Old Frog and Even Older Players

One of the hot button issues in sports today involves the Confederate flag.  NASCAR, a traditionally southern sport, has tried to drag their organization into the 21st century by officially banning the rebel flag from all of their race tracks and events.  Without getting too far into the weeds, I just want to applaud the organization for finally acting on the matter, even though it's a decision that's been decades in the making.  Flying the flag of a hostile foreign power that stood for human bondage is not being proud of your heritage, it's anti-american.

Anyway, here we are in the third decade of the new millennium and yet we're still fighting a war that  ended when Betty White's GRANDPARENTS were young.  

With that in mind, it's time I make a sudden pivot to some lighter, but somewhat related content.  This flag controversy might date back to the shadow of the Civil War and just a few days ago, I acquired some cards which also were inspired by the same time period and they are far less controversial.

   

The very first "Cubs" squad in 1870.

The Chicago Cubs were founded as the Chicago Base Ball Club just five years after the bullets stopped flying, in 1870.  That's right, in case you didn't know, the Cubs can trace their roots back several years before the National League was even a thing, back to when professional baseball was still a new concept.

After a year of amateur play, the Chicagoans became one of the founding members of the first true Major League - the National Association - 1871.  Unfortunately for them, the White Stockings (as they came to be called for reasons you might guess) were only just barely able to finish one season because their ballpark, records, and uniforms were completely destroyed by the Great Chicago Fire.  Afterwards, the team went on hiatus for two years while they, along with the rest of the Windy City tended to their wounds.  Of course, they were back in time for the 1874 campaign and, after another league hop and some name changes, still play today at the corner of Clark & Addison.

This is a gross over-simplification of their evolution, but you get the gist.

As longtime readers of Wrigley Roster Jenga know, it is my goal to collect at least one card of every player to ever suit up for the Cubs franchise.  This includes everyone from every era, including those guys who were actually White Stockings and not technically Cubbies.  Pre-war cards are tough as is, but trying to track down realistically obtainable pasteboards for men who's playing careers predated the founding of the National League has proven to be quite the chore.  I had long since resigned myself to the fact that I'd probably never be able to complete my collection and this era of Chicago baseball has remained completely unrepresented in my Cubs All-Time Roster Collection tome.

Until recently, that is.  A couple of weeks ago, a hero "hopped" into my life:

While randomly perusing Ebay late one night, I was haphazardly plugging the names of long-forgotten ballplayers of yore into the search bar.  It was during this process that I stumbled across a listing that almost made question my sanity.

A whole set of cards based around the old National Association?  Major League Baseball rarely even acknowledges that their history extends before the National League and, thus, it's rarely acknowledged by anyone but hardcore baseball history nerds.  Yet, here's an entire set of cards dedicated to the original MLB circuit?  You could say my interest was piqued, but that'd be putting it quite lightly.

While skimming through the details and featured images, I quickly deduced that the cards centered around the inaugural 1871 NA season and each founding club was represented by nine spots on the checklist.  The Fort Wayne Kekiongas were there, the Troy Haymakers were accounted for, the Cleveland Forest Citys were present, and - most importantly - my beloved Chicago White Stockings were no exception!

The only fact that tempered my excitement was that the complete set cost $120 and I didn't exactly have that much fun money lying around for baseball cards.  Furthermore, I had no idea what the story was on these oddballs nor was I at all familiar with the seller, who went by the name of Old Frog.  However, this listing had dug deep into my brain and was not going to let me go.  With that literally in mind, I fired off a quick message to this fellow, asking some questions about his product and sheepishly inquiring if he might be interested in selling team lots in addition to the full collation.

Luckily for me, the vendor was, in fact, feeling "froggy."

Mr. Old Frog explained to me that all of these cards are individually drawn, cut, distressed, and collated by hand to create a faux-vintage look.  Also, he was generously willing to offer me a team set for the Chicagos, going so far as to create a separate, private listing for little ol' me.  For fifteen bucks, the whole set of Stockings was mine, an extremely fair price, especially considering how much work goes into these ACEO's and how much card art sells for on the 'Bay.  I mean, just look how much a single Helmar card sells for these days.

Needless to say, I "hopped" on that deal.  In fact, I could have kissed that old frog.

Just a few days later, my eagerly anticipated gap-fillers arrived in the mail and they most certainly did not disappoint.  Let's take a look at the "Cubs" of 1871, shall we?

First up, we have the battery.  George Zettlein started all 28 games that season (which I think is a schedule that MLB would love to bring back this summer) and pitched all but 10.1 innings.  Different times, right?  Along the way, "the Charmer" earned 18 of the clubs 19 wins and posted a 2.73 ERA, which was tops in the circuit. George earned that moniker from his deceptive changes in speed and his ever-present smile. However, Zettlein is also noted for having given up the first home run and grand slam in NA - and thusly - MLB history.

