#118 Vernon Gomez - New York Yankees

Vernon Louis Gomez

New York Yankees

Pitcher

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Left  Height:  6'2"  Weight:  173

Born:  November 26, 1908, Rodeo, CA

Major League Teams:  New York Yankees 1930-1942; Washington Senators 1943

World Series Appearances:  New York Yankees 1932, 1936-1939

Died:  February 17, 1989, Greenbrae, CA (80)

Hall of Fame Induction:  1972

Lefty Gomez pitched for 14 seasons, appearing in 368 games, with all but his final game coming with the Yankees.  Gomez was an ace for the Yankees dynasty that went to the World Series five times between 1932 and 1939, winning championship titles each time.  Carrying over his regular season success to the World Series, Gomez was 6-0 with a 2.86 ERA in seven World Series starts.  He was a 20-game winner in four different seasons, including his career year in 1934.  That year he was 26-5 with a 2.33 ERA, with 25 complete games, six shutouts and 158 strikeouts in 281 2/3 innings pitched, leading the American League in all those categories.  Gomez was a seven-time All-Star, and was the winning pitcher for the American League in the first ever All-Star Game in 1933.  He had two seasons in which he won the pitching Triple Crown - most wins, lowest ERA, most strikeouts - 1934, as mentioned above, and 1937 when he was 21-11 with a 2.33 ERA and a career-high 194 strikeouts.

1934 Butterfinger Premiums (R310)

Gomez had a lifetime record of 189-102 with a 3.34 ERA and 1,468 strikeouts over 2,503 innings pitched.  He threw 173 complete games and 28 shutouts.  Known for his wit, Gomez became a sought after public speaker following his retirement.  The Veterans Committee unanimously inducted him into the Hall of Fame in 1972.

Building the Set

December 11, 2020 from San Diego, CA (Kit Young Cards)

On the night I impulsively decided to collect the original Diamond Stars set, and I subsequently purchased the Harvey Hendrick (#41) card from Kit Young Cards, I also added the complete, and first, extended set to my cart for the very reasonable price of $7.50.  The 12 cards in this first extended set were originally issued in 1981.

In the early 1980s, a family member of a former National Chicle employee discovered an uncut sheet of 12 unused cards presumably meant as a 1937 continuation of the Diamond Stars set.  As originally advertised, and as mentioned on the back of every card issued, the company had intended for the set to contain 240 subjects.  They only produced 108 cards before production was halted, and the theory is this newly found sheet represented a "lost" continuation of the set.  Fortunately, the images of the cards made their way into the collecting world and a 12-card "what if" set was created.  (More on the uncut sheet can be found here from SABR's Baseball Cards Research Committee and from this Ryan Cracknell article for Beckett.)

The Beckett online database lists the set as "1981 Diamond Stars Continuation Den's" and the set's description notes "This set was created and produced by Denny Eckes.  Hobbyist Mike Galella was involved in bringing this sheet to the the public.  These cards were originally available from the producer for $3."  The back of the cards have a 1981 copyright attributed to Den's Collectors Den, the company belonging to the aforementioned Eckes.

The 12 cards include more ambitious geometric designs than the original Diamond Stars cards,  although the overall color template remains the same as their 1934 to 1936 counterparts.

Variations Available

1 - 1981 / blue back / 1936 statistics / 1981 copyright

The Card / Yankees Team Set

Gomez was known for his overpowering fastball, referred to as "hopping" on the back of this card.  Given his success in 1933, it's surprising National Chicle didn't include him in its original checklist.  The photo used for the card was first seen in the 1934 Butterfingers Premium set, shown above.

1937 Season

As mentioned above, this was Gomez's second Triple Crown season.  He was the winning pitcher in the All-Star Game, pitching three shutout innings and allowing just one hit.  Gomez was 2-0 in the World Series, both complete games, allowing three earned runs in 18 innings pitched, as the Yankees overtook the Giants in five games.  He finished ninth in the MVP voting, with teammate Red Ruffing (#60) the only pitcher getting more votes than Gomez.

1933 Goudey #216

1933 DeLong Gum #14

1939 Play Ball #48

1941 Play Ball #72

1960 Fleer Baseball Greats #54

Other Notable Baseball Cards

First Mainstream Card:  1933 Goudey #216

Topps Flagship Set Appearances (0):  N/A

Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2018 Panini Diamond Kings #27

399 - Gomez non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 3/30/24.

