Veteran shortstop Jose Iglesias’ 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air convertible worth $104,500 in baby blue, a classic ride with a cultural statement

Former Detroit Tigers shortstop Jose Iglesias bought a baby blue 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air convertible in 2015 while playing for the Tigers. Over the years, the 1955 edition has become a classic car with rare appearances on the road, making it a rare and valuable commodity.

In an interaction, Iglesias said that his father liked the convertible and given that he was earning well, he bought it in Miami.

“My dad likes it,” Iglesias said. “When I saw the car, I said, ‘This is it.’ Convertible. And it’s really rare. It’s different. Now I have the money to have it." (via a blog on Medium).

According to Keith Martin's Sports Car Market, the 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air convertible was sold for $104,500 at the Worldwide Group’s Auburn auction on Sept. 4, 2010.

The rare commodity has a four-barrel carburetor, dual-exhaust Power Pack 265 V8 and optional Powerglide automatic transmission. In 1955, Chevrolet sold 1.8 million units, an increase of 500k units from the last year's sales.

In 1955, the first year for Chevrolet's now-legendary small-block V8, the 265-ci V8 was optional, while the old stovebolt "Blue Flame" straight-6 engine remained standard.

The new V8 engine's performance was incredible, especially when equipped with the Power Pack option and paired with a manual transmission.

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Jose Iglesias' 2023 season

The former All-Star agreed a minor league deal with the Miami Marlins on Mar. 9, 2023.

However, he couldn't make the Opening Day roster. Instead of opting out, he chose to accept an assignment to the Triple-A Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp. In a month, he decided to opt out to become a free agent.

On Apr. 25, 2023, Jose Iglesias signed a minor-league contract with the San Diego Padres but opted out the following month and re-signed again on May 30.

He appeared in 28 games for the Triple-A El Paso Chihuahuas, batting .317/.356/.537 with four home runs and 27 RBI. On Jun. 19, Iglesias again opted out of his minor league deal, becoming a free agent.

For the 2024 season, Jose Iglesias signed a minor league deal with the New York Mets in Dec. 2023.