- Series: Diamond Heads '15
- City: New York
- Team: Yankees
- League: American League
- Hall: National Baseball Hall of Fame
Frank Leroy Chance (1876-1924) was a tenacious and fiercely competitive MLB player-manager for the Cubs and Yankees and manager of the Red Sox. John L. Sullivan called him the “greatest amateur brawler of all time.” Chance brought that pugilistic spirit to the diamond, giving unruly fans and players as good as he got.
- Joined the fraternity of the immortals in Cooperstown with the teammates with whom he is forever linked: Johnny Evers and Joe Tinker
- Cubs’ owner gave Chance a 10% stake in the club as reward for stealing home from 2nd in a tied game
- Elected to Hall of Fame: 1946
- Series: Pilgrims
- City: Ann Arbor
- Team: Wolverines (University of Michigan)
- League: Big Ten Conference
- Hall: National Baseball Hall of Fame
Wesley Branch Rickey (1881-1965) didn’t live to see his 1967 entrance into the Hall of Fame as one of the legends in baseball’s executive ranks, but he did see the legacy of his pioneering efforts to end decades of shameful discrimination in the sport he loved. In the year of his death, one in five MLB players was African American. In his half-century in the front office, Rickey invented the farm system and had one of the keenest eyes for talent.
- In WWI Rickey commanded a chemical warfare unit that included Ty Cobb and Christy Mathewson
- Hired Allan Roth as the first team statistician in 1947, thus becoming an early progenitor of sabermetrics
- Jackie Robinson eulogized Rickey as having done more for African Americans than anyone but Abraham Lincoln
- Elected to Hall of Fame: 1967
Auction History
Cartophilia
T201 Mecca Canvas: Joe Ward
- Series: Pilgrims
- City: New York
- Team: Giants
- League: National League
- Hall: National Baseball Hall of Fame
John Joseph McGraw (1873-1934) was an innovative player (the hit-and-run, the “Baltimore chop”) but went on to true greatness as a manager for Baltimore and, most noteworthy, the NY Giants. Only Connie Mack’s teams won more games and no NL manager approached him. Not shabby as a hitter (ranks 3rd all time behind Ted Williams and Babe Ruth in OBP), has been called “the best player to become a great manager.”
- Played for and/or managed ten NL pennant winners
- Upon his death, McGraw’s wife discovered a list of all the African-American players he wanted to sign but was prevented
- Elected to Hall of Fame: 1937
Auction History
Cartophilia
T201 Mecca Canvas: Al Mattern
- Series: Pilgrims
- City: Philadelphia
- Team: Athletics (AL)
- League: American League
- Hall: National Baseball Hall of Fame
Cornelius McGillicuddy, Sr. (1862-1956). An average catcher with strong leadership skills for 11 professional seasons (1886-1896), Mack then owned (1901-1954) and managed (1901-1950) the Philadelphia Athletics for half a century, establishing many managerial records and a unique place in the pantheon of baseball icons in the 20th century.
- 5x World Series Champion
- Most Managerial Wins: 3,731
- Most Managerial Losses: 3,948
- Elected to Hall of Fame: 1937
Auction History
Cartophilia
T201 Mecca Canvas: Pat Dougherty
- Series: Pilgrims
- City: Detroit
- Team: Tigers
- League: American League
- Hall: National Baseball Hall of Fame
Hugh Ambrose Jennings (1869-1928) became the premier ML SS for the Orioles in the mid-90s, hitting .401 in ’96. Nearly killed by an Amos Rusie quick-pitch, this survivor returned to be hit 46x in ’96. Irrepressibly good-natured and brilliant, Jennings was an attorney and manager after his playing days, guiding the volcanic Ty Cobb to his phenomenal career.
- Still holds record for being hit by pitch (287)
- Is credited with inventing the platoon system
- Elected to Hall of Fame: 1945
Auction History
Cartophilia
T201 Mecca Canvas: Hughie Jennings
Ars Longa Store
Newsletter