Meanwhile, the man Zettlein was pitching to was Charlie Hodes, who contributed a .277 batting average.  Beyond that, I don't have much information on Mr. Hodes.

Into the infield now, we have Michael "Bub McAtee at first base and Jimmy Wood at second.

Bub batted .274 for the Stockings after joining the club from Troy.  McAtee had been playing with the Troy Haymakers for several years, but jumped to Chicago for '71.  Meanwhile, Wood holds a special significance to the franchise beyond starting at the keystone.  You see, Jimmy was the literal, very first Chicago Cub.  It was Wood who was tasked with putting together a "nine" to represent the city of Chicago, charged by a business man by the name of Tom Foley late in 1869.  Wood also served as the team's maiden manager.

Additionally, Wood lead the 1871 White Stockings in more ways than one.  Besides being the skipper, he was the key cog on offense, leading the way with a .378 batting average, one of only two men to cross the .300 threshold.

 

Hugh Duffy, the shortstop, was a controversial figure in the sporting world.  Duffy's name was infamous for having previously been banned from organized baseball following a gambling scandal in 1865.  However, he was welcomed back in 1870 with the Stockings and was still with them the next year.  Ultimately, it would officially be his first and last true professional season.

Ed Pinkham was both the club's first baseman and it's emergency pitcher.  Pinkham took the pitcher's box (no mound yet) when Zettlein was pounded for ten runs in just two frames by the Boston Red Stockings in a June contest.  Pinkham pitched the rest of the way and, though he allowed four runs of his own, ultimately earned the win as the Chicagoans stormed back to win 16-14.  He also swatted three doubles and scored four runs.  You've heard of the night the backup catcher got the win, but I bet this is the first you've heard of the day the third baseman got the win!

Pinkham's pitching heroics weren't completely out of the blue though, as he spent 1870 as Chicago's ace hurler before moving to third.  Baseball sure was different back then.  He was also a Civil War veteran, having served with 47th New York Volunteer Infantry.

 
As for the outfield, we only have two of the three regulars.  I'm not sure why Tom Foley - who is not the same business man that funded the team - didn't make the cut.  But, let's focus on who is actually here.  Joe Simmons was the weak link in the starting lineup, batting an anemic .217 was Treacey was second only to wood with his .339 mark.

Lastly, we have Marshall "Mart" King, who played as the team's roving utility player.  Injuries seemed to be a problem for King, as he missed more than a month of the season with a broken finger and, while subbing for Hodes at catcher in a game against the Red Stockings, suffered a “peculiarly painful and enervating injury.”  Curiously, whatever that injury was has been lost to time.

Missing from this set are the aforementioned Tom Foley and Mike Brannock.  The latter is not nearly as notable, having only appeared in three games as an emergency replacement for Ed Pinkham, who did not make the final road trip of the season.

And there you have it - the 1871 Chicago White Stockings, as illustrated by Old Frog.  Overall, while some portraits are better than others, overall the artwork is solid and feels very authentic to the era.  The artificial distressing also helps in creating an aura of antiquity about these decidedly modern cards.  My only complaint is that the cardstock is rather thin, but that's only if I'm feeling nitpicky.  All in all, I am quite content with my purchase.

As for the real '71 Stockings, they very nearly won the first National Association pennant.  Of course, the Great Chicago Fire decimated their home city just as the season began to wound down.  However, the team didn't let that tragedy stop them - they doggedly played the rest of the schedule on the road and in borrowed uniforms (the club literally lost everything in the blaze).  In the end, the Stockings lost to the Philadelphia Athletics in the very last game of the year which gave the pennant to the City of Brotherly Love.  The Chicago franchise was then temporarily disbanded (for what should be obvious reasons) after the campaign.

When the team reformed in 1874, Jimmy Wood once again lead the charge.  However, he was strictly a bench manager at this point, as he had a leg amputated due to terrible infection just prior to the season.  Also returning were Zettlein and Treacey, but the rest of the roster was made up of completely fresh faces.  Funnily enough, Pinkham was apparently the inspiration for Dwight Schrute, as he retired to a beat farm.  But, by the time the National League was formed in 1876, none of the original Stockings remained on the roster and were thus kicked to the dustbin of history by MLB.

Thanks to Old Frog, though, there are actually some baseball cards floating around out there that honor this era of baseball history.  Without him, the National Association would remain completely unrepresented in my CATRC binder.  For that, this guy is the exact opposite of a toad, in my book.

Further evidence of just how good of a frog this prince is comes from all of the extras he threw in with my team set.  That's right, not only did he make a special order of his hand drawn art at a rather modest price, he also included a bunch of bonus material for my enjoyment.

In our conversation, I mentioned that Clipper Flynn was one of my favorite pre-NL players.  When I first caught this player's name while skimming a dusty old tome as a young adult, I was struck by his name - it just flows so well and seems so apropos of an 19th century baseballist.  Flynn plied his trade with Troy in 1871 and therefore appears as a Haymaker in the Frog's NA set.  That being said, the first baseman was also an original Cub, as he was on their amateur roster in 1870, prior to the formation of the NA.

