If you somehow missed the news this week, the MLB officially announced that the Negro Leagues stats would officially be adopted into baseball’s record books.

As a baseball history fan, having a chance to read more about some of these legends this week has been incredible. Most of my personal collection consists of players with ties to the Negro Leagues - from Satchel Paige and Jackie Robinson, to Hank Aaron and Willie Mays who also spent the beginning of their careers in the Negro Leagues.

The biggest impact that comes from the integration of the records is MLB’s new all-time batting leader, Josh Gibson with a .372. He officially passes Ty Cobb’s previous record which stood at .367

Josh Gibson is considered by many almost as a mythical legend. His MLB plaque reads he hit nearly 800 home runs, although that includes independent and exhibition matches which the MLB did not recognize as “official stats” in their newest research.

His official stats that are now logged into the archives are below :

It’s important to understand that the typical Negro League seasons were roughly 60-80 games - so you although the career numbers may not jump out at first sight, a deeper look shows just how dominant Josh Gibson really was.

20% of Gibson’s total career hits were home runs. In 1943, he hit .466 over 69 games and logged 109 RBIs. It’s unlike anything in the history of the game.

Gibson’s “Holy Grail” Sports Card

Of course I had to look into Josh Gibson’s card market following this historic news. What I found was really interesting…

Josh Gibson does not have a playing years baseball card. His career spanned from 1930-1946 where he would play for the Memphis Red Sox (1930), Homestead Grays (1930-1931), Pittsburgh Crawfords (1932-1936) , and then again for the Homestead Grays (1937-1940, 1942-1946).

Some may argue his only “card” is the 1950-51 Toleteros Card - it has a total population count of 9 in existence at PSA with the highest being this PSA 8 example. A PSA 7 Copy sold in 2020 for $51,600 at Heritage , however I would take a bet that since that sale the value of this card has increased dramatically.

However his “Holy Grail” item is likely this 1931 Harrison Studios Postcard - his only playing years example that features a photograph of Gibson. What’s even more remarkable about this specific example is that Gibson signed it TWICE - on the front and back.

This post card was sold at public auction in 2006 at REA - back then the estimate was $10-$20,000. It would go on to sell for $81,000 - 4X the expected sale price.

One can only wonder what it would sell for today if brought to auction given the recent news and attention now given to Gibson and his mythical-like legend. I would conservatively estimate this piece would do $2,000,000-$3,000,000 if brought back to an auction like REA, and even that could be low.

Here is a video I posted yesterday discussing this post card and the Gibson news:Subscribe on YouTube HERE

My biggest card show purchase ever!

I am still posting content from my trip to Dallas, and yesterday I posted one of my favorite moments from the show - where I closed a $10,000 deal buying an entire display case from a dealer!

The biggest takeaway I had from this experience:

Don’t waste your time with unreasonable people.

Within a few minutes of me talking to Chris, I knew he was a person I could do business with. As I was looking at his cards, he said to me - “please let me know if you see anything priced incorrectly” - meaning he had done his home work on pricing and wanted to price fairly.

Too often at card shows you see dealers priced incredibly high - hoping for someone to come by and not do their own research and pay 2x comps on a card. I could recognize right away Chris was not one of those guys.

I have made videos in the past about tricks and tips for how to find good deals at card shows, you can watch my full episode on this topic below:

Diamond King Movie Screening at the National SOLD OUT!

Last week we announced that an exclusive screening of the Diamond King will be shown on Friday, July 26th at the first floor ball room of the convention center at 6:30PM!

We are excited to share that after less than 24 hours the pre-registration filled for all 250 seats! However - if you are still interested in seeing the screening, we have the waitlist open for those that may not show on the day of the screening.

Waitlist: https://www.thediamondkingmovie.com/shop/p/pre-register

Those that attend the screening will receive a commemorative ticket for the Diamond King film!

Also if you have not yet, check out some clips from the film and follow the social media channels, as we will be releasing more news soon!

Diamond King Instagram

Diamond King Facebook Page

Diamond King Twitter

Diamond King YouTube

Subscribe to thediamondkingmovie.com

I am running a deal with Zion Cases! Check it out!

I wanted to make sure you guys were aware that I am a partner with Zion card cases, and I have a discount code that you guys can use if you wanted to buy a case for yourself!

This is the case I currently use to travel with and store my slabs:Zion Two Row

(I am kicking around buying a larger one for more storage and traveling to larger shows like the Slab Case XL)

My Discount Code is:GORDONBONKER

My referral link if you want to share the discount with any card buddies is:

https://zioncases.com/?ref=GORDONBONKER

Bonkers Cards Online Store & Consignments

I just recently added some cards to my online store at bonkerscards.co some of which I am selling on consignment.

As a general rule, I only will accept cards on consignment that are individually valued over $2,000 - any card lots or cards under that I typically buy at 80-85% of the comps value per VCP!

For those that are interested in consigning on my site, please reach out to me for details!

This 1952 Willie Mays SGC 3 is featured on my online store, I personally own this card and am looking to sell it for $5,000! (It is listed on the website for slightly higher to cover the cost of fees if paying with credit card)

LIVE Show schedule this week:

Thursday 5/30/24 8:00PM Est. on TikTokSunday - 6/2/24 8:00PM Est. on TikTok

Just in case TikTok does get banned…

Please follow me on all other social platforms, just in case we don’t have TikTok in the unlikely scenario it does get banned in the U.S….

Join the Facebook Group HERE

Follow me on Instagram HERE

Subscribe on YouTube HERE

Follow Bonkerscards on TikTok HERE

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1954 Topps Set Break: Buy Spots Now

YouTube Channel

You can pick up Phil's book here:

https://mcfarlandbooks.com/product/when-baseball-was-still-topps/

Or on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/When-Baseball-Was-Still-Topps/dp/1476693943/ref=sr_1_1?crid=27QV7QF65DO4W&keywords=when+baseball+was+still+topps&qid=1702672839&sprefix=When+Baseball+Was+Still+Topps%2Caps%2C81&sr=8-1

Check out the full video and be sure to follow the podcast, like, and subscribe to the YouTube channel!

I will post these podcasts weekly on Spotify and Apple Podcasts as well as on my YouTube channel @BonkersCards!