You have to get to the ballpark early to watch the visiting team take batting practice but sometimes the road team has a must-watch kind of player. Prior to the homer-happy modern era, no one made BP appointment viewing more than The Babe. A snapshot of one such moment, taken in the stands in Cleveland 85 seasons ago, has made its way to market, complete with … [Read more...]
Photo of the Day: Dizzy and Paul Dean are 1935 Autograph Machines
Think players are conflicted by autograph hounds today? It’s nothing new. “If you don’t talk to people, sign autographs and do what you can to accommodate them, they get sore at you,” said Dizzy Dean to baseball commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis in April of 1935. Sometimes, though, it was just part of the deal. And Diz was always ready to make a … [Read more...]
Editor’s Blog: 1934 Gold Medal Foods Set a Timely Issue
They didn’t have instant print-to-order cards 82 years ago, but timeliness wasn’t a foreign concept to sports marketers. A good example would be the 1934 Gold Medal Foods (R313) baseball card set, one I have owned for close to 40 years thanks to a dad who wasn’t afraid to reach out to some old childhood buddies to see if they had any cards from their youth. Issued by … [Read more...]
Photo of the Day: Preparing for the World Series That Wasn’t
It’s not quite “Dewey Defeats Truman” but the newspapers got ahead of themselves during the pennant race of 1934. Oh, the New York Giants looked like a sure thing all right. With 14 games left in the season, they still held a 5 ½ game edge on the St. Louis Cardinals. Sometime in the days leading up to the end of the regular season, a photographer for International News … [Read more...]
Photo of the Day: Greenberg Gets Gehrig
Three of the FBI’s most wanted criminals had been gunned down by federal agents weeks earlier. Stopping John Dillinger and Bonnie and Clyde seemed easier than getting Lou Gehrig out that summer. The Yankees’ slugging first baseman was on his way to the Triple Crown but on August 14, 1934, a camera captured not only a rare Gehrig infield out—but three Hall of Famers in one … [Read more...]
Photo of the Day: The Babe Arrives at Camp
Babe Ruth reported for spring training a month after his 39th birthday with an idea that his time as an active player was winding down. Our Photo of the Day from RMY Auctions is from The Babe’s last arrival in Florida as a member of the New York Yankees. The rare image offers insight into Ruth’s status as the most important sports figure of the era, the center of attention … [Read more...]
Photo of the Day: Hub Fans Bid Babe Adieu
He was hoping to slide from the outfield to the manager’s office, but as 1934 wound to a close, it was starting to become obvious Babe Ruth wouldn’t get his chance to run the Yankees. On August 10, in the city where he began his major league career, The Bambino announced he expected to retire at the end of the season. Our Photo of the Day from RMY Auctions is a rare news … [Read more...]
Photo of the Day: Hockey and the Iron Horse
When you need someone to honor a games played streak and you’re in New York, who else would you want but Lou Gehrig? In 1934, the New York Rangers were honoring some of their own as the team played its 400th NHL game. Veteran Murray Murdoch had played in all 400 and Gehrig dropped by Madison Square Garden , where news photographers snapped pictures of Gehrig presented rings … [Read more...]
Vintage Photo of the Day: Card Playing Giant Hall of Famers
Do baseball players play cards anymore? Years ago they did—a lot. Our Vintage Photo of the Day from RMY Auctions is this wire service photo from 1934 showing several members of the New York Giants in the middle of a game of poker. Carl Hubbell and Mel Ott, two Hall of Famers, are pictured along with others whose names are scripted in pencil on the back. The photo appears … [Read more...]