Thus, I nearly croaked when Old Frog mentioned that he would graciously include a Clipper card in my package, along with the White Stockings.  This amphibian is absolutely out of his lillipad!

Also, I should probably let ya'll see the back of these ACEO oddballs, as - unlike many of his peers - Frog does not ignore the reverse.  We get an illustration of our hero, very much in the vain of a trade card from the 1800's, along with the 1871 stat line for the player depicted.  As you can see, Clipper knocked out hits at an impressive "clip!"

And as if all this wasn't enough...

via GIPHY

While I have been obsessing over Old Frog's National Association product, he reminded me that's not the only set that he has created.  Clearly a student of ancient baseball history, this polliwog uses his talents to shine a light upon another oft-forgotten Major League circuit:  the American Association.

The AA was the first league to rise and mount a sustained challenge against the Senior Circuit's reign.  In fact, from 1886-1890, the first proto-World Series were played between the champions of the two leagues, two of which involved the Chicago White Stockings after their transfer from the NA.  But, these first postseason championships are not included in the modern World Series' lineage.  Why not? The Stanley Cup doesn't pick favorites when it comes to which leagues contested the title.

Frog's set focuses on the 1882 season, which was the first season for the upstart league.  Charlie Householder here played for the original Baltimore Orioles and looked equally at home on diamond as he did at a Dick Dastardly look-a-like contest.  No Cubs connections here, sadly.  The design of this card and the action shot remind me very much of the legendary Goodwin tobacco cards of the same era.

Perusing the checklist, I see a bunch of painfully obscure guys who both played in the AA in 1882 and spent time with the Chicago Base Ball Club.  I might just have to snag a few packs of this product and see if I can pull a Ned Cuthbert, Charlie Waitt, or John Peters.  At only five bucks a pop, these packs are priced in-line with and are much more intriguing to me than a lot of the stuff Topps and Panini stock the shelves with.

Old Frog also has a 16-card set dedicated to Hall of Fame manager, John McGraw, which comes in a signed and numbered tin box and a 42-card checklist dedicated to the Giants of Early Black Baseball which focuses on African American heroes from before the Negro Leagues were even formalized. 

While I am extremely familiar with the career of  "Little Napoleon," Williams Clarence Mathews is a name that I have never heard of.  Apparently, Mathews lead the Harvard baseball team in batting average for three straight years (1903-05) and, upon graduation, joined a minor league club in Burlington, becoming the only black player in the white professional ranks.  There were even rumors that he'd break the unofficial color barrier in 1905 and join the struggling Boston Beaneaters as their starting second baseman, more than forty year before Jackie Robinson successfully did so.  However, this obviously never occurred.

Mathews joined the Bar Association in 1908 and went on to enjoy an immensely successful career in politics.  He eventually became one of the first African-American Assistant District Attorneys in the country and worked on the Calvin Coolidge campaign.  In the end, William rose all the way up to the U.S. Assistant Attorney General before he passed away in 1928.

As successful as he was in the world of politics, it's a damn shame he didn't get that rumored shot with the Bostonians.  I just barely skimmed his career, but I highly encourage you to do some research on this early trailblazer - his story is for more interesting that I can do justice in a brief blog summary.  I learned more from this freebie than I did from the rest of the entire purchase!

Lastly, to add an exclamation point to his package, Old Frog also tossed in some simulated ephemera from the mid-to-late 1800's, including a mock ticket stub, an advertisement for some sort of miracle elixir, and an advertisement for a locomotive assembly plant.  As much as I love baseball, I too am an avid fan of railroading history, so that was a fortuitous throw-in!

With that, we've finally covered all the goodies found in Old Frog's mailing.  All in all, thanks to his artwork, I've added ten names to my CATRC binder that I truly never thought I would be able to obtain, plus a handful of other fun bonus items - thank you, Old Frog!  I hope to do business with you again soon; after all, there are still several players in the rest of your National Association set who eventually spent time in Chicago, plus those American Association players I mentioned earlier in the post. 

If you would also like to sample the Frog's work, you can find his Ebay store right here.  His work is certainly at least worth perusing!

In the meantime, screw the Confederate flag.  If were going to continue reliving and re-litigating the Civil War and Reconstruction Era a century and a half later, let's focus on our national pastime instead of a flag that stands for a hostile foreign power, human bondage, and racial hatred.

Just sayin'.

Throwin' It Back

For those of you who are active on other forms social media, you might know that today is #ThrowbackThursday.  For those who do not engage on Twitter, Facebook, or the like, Thursday is the chosen day upon which people traditionally post old pictures of themselves, friends, places, etc. in a show of widespread nostalgia.  Why is this done on Thursdays?  Probably just because the alliterative #ThrowbackThursday makes for a perfectly hashtaggable and marketable saying to affix to said posts.  There's usually not a lot of depth to social media discourse, after all.

