For one thing, the trade deadline is just a couple of days away, which means contending teams are jockeying for the few available star players.

For another, this is Hall of Fame induction weekend — Chipper Jones, Vladimir Guerrero, Trevor Hoffman, Ivan Rodriguez, Jack Morris, and Alan Trammell all get their Cooperstown busts.

So, in this Flash Market Report, I made sure that every lot had some star power — All-Star, Hall of Fame power, in fact.

Here then, are five big, honking baseball card lots that changed hands on eBay during the week ending July 29, 2018.

(Note that these listings contain affiliate links, which means if you click over to eBay and buy something, I’ll receive a small commission at no extra charge to you.)

Huge Baseball Card Collection (Mickey Mantle, Pete Rose, Willie Mays, Ted Williams, Mike Trout …)

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again and again — nothing is more exhilarating in this hobby than that moment you first spy a big old pile of baseball cards, especially if you can spy a few recognizable biggies peeking out at you.

This lot, dubbed by the seller as a “Huge Baseball Card Collection” certainly qualifies.

Take a look the associated images, and you’ll see stuff like a 1960 Topps Mickey Mantle, a 1957 Topps Ted Williams, a 1958 Topps Willie Mays, and a 1968 Topps Pete Rose.

There’s tons more here, too, and the collection spans autographs, vintage, modern, chase cards, superstars, rookies, and something like six decades among the 3000+ cards that went out the door for $1750.

Yum!

See the original eBay listing here (affiliate link).

1951 Topps Blue Back Complete Set (PSA 3-8)

You’re a veteran collector, so you know that the ballyhooed 1952 set was not Topps first baseball card issue.

And you probably know that the old gum company issued two base-ish sets in 1951 — red back and blue back releases, both with a playing card motif.

But how often have you seen one of the two in complete-set form, especially with all the cards graded? Not too often, I’d wager.

Of the two sets, the Red Backs have the stronger checklist, but the Blue Backs are more scarce, which makes this lot all the more incredible.

In particular, all 52 Blue Backs in this set have been graded by PSA, with conditions ranging from 3-8. Hall of Famers Johnny Mize and Red Schoendienst both check in at 7 (NM), and the 8s include Billy Cox, Lou Brissie, and Johnny Pesky

(Incidentally, Pesky was a Boston Red Sox coach while Dick Pole pitched for the BoSox … the duo formed a real, live Pesky-Pole combo).

All of that seems good enough reason for the final price of $3000, don’t you think?

See the original eBay listing here (affiliate link).

1989 Topps Heads Up Test Issue Mike Schmidt (PSA 9)

According to hobby lore, Topps released only 24 boxes of 24 packs each of their 1989 Heads Up test issue, and only in a few Pennsylvania stores.

I don’t know for certain if that’s all true, but the Heads Ups do seem to be quite scarce and, if you look at them the right way, quite disturbing.

On the other hand, how many chances do you get to own the disembodied head of a Hall of Famer, like the PSA 9 Mike Schmidt offered in this lot?

I’d say two at most since that’s the PSA population for this “card.”

This one hammered down at a nice, round $1082.99 on the strength of 17 bids.

See the original eBay listing here (affiliate link).

1981 Topps Baseball Unopened Grocery Rack Packs Case

If you were a collector — or just a kid — in the early 1980s, you almost surely ran into those special Topps rack packs that were made especially for sale in the toy aisles of your local grocery store.

You may have forgotten about the packs since then, what with all the millions of cards issued in the intervening decades, but the memories will come rushing back whenever you see one again.

That’s the beauty of nostalgia in the broadest sense, baseball cards in general, and this eBay lot in particular.

For $1350, some lucky buyer took home a whole 1981 Topps grocery pack case and nearly 40 years of memories.

See the original eBay listing here (affiliate link).

1954 Topps Hank Aaron Rookie Card (PSA 7)

Who is the greatest player of all time?

Even after all these years, the general consensus seems to be that Babe Ruth was the greatest.

But it sure is hard to discount Hank Aaron’s case to be right there in that conversation, alongside the likes of Willie Mays, Ty Cobb, Barry Bonds, and, these days, Mike Trout.

The (former?) all-time home run leader is also tops in RBI and total bases, and he banged out 3771 hits on his way to a .305 batting average.

So, what do you think a PSA 7 copy of his 1954 Topps rookie card is worth?

Judging by this eBay lot, I’d say exactly $7499.

See the original eBay listing here (affiliate link).

(Check out our other posts about card values here.)

That means two things …

1. The Major League Baseball trade deadline.
2. Hall of Fame induction weekend.

And, as exciting as both of those things are, sometimes they collide and supernova our baseball exhilaration beyond all bounds (maybe a slight exaggeration).

