It goes without saying that with prizes as large trips, refrigerators, and bicycles, that the “chase” cards were produced in small quantities. Though they are occasionally found, they are extraordinarily rare today. Presented here is such a “chase” card, but not an ordinary one: it is the most valuable and highly sought after card in the set! Josh Gibson, boldly overprinted with the Garcia logo and the letter “L” in deep, red ink, underneath Gibson’s belt on the card. SGC has assigned a grade of PR 1, which speaks partially to the horizontal crease that runs across the card and a small piece of clear tape on the reverse, but is more a way of addressing the overprint. Neither major grading company currently recognizes the overprinting, as the cards and the issue itself are rare enough that few are found, and references to the prizes in surviving Toleteros literature does not appear to be sufficient to sway them. This is, of course, another reason hobbyists should be pressuring the industry to revive the Standard Catalog as a central clearing house for hobby knowledge. But we digress. This is a truly remarkable card. A rare variation of the most sought- after of all Caribbean cards, the 1950-51 Toleteros set features the only card featuring one of the most famous players in Negro League history. The Gibson is perhaps the most famous of all Negro League cards, a card that seldom makes its way to public auction,
1949-50 prize winners, as printed in the 1950-51 album.
and routinely sets price records. This is the only example of a 1950- 51 Toleteros Josh Gibson with a prize redemption overprint that we have ever seen, and perhaps the only one in existence. Simply an amazing artifact.
MINIMUM BID: $10,000
5. Rare 1950-51 Toleteros Dick Seay w/Redemption Stamp
Exceptionally rare 1950-51 Toleteros card with the “Instant Winner” overprint bearing the letter “C” (which would qualify it for use in spelling the teams “Caguas,” “Ponce,” or “Santurce”). One of very few surviving examples bearing the overprint, the card has been graded PR 1 by SGC, due in part to the aforementioned red printing, but also to a heavy surface abrasion on Seay’s cap. Seay was the second baseman in the Newark Eagles’ “million dollar infield,” playing alongside Hall of Famers Mule Suttles, Willie Wells and Ray Dandridge. He missed three seasons due to WWII, and sadly was in his 40s as baseball began to integrate, so he never played Major League Baseball. MINIMUM BID: $100
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