In honor of the weekly "holiday," today, I've decided to throw it back a bit on Wrigley Roster Jenga.  In fact, I'm going to throw it back about as far as is possible when it comes to Chicago Cubs baseball cards.  As evidenced by my earlier post about the curious case of Bug Holliday, I've been on an 18th century baseball kick.  With that in mind, let's take a look at the proverbial "baby pictures' of the Chicago Cubs franchise by examining the cards of the very first team to fill out a National League lineup, shall we?

Although the history of Major League Baseball and the Chicago franchise does extend beyond the founding of the NL in 1876, it was upon the league's start-up that baseball, as we know it today, began in earnest.  In fact, it was the Chicago owner, William Hulbert, who founded the league after the old National Association proved to be disorganized and susceptible to gambling.  Of course, Hulbert's Chicago White Stockings, as the Cubs were then known, were among the original eight teams to take the field.  The entry was managed by one Al Spalding:

You might know his name best for the sporting goods company he founded in Chicago that same year.  But, before he became a shrewd and successful businessman, Spalding was an inaugural Hall of Fame hurler for the old Boston Red Stockings and the White Stockings.

In addition to calling the shots, Spalding was the main man to step into the pitcher's box for the Chicagoans during the 1876 season, leading the circuit with 47 wins to go along with a 1.75 ERA in 528.2 innings pitched.... obviously, it was a different time!  Additionally, Spalding tossed the first shutout in National League history, against Louisville on 4/25.  Al is represented in my CATRC binder by this SSPC Baseball Immortals single (the set was continuously produced from 1980-87).

Spalding was not the only Hall of Fame, baseball pioneer on the roster that season - one of Albert's charges included...

Adrian "Cap" Anson manned third base for the first National League edition of the Chicago White Stockings.  Anson is often cited as one of baseball's first true superstars, becoming the first member of the 3,000 hit club.  He would eventually take over the reigns as a player-manager and held that duel role through the 1897 - his influence on the team being so great that they were rebranded as the Orphans after his retirement.  Anson is repped by this Old Style-sponsored team-issue from 1992.

Anyway, before all of that, Anson debuted with the Chicago team by batting .356, good for second best on the team, while also driving in 59 runs (tied for the team lead), and smashing two homers (again, tied for the team lead).  All in all, it was a great start to a beautiful, long-term relationship.

Filling out the rest of the infield were...

Ross Barnes at second base, Cal McVey at first base, and John Peters at shortstop.  Unfortunately, Peters does not appear to have a single baseball card to his name.  On the bright side, Barnes and McVey are not so unlucky and show up in my CATRC, courtesy of 2011 TriStar Obak and the over-sized 1976 Bob Parker More Baseball Cartoons. 

Both of these cards contain some fascinating trivia.  For example,, as the front of the Obak single notates, Barnes was the very first person to crack a home run in National League history.  This came in the Stockings' second game of the season (5/2), at Cincinnati, and was of the inside-the-park variety.  Ross was an offensive juggernaut in that first season, leading the league in batting average (.429), hits, extra base hits, and runs.  Sadly, Barnes would take ill in 1877 and would never again match that offensive production.

Artist Bob Parker's cartoonization of Cal McVey includes quite a bit of information on the front.  The versatile player would appear all over the diamond in his career, but stuck mostly to first in '76.  McVey was also good with the bat and would twice knock 18 hits in a four-game stretch that year.

John Peters had been the regular shortstop for Chicago since 1874, during their days in the old National Association.  Like most of the 1876 Cubs, be swung a potent stick, batting .351 in 66 games.  Unfortunately, like I mentioned earlier, his 11 year Major League Baseball career (5 spent with the White Stockings) was never commemorated on cardboard and his lot will remain vacant in my CATRC binder for the time being - such is the peril of building an all-time roster collection around such an ancient franchise.

However, most of the Chicago starting outfield were much more fortunate than Mr. Peters, at least in that regard:

We've already seen TriStar Obak represented in this #Throwback - which, this time, showcases Bob Addy, who is credited with having introduced the slide to our national pastime.  Back in 1866, while playing with the amateur Rockford Forest City Baseball Club, Addy evaded a tag by sliding and a key element of the game was born.  Ten years later, the Civil War veteran was still playing, this time as half of a right field platoon for another Illinois-based nine, the Chicago White Stockings.  The innovator posted a .282 batting average in 32 contests, which seems fair; but, in that high-scoring, poorly-defended era, Bob brought up the rear on the Chicago club.  After one more season of National League play (with Cincinatti), Addy would call it a career.

