Fool’s Gold?

Whenever I hear about “the Golden Age of baseball,” I have to ask, who makes that decision? I imagine my golden age would be different than someone thirty years younger (or older). My GA includes people like Mantle, Mays, and Koufax; yours might be Piazza, Griffey Jr., and Barry Bonds.

So this headline from the “collectible” section of the Sports Illustrated website — “5 Undervalued Cards from the Golden Age of Baseball” — caught my eye.

I would not call myself a “serious” collector. I don’t know any of the lingo associated with the hobby. I cross my fingers that some of my older cards — and by that I mean from the 1970s — might be worth something, but I’m not in it for the money.

So I was curious: what would this writer consider the Golden Age.

The answer: pretty “classic,” to my mind at least: the late 40s and early-mid 50s featuring such players as Bob Feller, Eddie Mathews, Johnny Mize, Larry Doby, and Duke Snider. Why these players’ cards in particular? You’ll have to read the article to find out.