All things T206, collecting, and deadball era baseball
I just did the drawing for the giveaway. The video can be seen on my instagram page ( That T206 Life ). I want to give a big thank you to everyone who participated in the giveaway and everyone who visits my site. I greatly appreciate it!
I received some good feedback the last time I posted a Power Rankings article, and I figure it’s about time for another one. Last week, I wrote a little introduction to the Carolina Brights subset, and as a fun companion piece, here are the top ten poses available with Carolina Brights backs.
It was a little tough to decide how to rank these cards. My main objective was to rank them according to level of stardom of the players, but I also wanted to take into consideration that some of these poses are available with less backs than others. For example, I ended up ranking Speaker above Mathewson because Speaker, a 350 Only Subject, was printed with fewer rare backs (only Carolina Brights, Broad Leaf 350, and Drum) than Mathewson Dark Cap (a Super Print).
The one thing I couldn’t figure out how to incorporate was individual scarcity. For example, Chase Blue Portrait with a Carolina Brights back is very scarce. If a nice one came to auction right now, it would likely sell for more than many of the players above Chase on this list. But because I couldn’t figure out a good way to quantify that, I have just stuck with a mix of stardom and desirability. I’m sure many of you would rank these slightly differently, but I feel like it’s a pretty good list. Let me know what you think in the comments section!
Roger Bresnahan (Batting)
Hal Chase (Dark Cap)
Joe Kelley
Joe McGinnity
Luther Taylor
This week we’re going to take a look at one of the truly rare backs of the T206 set. Carolina Brights backs hold a special place in the hearts and minds of T206 collectors because of their combination of visual appeal and scarcity. Attempting to rank T206 backs in terms of scarcity can often lead to disagreements among collectors. However, when it comes to ranking Carolina Brights along the spectrum of T206 back scarcity, there doesn’t seem to be any argument.
Carolina Brights backs are clearly scarcer than the trio of Tier One Mid-Tier Backs (Cycle 460, American Beauty 460, and Piedmont 350-460 Factory 42) and more plentiful than Broad Leaf 350. This allows us to slot them in on the bottom rung of the “Rare Back” ladder.
Leaving out the backs that were never intended to be released to the public in packs of tobacco/cigarettes, these are the “Rare Backs” in order from scarcest to most plentiful*
T206resource.com lists 127 confirmed poses with Carolina Brights backs and four remaining poses that have not been confirmed, but are suspected to exist. The four unconfirmed poses are Art Fromme, Hunky Shaw, Ed Willett (bat), and Lucky Wright. All but six of the poses in the Carolina Brights Subset are from the 350 Series (Print Group 2). The other six are the “Super Prints”****
Here is the complete checklist, courtesy of T206resource.com
Though Carolina Brights backs are rare, most poses that were printed with Carolina Brights back were also printed with Drum 350 and/or Broad Leaf 350 backs. As a result, Carolina Brights is seldom the rarest back for a given player or pose. Take for instance, Topsy Hartsel. He was printed with Drum 350, Broad Leaf 350, and Carolina Brights backs. The Drum is the scarcest, followed by the Broad Leaf 350, with Carolina Brights coming in a somewhat distant third in terms of scarcity.
However there are some poses for which that pattern doesn’t hold. The following players/poses have not been found with a Broad Leaf 350 or Drum 350 back. In other words, for these poses, Carolina Brights is the scarcest known back.
Carolina Brights backs tend to sell for slightly less than Broad Leaf 350s and quite a bit more than any of the Mid-Tier backs.
Stay tuned for next week’s article Carolina Brights Power Rankings: The Top Ten Combos.
* This leaves out the Ty Cobb back, Brown Old Mill Southern League back, Brown Lenox, and Blank Backs.
** Catalogued as T215 Type 1, this back probably ought to be considered a T206. Because it was catalogued differently many years ago, most collectors view it as its own set.
*** Catalogued as T213 Type 1, this back should probably also be considered a T206 back.
****The “Super Prints” are the following six poses:
One year ago today, (October 19th, 2016) I made my first post on this site. I wanted to do something fun for the One-Year Anniversary of the site to say thank you to the people who have stopped by and read some of my work over the last year. I figure there is no better way to do that than giving away some T206s! I will be giving away three T206 cards, to three different winners. Check out the rules below to see how to enter:
In order to enter the giveaway, you need to leave a comment on this post. Your comment needs to include two things:
You do not need to sign up or sign in in order to leave a comment. If you have any trouble leaving a comment, send me a message through the “CONTACT” link above and I’ll help you. The final day to enter the giveaway will be Sunday October 29th (any comment left after midnight Pacific Time will not be entered into the giveaway). I will select winners on Monday October 30th. You may only enter once.