Splitting time in right with Addy that year was another veteran of both baseball and war, Oscar Bielaski.  Oscar learned the game from his time spent serving with the Union Army and he would eventually become the first Polish-American to record his name in baseball's record books.  However, by the time he brought his talents to Chicago in 1875, Oscar's playing career was nearly over.  During his final year of 1876, Oscar batted a paltry .209 while splitting time in right with Addy, before returning home to Washington, D.C., where a stable career as a clerk in the auditor's office at the Navy Yard awaited him.  Fun fact - his son, A. Bruce Bielaski, would go on to become the head of the FBI.

To my knowledge, the Polish sports hero has never been properly honored with a mainstream trading card; thankfully, Gary Cieradkowski - published author and proprietor of the Infinite Baseball Card Set - has filled the gap.  If you haven't acquired any of Gary's work or followed his blog, I highly recommend you do so - the cards are of high quality and I've learned quite a bit about the sport from his writing.

This is the first time that the Origins of Baseball boxset, produced by American Archives in 1994, has made an appearance in this post.  The antiquated-looking cards showcased baseball's pioneers and key moments in the development of the national game.  Luckily for me, Paul Hines - the regular centerfielder in the Windy City - made the checklist.

Hines had been in town since the '74 season, the club's first since re-organizing after the Great Chicago Fire.  The 21-year old batted .331 in that first NL season, tying with Anson for the team lead in homers (with two) and driving in 59 runs in 64 games.  During the first five NL seasons, from 1876 through 1880, Hines had more base hits than any other player.  He also believed that protective equipment signaled the end of the game, once stopping on the base paths to smash the opposing catcher's mask; he was a colorful character.

Missing from the outfield equation is John Glenn... no, not the guy that went to the moon and there is no relation.  The White Stockings' everyday left fielder, like the aforementioned John Peters, has never appeared on a baseball card... at least to Beckett's knowledge.  'Tis a shame.  Maybe I should just get a card of the astronaut and call it close enough?

For his part, Glenn contributed a .304 batting average and 12 walks (second on the club) - not "out of this world," but helpful.  He played in the Second City from 1874-77.

Finally, we've covered the pitcher's box, the infield, and the outfield... what about behind the dish?  The man who served as the catcher for the Stockings of White had a very appropriate name:

Deacon WHITE of the WHITE Stockings on a WHITE-bordered Old Judge reprint - that's just too perfect.

White was actually contracted to join the Cubs for the very first season, in 1870, but got cold feet and jumped before play began.  He eventually rectified this psych-out by coming back for the 1876 season, in what would be his only year in Chicago.  All he did was lead the circuit in RBI, with an eye-popping 60 throughout the 66-game schedule, before jumping to the Boston Red Stockings, who are better known today as the Atlanta Braves.

Finally, utility-man Fred Andrus cameo-ed in eight games with the team, as a catch-all.  Bizarrely, Andrus would only appear in two MLB seasons (both with the Stockings) - 1876 and 1884 - with almost no other pro baseball experience.  Seeing as Fred was employed by the Spalding Sporting Goods Co., it's thought that it was this connection that brought him to the diamond.

While I don't have a card of him, strangely enough, Andrus does have a baseball card to his name, despite the odd circumstances surrounding his career, while Peters and Glenn do not.  Of course, it's an incredibly rare CDV from the 1870's, of which only one is known to exist; so, I suppose that's essentially the same as not having one.  However, he does also make an appearance in the checklist of Ars Longa's Mort's Reserve series; so, there is one attainable option out there.  I'll have to keep my eyes peeled for it's next release.

With that, we've reviewed the entirety of the line-up for the 1876 Chicago White Stockings - the very first edition of the club to take the field in National League play.  This powerhouse of a team would go on to post a dominating 52-14 record and take the inaugural pennant flag by six games over second place Hartford.  That's right - Hartford, Connecticut once had a Major League Baseball team.  This kicked off a dynastic period for the Chicago team, as they would win six of the first eleven league championships - far off from the "Lovable Loser" image that would later be attached to the club.  Perhaps they should have stuck with the White Stockings name?

Of the 11 men who appeared on the diamond for the team, I have cards featuring eight of them - not bad, considering the team in question is 141 years old, as of this writing. 

I've long been fascinated by the early days of our national pastime and my favorite baseball team; thus, this is a post I've long been meaning to draft.  In the future, I would love to bang out a post or two about the team's pre-NL days; however, my cardboard stocks are pretty dry for that era of team history.  Maybe someday...  For now, this is as far as I can throw it back for #ThrowbackThursday.  At any rate, I hope you found at least some of this vanity project to be a tad bit interesting.

It's got to be a least somewhat more intriguing than your friend's old pictures from high school parties or your aunt's baby pictures, right?  Less embarrassing, anyway.

