1934-36 Diamond Stars: 1922

Showing posts with label 1922. Show all posts

Sunday, March 16, 2025

#99 "Pie" Traynor MG - Pittsburgh Pirates

Harold Joseph Traynor
Pittsburgh Pirates
Third Base-Manager

Bats: Right Throws: Right Height: 6'0" Weight: 170
Born: November 11, 1898, Framingham, MA
Major League Teams: Pittsburgh Pirates 1920-35, 1937

World Series Appearances: Pittsburgh Pirates 1925, 1927

As a Manager: Pittsburgh Pirates 1934-39

Died: March 16, 1972, Pittsburgh, PA (73)

Hall of Fame Induction: 1948

The greatest third baseman of his era, Pie Traynor played his entire 17-year big league career with the Pirates. He helped the club win a World Series title in 1925, batting .346 (9 for 26) in the seven-game series against the Senators. Traynor batted over .300 in ten different seasons, attaining a career high in hits with 208 in 1923 and hitting a career-high .366 in 1930. His lifetime batting average was .320. He drove in over 100 runs in seven seasons, a record for third baseman until surpassed by Mike Schmidt. Traynor led the league in triples with 19 in 1923, and he's currently 30th on the all-time triples list with 164. He had 371 career doubles and astonishingly only struck out 278 times over 1,941 games and 8,298 plate appearances. An adept bunter, Traynor twice led the league in sacrifices. He was named to the first two All-Star Games in 1933 and 1934, and was the National League's starting third baseman in the 1934 contest. Exceptional defensively, Traynor's 2,289 career putouts at third base are fifth all-time.

He was named the Pirates' player-manager during the 1934 season, and he held that position through the 1939 season. Pittsburgh nearly went back to the World Series in 1938, but they fell to the Cubs following the Gabby Hartnett (#134) home run in the infamous Homer in the Gloamin' game at Wrigley Field on September 28, 1938. Traynor had a lifetime managerial record of 457-406. Traynor later served as long-time and popular radio host in Pittsburgh between 1944 and 1965. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1948, the first third baseman to be voted in by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. Traynor threw out the ceremonial first pitch before Game 3 of the 1971 World Series and passed away a few months later. His #20 was posthumously retired by the Pirates before their home opener in 1972.

Building the Set

March 14, 2025 from Lincoln, MA (Champion Sportcards & Collectibles) - Card #115

My luck continued recently on eBay when I won this late series Traynor card for a final bid price that was less than half what the card's current book price is, according to Beckett. The card showed up in one of my saved searches, I placed what I thought was a "no way this is going to win" bid, and was pleasantly surprised when no one else entered the auction after my bid.

Unbelievably, I'm down to needing just four cards for my version of a master set . . . or maybe it's just three. I had wanted both the error and corrected versions of the Hank Greenberg (#54) card, but as I near the end of this collecting journey, maybe just one of those versions is fine. I'd of course feel differently if the card wasn't the most expensive in the set. I'm also still on the hunt for the cards of Mel Ott (#50) and the last high-number needed, Stan Hack (#107).

Variations Available

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

This is the second Traynor card in the set, with the Hall of Fame third baseman first appearing on card #27. The final 12 cards in the Diamond Stars set, released as part of series three in 1936, contain the exact same photos and players as earlier cards from the set. This card has the same text on the back as his earlier card, save for his 1935 statistics at the bottom replacing his 1934 statistics. Also, the ink on the back of card #99 is blue, similar to all cards from the third series.

The Card / Pirates Team Set

The tip on the back of the card provides guidance on where to stand in the batter's box, depending on your arm length and swinging style. It also implores the reader to study Traynor's form, given the current Pirates manager's success over the years while batting.

Comparing both the easier to find early series Traynor card to this harder to find late series Traynor card, the latter is actually the nicer of the two in my set.