Sources:

Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
National Baseball Hall of Fame
SABR
The Trading Card Database

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #117 Linus Frey - Brooklyn Dodgers

Next Card: #119 Jim Bottomley / Rogers Hornsby - St. Louis Browns

#77 Charlie Gehringer - Detroit Tigers

Charles Leonard Gehringer

Detroit Tigers

Second Base

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Right  Height:  5'11"  Weight:  180

Born:  May 11, 1903, Fowlerville, MI

Major League Teams:  Detroit Tigers 1924-1942

World Series Appearances:  Detroit Tigers 1934-1935, 1940

Died:  January 21, 1993, Bloomfield Hills, MI (89)

Hall of Fame Induction:  1949

Nicknamed "The Mechanical Man" due to his multi-decade consistency at the plate and in the field, Charlie Gehringer was on of the best second baseman in the history of the game.  Debuting in 1924, Gehringer took over everyday second base duties for the Tigers in 1926 and wouldn't relinquish the position until 1942.  He played every inning at second base during the first six All-Star Games beginning in 1933, batting .500 in 20 at-bats.  Gehringer's best seasons coincided with the Tigers winning the American League pennants in 1934 and 1935.  The Tigers were World Champions in 1935, with Gehringer leading the way with a .375 average in the World Series.  He had seven seasons with at least 200 hits, and won a batting title in 1939 when he batted a career-best .371.  Gehringer also won MVP honors for his 1939 season.

An outstanding defender as well, Gehringer often led the league in assists, double plays turned and fielding percentage.  He's second all-time with 7,068 assists at second base, and sixth all-time at overall games at second base with 2,206.  Gehringer collected 2,839 career hits while batting .320 with a .404 on-base percentage.  His 574 doubles are currently 25th all-time.  He retired in 1942, was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1949 and had his #2 retired by the Tigers in 1983.

Building the Set

March 16, 2024 from Jupiter, FL - Card #105

My chosen profession requires working six days a week beginning in January through at least the end of March, and this will be the 26th year I've spent most Saturdays in the early months of the year toiling away.  Our oldest son Doug is in his junior year of high school, and baseball practice has begun in earnest, with scrimmages already started.  My work schedule and Doug's baseball schedule conspired against us traveling to the recent Philly Show a few weekends ago, so I decided to have a baseball card show of my own.  

I was the winning bidder on this Gehringer card and the card of fellow Hall of Famer Al Simmons (#2), in auctions from seller 01sham from Jupiter, Florida.  I was the winning and only bidder on both cards, with both having reasonable opening bids.  Given the lack of activity on both auctions, an occurrence that's happening a lot more lately, I'm starting to think the pandemic-era boom in vintage baseball cards and set building has finally waned.  That's great news for me, as I don't plan to stop collecting, and the remaining 14 cards needed for my Diamond Stars set are all fairly pricey.

Variations Available

1 - 1935 / green back / 1934 statistics / 1935 copyright ✅

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

3 - 1936 / blue back / 1935 statistics / 1935 copyright 

Cards 73 through 84 were issued in 1935 with either green or blue ink on the back and statistics from 1934.  These same 12 cards were issued again in 1936 with blue ink on the back and statistics from 1935.  The Gehringer card for my set is the first of the three variations available, issued in 1935 with green ink used for the back.

The Card / Tigers Team Set

A pair of unknown players make a cameo behind Gehringer on this card.  The pose here works well with National Chicle's choice to have the card horizontally-oriented, and it's one of the few horizontal cards in the set.  The back of the card explains how rare it is that Gehringer can both hit and field well.  With the advent of the designated hitter decades letter, this statement is especially prescient:  "Remember boys, a hard hitter can always find a place on any team, even though he may be an awkward and sloppy fielder."

1935 Season

Consistent as usual, this was one of Gehringer's strongest seasons of his career.  In 150 games, starting all but four games in mid-August at second base, Gehringer batted .330 with 19 home runs and 108 RBIs.  Leading the team offensively along with first baseman Hank Greenberg (#54), Gehringer helped the Tigers reach the World Series for the second year in a row.  The Tigers defeated the Cubs in six games, winning their first ever World Series title.

1926 Exhibits (W461)

1933 DeLong Gum #5

1934 Goudey #23

1938 Goudey Heads-Up #241

1941 Play Ball #19

Other Notable Baseball Cards

First Mainstream Card:  1926 Exhibits (W461)

Topps Flagship Set Appearances (0):  N/A

Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2015 Panini Diamond Kings #26

406 - Gehringer non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 3/24/24.

