1934-1936 Diamond Stars: #101 Dick Bartell

Richard William Bartell

New York Giants

Shortstop

Bats: Right Throws: Right Height: 5'9" Weight: 160

Born: November 22, 1907, Chicago, IL

Major League Teams: Pittsburgh Pirates 1927-1930; Philadelphia Phillies 1931-1934; New York Giants 1935-1938; Chicago Cubs 1939; Detroit Tigers 1940-1941; New York Giants 1941-1943, 1946

World Series Appearances: New York Giants 1936-1937; Detroit Tigers 1940

Died: August 4, 1995, Alameda, CA (87)

An aggressive and fiery competitor, Dick Bartell was a veteran of 18 big league seasons, known for his ability to hit for average and his above average defense at shortstop. Bartell played his first four seasons with the Pirates, making his big league debut at the age of 19. He blossomed with the Phillies, serving as one of the few bright spots on an otherwise bleak roster. Bartell led the league in 1932 and 1933 in sacrifices and was one of the Phillies' first All-Stars in 1933. Bartell started and played shortstop in the first ever All-Star Game, joining teammate Chuck Klein (#139) who started in right field. Dealt to the Giants following the 1934 season, Bartell would enjoy his finest seasons in New York.

1934-36 Diamond Stars #15

He helped the club reach the World Series in 1936 and 1937, although they fell to the Yankees both times. Those were Bartell's best seasons as he batted .298 with 42 RBIs in 1936 and .306 with 14 home runs and 62 RBIs in 1937. Despite his numbers, Bartell's combative disposition led to his frequent trades and he also led the league in getting hit by pitches a stunning five times. He'd return to the Giants for five games in 1946, after serving two years in the Army during World War II, and then retire as a player. Bartell played in 2,016 big league games and had a lifetime average of .284 with 2,165 hits. He led all shortstops in putouts and assists in three seasons and in double plays turned in four seasons, and his name is often mentioned as one of the best, and most underrated, shortstops of his era. His lifetime fielding percentage was .952. Bartell managed in the minor leagues in the 1940s and 1950s, and served on the big league coaching staffs of the Yankees (1946), Tigers (1949-1952) and Reds (1954-1955).

Building the Set

January 21, 2022 from Key West, FL (Quality Baseball Cards) - Card #45

Mid-January is never a fun time for me, and needing a break during a long work day I found myself on eBay looking for the remaining Dick Bartell (#15 and #101) variations I needed. I had recently added his most commonly found card from the set, noting his team as the Giants on the back, but I wanted to try to find his other two cards from the set as well.

In my travels, I found what I considered to be extremely unusual for this pandemic-induced collecting age - a large group of auctions from seller quality*cards from the Diamond Stars set with no bids, including the elusive Bartell card from the set's third series. I set my opening bids, and waited a few days for the auctions to close. And much to my surprise, there was little to no action on the auctions until their closing minutes. I lost a few auctions as the seconds ticked away, but I came away with six new cards overall, including this somewhat difficult to find Bartell card. Given I'd never seen this particular variation of the card before, and knowing the last 12 cards of the set are going to be the toughest to find, I didn't mind the high price tag I ultimately paid for the card.

Variations Available

1 - 1936 / blue back / 1935 statistics / 1934 copyright

The Card / Giants Team Set

This is the second of three Bartell cards I'll be adding to my set. The first two are both #15, with the version released in 1934 noting his team as the Phillies on the back. The version released in 1935 (this version) updates the back to reflect his trade to the Giants. Finally, Bartell is also card #101 in the set, and that version, released in 1936, removes the Phillies logos from the photo on the front.

The tip on the back of the card, which is the same for cards #15 and #101, explains the need for a shortstop to vary his throws depending on the angle of a batted ground ball and the speed of the baserunner. This version of the card ages Bartell a year and displays his .267 batting average from the 1935 season, but it keeps the original 1934 copyright date.

1936 Season

This was one of Bartell's best seasons, as he batted .298 with eight home runs and 42 RBIs as the regular shortstop for the Giants. Burgess Whitehead joined the Giants in 1936, with he and Bartell forming a strong double play combination and providing solid middle infield defense. Bartell led all shortstops with 106 double plays turned. The Giants fell to the Yankees in six games in the 1936 World Series, but Bartell batted .381 (8 for 21) with three doubles and three RBIs.

Phillies Career

The Phillies acquired Bartell from the Pirates on November 6, 1930 for Tommy Thevenow and Claude Willoughby. With the nickname "Rowdy Richard," Bartell was perhaps the first in a long line of scrappy shortstops to come through Philadelphia. He was the team's opening day and primary shortstop between 1931 and 1934, establishing himself as one of the best at that position in the game. Bartell led all National League shortstops in assists in 1932 and 1934, in putouts between 1932 and 1934, and was in the top ten for fielding percentage between 1932 and 1934. Named as the starting shortstop for the first All-Star Game in 1933, Bartell batted seventh and went 0 for 2, striking out in his first at-bat against Lefty Gomez (#118). In 587 games with the Phillies, Bartell batted .295 with 695 hits, 386 runs scored, 146 doubles and 161 RBIs. As mentioned above, he was dealt to the Giants following the 1934 season.