1936 Season

This was the first season Traynor was a full-time manager, not playing in any games, although his SABR biography notes he kept himself on the Pirates' active roster. His team finished in fourth place in the National League with a 84-70-2 record. Shortstop Arky Vaughan (#151) was the team's MVP, leading the league with a .453 on-base percentage, 118 walks and 122 runs scored. Vaughan batted .335. First baseman Gus Suhr (#56) led the team with 11 home runs and 118 RBIs. Cy Blanton (#57) won 13 games and threw a league-leading four shutouts.

1922 American Caramel
Series of 240 (E120)

1933 DeLong Gum (R333)

1933 Goudey #22

1940 Play Ball #224

1976 Topps #343

Other Notable Baseball Cards

First Mainstream Card: 1922 American Caramel Series of 240 (E120)

Topps Flagship Set Appearances (1): 1976

Most Recent Mainstream Card: 2022 Panini Diamond Kings #108

181 - Traynor non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 3/15/25.

Sources:

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

Wikipedia

Previous Card: #98 "Schoolboy" Rowe - Detroit Tigers

Next Card: #100 Earle Averill - Cleveland Indians

Sunday, January 8, 2023

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

James Leroy Bottomley

St. Louis Browns

First Base-Manager

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

Born: April 23, 1900, Oglesby, IL

Major League Teams: St. Louis Cardinals 1922-1932; Cincinnati Reds 1933-1935; St. Louis Browns 1936-1937

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

As a Manager: St. Louis Browns 1937

Died: December 11, 1959, St. Louis, MO (59)

Hall of Fame Induction: 1974

Rogers Hornsby

St. Louis Browns

Manager-First Base

Bats: Right Throws: Right Height: 5'11" Weight: 175

Born: April 27, 1896, Winters, TX

Major League Teams: St. Louis Cardinals 1915-1926; New York Giants 1927; Boston Braves 1928; Chicago Cubs 1929-1932; St. Louis Cardinals 1933; St. Louis Browns 1933-1937

World Series Appearances: St. Louis Cardinals 1926; Chicago Cubs 1929

As a Manager: St. Louis Cardinals 1925-1926; New York Giants 1927; Boston Braves 1928; Chicago Cubs 1930-1932; St. Louis Browns 1933-1937, 1952; Cincinnati Reds 1952-1953

Died: January 5, 1963, Chicago, IL (66)

Hall of Fame Induction: 1942

Nicknamed "Sunny Jim" as a result of his cheerful personality, slugger Jim Bottomley (#59) starred for the Gashouse Gang Cardinals throughout the 1920s, helping his team reach four World Series, winning titles in 1926 and 1931. Bottomley's first big season came in 1924 when he crossed the 100-RBI plateau for the first of six consecutive seasons. On September 16, 1924 against the Brooklyn Robins, Bottomley set an all-time single-game record with 12 RBIs, going 6 for 6 with a double and two home runs. As the regular first baseman for the Cardinals, he enjoyed a career-year in 1925, leading the league in hits (227) and doubles (44) while batting .367 with 128 RBIs.

He batted .345 in the 1926 World Series, as the Cardinals defeated the Yankees in seven games, giving St. Louis its first franchise series title. Bottomley consistently hit for average and provided power for the Cardinals, culminating in 1928 when he won National League MVP honors after his league-leading 20 triples, 31 home runs and 136 RBIs. He nearly won a batting title in 1931, finishing with a .3482 average with Bill Terry (#14) hitting .3486 and winner Chick Hafey (#18) hitting .3489.

Dealt to the Reds following the 1932 season, Bottomley would continue to be productive at the plate although his overall numbers started to decline. He wrapped up his career with the Browns, spending part of his final season in the majors as the team's player-manager. Bottomley batted .310 for his career with 2,313 hits, 465 doubles, 219 home runs and 1,422 RBIs, with he and Lou Gehrig (#130) becoming the first two major leaguers to collect 150 or more doubles, triples and home runs. He was inducted posthumously into the Hall of Fame in 1974 by the Veterans Committee, and was among 22 inaugural players and personnel inducted into the St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame in 2014.

