#145 Johnny Mize - St. Louis Cardinals

John Robert Mize

St. Louis Cardinals

First Base

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'2"  Weight:  215
Born:  January 7, 1913, Demorest, GA
Major League Teams:  St. Louis Cardinals 1936-41; New York Giants 1942, 1946-49; New York Yankees 1949-53

World Series Appearances:  New York Yankees 1949-53

Died:  June 2, 1993, Demorest, GA (80)

Hall of Fame Induction:  1981

Nicknamed "The Big Cat" and "Big Jawn," slugging Johnny Mize found success with the Cardinals, Giants and Yankees over a 15-year career interrupted for three full seasons while he served during World War II.  He earned the first of ten All-Star game nods in 1937, his first superstar season in which he batted a career-best .364.  Mize's two-year tear in 1939 and 1940 saw him lead the league in home runs both seasons, and in 1940 he clubbed 43 home runs.  Mize also collected 137 RBIs in 1940, the first of three seasons in which he'd top the league in that category.  He'd finish as MVP runner-up to Bucky Walters in 1939 and Frank McCormick in 1940.  Dealt to the Giants in December 1941, Mize would put up his typical superstar numbers in 1942 before missing all of 1943, 1944 and 1945 during the war.

He'd have a career year in 1947 with the Giants, leading the league in runs scored (137), home runs (51) and RBIs (138) - all three career high water marks.  Decreased playing time in 1949 resulted in Mize requesting a trade, and he was shipped to the Yankees on August 22nd for $40,000.  While with the Yankees, Mize served as a back-up first baseman and successful pinch-hitter.  He'd win five straight World Series rings with the Yankees between 1949 and 1953, batting .286 (12 for 42) in the postseason with three home runs.  In retirement, Mize worked as a broadcaster and hitting coach for the Giants (1955-60) and Athletics (1961).  

In 1,884 career major league games, Mize batted .312 with 2,011 hits, 359 home runs and 1,337 RBIs.  His .562 slugging percentage is currently 19th all-time.  Mize was selected for induction into the Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee in 1981.

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.  The complete set came with a small disclaimer card, indicating Dean and five other former players appear under license authorized by Curtis Management Group.

Variations Available

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

The Card / Cardinals Team Set

It's a shame the original Diamond Stars set didn't include Mize's rookie card, but the creators of this extension set right that wrong.  The back of the card recounts Mize's ascent during his rookie season, and there's a bit more about his leg problems in the summary below.

1936 Season

Mize had ended the 1935 season on the voluntarily retired list, at the age of 22, due to the pain caused by spurs on his pelvic bone.  From his SABR biography, written by Jerry Grillo: 

[Cardinals' club surgeon Dr. Robert] Hyland performed a daring bit of surgery that winter, and by the time spring training began, Mize had made an amazing recovery.  He made the Cardinals’ big-league roster and by midsummer had moved [Ripper] Collins (#116) off first base.  Mize’s rookie campaign was nothing short of brilliant - in 126 games he batted .329, with 19 homers and 93 RBIs.  Moreover, he was on pace to lead National League first basemen in fielding percentage had he played in enough games to qualify.  Mize actually led his league in percentage, assists, and putouts twice each.  Then again, he also led in errors twice and finished second in that dubious category three other times.  "He was a big, lumbering guy, and some groundballs got by him, sure, but if he could reach it, if he ever got his hand on the ball, he held it," [Cardinals' teammate] Don Gutteridge said.

1936 National Chicle Pastels (R312)

1941 Double Play #99-100

1949 Bowman #85

1951 Bowman #50

1953 Topps #77

Other Notable Baseball Cards

First Mainstream Card:  1936 National Chicle Pastels (R312)

Topps Flagship Set Appearances (3):  1951-53

Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2025 Topps Allen & Ginter #344

800 - Mize non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 3/1/26.

