1971 Bazooka Numbered Baseball #5, Carl Yastrzemski

This is my third look at a numbered 1971 Bazooka Yaz card--first discussed here and followed up here--but this time it's a real one. Probably real. I mean, its eBay lot includes a bunch of other numbered cards and that's about the best you can do when collecting rare test sets unless it came directly from the Topps archives.

Card front (blank back)

Finding a buyable version of a type card that's eluded me for years (and required the return of a fake) made me feel like Tim McCarver.

Then I saw the $1500 asking price (technically it's $1499.99) and felt like Clyde Wright.

Sorry Yaz, we're destined to remain apart for awhile longer. Guess I'll continue to watch-list you from afar. (At least you can use the listing's scans to enjoy almost the entire set: there's 45 of 48 cards or 15 of the original 16 three-player panels.)

UPDATE: The seller relisted for $1399! Who knows where this pricing adventure will end.

Value: Rare test set or no rare test set, $1500 is too rich for my blood. $50 for Yaz alone and we can talk.

Fakes / reprints: My earlier 1971 Bazooka post illustrated problems you'll find with faked versions of this rare set.