1961 Topps #404

Regarded as one of the best hitters in the history of the game, Rogers Hornsby (#44), "The Rajah," played in parts of 23 seasons, winning two MVP titles, two Triple Crowns and hitting over .400 in three different seasons. Hornsby rose to stardom with the Cardinals in the 1920s, winning his first of six consecutive batting titles in 1920 with a .370 mark. He won his first Triple Crown in 1922, batting .401 with 42 home runs and 152 RBIs, and he's the only player ever to amass 40 home runs while batting .400 in a season. Hornsby batted .424 in 1924, still the single-season highest mark. The accomplishments continued to mount as he won the league MVP honors in 1925, and he'd guide the Cardinals to a World Series title in 1926 as their player-manager. He'd win his second MVP award in 1929 with the Cubs.

His days as an everyday player ceased in 1933, but he continued to play occasionally through the 1937 season while managing. His final managing stop came in the early 1950s with the Reds. Hornsby's career average of .358 is third all-time behind Ty Cobb (.366) and Oscar Charleston (.364). He ranks towards the top of just about every all-time list, including on-base percentage (10th at .434), hits (40th with 2,930), and triples (25th with 169). He collected 301 home runs and 1,584 RBIs. Hornsby's record as a manager was 701-812 over 15 seasons, and by all accounts he was a difficult man to play for. He was elected into the Hall of Fame in 1942 and in 1999 was ranked ninth on The Sporting News' list of Baseball's Greatest Players.

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.)

Another great article was recently published to SABR's Baseball Cards Research Committee website taking a closer look at these extended cards.

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 / Browns Team Set

One of the most unique cards from the "lost" extended series, this would have been the only combo card in the Diamond Stars set, featuring two future Hall of Famers and a pair of all-time St. Louis greats. Both Bottomley and Hornsby had appeared on solo cards in the original Diamond Stars set within the second series first released in 1935. The source photo is shown above, and a stamp on the back of the original photo includes a stamped date of April 2, 1936. Bottomley had been acquired from the Reds for Johnny Burnett on March 21, 1936, so it's likely the photo was taken at some in late March. The back of the card mentions the star power now belonging to the Browns, and includes a few numbers pertaining to their 1936 seasons. The 57-95 record attributed to Hornsby is for the 1936 season, and not the 1934 season as reflected on the card.

1937 Season - Bottomley
Ironically enough, it was Bottomley who replaced Hornsby as the Browns' manager when Hornsby was fired in July 1937 after his team got off to a 25-52-1 start. Bottomley would actually fare a little worse, guiding the team to a 21-56-1 record for the rest of the season. He'd be dismissed following the season too, and replaced by Gabby Street.

As a player, Bottomley appeared in 65 games, batting .239 with a home run and 12 RBIs. He made 20 starts at first base, and his remaining appearances were as a pinch-hitter. Bottomley's final game came on September 16th against the Athletics at Shibe Park, and he went 1 for 4 with a double in his penultimate at bat off Harry Kelley.

1937 Season - Hornsby
Hornsby began the season at the helm of the Browns and was fired following a double header loss on July 20th. He could still hit, batting .321 (18 for 56) in 20 games early in the season, with three doubles and a home run. His final plate appearance came in game one of the July 20th double header, inserting himself as a pinch-hitter for Tom Carey. Hornsby popped up to Yankees' catcher Bill Dickey (#11) and his playing career was over.

1923-24 Exhibits (W461)

1929-30 R315

1933 Goudey #44

1940 Play Ball #236

1980 SSPC HOF #142

Other Notable Baseball Cards - Bottomley

First Mainstream Card: 1923-24 Exhibits (W461)

Topps Flagship Set Appearances (0): N/A

Most Recent Mainstream Card: 2018 Panini Diamond Kings #47

180 - Bottomley non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 1/7/23.

