- Series: Beginnings: 1880's
- City: Chicago
- Team: White Stockings
- League: National League
George Edward Martin Van Haltren (1866-1945). Primarily an outfielder who also pitched in 93 games, Van Haltren is oftentimes mentioned as a player who may deserve better HOF consideration. George played for 5 teams over 17 seasons, compiling some impressive numbers. George still holds the NL record for reaching base in 60 consecutive games.
- 2,532 hits; .316 BA; .386 OBP
- Batted .300+ in 12 seasons
- Ranks 20th all-time in SBs: 583
- Scored 100+ Runs in 11 seasons
- Series: Beginnings: 1880's
- City: Louisville
- Team: Colonels
- League: American Association
Harry Francis Vaughn (1864-1914). A catcher for 13 professional seasons, Vaughn played for 6 different teams: Cincinnati Red Stockings, Louisville Colonels, New York Giants (PL), Cincinnati Kelly’s Killers, Milwaukee Brewers, & Cincinnati Reds.
- Amassed 946 hits
- Compiled a .274 lifetime batting average
- Series: Beginnings: 1880's
- City: Brooklyn
- Team: Bridegrooms
- League: American Association
Joseph Paul Visner (1859-1945). An outfielder and catcher over 4 major league seasons for 5 different teams, Visner was one of the few Native Americans to play professional baseball in the 19th century. His best year was 1890 for the Pittsburgh Burghers, when he hit .267, with 22 triples, 76 BB, 71 RBI, and scored 110 Runs.
- Won a pennant with the Brooklyn Bridegrooms in 1889
- Series: Beginnings: 1880's
- City: St. Louis
- Team: Browns (AA)
- League: American Association
Christian Friedrich Wilhelm von der Ahe (1851-1913) put the beer in the “beer and whiskey league” as the American Association came to be known, perjoratively by National League purists and proudly by the upstart organization’s devotees. Von der Ahe had emigrated from Germany, bringing a zeal for making it big in the New World. His saloon in St. Louis hosted so many baseball fans that Chris decided to buy the bankrupt Brown Stockings. Perhaps recognizing his ignorance of the game, Chris had the sense to hire Charles Comiskey to play and eventually manage the club which went on to a string of pennants from 1885-88. The boss’s meddling hurt (Comiskey left) but his showmanship helped as a carnival atmosphere brought in the “fans” (possibly coined by von der Ahe.) The big, bluff German was always a center of controversy and drama. He lost the team in ‘98 after a ballpark fire following an earlier fire sale of the players to Brooklyn. After a year as the Perfectos, the team would ever after be known as the Cardinals.
- Von der Ahe was the first to promote baseball to the great unwashed of his adopted country’s midsection, the blue-collar heartland of the game
- While von der Ahe does have one pose in the Old Judge series, this image was taken from a Guerin Studio cabinet photo
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