- Series: Beginnings: 1880's
- City: Boston
- Team: Beaneaters
- League: National League
Michael Joseph Madden (1867-1896) had a gift for curving the baseball, dazzling his hometown Portland, ME media as a teen. He had a head for the game and the heart, but sadly, not the physique. At 120 lbs he proved simply too frail for the rigors of professional play and travel in the late 1880s. His heart and head were on display during his rookie season with the Beaneaters in 1887. No matter that, for that one season, batters got four strikes; the Kid was outstanding: 21-14, 3.79 ERA completing all 37 starts. Despite his breaking stuff, he never appeared in nearly as many games in his short MLB career, suggesting his managers recognized his physical limitations. Stayed in Boston for three leagues in three years before closing out with the Orioles in 1891.
- Young Michael was taken by “consumption,” leaving a widow and two children at age 28
- Series: Beginnings: 1880's
- City: Washington, D.C.
- Team: Nationals
- League: National 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
- Mack's uniform color in this card was changed from black to blue in August, 2017 to reflect recent reliable research conducted by Craig Brown and friends at Threads of Our Game. Nine cards were previously released featuring a black uniform
- Series: Beginnings: 1880's
- City: Chicago
- Team: White Stockings
- League: National League
August H. Krock (1866-1905) first pitched in the majors for Cap Anson’s Chicago White Stockings in 1888. He had a spectacular rookie season going 25-14 with a 2.44 ERA. Typical of his day, Gus finished what he started. He completed all 39 appearances with four shut-outs. Unfortunately, he struggled thereafter, never winning more than three games in a year. He came back with Chicago in ’89, then bounced to the Hoosiers, Senators and Bisons, exiting MLB after the 1890 season. As he helped Anson’s crew to a second-place finish in ’88, Gus had a face-off with a 40-year-old rookie for Washington, John Greenig. It would be a rare day for a rookie to make his big league debut at such an age and the press took note of the May 9 start. The White Stockings dispatched the hapless Greenig with nine quick runs and Krock was complimented for his steady performance, a five-hitter with Dummy Hoy doing the only damage with a homer and single.
- Before and after his years in the bigs, Gus played for Oshkosh, Milwaukee, and Sioux City in the Northwestern League and Western Association
- Series: Beginnings: 1880's
- City: Boston
- Team: Beaneaters
- League: National League
- Hall: National Baseball Hall of Fame
Michael Kelly (1857-1894) was one of the great stars of the 1880s. He inspired America’s first pop record (“Slide, Kelly, Slide!”) in 1889 with a 1927 movie to follow. The “Chicago Slide” was copied by his White Stockings teammates, a “combination slide, twist and dodge” that allowed the team to “get away with hundreds of stolen bases when really they should have been touched out easily” per the Tribune’s Hugh Fullerton in 1906. A catcher, right-fielder and manager over 16 years, he popularized the hit & run.
- A pioneer athlete in vaudeville, $10,000 Kelly also popularized autograph signing
- First major leaguer to publish his autobiography (1888)
- Elected to Hall of Fame: 1945
- Although the Old Judge series features eleven known poses of Mike Kelly, I could not find one of suitable quality for this project. This image is taken from a cabinet photo produced by the Hastings Studio in Boston.
- Series: Beginnings: 1880's
- City: Philadelphia
- Team: Quakers
- League: National League
Charles H. Kelly (18??-????). Perhaps the most obscure player in this set, Charlie was a third baseman who made two brief major league appearances: he played in 2 games for the Philadelphia Quakers in 1883 and 1 game for the Philadelphia Athletics in 1886.
For his career, Kelly made one hit in 10 at bats. It was a triple and he did score a run. Perhaps his undoing was his defense, as he made 7 errors in 16 chances.
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