Sources:

Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
National Baseball Hall of Fame
SABR
The Trading Card Database

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #76 Bill Rogell - Detroit Tigers

Next Card: #78 Joe Kuhel - Washington Senators

#2 Al Simmons - Chicago White Sox

Aloysius Harry Simmons

Chicago White Sox

Outfield

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  5'11"  Weight:  190

Born:  May 22, 1902, Milwaukee, WI

Major League Teams:  Philadelphia Athletics 1924-1932; Chicago White Sox 1933-1935; Detroit Tigers 1936; Washington Senators 1937-1938; Boston Bees 1939; Cincinnati Reds 1939; Philadelphia Athletics 1940-1941; Boston Red Sox 1943; Philadelphia Athletics 1944

World Series Appearances:  Philadelphia Athletics 1929-1931; Cincinnati Reds 1939

Died:  May 26, 1956, Milwaukee, WI (54)

Hall of Fame Induction:  1953

Outfielder Al Simmons played in 20 big league seasons, batting .334 for his career and winning two World Championships with Connie Mack's (#142) Athletics teams in 1929 and 1930.  Those two Championship seasons coincided with Simmons' best years in the majors.  He collected 253 hits in 1925, a career-high, league-leading and record-setting single season record by a right-handed batter, as the Athletics slowly became an American League powerhouse.  In 1929, Simmons batted .365 with 34 home runs and a league-best 157 RBIs as his team defeated the Cubs in five games in the World Series.  The following season, Simmons won his first batting title with a .381 mark while hitting 36 home runs and collecting 165 RBIs.  The Athletics, with Simmons batting .364 in the World Series, took down the Cardinals in six games.  Another batting title would follow in 1931 with Simmons batting .390.  Another pennant resulted, but the Athletics lost the World Series to the Cardinals, and a slow and steady decline for the franchise began.

Mack sold Simmons to the White Sox in September 1932, and Simmons was the starting center fielder for the American League in the first ever All-Star Game played in 1933.  He'd make the All-Star team again in 1934 and 1935.  Over the final eight seasons of his playing career, Simmons played for six different teams, making two more stops with the Athletics along the way.  He retired having batted over .380 in four different seasons and over .330 in nine seasons.  Simmons' .334 career batting average is currently 27th all-time and his 2,927 hits are 41st all-time.  He had 539 doubles, 307 home runs and 1,828 RBIs.  Simmons was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1953 and he joined the Philadelphia Baseball Wall of Fame in 1981, inducted as the Athletics' representative alongside Phillies' great Grover Cleveland Alexander.

Building the Set

March 16, 2024 from Jupiter, FL - Card #104

My chosen profession requires working six days a week beginning in January through at least the end of March, and this will be the 26th year I've spent most Saturdays in the early months of the year toiling away.  Our oldest son Doug is in his junior year of high school, and baseball practice has begun in earnest, with scrimmages starting later this week.  My work schedule and Doug's baseball schedule conspired against us traveling to the recent Philly Show last weekend, so I decided to have a baseball card show of my own.  

I was the winning bidder on this Simmons card and the card of fellow Hall of Famer Charlie Gehringer (#77), in auctions from seller 01sham from Jupiter, Florida.  I was the winning and only bidder on both cards, with both having reasonable opening bids.  Given the lack of activity on both auctions, an occurrence that's happening a lot more lately, I'm starting to think the pandemic-era boom in vintage baseball cards and set building has finally waned.  That's great news for me, as I don't plan to stop collecting, and the remaining 14 cards needed for my Diamond Stars set are all fairly pricey.

Variations Available

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

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

3 - 1936 / blue back / 1935 statistics / 1934 copyright / no SOX on front of jersey

The Card / White Sox Team Set

This is the first version of Simmons' card produced for the set, featuring the SOX logo prominently on the front of his jersey.  Following his move from Chicago to Detroit (see below), National Chicle removed the SOX logo from the front of Simmons' jersey and referred to his new Tigers team on the back of the card.  The tip on the back of the card discusses the importance of a "long, free follow through" with a batter's power swing.

1935 Season

This was the last of three consecutive All-Star seasons with the White Sox for Simmons.  He made 113 starts in center field, another nine starts in left field, and appeared in 128 games overall.  By his standards, he had an off-year, batting .267 with 16 home runs and 79 RBIs, the first time his RBI total had dipped below 100 in 11 straight seasons.  With the White Sox looking to rebuild, the team sold Simmons to the Tigers on December 10, 1935 for $75,000.

1923-24 Exhibits (W461)

1933 DeLong Gum #2

1933 Goudey #35

1933 Tattoo Orbit (R305)

1960 Fleer Baseball Greats #32

Other Notable Baseball Cards

First Mainstream Card:  1923-24 Exhibits (W461)

Topps Flagship Set Appearances (0):  N/A

Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2023 Donruss #281

256 - Simmons non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 3/17/24.