Sources - Bottomley:

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

Wikipedia

Other Notable Baseball Cards - Hornsby

First Mainstream Card: 1917 Collins-McCarthy (E135) #80

Topps Flagship Set Appearances (3): 1961, 1976, 1979

Most Recent Mainstream Card: 2022 Topps Allen & Ginter #326

808 - Hornsby non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 1/7/23.

Sources - Hornsby:

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

Wikipedia

1917 Collins-McCarthy
(E315) #80

1920-21 W516-2-2

1922 American Caramel
Series of 240 (E120)

1933 Goudey #188

1933 Tattoo Orbit

1976 Topps #342

Previous Card: #118 Vernon Gomez - New York Yankees

Next Card: #120 Lon Warneke - Chicago Cubs

Sunday, January 1, 2023

#44 Rogers Hornsby MG - St. Louis Browns

Rogers Hornsby

St. Louis Browns

Manager-First Base

Bats: Right Throws: Right Height: 5'11" Weight: 175

Born: April 27, 1896, Winters, TX

Major League Teams: St. Louis Cardinals 1915-1926; New York Giants 1927; Boston Braves 1928; Chicago Cubs 1929-1932; St. Louis Cardinals 1933; St. Louis Browns 1933-1937

World Series Appearances: St. Louis Cardinals 1926; Chicago Cubs 1929

As a Manager: St. Louis Cardinals 1925-1926; New York Giants 1927; Boston Braves 1928; Chicago Cubs 1930-1932; St. Louis Browns 1933-1937, 1952; Cincinnati Reds 1952-1953

Died: January 5, 1963, Chicago, IL (66)

Hall of Fame Induction: 1942

1961 Topps #404

Regarded as one of the best hitters in the history of the game, Rogers Hornsby, "The Rajah," played in parts of 23 seasons, winning two MVP titles, two Triple Crowns and hitting over .400 in three different seasons. Hornsby rose to stardom with the Cardinals in the 1920s, winning his first of six consecutive batting titles in 1920 with a .370 mark. He won his first Triple Crown in 1922, batting .401 with 42 home runs and 152 RBIs, and he's the only player ever to amass 40 home runs while batting .400 in a season. Hornsby batted .424 in 1924, still the single-season highest mark. The accomplishments continued to mount as he won the league MVP honors in 1925, and he'd guide the Cardinals to a World Series title in 1926 as their player-manager. He'd win his second MVP award in 1929 with the Cubs.

Building the Set
December 3, 2022 from The Philly Show (Goodman's Sportscards) - Card #69
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 Hornsby card and the card of fellow Hall of Famer Chick Hafey (#18). 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, and the pricier of the two, Hornsby, would find its way under the Christmas tree as a present from my sons. And with the addition of this card, I'm 50 cards away from my version of a complete Diamond Stars set.

Variations Available

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

The Card / Browns Team Set

I would say this is probably one of the more well-known cards from the Diamond Stars set, along with the card of Jimmie Foxx (#64). Hornsby is shown leaning on the dugout with a collection of dapper looking fans behind him in anticipation of the start of a game. The tip on the back of the card recommends practicing your swing in front of mirror, and never taking your eye off the ball. According to this write-up, the only time Hornsby was ever hit with a pitch was when he turned to talk to the catcher, taking his eye off the ball. He must have done that quite a bit, as his Baseball Reference stats shows he was hit by a pitch 48 times between 1915 and 1934.

1935 Season

Now 39 years old and in his third season of managing the Browns, Hornsby would appear in only 10 games as a player, batting .208 (5 for 24) with three doubles. He'd name himself the club's opening day first baseman, but he'd make only four starts overall and none after May. The Browns finished the season at 65-87-3, in seventh place in the American League, and kept out of the basement only by the 58-91 Philadelphia Athletics. Pitcher Ivy Andrews went 13-7 with a 3.54 ERA in 50 games pitched, and the club's best hitter was outfielder Moose Solters (#85) who batted .330 with 18 home runs and 104 RBIs.