Sources:

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

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #144 Bill McKechnie MG - Boston Bees

Next Card: #146 Johnny Moore - Philadelphia Phillies

#144 Bill McKechnie MG - Boston Bees

William Boyd McKechnie

Boston Bees

Manager

Bats:  Both  Throws:  Right  Height:  5'10"  Weight:  160

Born:  August 7, 1886, Wilkinsburg, PA

Major League Teams:  Pittsburgh Pirates 1907, 1910-12; Boston Braves 1913; New York Yankees 1913; Indianapolis Hoosiers 1914; Newark Pepper 1915; New York Giants 1916; Cincinnati Reds 1916-17; Pittsburgh Pirates 1918, 1920

As a Manager:  Newark Pepper 1915; Pittsburgh Pirates 1922-26; St. Louis Cardinals 1928, 1929; Boston Braves 1930-35; Boston Bees 1936-37; Cincinnati Reds 1938-46

Died:  October 29, 1965, Bradenton, FL (79)

Hall of Fame Induction:  1962

Bill McKechnie had a respectable career as a major league player, playing in 11 seasons overall and enjoying his best season in 1914 as the starting third baseman for the the Frontier League's Indianapolis Hoosiers.  He batted .304 that season with 47 stolen bases.  McKechnie would begin his lengthy and successful managerial career the following year as the player/manager for the Newark Pepper, and he'd get his first National League job with the Pirates in 1922.  McKechnie guided the Pirates to a National League pennant in 1925, with his club defeating the Washington Nationals in seven games in the World Series.  After an acrimonious end to his time with the Pirates, McKechnnie briefly managed the Cardinals, leading that team to a World Series in 1928.  They were swept by the powerhouse Yankees.

McKechnie would spend eight years at the helm for the Braves/Bees, never finishing higher than fourth place in the league.  He'd join the Reds in 1938, with Cincinnati winning back-to-back pennants in 1939 and 1940, and winning the World Series in 1940 with a seventh game win over the Tigers.  Focusing on strong pitching and defense throughout his career, McKechnie became the first manager to win a World Series title with two different teams.  He retired as a manager following the 1946 season with 1,892 career managerial wins, ranking fourth in major league history at the time.  McKechnie would coach for the Indians (1947-48) and Red Sox (1952-53), winning another World Series ring with the Indians in 1948.  He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1962.

Header cards included with the complete set

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.

Variations Available

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

The Card / Bees Team Set

The back of the card mentions the low point of McKechnie's Hall of Fame career - the 115 loss season with the Braves in 1935.  It also foreshadows his success yet to come with the Reds in a few years.

1936 Season

In a huge improvement over the disastrous 1935 season, the newly-named Bees finished the season with a 71-83 record, in sixth place in the National League, 21 games behind the pennant-winning Giants.  From McKechnie's SABR biography, written by Warren Corbett: 

[Boston owner] Judge Fuchs had run out of money, credit, and hope.  Before the 1936 season the National League took over the franchise and engineered a recapitalization with the longtime baseball executive Bob Quinn as principal owner.  The 65-year-old Quinn had a knack for picking lost causes.  He had owned the Red Sox after Harry Frazee plundered the team and then served as president of the debt-ridden Brooklyn Dodgers.  Quinn changed the team nickname to Bees but kept the manager.  McKechnie started rebuilding again.  He acquired a few useful players, including Al Lopez (#97) and Tony Cuccinello (#55), possibly as an act of charity by the rest of the league, and improved the club’s record by 33 wins in 1936, good enough for sixth place.

1912 American Tobacco (T207)

1940 Play Ball #153

1980-87 SSPC HOF #88

1994 Conlon Collection TSN #1066

2004 Topps Fall Classic Covers #FC1928

Other Notable Baseball Cards

First Mainstream Card:  1912 American Tobacco Company Brown Background (T207)

Topps Flagship Set Appearances (0):  N/A

Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2004 Topps Fall Classic Covers #FC1928

47 - McKechnie non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 2/22/26.