Sources:

Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
National Baseball Hall of Fame
SABR
The Trading Card Database

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #1 "Lefty" Grove - Boston Red Sox

Next Card: #3 "Rabbit" Maranville - Boston Braves

#138 Bob Johnson - Philadelphia Athletics

Robert Lee Johnson

Philadelphia Athletics

Outfield

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'0"  Weight:  180

Born:  November 26, 1905, Pryor, OK

Major League Teams:  Philadelphia Athletics 1933-1942; Washington Senators 1943; Boston Red Sox 1944-1945

Died:  July 6, 1982, Tacoma, WA (76)

One of the truly unsung stars of his era, Bob Johnson found success as a five-tool threat for the awful Philadelphia A's teams held together by owner/manager Connie Mack (#142) during the mid-1930s to early 1940s.  Nicknamed Indian Bob due to his Cherokee heritage, Johnson made his debut in 1933 and connected for at least 20 home runs in nine straight seasons between 1933 and 1941.  He was an eight-time American League All-Star, finishing in the top ten of every major offensive category during the height of his stardom.  Johnson batted over .300 five times and collected at least 100 RBIs in eight seasons.  Given his substantial output, Johnson ranked at the top of several offensive leaderboards upon his retirement, and he's currently in the top 100 all-time for career on-base percentage (.393), slugging percentage (.506) and walks (1,075).  Johnson's 182 assists as a left fielder are currently fifth all-time.

Johnson batted .296 for his career, with 2,051 hits, 288 home runs and 1,283 RBIs.  Only Johnson and Ichiro Suzuki made their big league debuts at the age of 27 and still collected over 2,000 hits.  Given the departure of the Athletics from Philadelphia, and then Kansas City, and soon Oakland, and the fact Johnson's Athletics teams were cellar dwellers during his time there, he's often overlooked when great  players of his era are mentioned.  He was inducted into the State of Washington Sports Hall of Fame in 1964, and the Phillies honored him by inducted him onto the Philadelphia Baseball Wall of Fame in 1989.  Johnson's older brother, Roy Johnson, played for 10 seasons in the majors with the Tigers, Red Sox, Yankees and Bees.

Building the Set

December 16, 2020 from Albion, NY

Within days of officially deciding to collect the Diamond Stars set, I found myself searching for the 1993 extension set consisting of 36 more "what if" cards this time issued by the Chicle Fantasy Company.  Individual cards from this set are very prevalent on eBay, but I wanted to buy a complete set to save myself some time and money.  Given this is a relatively modern set, I was somewhat surprised at the closing auction prices for previously sold complete sets and I was happy to win my set at a lower price.  These cards are gorgeous, and I can tell a lot of hard work and love for the originals went into making this tribute set.  What's more, the set's creators were smart enough to start the numbering with card #121, given the 1981 extension set had left off with #120.

As I slowly collect the originals from the 1930s, I'll also highlight each of the cards from these extension sets with their own posts.

Variations Available

1 - 1993 / blue back / 1935 statistics / 1993 copyright

The Card / Athletics Team Set

From the set's creator himself, as left as a comment on the Leo Durocher (#127) post, Johnson's card was designed based on the style of Goudey's Indian Gum set.  Once I saw that comment, I wanted to tackle this card as my next post.  The card is in fact reminiscent of the style of cards found in the Goudey Indian Gum (R73) set from the 1930s, with its dark blue background and strong shadows.  The write-up on the back highlights Johnson's impressive numbers and surmises Johnson's career numbers would have been even better had he played on a contending team with a few other star hitters.

1936 Season

As the regular left fielder for the Athletics, Johnson had another stellar year, batting .292 with 25 home runs and 121 RBIs, leading the eighth place club in the latter two categories.  The RBI tally was his career high.  Johnson started 131 games in left field, and was pressed into starting 22 games at second base due to a prolonged slump by regular second baseman Al Niemiec.

1934 Goudey #68

1934-36 Batter-Up (R318) #20

1939 Play Ball #97

1941 Play Ball #22

1998 Philadelphia Athletics Historical Society Fan Favorites #45

Other Notable Baseball Cards

First Mainstream Card:  1934 Goudey #68

Topps Flagship Set Appearances (0):  N/A

Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2003 Upper Deck Play Ball - 1941 Reprints #R-19

20 - Johnson non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 3/8/24.

That number of cards is inaccurate given the Beckett database intermingles several different Bob Johnson's in the cards tagged to the original Indian Bob Johnson.

