1934-1936 Diamond Stars: December 2022

Sunday, December 25, 2022

#18 "Chick" Hafey - Cincinnati Reds

Charles James Hafey

Cincinnati Reds

Outfield

Bats: Right Throws: Right Height: 6'0" Weight: 185

Born: February 12, 1903, Berkeley, CA

Major League Teams: St. Louis Cardinals 1924-1931; Cincinnati Reds 1932-1935, 1937

World Series Appearances: St. Louis Cardinals 1926, 1928, 1930-1931

Died: July 2, 1973, Calistoga, GA (70)

Hall of Fame Induction: 1971

Chick Hafey was one of the most consistent hitters of his era, batting at least .329 in six straight seasons between 1927 and 1932 and winning the league's batting title in 1931 with a .349 mark. He drove in at least 100 runs in three straight seasons between 1928 and 1930. Hafey also became notable as one of the first prominent baseball players to wear glasses while playing. He helped lead the Cardinals to pennants in 1926, 1928, 1930 and 1931, with his team winning World Championships in 1926 and 1931. Hafey's career year came in 1929 when he batted .338 with 29 home runs and 125 RBIs on a team that included future Hall of Famers Jim Bottomley (#59), Frankie Frisch (#17) and Pete Alexander. He was dealt to the Reds following the 1931 season as a result of a salary dispute. Hafey was the starting left fielder for the National League All-Stars in the first All-Star Game held in 1933. He collected the first ever All-Star Game hit with a single to center off Lefty Gomez (#118) in the game's second inning.

Despite his vision challenges, severe sinus ailments and frequent disputes with management, Hafey compiled an impressive 13 years in the majors. He batted .317 in 1,283 games, collecting 164 home runs and 833 RBIs. Hafey was elected into the Hall of Fame in 1971 by the Veteran's Committee and the St. Louis Cardinals included him in their inaugural 2014 class of 22 inductees for its Hall of Fame.

Building the Set
December 3, 2022 from The Philly Show (Goodman's Sportscards) - Card #68
This was one of two fairly major "bonus" purchases acquired for our Diamond Stars set at The Philly Show, the Philadelphia Sports Collectors Show, held within the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, Pennsylvania. We arrived at the show in a steady rain right after doors opened at 9am, secured our autograph tickets and started walking the floor prior to the arrival of most of the crowd. My goal for the show was simple: Find the last four cards needed to complete our 1965 Topps set. I wrote a full summary of the show in this post over at The Phillies Room. And I wrote about acquiring those last four cards over at my 1965 Topps set blog.

A table for Goodman's Sportscards had caught my eye early in the show, as they had a nice collection of Diamond Stars cards featured prominently in one of their glass cases. Having already spent way beyond my budget for the show, I opted to push forward and add a few more high priced Diamond Stars cards. Emboldened by my recent negotiations, and having already successfully bundled a pair of cards in large purchases twice already, I went for the trifecta with this Hafey card and the card of fellow Hall of Famer Rogers Hornsby (#44). Somewhat surprisingly, the dealer accepted my first offer and the two cards were added to the massive haul from the day. These two cards would be my final baseball card purchases from a great year of collecting.

Variations Available

1 - 1934 / green back / 1933 statistics / 1934 copyright ✅

2 - 1935 / green back / 1934 statistics / 1934 copyright

The Card / Reds Team Set

Hafey is wearing a Cardinals uniform here, as evidenced by the photo shown above. The write-up on the back of the card makes references to Hafey wearing glasses and his status as a former batting champion in the first sentence. The baseball tip explains how to run back on the ball without crashing into the outfield fence or "other obstacles."

1934 Season

Hafey appeared in 140 games for the Reds as their regular center fielder. Cincinnati was a bad team, finishing in last place in the National League with a 52-99-1 record, but Hafey led all position players with a 2.9 bWar. He batted .293 with a team-leading 18 home runs and 67 RBIs.