Okay, I admit it. I have never seen or heard of a Bowman Tiffany Griffey card. I have been doing this for 35 years and not once had a customer brought one in to sell to me. Maybe collectors do not want to give them up. Or maybe there are not many to speak of. Topps made only 6000 sets. Compare that to the 1989 Topps Traded Set with a production run of 15,000 sets and you can see why Bowman card is a real sleeper. The only way to acquire one of these cards was to buy the complete factory set. Tiffany cards never came in packs. Back in 1989, collectors were not enthralled with Bowman. Oversized, they did not fit properly in the 9 pocket sheets. As a rule of thumb, collectors like familiarity. They want their cards 2 1/2" x 3 1/2", dammit! But collectors bought them for one simple reason: Ken Griffey, Jr., the 19 year old Rookie phenom of the Seattle Mariners. Junior went on to play 22 seasons and smacked 630 home runs with a solid .284 lifetime batting average. Who bats .284 these days? (only 24 players this year bat higher than that)
I picked this card up recently from a local dealer who visited the store. This card, in this condition, sells for around $500.00.
I am always looking to purchase unusual cards. Come stop on by, Kenmore Collectibles, 4074 North Washington Blvd, Sarasota.
Peter
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