Baseball cards from the late 1800s and early 1900s are highly collectible pieces of sports memorabilia history. One of the most sought after subsets are error cards, which are cards that were accidentally printed or cut incorrectly during production. Error cards from sets in the 1890s produced by tobacco companies like Allen & Ginter and Old Judge are especially rare and valuable today.
One of the most well-known error card sets is from the 1890 Allen & Ginter set, which is considered the first major baseball card set. Only around 100 examples are known to exist of the “90 Score” Allen & Ginter cards today. These cards were issued as promotional items in tobacco products and included some of the biggest stars of the day like Cap Anson, Buck Ewing, and Amos Rusie. A small number of cards were accidentally printed on card stock measuring 2.5×3 inches, compared to the standard size of approx. 2×3 inches for the main set.
These oversized “90 score” cards are the biggest errors and anomalies from that entire early era of baseball cards. They were likely caused by a printing plate or sheet of card stock being incorrectly sized when running presses to produce the cards. Only seven distinct players are known to have 90 score error variations – Buck Ewing, King Kelly, Jim O’Rourke, Tom Brown, Amos Rusie, Cap Anson, and Eddie Burke. Of those, the Ewing, Kelly, and O’Rourke are the most commonly encountered, with maybe 5-10 examples of each known. The others numbers are even lower.
Part of what makes these errors so desirable to collectors is their extreme rarity. Most early tobacco era sets had print runs in the tens or hundreds of thousands. But the miscut nature of these 90 scores means there are likely well under 100 total examples spread across the seven players. The inaccurate cutting and spacing of the cards also means no two 90 scores likely look exactly alike. The inconsistent sizes and shapes are a big part of the allure for error card collectors. Beyond just rarity, they represent a truly one-of-a-kind manufacturing mistake from over 130 years ago.
In terms of value, 90 score Allen & Ginter errors are the most valuable and desirable cards from that entire early era. In the past decade, examples have regularly sold at auction for six figures, with some setting new records. In 2013, a PSA NM-MT 8 graded King Kelly 90 score brought $116,250 at auction. In great condition with strong eye appeal, the sky seems to be the limit for prices they can bring. Even lower grade examples in AG 3-5 still sell for $10,000+ due to their great historical significance.
For collectors, finding one of these elusive errors is the ultimate prize. Only a small handful are believed to still exist in private collections unaccounted for. They are never encountered in flea markets or ordinary card shows. Any new discoveries would be huge news in the hobby. Most change hands only at major auction houses during rare opportunities. With such small numbers, finding a 90 score in any condition is still an incredibly rare occurrence over 125 years later.
The mystique and rarity have led some to speculate theories about their origin and survival over the decades. Some believe they may have been experimental one-off proofs created before the official set design was finalized. Others think they were oversights in the manufacturing process as the plant got up and running. It’s possible a few boxes were miscut and missed being destroyed as seconds. Wherever they came from, the 90 scores are now among the most important and valuable artifacts from the early days of modern baseball cards collecting.
For today’s collectors, finding any example of these legendary errors would be an unprecedented discovery. They represent the pinnacle achievement for collectors of tobacco era cards and errors/variants from that pre-modern era. Even for the deepest pocketed investors, a 90 score in pristine condition would be a true blue chip addition. Their mystique and rarity have cemented them as some of the most coveted collectibles in the entire sports card industry, continually rewriting records as new generations discover the early history of the hobby.