I’ll randomize all entries and then draw 1st, 2nd, and 3rd prize winners. The 1st prize winner will get to select their choice of the four cards in the giveaway. 2nd place will get to choose between the remaining three cards, and the 3rd place winner gets their choice of the two remaining cards. Whichever card is not picked by any of the three winners, I will keep.
Once the winners have been selected, I’ll contact the First Place winner and give them their choice of cards. Hopefully everyone will get back to me quickly and I am able to get cards mailed out the next day. If you are selected as one of the winners, you need to get back to me within 48 hours and give me your selection, or I will have to move on to the next winner, and let them have their choice of the available cards.
What was the first signed card you acquired?
What was the first signed tobacco card you acquired?
Was there a specific moment when you decided to steer your collection in the direction it has ultimately taken?
When did you decide “I’m going to get as many signed T206s as I can?”
How many signed pre-war cards are you able to add in a given year? Has it varied over the years? I’m assuming it has gotten tougher as they have all dried up (thanks to you, haha)?
Do you have a favorite card in your collection?
Do you have one or more favorite stories of how you acquired certain cards?
Did you make any fun trades along the way?
With all the amazing stuff in your collection, is there anything else left to search for? Are there any “white whales” you are still after?
Because your collection is so advanced, do you find yourself getting bored in periods of time when you aren’t able to add anything new?
If so, do you have any other things you collect to pass the time?
Do you have any big plans for the future with your collection such as showing it in a museum or anything like that?
That meeting with the collector in NC sounds amazing. Is there any more you can tell us about that meeting? Like what kinds of stuff he had, or stories he might’ve told you? I know you may not want to say too much in the interest of keeping his anonymity, but if you can tell any stories, I’d love to hear them.
It was crazy from a travel perspective – flying from NYC to Charlotte to have him (a complete stranger) pick me up at the airport and take me to his house to look at baseball cards. Ever since I started speaking with Jeff Morey in 2007, I have had a tiny little want ad in his “The Autograph Review” or “TAR” mailing. In December, a guy who also subscribes to TAR found out about the NC guy’s collection and connected me for a finder’s fee. The NC guy is maybe in his mid 60s, a dentist, with a passion for baseball and music autographs. Most of his stuff he bought at auction or in old baseball card catalogs over the past 30 years. Most of his signed pre-war (he had Cobb, Cy Young, Tris Speaker) were obvious fakes, but he had struck a little gold now and again — he had bought the M116 Wagner from a memorabilia shop in Texas in the early 90s. What he didn’t sell to me, and what was authentic, he consigned to Robert Edward Auctions. He made over $100,000 in the April 2017 REA, mostly driven by some sick early, pre-Ringo Beatles autographs. He has a bunch of lesser items still being listed in the October REA. And a few smaller lots were listed in Sterling Sports Auctions.
Is there anything that I didn’t think to ask, but you think people would be interested to know?
In 2009, the School Sisters of Notre Dame received a most unexpected donation. The School Sisters are a worldwide religious institute of Roman Catholic Sisters. On February 3rd, 2009, a man (who’s name the nuns have decided to keep confidential) with close ties to the organization passed away at the age of 85 and bequeathed his estate to the order. The nuns were not surprised to be benefactors of the man’s will. His sister had belonged to the order, and he had never married or had children. Besides leaving his home to the nuns, he also willed the contents of his safe deposit box.
When the nuns opened the box, they were surprised to find this T206 Wagner with an attached typewritten note that said,
“Although damaged, the value of this baseball card should increase exponentially throughout the 21st century!”
After picking up the baseball card, Sister Virginia Muller, the order’s former treasurer, searched the Internet to determine its worth. When she saw the value of other Wagner cards, her jaw dropped.
“I very carefully put it into the back of my files,” she said, laughing. “Then quickly insured it.”
-New York Times January 31, 2011
All of the news stories written about the card at the time have noted that the man acquired the card in 1936, though there is no mention of how that was ascertained. There is also no mention of him owning any other sports cards or collectibles.
“I wish I knew more of the story, like where he got the card or why he kept it, But I guess it will remain a mystery.”
-Sister Virginia Muller in the January 31st 2011 issue of the New York Times
When the nuns were ready to sell the Wagner, they chose Heritage Auctions to handle the sale. The card was featured in Heritage’s “November 2010 Signature Collectibles Auction” which closed over a two-day period on November 4th and 5th. When the auction clocked ticked down the zero, the winning bid (including the juice) was $262,900. Unfortunately, the winning bidder never paid for the card.