Sources:

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

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #143 Joe McCarthy MG - New York Yankees

Next Card: #145 Johnny Mike - St. Louis Cardinals

#153 Judge Kenesaw Landis - Commissioner

Kennesaw Mountain Landis

Commissioner

Bats:  Unknown  Throws:  Unknown 

Born:  November 20, 1866, Millville, OH

As Commissioner:  1920-44

Died:  November 25, 1944, Chicago, IL (78)

Hall of Fame Induction:  1944

Kenesaw Mountain Landis was appointed to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in 1905 by President Theodore Roosevelt.  Tough on big business and and those he thought were opposing the country's war efforts during World War I, Landis was named the first commissioner of Major League Baseball in 1920, as the owners sought an iron fist to rule over the game.  One of Landis' first actions was the permanent banning of eight White Sox players allegedly involved in throwing the 1919 World Series.  Ironically, given the proliferation of sports betting in all major sports these days, Landis focused on cracking down on gambling during his tenure as commissioner.  And while he restored confidence in baseball as a fair game, uninfluenced by gambling, he's viewed as having stalled the overall segregation of the game.  Landis instituted the All-Star Game, with the contest first being played in 1933.  He was inducted by special vote into the Hall of Fame in 1944, a few weeks following his death.

Header cards included with the complete set

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.

Variations Available

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

The Card

Landis sure does look ornery here, and I imagine he was a difficult personality to be around.  The back of the card references the first instance a designated hitter rule was considered for the game, back in 1928.  It's also safe to surmise that Landis' leadership along with the spectacle of Babe Ruth (#110) helped restore the game and increase its overall popularity following the 1919 Black Sox Scandal.

1936 Season

The Yankees easily won the American League pennant and then defeated the Giants in the World Series in six games.  An article in The New York Times from October 23rd wrote that Landis had mailed checks for $6,430 to each Yankee player as the winning share from the series, with each Giants player receiving $4,655.

1960 Fleer Baseball Greats #64

1980-87 SSPC HOF #28

1994 Upper Deck Baseball: The American Epic #33

2014 Panini Golden Age #50

2019 Topps Revolution of the Game #REV-2

Other Notable Baseball Cards

First Mainstream Card:  1944-45 Albertype Hall of Fame Plaque Postcards (Type 1)

Topps Flagship Set Appearances (0):  N/A

Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2019 Topps Revolution of the Game #REV-2

56 - Landis non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 2/9/26.

Sources:

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

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #152 "Gee" Walker - Detroit Tigers

Next Card: #1 James "Cool Papa" Bell - Pittsburgh Crawfords

#143 Joe McCarthy MG - New York Yankees

Joseph Vincent McCarthy

New York Yankees

Manager

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  5'8"  Weight:  190

Born:  April 21, 1887, Philadelphia, PA

World Series Appearances:  Chicago Cubs 1929; New York Yankees 1932, 1936-39, 1941-43

As a Manager:  Chicago Cubs 1926-30; New York Yankees 1931-46; Boston Red Sox 1948-50

Died:  January 13, 1978, Buffalo, NY (90)

Hall of Fame Induction:  1957

Despite never having played in the majors, Joe McCarthy would author a Hall of Fame career in the big leagues as a seven-time World Series winner as a manager.  McCarthy played 15 seasons in the minors between 1907 and 1921, spending the last of those six seasons with the Louisville Colonels in the American Association.  A player-manager for the Colonels until 1921, he switched to full-time managing in 1922 and was hired to lead the Cubs in 1926.  McCarthy led the Cubs to the World Series in 1929, but they were defeated in five games by the Athletics, led by McCarthy's boyhood idol, Connie Mack (#142).  Fired by the Cubs at the end of the 1930 season, McCarthy was hired to lead the Yankees beginning in 1931.  He'd win eight pennants for the Yankees, and seven World Series titles, including four championships in a row between 1936 and 1939.  Struggles with alcoholism ended his Yankees tenure, as he resigned at the start of the 1946 season.

McCarthy returned to manage the Red Sox between 1948 and 1950, but again left his post due to health issues.  The first manager to win pennants in the National League and American League, McCarthy was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1957.  His career winning percentage in the regular season (.615) and postseason (.698) are the highest in major league history, and his 2,125 career wins currently rank 10th all-time.

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.

Variations Available

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

The Card / Yankees Team Set

Lou Gehrig (#130) and Joe DiMaggio (#126) make a cameo in the background of McCarthy's card, depicting a famous photo of Gehrig jumping over a bat held by DiMaggio early in the 1939 season.  The bio on the back of the card recounts his managerial successes to date.