1917 Collins-McCarthy
(E315) #80

1920-21 W516-2-2

1922 American Caramel
Series of 240 (E120)

1933 Goudey #188

1933 Tattoo Orbit

1976 Topps #342

Other Notable Baseball Cards

First Mainstream Card: 1917 Collins-McCarthy (E135) #80

Topps Flagship Set Appearances (3): 1961, 1976, 1979

Most Recent Mainstream Card: 2022 Topps Allen & Ginter #326

808 - Hornsby non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 12/26/22.

Sources:

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

Wikipedia

Previous Card: #43 Ted Lyons - Chicago White Sox

Next Card: #45 "Jo Jo" White - Detroit Tigers

Sunday, July 3, 2022

#112 Leon Goslin - Detroit Tigers

Leon Allen Goslin

Detroit Tigers

Outfield

Bats: Left Throws: Right Height: 5'11" Weight: 185

Born: October 16, 1900, Salem, NJ

Major League Teams: Washington Senators 1921-1930; St. Louis Browns 1930-1932; Washington Senators 1933; Detroit Tigers 1934-1937; Washington Senators 1938

World Series Appearances: Washington Senators 1924-1925, 1933; Detroit Tigers 1934-1935

Died: May 15, 1971, Bridgeton, NJ (70)

Hall of Fame Induction: 1968

South Jersey's own Goose Goslin compiled his Hall of Fame career playing 18 seasons primarily with the Senators. As one of the game's top left fielders of his era, Goslin led the league in triples in 1923 and 1925, and won the league's batting title in 1928 with a .379 mark. He collected at least 10 home runs in 12 different seasons, including a career best 37 home runs playing for the Senators and Browns in 1930. He also drove in 138 runs that season, another career-best, and Goslin collected at least 100 RBIs in 11 seasons, leading the league in 1924 with 129. He played in five different World Series, winning rings with the Senators in 1924 and the Tigers in 1935. Goslin's glove could at times be a liability, and he led all left fielders in errors in eight different seasons, with his 184 errors at the position currently second all-time behind fellow Hall of Famer Zack Wheat. His 3,826 putouts in left are currently fifth all-time and his 181 assists are sixth all-time.

Goslin was a lifetime .316 batter, with 2,735 hits, 500 doubles, 248 home runs and 1,612 RBIs. The Veterans Committee inducted him into the Hall of Fame in 1968.

Building the Set

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

Another great article was recently published to SABR's Baseball Cards Research Committee website taking a closer look at these extended cards.

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 / Tigers Team Set

The back of the card mentions Goslin's start as a pitcher, and he made 18 appearances on the mound in 1920 for the Columbia Comers in the South Atlantic League before his strong bat necessitated a change to the outfield. His heroics from 1935 are also noted on the back. Goslin was second on the Tigers' in RBIs with 111, far behind the 168 driven in by slugger Hank Greenberg (#54). He appeared in five different World Series, batting a solid .287 (37 for 129) with five doubles, seven home runs and 19 RBIs.

1937 Season

In his penultimate season, Goslin appeared in 79 games for the Tigers, batting .238 with four home runs and 35 RBIs. He was the club's opening day left fielder, but started only 39 games at the position and in his final month with the team he was used almost exclusively as a pinch-hitter. He was released in October, signing with the Senators right before the start of the 1938 season, where he'd play in his final 38 big league games.

1922 American Caramel
Series of 240 (E120)

1933 DeLong Gum
(R333) #24

1933 Goudey #110

1940 Play Ball #232

1961 Fleer
Baseball Greats #35

Other Notable Baseball Cards

First Mainstream Card: 1922 American Caramel Series of 240 (E120)

Topps Flagship Set Appearances (0): N/A

Most Recent Mainstream Card: 2020 Panini Diamond Kings #39

176 - Goslin non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 6/20/22.