Heritage reached out to collector Dr. Nicholas DePace, who agreed to buy the card for $220,000. According to the New York Times story, Heritage declined to take a commission on the sale, sending all $220,000 to the School Sisters of Notre Dame. I don’t know whether or not Heritage was able to collect a full or partial commission from the winning bidder, but regardless it was a really classy move by Heritage to send the full $220,000 to the charitable group.
The story doesn’t quite end there. Two days later, Dr. DePace received a call from someone at Heritage asking him if he’d like to make a quick $60,000 profit by selling the card to another interested party.
“I said, ‘What’s the matter with you guys? It’s no longer just a baseball card; it’s become a religious relic, a St. Jude of memorabilia. I’m keeping it.”
-Dr. Nichlas DePace in the January 31st 2011 issue of the New York Times
Dr. DePace said he intended to feature the card in a non-profit sports museum he planned to open in Collingwood, New Jersey.
Sources:
In 1891 a 17 year-old Bill Clymer appeared in 3 games for the Philadelphia Athletics. He made 13 Plate Appearances but was not able to record a hit. He did however walk once and steal a base before being sent back to the Minors. I’m sure many people around the game expected him to be back in the Majors at some point, but it never happened.
You may be thinking: How is he in the T206 set if he only played in 3 games in the Majors in 1891? His T206 card was released 29 years later, in 1910. Good question.
In 1892, the speedy shortstop returned to the Minor Leagues, playing for Portland of the New England League. No stats have survived from that season, but we do have stats from 5 of his next 6 seasons in the Minors. Clymer played in Portland again in 1893. He hit .310 and slugged .504 as a 20 year-old. Not bad for a 155 pound speedster. He also stole 42 bags that year.
In 1893, he signed with the Buffalo Bisons of the Eastern League who made him an outfielder. He continued to rake, hitting .337 and stealing 36 bags. Looking at his stats, it’s incredibly tough to believe he was never given another shot in the big leagues.
In the five seasons following his cup-of-coffee in the Big Leagues, Clymer’s average season looks like this:
I have to imagine some of the clubs in the Majors at time could’ve used some help at the plate from their middle infielders. But, for whatever reason, he was never given another shot. During the last of the five seasons mentioned above, Clymer played for the Rochester Patriots/Ottawa Wanderers of the Eastern League (the team left Rochester in July and re-located to Ottawa. During this season, he was given his first shot as a player/manager. Though he only managed for two weeks in 1898, he must have made an impression because he went on to manage the Wilkes-Barre Coal Barons of the Atlantic League in 1900 (though the league disbanded on June 12th). His promotion to manager coincided with a precipitous decline in production on the field, but he proved to be an excellent skipper.
In 1902, Clymer was named the new skipper of the Louisville Colonels of the American Association. They finished 2nd in the AA that year, and they duplicated that feat the following season. With Louisville he bounced back at the plate. After a handful of disappointing offensive seasons, he hit .290 in 1902 and an astonishing .351 in 1903.
In 1904, “Derby Day Bill” became the manager of the Columbus Senators, also of the American Association. His club finished in 2nd place in the league. 1904 was his last full season as a player. He played in 139 games, but hit just .224. In 1905, Clymer lead his first squad to a league pennant, and followed up with a repeat in 1906 and a three-peat in 1907. In 1905, he appeared in only 47 games as a player, and that number dropped to 15 in 1906. In 1907 he was strictly the manager of the club.
In 1907, Sporting Life magazine predicted that Bill Clymer would be named the new Boston Red Sox manager for the 1908 season. However, the prediction never came to fruition. Clymer never managed in the Major Leagues, although he did serve as a coach on the 1925 Cinicinnati Reds staff. 1909 was his last season managing in Columbus. In 1910, he was featured as the Columbus skipper on his T206 card.
He would go on to manage for approximately 29 years in the Minor Leagues. He returned to Wilkes-Barre, Buffalo, Columbus, and Louisville along with one-year tours in Tulsa, Toronto and Seattle. His teams went 2,122-1,762 over that span, winning an impressive seven pennants. Baseball Reference shows that he appeared in one game as a player in 1922 for the Newark Bears of the International League, although he didn’t record any stats.
In 1989, Bill Clymer was inducted into the Buffalo Bisons Hall of Fame in recognition of his 11 years of service to the ball club (see the HOF plaque below).
I’d like to thank Baseball Reference, Baseball History Daily, and the Buffalo Bisons. Baseball Reference for the use of their stats, biographical information, and the cartoon that appears above. The picture at the top of this article is courtesy of Baseball History Daily. The Buffalo Bisons Hall of Fame plaque is courtesy of the Buffalo Bisons.