Something That's Bugging Me

Do you remember a few years back when the Royals' Raul Mondesi, Jr. made his Major League debut?  Do you remember what was significant about it, beyond a second-generation, blue-chip prospect making the ultimate ascent?  Raul's first MLB appearance came as a pinch-hitter... on October 30, 2015 a.k.a. Game Three of the 2015 World Series.  That's right, Mondesi's very first appearance in a Big League boxscore came on the absolute biggest stage that the game offers.  A few days later, he'd be hoisting the Commissioner's Trophy along with the rest of his new teammates.

This wasn't the first time that a Major Leaguer made his maiden appearance in a postseason series.  About a decade earlier, Mark Kiger cemented his place in the MLB history books by debuting for the Oakland Athletics, as a defensive replacement at second base, during the 2006 ALDS.  What makes Kiger's instance especially unique is that the middle infielder would never again make it back to the Majors, making him the only player in the game's long history to appear in the postseason and never in the regular schedule.

Both of these cases are unique, as it's incredibly rare that a team will throw an untested player into the most important games of the year.  To illustrate that point, before Mondesi and Kiger, it had been an astounding 121 years since the previous such occurrence.  So long, in fact, that the Chicago Cubs were still known as the Chicago White Stockings, Providence and Buffalo still had NL entries, and overhand pitching had only been legal for two years.

The 1885 Chicago White Stockings - Champions of the National League

Speaking of the White Stockings, it was Cap Anson's club that threw a local amateur player into the fire.  Although the American League was still more than a decade and a half away from existence, the American Association was the main challenger to the National League's authority and, from 1884 to 1890, the two leagues met in October to play an early version of the World Series to determine the overall champion of Major League Baseball.

The 1880's were a dynastic decade for the Stockings of White, as they won five Pennnat flags in that ten-year span.  One of those NL titles came in the year 1885, where they matched up against the AA's St. Louis Browns, who would eventually become the detested Cardinals, in the precursor to the modern World Series.

The Series was much more informal in those days, with the rules and length changing from year to year; thus, it didn't carry quite as much prestige or pageantry as it's modern-day equivalent does currently.  With that in mind, skipper Anson decided to rest some of his men, deciding that the tilt wasn't worth over-exerting or risking injury to his regulars.  Enter Bug Holliday.

James "Bug" Holliday (so nicknamed for his often forlorn expression) was born in St. Louis and made a name for himself on the sandlots of the "Gateway to the West" as a premier amateur player, both on the mound and in the field.  Word of his exploits reached the ears of Cap Anson and Bug was recruited to spell Chicago's regular right fielder, the legendary "King" Kelly, in Game Four of the seven game match-up.  Big shoes to fill AND a big stage - talk about an opportunity.

Two of the heaviest hitters in 18th century baseball were involved in Bug's case.

Game Four took place on October 17th and St. Louis edged out Chicago by a tight margin, 3-2.  Unfortunately, Holliday did not seize the day, going 0-for-4 with a fielding error, to boot.  To put it bluntly, the local periodical summed up the hometown hero's performance by printing, "Holliday, who played right for the Chicagos... did very poorly yesterday."  Holliday's services were not retained by the White Stockings, who would go on to disputably split the series, 3-3, kicking off the long and storied rivalry between the two clubs.

Despite his inauspicious beginnings, Holliday was still considered a top talent with a Major League future.  The next year, he jumped from the amateur ranks to the organized minor league circuits, then would eventually go on to have a ten-year MLB career, starring in the Reds outfield... and it all began with a spot start as a "Cub" in the 1885 World Series.  For more than a century, Bug was the only player to debut in the postseason.

 Then Kiger and Mondesi showed up to steal Bug's thunder.

Why do I bring up the curious case of Bug Holliday now?  Well, late last week, with work slowing down in anticipation of the looming Thanksgiving break, I found myself reviewing my copy of the Cubs' all-time roster.  Since I compiled my list over a decade ago, I figured it might be time to compile a review and make sure I wasn't missing any one; honestly, I can't believe that I hadn't done this sooner... much sooner.  Anyway, other than a few names not listed in correct ABC order and slightly misspelled surnames, everything appeared to be in order... outside of one exception:  Bug Holliday.

You see, when I originally copied my list from the Cubs' official website, the curious case of Bug Holliday was included on their all-time roster.  But, as I was looking over my spreadsheet, I noticed that my count was off by one when compared to the current website.  Apparently, sometime in the intervening years, hug's name was dropped off of the all-encompassing tome.  Why?  

As you see in the screen shot above, Holliday's name should appear in between Ed Holley and Jessie Hollins, yet he is nowhere to be found.

My mind instantly filled with questions:  Does postseason play not count towards the document?  Are the NL vs. AA title bouts not considered to be official?  Is this just some sort of oversight?  I had to know.

The first bit of research I did after I noticed this discrepancy was to see if the aforementioned Mark Kiger was claimed by the Athletics, seeing as his only time in Oakland was also during the postseason and would make for the best direct comparison (Mondesi has since seen significant regular-season playing time in KC).  Here's what I found on the A's official web page:

With the information compiled on the team websites coming from the official MLB record books, apparently Mark Kiger counts.