Sources:

Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
SABR
The Trading Card Database

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #137 Waite Hoyt - Pittsburgh Pirates

Next Card: #139 "Chuck" Klein - Philadelphia Phillies

#127 Leo Durocher - St. Louis Cardinals

Leo Ernest Durocher

St. Louis Cardinals

Shortstop

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  5'10"  Weight:  160
Born:  July 27, 1905, West Springfield, MA
Major League Teams:  New York Yankees 1925, 1928-1929; Cincinnati Reds 1930-1933; St. Louis Cardinals 1933-1937; Brooklyn Dodgers 1938-1941, 1943, 1945

World Series Appearances:  New York Yankees 1928; St. Louis Cardinals 1934; New York Giants 1951, 1954
As a Manager:  Brooklyn Dodgers 1939-1946, 1948; New York Giants 1948-1955; Chicago Cubs 1966-1972; Houston Astros 1972-1973
Died:  October 7, 1991, Palm Springs, CA (age 86)
Hall of Fame Induction:  1994

As a player, Leo Durocher relied on his confidence, his cockiness and his fine fielding skills to put together a career that spanned two decades.  He was a member of the Yankees squad that won the World Series in 1928, and the regular shortstop for the Bronx Bombers in the early 1930s.  He won another World Series title with the Cardinals in 1934, and he'd find regular work as the starting shortstop for the Cardinals and the Dodgers throughout the 1930s.  Durocher was named to three All-Star teams, including in 1936 when he batted a career-best .286 for the Cardinals.  A light hitter throughout his career, he finished his playing days with 1,320 hits and a .247 lifetime average.

As a manager, Durocher, nicknamed "The Lip," was credited with the phrase, "Nice guys finish last."  He skippered the Dodgers from 1939 to 1946 and was set to welcome Jackie Robinson to the majors when then Commissioner Happy Chandler suspended him for associating with gamblers.  Durocher returned in 1948 as the manager of the Giants, leading the team to pennants in 1951 and 1954.  The Giants swept the Indians in the 1954 World Series, giving Durocher his third World Series ring.  He'd win a fourth ring in 1963 as a coach with the Dodgers.  Upon his retirement, he ranked fifth all-time among major league managers with 2,008 wins.  His 100 career ejections trailed only John McGraw upon his retirement, and has since been surpassed by Bobby Cox, who was ejected 162 times.  Durocher was inducted posthumously into the Hall of Fame in 1994.

Some text for this post originally appeared on my 1969 Topps blog.

Building the Set

December 16, 2020 from Albion, NY

Within days of officially deciding to collect the Diamond Stars set, I found myself searching for the 1993 extension set consisting of 36 more "what if" cards this time issued by the Chicle Fantasy Company.  Individual cards from this set are very prevalent on eBay, but I wanted to buy a complete set to save myself some time and money.  Given this is a relatively modern set, I was somewhat surprised at the closing auction prices for previously sold complete sets and I was happy to win my set at a lower price.  These cards are gorgeous, and I can tell a lot of hard work and love for the originals went into making this tribute set.  What's more, the set's creators were smart enough to start the numbering with card #120, given the 1981 extension set had left off with #120.

As I slowly collect the originals from the 1930s, I'll also highlight each of the cards from these extension sets with their own posts.

Variations Available

1 - 1993 / blue back / 1935 statistics / 1993 copyright

The Card / Cardinals Team Set

That's Dizzy Dean (#124) and manager Frankie Frisch (#17) flanking Durocher in a great pose showing the "All-American Out" exiting the dugout.  Durocher appears to be a victim of a hot foot, likely executed by Dean, and he's moments away from wondering why his sock is suddenly so hot.  The scene may have been inspired by the photo shown above with Dean and Frisch standing on either side of Cardinals' general manager Branch Rickey in 1934.  The write-up on the back of the card is fantastic and covers all the highlights of Durocher's career to date.  It also presciently points toward his future as a big league manager.

1936 Season

This was to be one of Durocher's strongest seasons at the plate.  In 136 games, including 135 starts at shortstop, he batted .286 with 22 doubles and 58 RBIs.  He was the starting shortstop for the National League All-Stars, going 1 for 3 in the game with a single off Lefty Grove (#1).  Durocher was thrown out at second by American League center fielder Earl Averill (#35), trying to stretch the single into a double.

1933 Goudey #147

1939 Play Ball #6

1952 Topps #315

1969 Topps #147

1973 Topps #624

Other Notable Baseball Cards

First Mainstream Card:  1933 Goudey #147
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (8):  1952, 1967-1973
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2018 Panini Diamond Kings #31

304 - Durocher non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 11/19/23.

Sources:

1969 Topps Blog

Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
National Baseball Hall of Fame
SABR
The Trading Card Database

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #126 "Joe" DiMaggio - New York Yankees

Next Card: #128 Bob Feller - Cleveland Indians