The 1907 Seamless Steel Tubes Ty Cobb postcards are rare by themselves. Whenever one of the small number that exist comes to auction, bidding typically swells into five figures. Heritage Auctions will soon offer one that includes a hand-written greeting from the man himself.
The company is offering the card, which features a young Cobb on the front, in its upcoming catalog auction.
Cobb was just 21 at the time, but his .350 average helped propel the Tigers to the American League pennant. The card is postmarked from Chicago’s 22nd Street Station on October 7, 1907, the day prior to Game 1 of the World Series against the Cubs. Cobb was writing to a friend and former teammate named Tom Bird, whose address is written on the front. The two had played together in Augusta, GA during the 1905 season.
The message on the front reads reads (with some punctuation added):
Well, we have won the pennant and here for world series. I led in hitting, stolen bases 60, assists, and second 100 runs, hit 355 unofficially – hope you lots of luck, will be glad to hear at any time. Royston GA., have an offer to go with all-Americans out to California. Excuse this advertising card.
He signed the postcard under his photo, “Ty”.
The card been encapsulated PSA/DNA Authentic.
No other Seamless Steel cards written in Cobb’s hand have ever been discovered.
The card was passed down for generations and first came to auction through Heritage in 2017 when it sold for $84,000. Heritage believes it could bring $150,000 this time.
Fewer than five Seamless Cobb cards are known to exist, and the checklist is still a bit of a mystery. The sponsor of the set was a Detroit factory best known as the makers of exhaust systems for steam locomotives.
The front of the card under Cobb’s photo, contains text that seems to note the city’s pride in its new superstar: “Tyrus Cobb of Royston, GA. Age 21, member of the Detroit Basebasll team and the greatest ball player of the year in America.”
The card is part of a three segment auction with thousands of cards and memorabilia items set to open July 26 and close August 23-25.
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