As far as whether or not those pre-World Series postseason contests are considered to be official Major League games, I can't say for sure.  Baseball Reference seems to classify them as such, as Holliday's Chicago stat-line appears under his player page; however, BR is obviously not the official mouthpiece of baseball's governing body.  It's quite possible that MLB views those "World Series" as exhibition contests, on the same level as Spring Training games.  Of course, it seems as though all of the articles written about Kiger and Mondesi reference Holliday as the first player to debut in the postseason, lending an air of officiality (I just made up a word) to the matter.  Can anyone with more knowledge on the subject enlighten me as to what the league's viewpoint is in this situation?

Courtesy of this murkiness, I'm left with no concrete ruling as to whether Bug is an official Cub - do I include him in my Cubs All-Time Roster Collection or not?  In my humble opinion, he definitely counts, due to his continued reference as the first such player and those early "World Series" carrying significantly more weight than your standard exhibition.  However, I'm curious; if you were in my position, would you include Bug or would you leave him on the sidelines (like the Cubs appear to have done)?

Naturally, my next step after coming to this conclusion was to see what kind of cardboard was available for Mr. Holliday.  Unsurprisingly, despite his stature as one of the premier power hitters of his era (19 big flies in 1889) and relatively long career, as a pre-20th century player, there aren't many options, affordable or not.

Beckett officially recognizes only two appearances for James Holliday - his multiple poses in the legendary, original and legendary Old Judge tobacco issue (name misspelled as Halliday), N172, and something called Pepsin Gum Pins from 1898.  Neither one of these are going to fall into my low-end collecting budget and the latter isn't even actually a card.  Therefore, I think I'm going to have to go a different route to add the baseball oddball.  Perhaps it would have been easier to simply write him off!

 An original "Halliday" Old Judge and Clark Griffith's Pepsin pin.

Thankfully, there exists a reprint set which reproduces several cards from the original Goodwin checklist and Bug happens to be one of them.  The set is marketed by Larry Fritsch Cards, but I can definitively figure out whether or not they are also the manufacturer.  At any rate, this exists as the best and most likely option, even if they are not particularly attractive cards - they look as though someone layed the originals on a fax machine and sent the copies to a printer by wire.  Also, since these cards are traditionally sold as a set, singles tend to be tough to come by on the secondhand market and are often over-priced.

For instance, this reprint is currently available BIN on Ebay - however, at $2.12 for the card and $2.83 for shipping, it's not exactly a bargain.  One never likes to pay more for shipping than they do the actual item.

On the other hand, there is one other modern option that I can identify - Ars Longa Art Cards.  Similar to Helmar, whether or not these hand-distressed, mini pieces of folk-art should count as official baseball cards is a matter of some debate; what isn't up for argument though is that they are expertly crafted and quite beautiful, in hand.  In fact, longtime readers of the blog might recall that I've gone the Ars Longa route a few times in the past to fill vacant slots that would likely otherwise stay empty.  The real problem here is that these cards are only produced in microscopic print runs, ranging anywhere between two and ten, and are released in successive, inconsistent waves.

Holliday's Ars Longa card, featuring an image from his stint with the Des Moines Prohibitionists

So, do I wait for the next Beginnings:  1880's Holliday from Ars Longa (of which, seven are known to exist) or do I settle for the cheap facsimile of his original Old Judge?  Hmmmm.... It will probably be a matter of whichever one I encounter first, at a price I'm comfortable with.  If anyone has a good lead on either, I sure would appreciate the tip!

And so, that's the story of James "Bug" Holliday - the first Major League Baseball player to debut in the postseason, official/unofficial Chicago Cub, and dodger of my Cubs All-Time Roster Collection.  All of this came out of my being bored at work... see what happens when I have too much time on my hands?

Before I wrap this up, I will pose the question to you, the reader, once again:  all things considered, does Bug Holiday count as a Cub?  Would you include him in such an All-Time Roster Collection?  I've already arrived at my decision, but I sure would like to hear about how other collectors would handle this tricky situation.  Do tell in the comment section below.

Would it "bug" you as much as it's "bugging" me?

King of Fools

It's April Fools Day - every office prankster's Christmas.  No doubt, someone (maybe even you) at your place of work or schooling has worn the proverbial "egg on their" face as the result of some tired, old gag.

With that in mind, today seemed like the perfect day to tell a story about how I was made to feel like a fool.  It's a hobby-related tale from days past long before I had a blog, when my only online presence was a now embarrassing MySpace account.  So, gather 'round and allow me of when I learned the lesson of "buyer beware."