1936 Season

The Yankees were 102-51 in McCarthy's sixth season leading the team, easily winning the American League pennant by finishing 19 1/2 games ahead of the second place Tigers.  They would defeat the Giants in six games in the World Series, the second title overall for McCarthy as manager of the Yankees.

1936 Goudey Wide Pen Premiums (R314 Type 1)

1991 Conlon Collection TSN #28

2020 Panini Diamond Kings #8

Other Notable Baseball Cards

First Mainstream Card*:  1936 Goudey Wide Pen Premiums (R314 Type 1)

Topps Flagship Set Appearances (0):  N/A

Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2020 Panini Diamond Kings #8

*This is a tough one.  McCarthy appeared on a bunch of minor league issues, food issues, team issues, pins and postcards between 1911 and the early 1960s, but I wouldn't consider any of the mainstream baseball cards.

229 - McCarthy non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 2/6/26.

Sources:

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

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #142 Connie Mack MG - Philadelphia Athletics

Next Card: #144 Bill McKechnie MG - Boston Bees

#140 Mike Kreevich - Chicago White Sox

Michael Andreas Kreevich

Chicago White Sox

Outfield

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  5'7"  Weight:  168

Born:  June 10, 1908, Mount Olive, IL

Major League Teams:  Chicago Cubs 1931; Chicago White Sox 1935-41; Philadelphia Athletics 1942; St. Louis Browns 1943-45; Washington Nationals 1945

World Series Appearances:  St. Louis Browns 1944

Died:  April 25, 1994, Pana, IL (85)

Short of stature, Mike Kreevich persevered through six full seasons in the minors, earning a cup of coffee with the Cubs in 1931 and with the White Sox in 1935, before earning regular playing time in 1936 as the everyday centerfielder for the White Sox.  His career year would come in 1937 when he led the league with 16 triples and batted .302 with 12 home runs and 73 RBIs for the third place White Sox.  Kreevich was the starting left fielder for the American League All-Stars in 1938, and he'd have another big year for Chicago in 1939, batting a career-best .323 with a career high 77 RBIs.  

Kreevich's speed made him an above-average defender, and modern statistics place him 38th all-time in Range Factor/Game as a center fielder with a 2.62 mark.  He led all outfielders twice in fielding percentage.  Also a skilled bunter, he led the league in sacrifices in both 1939 and 1940, with 22 and 21 respectively.  He steadily declined beginning in 1940, but he did have a late career resurgence with the American League Champion Browns in 1944.  In 1,241 major league games, Kreevich batted .283 with 221 doubles, 75 triples, 45 home runs and 514 RBIs.

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.

Variations Available

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

The Card / White Sox Team Set

Kreevich is depicted making a diving play in the outfield, fitting given his stellar defensive skills.  The back of the card highlights his speed and encourages other short ballplayers to follow Kreevich's example.  For such a successful player from his era, Kreevich has surprisingly few contemporaneous baseball cards.  While not a Hall of Famer, I'm glad he was included in this extended set.

1936 Season

From Kreevich's SABR biography, written by John Gabcik and Jack Zerby: 

Early in the 1935-36 offseason he was projected as the starting third baseman for the White Sox, but by the time spring training ended in late April, he was in center field.  He stayed there, also playing the outfield corners, for the entire season.  Again, he continued to hit well. 

By midseason 1936, "the popular little fellow," still a rookie, was becoming such a fan favorite that the White Sox held Mike Kreevich Day at Comiskey Park on Sunday, June 28.  Honored with a "big floral horseshoe and other gifts," Kreevich sat out the first game of the day's twin bill as Chicago lost.  He failed to hit safely in four trips to the plate in the second game but drove in a run on a double-play grounder.  The fans went home happy as the White Sox beat Washington, 4-1, with their honoree in the lineup.  Later that season Kreevich had a career-high five hits in a game on September 11 against Philadelphia.  He finished the campaign at .307 in 550 at-bats. 

Early in the 1936 season, Chicago had entertained thoughts of trading Kreevich to the Boston Red Sox "for any outfielder on the Boston roster and Boston laughed."  As it developed, he became a fixture in the Comiskey Park outfield of a solid rookie year.

