This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 12/8/2017
For just about any advanced collector, trying to conquer the 1933 Goudey set is a challenge that many are willing to accept, but with four Babe Ruth cards, two Lou Gehrigs and a list of incredible stars that never seems to end, only the really well-financed can do so in mid-grade or better condition. While often drawing comparisons from the immensely popular Cracker Jack series, another production filled with baseball pioneers that had a very successful two-year run, the Goudey set had the distinct advantage of being the first mainstream assemblage for almost two decades, making the 240-card Goudey compilation not just an icon with vintage collectors but the standard-bearer that epitomizes the art and hobby of card collecting. With so many players of the day reaching legendary status and several stars that appear more than once in the series, one-fourth of the entire set, 60 cards, carry the likeness of a Hall of Famer. And while the deep red backgrounds that define the Cracker Jack set have typically retained their robust pigment over their century of life, the various background colors of the Goudey series have often signified the identity of the card, with the quartet of "Bambino" issues often referred to as the green, yellow, red, and "full body" Ruth cards. This complete set (minus #106 Lajoie, which most collectors don't consider essential for completion) is lower to mid grade, making it more attainable for the modest collector. Several of the key cards are graded by PSA: PSA 4.5 - #76 Cochrane, 89 Speaker, 222 Gehringer and 232 O'Doul. PSA 4 - #7 Lyons, 19 Dickey, 25 P. Waner, 29 Foxx, 117 Maranville, 147 Durocher, 188 Hornsby, 194 Averill, 220 Grove and 234 Hubbell. PSA 3.5 - #154 Foxx, 160 Gehrig and 207 Ott. PSA 3 - #Herman, 128 Klein, 149 Ruth, 211 Wilson, 216 Gomez and 230 Hubbell. PSA 2 - #92 Gehrig, 181 Ruth, 189 Cronin. PSA 1 #53 Ruth and 144 Ruth. The rest of the set is 5% EX or better, 30% VG/EX, 40% VG, and 25% lower with #2 Vance GOOD, 20 Terry VG+, 22 Traynor VG, 23 Cuyler GOOD, 31 Lazzeri VG+, 35 Simmons GOOD, 49 Frisch VG+, 119 Hornsby GOOD, 127 Ott VG, and 223 Dean GOOD.