Sources:

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

Wikipedia

Previous Card: #111 Phil Cavarretta - Chicago Cubs

Next Card: #113 Mel Harder - Cleveland Indians

Sunday, January 2, 2022

#32 Sam Rice - Cleveland Indians

Edgar Charles Rice

Cleveland Indians

Outfield

Bats: Left Throws: Right Height: 5'9" Weight: 150

Born: February 20, 1890, Morocco, IN

Major League Teams: Washington Senators 1915-1933; Cleveland Indians 1934

World Series Appearances: Washington Senators 1924-1925, 1933

Died: October 13, 1974, Rossmoor, MD (84)

Hall of Fame Induction: 1963

In April 1912, a tornado swept through Indiana, tragically killing Sam Rice's entire family including his parents, his two younger sisters and his wife and two children. Rice spent the following year drifting, eventually joining the U.S. Navy and slowly rekindling his pitching skills within the Navy and then with a minor league team in Virginia. On July 28, 1915, Rice's contract was sold by the Petersburg Goobers of the Virginia League to the Washington Senators, and he subsequently changed his first name from Edgar to Sam, and also converted from a pitcher to a full-time outfielder. What followed was a 20-year major league career that ultimately found Rice inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1963.

Rice rarely struck out and was able to stretch singles into doubles as a result of his above average speed on the base paths. Throughout the late 1910s and all through the 1920s, he consistently was among the league leaders in runs, hits, stolen bases and batting average. Rice had over 200 hits in six different seasons, hitting a career-high 227 in 1925 and leading the league in 1924 and 1926. He led the league in stolen bases with 63 in 1920. Rice helped lead the Senators to the World Series in 1924 and 1925, and his team won the Championship in 1924. The most controversial moment of Rice's baseball career came during the 1925 World Series against the Pirates, when Rice apparently robbed a home run from Pirates catcher Earl Smith. Rice tumbled over the right field wall into the stands and out of sight. When he emerged he signaled he had caught the ball and the umpires ruled Smith out. (The Senators would ultimately lose the Series.)

Rice still holds the Senators/Twins franchise records for runs, hits, doubles and triples. He batted .322 over his career, collecting 2,987 hits, with 1,514 runs scored, 498 doubles and 184 triples.

Building the Set

December 26, 2021, Christmas Present from Mom - Card #36

This was one of two cards my Mom gifted me the day after Christmas, noting both cards were an early payment for her upcoming tax return preparation services. Along with this Rice card was the card for Ossie Bluege (#71). We've enjoyed a tradition over the past decade or so of driving to my Mom's house the day after Christmas to spend a day with her and my sister's family eating, laughing and opening way too many presents. This year was even a little more enjoyable as we were able to go maskless, having all been double or triple vaccinated depending on age. The two Diamond Stars cards acquired came with an added surprise of a vintage yellow wrapper from the set, carefully preserved inside an oversized top loader. I'm still trying to figure out how I want to display the wrapper and whether or not I'll risk taking it out and unfolding it. I posted a complete summary of this year's gifts from my Mom over at The Phillies Room. This card was housed in a top loader with a sticker on the back with the identifier, "50072 martyspsagradedcards.com."

Variations Available

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

The Card / Indians Team Set

This is Rice's final mainstream baseball card issued contemporaneously during his playing career, and it's one of the only baseball cards to feature him wearing an Indians uniform. He's also the oldest person featured in the original run of Diamond Stars cards issued between 1934 and 1936. The tip on the back of the card discusses the importance of a low throw to the infield or catcher from an outfielder. This is a fitting tip to be featured on Rice's card as his 278 career outfield assists are currently 13th on the all-time list. He led all outfielders in assists in 1926 and with putouts in 1920 and 1922.

1935 Season

On January 8, 1934, the Senators released Rice and he signed about a month later with the Cleveland Indians. He'd appear in 97 games for the Indians in 1934, batting .293, and despite Indians' manager Walter Johnson's desire for Rice to return in 1935, the long-time outfielder opted to retire instead at the age of 44. By the time this card was making its way to collectors, Rice was out of baseball.