How they got here:

1960 defeated 1979  16-4
1963 defeated 1972  12-10

How big a head start do I have on these sets?

1960 Topps:  Minimal  12 out of 587
1963 Topps:  Minimal  10 out of 576

Favorite card that I own from each set so far:

1960:  # 86 Dick Gernert (the old Cub logos are still the best)
1963:  # 1 National League Batting Leaders (any card with Robinson, Musial and Aaron on it is OK in my book)

I believe that I know what set will win this week, but I've been wrong before, so let's see if the blogosphere can prove me wrong again.   I look forward to reading the comments explaining why one of these sets is better than the other.

thanks for reading, and voting, Robert

The last of the final 8 has been determined

It appears that I saved the best match for last in the 1st round.  The voting was tight through the whole week, but thankfully I didn't have to account for any hanging chads or tampered ballot boxes.

With a final tally of 12-10, the set moving on to the final 8 is....

1963 Topps!  This is the one card that I own that probably contains the most star power.  Robinson, Aaron, Musial, Davis and White is a great group of 5, none of them hitting below .323 in 1962.

Now, we re-seed the remaining 8.  I take you back to the original post  and give you the following paragraph for determining the seeds...

After the round of 16 is completed, I am going to re-seed the final 8 sets by the number of votes they received during their particular match.   If there is a tie, it will be broken by the higher percentage of votes (for example, if one set received 24 out of 32 votes, and the other received 24 out of 35 votes, the first set would receive the higher seed).  If there is still a tie, I will put the older set in the highest seed (totally arbitrary and random, I know).

With all that in mind, here are the match ups for the quarter finals:

(1) 1965 vs (8) 1959
(2) 1960 vs (7) 1963
(3) 1974 vs (6) 1969
(4) 1976 vs (5) 1967

Tomorrow will start the next round.  1965 Topps vs 1959 Topps.  A great way to get the ball rolling.

I look forward to reading the comments in this round, because a lot of the pretenders have been weeded out, and the decisions are going to be a little bit tougher this time.  At least I think they will be....

thanks for reading, Robert

What's next? :Round of 16: (1) 1963 Topps vs (16) 1972 Topps

The end of the round of 16 is finally upon us.  This is the last match, featuring two pretty solid sets.  The two priciest rookie cards out of 1972 are both multi player cards, but feature some pretty good players who had long careers in MLB.  Today was the first time I had to look over the '63 set, and there are some pretty scary cards in there $$ wise, which has the cheap ass in me worried a bit.


Tale of the tape:

1.  Set Size:  1963 has 576 cards.  1972 has 787 cards
2.  Key RCs:  1963  Pete Rose, Willie Stargell  1972 Fisk/Cooper, Oglivie/Cey
3.  Cost of complete set in NM condition:  1963  $6000      1961  $7000
4.  Number of cards with high book at $100 or more: 1963: 11 (Rose RC = 1K)   1972: 1 

Blogs:  1963 Topps vs   1972 Topps

Jim from Downingtown appears once again on the blog stats; his 1963 Topps blog is actually a collaborative effort with the Troll and Commishbob both being listed as contributors.  The 1972 Topps blog is unfortunately dormant; the last post there was 4.5 years ago, and stopped at card #135.  [EDIT:  thanks to Jim for the update on the '72 blog, the link has been updated to reflect the '72 Topps countdown blog]

thanks for reading, Robert

Believe it or not, I listen to her

I've done it.   Survived the first 7 years of my marriage.  When I say survived, I mean that I haven't done anything stupid enough to get my ass thrown out of the house. 

Yet.

Tomorrow is my 7th wedding anniversary, and the wife and I are going to celebrate with a good friend of ours from Florida who is flying in tomorrow afternoon.  We're going out to our favorite wing joint for dinner (wife's choice!), and probably just have a blast tomorrow night.  It's too bad I have to work on Friday....

One of the things that I've learned from my wife over the years is one of her favorite sayings, which over time has become one of mine...

"you can't leave it there at that price"

This card is a prime example.

When you see a 1963 league leaders card featuring Hank Aaron, Frank Robinson and Stan the Man Musial, it gets your interest.  When you see the price tag of a measly $4, yes, you can't leave it at the show for that price.

Yes, it's off center, and the corners and edges aren't the greatest, but it's still good enough for me. 

Card #1 of any set is always tough to find in good shape, so when I spotted this, it quickly moved over to the gotta have pile.

At that price, I didn't leave it there, and I'm glad I did. 

thanks for reading, Robert