When that happens, you get future Hall of Famers switching teams at the trade deadline, and you get new future Hall of Famer cardboard associations.

Fun stuff!

To celebrate this colossal collision, this week’s droolworthy lots all feature those guys … Hall of Famers who, at one point in their careers, were the subject of trade deadline deals.

Bestill my beating heart!

(Note that this post contains affiliate links, which means if you click over to eBay and buy something, I’ll receive a small commission at no extra charge to you.)

1967 Topps Punch-Outs Unopened Pack (Lou Brock!)

Click the image for the eBay listing (affiliate link)

The 1962 pact that sent Lou Brock from the Chicago Cubs to the St. Louis Cardinals is still the yardstick by which all other trade deadline deals are judged.

Brock, of course, went on to a Hall of Fame career with the Cards, while the Cubs languished for another 20 years before finally winning a division title in 1984.

In between, Topps was busy issuing all sorts of baseball cards, including the 1967 Punch-Outs test issue.

Now, these weren’t gorgeous cards, but they’re definitely interesting.

And an unopened pack with three of the lineup-style cards? Awesome!

This particular pack just so happens to have the Lou Brock Team Captain card showing through, so it’s perfect for our list this week.

Here is the eBay listing (affiliate link).

1971-72 Game Worn and Autographed Gaylord Perry and Dave Kingman San Francisco Giants Jersey

Click the image for the eBay listing (affiliate link)

In 1971, Gaylord Perry wore number 36 for the San Francisco Giants.

In 1972, Dave Kingman wore number 26 for the San Francisco Giants.

According to the seller of this jersey, its number was changed from 36 to 26 at some point. So, even though it says “Perry” in the collar, the thought is that both dudes wore this thing.

What we know for sure is that both (apparently) signed it.

And that the Giants traded Perry (and Frank Duffy) to the Cleveland Indians in November 1971 in exchange for Sam McDowell.

And that Perry was part of a deadline deal that sent him to the Texas Rangers in 1975.

Too intriguing to ignore.

Here is the eBay listing (affiliate link).

1973 Topps Pin-Ups Tom Seaver (PSA 9)

Click the image for the eBay listing (affiliate link)

In 1977, the New York Mets traded staff ace Tom Seaver to the Cincinnati Reds in the middle of summer.

It was devastating to NYM fans but exciting for Seaver and Cincy fans — it seemed like he might be the missing piece to keep the Big Red Machine chugging along.

As it turned out, the Reds just didn’t have quite enough gas to keep up with the Los Angeles Dodgers, and Seaver never did make it to the World Series with the Reds.

But that’s OK, because Seaver was already a living legend.

Enough of a legend, in fact, for Topps to have included him in their super-scarce 1973 Pin-Ups test issue that may have never been actually, um, issued at all.

This is a pretty cool set, with each “card” essentially intended to be a gum wrapper. As you might imagine high-grade copies are hard to come by.

There’s only one PSA 9 Seaver in the Population Report, for example.

This eBay lot features a PSA 9 Seaver.

You do the math.

Here is the eBay listing (affiliate link).

1973 Topps Comics Steve Carlton (PSA 5)

Click the image for the eBay listing (affiliate link)

Unlike Seaver, Steve Carlton’s deadline deal came at the end of his career when the Cleveland Indians sent him to the Minnesota Twins in 1987.

Just like Seaver, though, Lefty found himself included in a 1973 Topps test issue — “Comics” in this case.

The Carlton comic in this eBay lot checks in at “only” a PSA 5, but like the Seaver offering above, it’s the only one in the PSA Population Report so graded.

Yuk it up!

Here is the eBay listing (affiliate link).

Collection of (18) Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie Cards Graded PSA 10

Click the image for the eBay listing (affiliate link)

For many hardcore Cincinnati Reds fans (like me), Ken Griffey, Jr., was one of the biggest busts of all time.

It’s not that he wasn’t great — he was.

It’s just that former Reds GM Jim Bowden mortgaged the 2000s to bring Griffey “home” to the Riverfront before the 2000 season.

The Kid just wasn’t the same legend in Cincinnati as he had been with the Seattle Mariners, and it didn’t hurt at all to see him walk out the door in a trade deadline deal with the Chicago White Sox in 2008.

Still, few players have ever excelled in all areas of the game like Griffey did, and few are more popular — still — among collectors.

So, what better way to celebrate his exit from Cincinnati than with this 18-card lot of Junior rookies, all graded PSA 10?

Among the goodies are minor league cards, rookie/update set cards, Griffey’s 1989 Topps (Traded)/Fleer/Donruss rookies, and, of course, that glorious 1989 Upper Deck rookie card.

Hard to imagine a more mouthwatering group of modern cards, huh?

Here is the eBay listing (affiliate link).

Check out our other posts detailing baseball cards for sale here.