If you followed baseball as the 19th century became the 20th, you knew his name. Cy Young was great. Christy Mathewson was becoming a superstar. But if you argued that Rube Waddell was the best in the game, you'd have plenty of support. He couldn't stay married. He chased fire trucks, was easily distracted and drank a lot. But when Waddell was on the … [Read more...]
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Jack Quinn’s 1929 World Series Ring Holds Hurler’s Historic Place
Jack Quinn didn’t reach the big leagues until age 25 in 1909 but he made up for it. Quinn pitched from the era of T206 to the dawn of bubble gum cards. While his age was always a bit of a mystery, Quinn was still pitching in relief as he pushed toward age 50 and won a pair of World Series titles as a member of Connie Mack’s Philadelphia A’s in 1929 and … [Read more...]
Philadelphia Story: Connie Mack’s Long-Lost Ledger Books at Auction
It’s an irresistible story, starring a Dumpster diver from the 1970s and baseball Hall of Famer Connie Mack. Mack managed the Philadelphia Athletics for 50 years and remained the team owner until it was sold and moved to Kansas City. A former player with an eye for talent, the “Grand Old Man” of baseball did not part easily with his money. “I love that old guy,” … [Read more...]
Traded for Jackson: Bris Lord’s 1910 A’s Championship Pin Coming to Auction
Connie Mack may have disagreed but the move he made in the middle of the 1910 season has to go down as one of the most lopsided in baseball history. The patriarch of the Philadelphia Athletics acquired outfielder Bris Lord from Cleveland, a player who Mack insisted played a key role in the A’s run to the World Series title in 1910—and again in 1911. In return, … [Read more...]
Al Simmons Photo Used for 1933 Goudey at Auction
Go to the ballpark at the right time, especially during spring training, and it’s possible you’ll see a card company photographer snapping pictures of players to use in an upcoming series. Decades before bubble gum cards, card makers acquired photos wherever they could find them and turned them into artwork used to create cardboard heroes. RMY Auctions is currently offering … [Read more...]
Beast on the Brink: 1931 Portrait of Jimmie Foxx at Auction
Jimmie Foxx already had three full and three part-time seasons under his belt when he arrived at the Philadelphia Athletics’ spring training camp in Florida in the late winter of 1931. He was still only 24 years old. The RMY Auctions Photo of the Day is an original 5x7 Acme News photo of the future Hall of Famer, who was approaching the zenith of his lengthy career. … [Read more...]
Rare Chief Bender Photo Emerges
“If everything depended on one game, I just used Albert – the greatest money pitcher of all time.” Connie Mack’s assessment was right on the money. Charles Albert “Chief” Bender finished his long career with a .625 winning percentage and helped pitch Mack’s Philadelphia Athletics become a tour de force in the American League during the first part of the 20th century. Our … [Read more...]
Tucked Away for Years, Glynn West Collection Comes to Auction
The history of the nation's oldest active baseball park is in many ways the history of American baseball. Yet, much of the history of Birmingham's Rickwood Field has been hidden from the eyes of historians and biographers, because it was locked away in the basement of Glynn West, longtime manager of the Birmingham Barons and Birmingham A's. Now, the collection has been … [Read more...]
Editor’s Blog: Gehrig Autograph Can Teach Us All Something
He'd gone four-for-five the day before, in an 11-4 Yankees rout of the Philadelphia Athletics. Hit is 16th home run of the season, en route to 49 for the year, to go along with 165 RBI and a .363 batting average. When a fan sent him a letter asking for a Lou Gehrig autograph on a photo, the big slugger wrote back on June 9, 1934. No, he couldn't supply a photo. He simply … [Read more...]