Not so long after I first re-entered the hobby, in my latter high school years, I discovered the treasure trove of online baseball card shopping that was Ebay.  In a previous collecting life, my pre-teen years, I spent an inordinate amount of time browsing that ubiquitous online auction site in search of rare NASCAR die-cast models; or, rare to me, anyway.  Neil Bonnet's ill-fated Country Time Lemonade paint scheme, Ralph Earnhardt's late model sportsman car, Lee Petty's inaugural Daytona 500 winning ride, these were what I sought out.  When my parent's dime permitted, of course.

That collection has since been passed down to my little brother

Fast forward a few years, after the baseball card collecting bug officially sunk it's teeth back into my tuchus, I naturally gravitated towards Ebay, curious to see what "rarities" I could find to boost my still-developing Cubs All-Time Roster Collection.  Being that I was barely old enough to drive and just naive enough to trust random, online vendors, it was only a matter of time before I was bitten in a much different manner.

One night of web surfing (instead of being a hooligan out on the streets, like all of the cool kids), I came across a listing for a card of the legendary, 19th century superstar, Mike "King" Kelly.  Without being fully aware of Kelly's modern cardboard presence, I was heretofore unaware that the man once sold for $10,000 to Boston had appeared in a handful of fairly recent sets.  Furthermore, I was determined to track down Kelly in a Chicago uniform (or listed as such).  Thus, I figured a reprint was my only option.  Unfortunately, critical thinking was not yet a strong suit in this adolescent mind.

When this image popped up in a search, I foolhardily assumed that the listing was for some sort of reprint set built around the antiquated Old Judge tobacco cards that I'd read about online. For whatever reason, I wrote off the distorted, gray-scaled image you see above (with an obvious tear, at that), assuming that the vendor just used the best available picture of the original card for his or her's listing. Why the synapses in my brain didn't fire off warning signals, I'll never know; but, then again, we all made some pretty stupid decisions in our teenage years, right?

With that, I pulled the trigger on the auction, for a price that I can't recall.  It couldn't have been much, since I definitely didn't have much available scratch of my own in those days.  But, I do recall being super excited to receive my professionally done, reprint of the Hall of Famer of days long since passed.

I'm sure you've guessed how this story turns out, right?

Instead of getting a professionally made reprint, in the style of CCC, Renata Galasso, or Dover, I got a distorted, sepia-toned scan of a ripped copy of the original Goodwin card, printed on card stock only slightly thicker than traditional computer paper.   The crummy image used for this handmade card is even lifted directly from the Wikipedia entry for the man they called "$10,000 Kelly."  

On the other hand, at least the back of the card shows that a little bit of work and effort went into creating this crude, baseball card reprint:

So, whoever created this clearly thought of themselves as a baseball card creator, rather than a straight up con artist.  They certainly did some research in order to bang out the write-up on the back side, which did a fair job in summing up Kelly's 16-year career, spent mostly with the White Stockings (aka Cubs) and Boston Beaneaters (aka Braves).  However, as I recall, the hyperlink included in red at the bottom did not work at the time and it certainly leads to a dead end now; thus, I have no idea what else is available in this "Hall of Fame Series."  Also, seeing as the account with which I purchased this card is long since deactivated, I have no longer have any idea who I even bought it from.

At the time, I was super upset about having the wool pulled over my eyes.  However, I can really only blame myself - all the warning signs were there, but I willfully ignored them because I wanted to believe I was getting a card of a tobacco era super star.  Furthermore, I don't know that there was any malicious intent behind the listing - this person was just trying to hawk their creations - I just wasn't paying close enough attention.  Thus, I was definitely playing the fool, in April or any other month of the calendar year.

Even though I was substantially disappointed, I still hung onto this scrap of paper; it still sits with the rest of my oddballs in my miscellaneous Cubs boxes.  First of all, I'm super cheap and I spent good money on this item, so, no matter what, I wasn't about to just toss it out.  Second of all, I kept it as a reminder - buyer beware and buyer better use some damn critical thinking skills.

Alls well that ends well - I didn't screw myself out of a significant amount of money and I learned a valuable lesson about online shopping.  Furthermore, I eventually discovered that Kelly appears in a decent amount of modern products and acquired, not one, but two King Kelly cards for use in my CATRC binder.  One of those, the Panini Golden Age single to the right, is what I believe to be the first card to officially list him as a member of the Chicago National League Ballclub, since the 1880's.

And, best of all. damn near ten years later, I got a blog post out of the whole ordeal - how about that?

That's one of many stories in which I came out looking like a fool; but, it's the most significant cardboard related tale that I haven't yet told on this humble, little blog.  Believe me, there are plenty of similar yarns that don't have anything to do with the hobby, but I'm going to keep those to myself, for now.  For those reading, do any of you have any similar stories about being psyched out my an online, or even a brick and mortar, vendor?  Did you get suckered into buying a reprint that perhaps you thought was the real deal?  Please feel free to share in the comments section below - I think we've all had those moments, so there's no need to feel any shame.

I mean, it isn't just me, right?....