Now that the SIXTH no-hitter of the 2010 season has been racked up, including 2 by the same pitcher, can we officially declare the Steroid Era over? To put in perspective how truly monumental Roy Halladay's performance was in Game 1 of the NLDS, let's take a quick gander at the history books. It would be enough if it were simply the first postseason no-no since Don Larsen's perfect game in the '56 World Series (only 2 days shy of 54 years ago), but it's also the first time the same pitcher has thrown 2 no-hitters in a season since Nolan Ryan in 1973 (albeit Ryan's 2 were both regular season no-hitters). What a way to get your first taste of October baseball!
So what did creating history do for Halladay's card values? Let's examine the crown jewel for Halladay collectors. As always, eBay is our barometer here. We'll check the selling price of one prior to tonight and another just after the finishing touch was put on the no-hitter.
1997 Bowman Roy Halladay Auto Rookie
BEFORE - $259.99
AFTER (7:37 PM Eastern) - $299.00
Unlike other players and cards we've covered (Armando Galarraga, Matt Garza, Jahvid Best), we've only seen a 15% spike this time. With the stakes far higher and the achievement far more impressive, that seems a little unusual, but let's stop a minute and think of the differences this time around. First and foremost, Halladay has been one of the top 5 players at his position in baseball for an extended period of time. He should be a dead solid lock for Cooperstown with three to five more seasons like he's put together throughout his career. His RC values are already pretty far up there. Second, and relatively speaking, the '97 Bowman being looked at is also pretty rare. The 2 we compared and contrasted appear to be the only 2 put up on eBay over the past 30 days. Demand is already there and supply is short. Finally, the impulse buyer crowd might bite over the next 24 hours or so on the 2 that are currently listed here and here for $399. Then it begins to look more like the immediate jump we've come to expect with a virtuoso one game performance.
Still, if you happen to be holding one of the Halladay cards we covered here, you could do worse than picking up somewhere in the neighborhood of $300 for the 5 minutes or so it takes to list it on eBay.
