ShareThisDear Babe: I have two new Dale Earnhardt Sr. pit crew jerseys from the 1983 and '84 seasons. I may be off by one year, but I have one from each of the two years. This was when Earnhardt Sr. drove for Wrangler. These are the jerseys that the pit crew actually wore, as opposed to officially licensed merchandise. I made the jerseys for two years and kept one each year. -- Gene Baxley, Marietta, Ga.
"The pit shirts are worth around $500 each unless they are signed by Earnhardt Sr. in which case they would be almost double,'' said Mike Heffner, president of www.lelands.com auction house in South Dennis, Mass.
Dear Babe: I have an 8-x-10 picture of a young Roger Clemens in a Red Sox uniform that he signed. -- Don Ryan, Merrimack, N.H.
Mike Heffner, president of www.lelands.com auction house in South Dennis, Mass., minced no words on this one. "Clemens stuff is stinking. The photo is worth around $35. It used to be worth $75.'' How the mighty have fallen.
Dear Babe: I have a pristine baseball signed by the New York Yankees. I got it when I was in high school -- probably 1949 or 1950. Joe DiMaggio signed on the sweet spot. -- Bud Gleason, Atlanta, Ga.
Often a year can make a big difference, but probably not in this case. The Yanks were world champs both years. The roster didn't change much with DiMaggio being the big star. Mantle didn't come along until 1951. The big question is if "pristine'' means the same thing to you as serious collectors. It makes a big difference in value. A nice ball is going to be worth $1,500, according to Mike Gutierrez, consignment director for Heritage Auctions (www.ha.com) in Dallas. The value jumps to $2,500-$5,000 for a creamy white ball with bold signatures.
Dear Babe: I have an Ashton Drake Lou Gehrig porcelain collectible with certificate of authenticity number 9118A. -- Jason Goselin, Bourbonnais, Ill.
It's not easy tracking down values on these dolls. They don't seem to move that often in the secondary marketplace. While some Ashton Drake collectibles do increase in value, it appears these did not. It is my understanding that the Gehrig doll was part of a "Legends'' set issued in 1994-95. There's also a Babe Ruth doll. There might be a Ty Cobb doll. I don't know about any others. The last time I checked, I found a Web site offering the Gehrig at $199, saying it sold originally for $99. One has to assume that Ruth sold for the same amount originally or more.
I did see two completed eBay auctions where Ruth dolls sold for $37.25 and $41.11 including shipping and handling. In both those cases one-third of the cost was for S&H. That's a far cry from the $200 I saw for one in an eBay store. I think the Gehrig would probably be worth a little less than Ruth regardless of original selling prices.
BABE NOTES: Collectors wondering what Topps and Upper Deck might do to compensate for losing their NBA basketball licenses need look no further than Donruss. The Dallas-based company has no baseball license but continues to crank out products. The latest is 2008 Playoff Contenders Baseball. The product features a 50-card base set with an additional 100 signed rookie cards of some of the sports hottest prospects. Playoff Contenders sports the first certified autographs of 19-year-old White Sox third base prospect Dayan Viciedo, Yankee prospects Pat Venditte, an ambidextrous pitcher, and two-sport athlete Mike Jones, a wide receiver at Arizona State last year. There are also autographed cards of top basketball rookies OJ Mayo, Derrick Rose and Michael Beasley. Legendary Rookies features autographs of Pete Rose, Cal Ripken Jr. and Willie Mays among others. Each five-card pack will carry a $6 suggested retail price. For more information, visit www.donruss.com.
(Send card questions to Babe Waxpak, PO Box 492397, Redding, CA 96049-2397 or e-mail babewaxpak(at)charter.net. If possible, include card number, year and brand or a photocopy. Please do not send cards. For Babe Waxpak's blog, see www.scrippsnews.com/waxpak. Babe Waxpak is a feature of The Record Searchlight in Redding, Calif.)
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, http://www.scrippsnews.com)
