#74 Tony Lazzeri - New York Yankees

Anthony Michael Lazzeri

New York Yankees

Second Base

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  5'11"  Weight:  170

Born:  December 6, 1903, San Francisco, CA

Major League Teams:  New York Yankees 1926-1937; Chicago Cubs 1938; Brooklyn Dodgers 1939; New York Giants 1939

World Series Appearances:  New York Yankees 1926-1928, 1932, 1936-1937; Chicago Cubs 1938

Died:  August 6, 1946, San Francisco, CA (42)

Hall of Fame Induction:  1991

A member of the Yankees' "Murderer's Row," and a slugging, good-fielding second baseman, Tony Lazzeri spent 14 seasons in the majors, winning five World Series rings between 1927 and 1937.  Lazzeri secured the everyday second baseman's job with the Yankees in 1926, holding that position for a dozen years.  In 1927, he batted .309 with 102 RBIs, finishing third in the league with 18 home runs, behind his teammates Babe Ruth (#109) and Lou Gehrig (#130).  He batted a career-best .354 in 1929, while tying his career high with 18 home runs.  Lazzeri would hit exactly 18 home runs in four different seasons, and he'd eclipse the 100 RBI plateau in seven seasons.  He set an American League record with 11 RBIs on May 24, 1936, becoming the first player to hit two grand slams in one game.

Lazzeri finished up his major league career with brief stints with the Cubs, Dodgers and Giants.  He collected 1,840 hits, batting .292 with 178 home runs and 1,194 RBIs.  Between 1940 and 1943, he was a player-manager in the minor leagues.  Lazzeri was inducted into the Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee in 1991, and despite being overshadowed by his superstar teammates, he's considered one of the best second basemen of his era.

Building the Set

April 25, 2024 from Bayville, NY (Johnny Hustle Card Co.) - Card #107

I added this card to my eBay watch list in April, and shortly thereafter received a $50 off offer from the seller, jhustle1.  I'm now 12 cards away from my version of a Diamond Stars master set.  The elusive cards needed include five pricey Hall of Famers and seven cards from the hard-to-find (and also pricey) third series.  I still have 16 cards to feature from the 1993 and 2014 extended sets, but this blog could go dormant from time to time as I continue the search for the last 12 cards.

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 Lazzeri card for my set is the second of the three variations available.

The Card / Yankees Team Set

I'd consider this one of the more iconic cards in the set, as I've long seen this card as a representation of key baseball cards from the 1930s.  The colors, the art deco geometry and the two waving flags behind Lazzeri are a nice touch by National Chicle.  The back of the card credits Lazzeri for being "one of the best taggers in the game," and explains the proper way to prepare for a catcher's throw to catch a would-be base stealer.

To date, and with his induction in 1991, Lazzeri is the 37th and final player in the set to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

1935 Season

Lazzeri played in 130 games for the Yankees, batting .273 with 13 home runs and 83 RBIs.  His RBI tally was third on the team behind Gehrig, who had 120, and George Selkirk (#88), who had 94.  The Yankees finished in second place in the American League, three games behind the pennant-winning Tigers.

1926 Exhibits (W461)

1928 W513 #79

1933 Goudey #31

1934-36 Batter-Up (R318) #45

1940 Play Ball #238

Other Notable Baseball Cards

First Mainstream Card:  1926 Exhibits (W461)

Topps Flagship Set Appearances (0):  N/A

Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2022 Panini Absolute - Retail #8

367 - Lazzeri non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 5/12/24.

Sources:

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

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #73 "Fritz" Ostermueller - Boston Red Sox

Next Card: #75 Irving Burns - St. Louis Browns