1936 National Chicle Pastels (R312)

1936 S&S Games The National Game

1983 TCMA 1944 Play Ball #3

Other Notable Baseball Cards

First Mainstream Card:  1936 National Chicle Pastels (R312)

Topps Flagship Set Appearances (0):  N/A

Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1983 TCMA 1944 Play Ball #3

18 - Kreevich non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 1/6/26.

Sources:

Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
SABR
The Trading Card Database

Wikipedia

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

Next Card: #141 Fred Windstorm - Brooklyn Dodgers

#136 Billy Herman - Chicago Cubs

William Jennings Bryan Herman

Chicago Cubs

Second Base

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

Born:  July 7, 1909, New Albany, IN

Major League Teams:  Chicago Cubs 1931-41; Brooklyn Dodgers 1941-43, 1946; Boston Braves 1946; Pittsburgh Pirates 1947

World Series Appearances:  Chicago Cubs 1932, 1935, 1938; Brooklyn Dodgers 1941

As a Manager:  Pittsburgh Pirates 1947; Boston Red Sox 1964-66

Died:  September 5, 1992, West Palm Beach, FL (83)

Hall of Fame Induction:  1975

Named for the three-time Presidential candidate and long-time politician, Billy Herman was an All-Star second baseman for the Cubs throughout the 1930s and into the early 1940s.  He earned a spot on the All-Star Game roster ten times, including his career year of 1935 when he led the league with 227 hits and 57 doubles.  Herman helped his teams win four pennants (1932, 1935 and 1938 with the Cubs and 1941 with the Dodgers) but he was never a World Series winner as a player.  He missed all of the 1944 and 1945 seasons while serving during World War II and he'd play his final years with the Dodgers, Braves and Pirates.  Herman's managerial career began in 1947 as the player-manager for the Pirates, but his team struggled to a 61-92-2 record and seventh place in the National League.  A consistent and steady fielder, Herman led all second baseman in fielding percentage three times and finished in the top ten for the mark 12 times.  Over 1,922 games he collected 2,345 hits while batting .304.

Herman was a long-time coach, spending time with the Dodgers (1952-57), Braves (1958-59) and Red Sox (1960-64) before being named the Red Sox manager at the end of the 1964 season, replacing the departing Johnny Pesky.  Herman's Red Sox lost 100 games in 1965 and they'd lose another 82 in 1966 under his watch until he was replaced by Pete Runnels for the final weeks of the season.  Herman would return to the coaching ranks with the Angels (1967) and Padres (1978-79).  He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1975 by the Veterans Committee.

Some text for this post originally appeared on my 1965 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 #121, given the 1981 extension set had left off with #120.

Variations Available

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

The Card / Cubs Team Set

The front of the card features Herman making another clean play in the field, while the back highlights his accomplishments up through the 1935 season.  Cubs teammates Frank Demaree, Stan Hack (#34) and Gabby Hartnett (#134) are all name-checked as the sluggers bringing Herman home once he's reached based.

1936 Season

One of Herman's best seasons statistically, he batted .334 in 153 games with 211 hits, 57 doubles and 93 RBIs.  He was named to his third All-Star team and finished third in the MVP voting behind Carl Hubbell (#39) and Dizzy Dean (#124).

1933 Goudey #227

1933 Tattoo Orbit

1941 Double Play #3-4

1952 Topps #394

1965 Topps #251

Other Notable Baseball Cards

First Mainstream Card:  1933 Goudey #227
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (6):  1952, 1954-55, 1960, 1965-66
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2018 Panini Diamond Kings #35

328 - Herman non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 1/2/26.

Sources:

1965 Topps Blog

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

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #135 "Babe" Herman - Cincinnati Reds

Next Card: #137 Waite Hoyt - Pittsburgh Pirates

#135 "Babe" Herman - Cincinnati Reds

Floyd Caves Herman

Cincinnati Reds

Outfield

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Left  Height:  6'4"  Weight:  190

Born:  June 26, 1903, Buffalo, NY

Major League Teams:  Brooklyn Robins 1926-31; Cincinnati Reds 1932; Chicago Cubs 1933-34; Pittsburgh Pirates 1935; Cincinnati Reds 1935-36; Detroit Tigers 1937; Brooklyn Dodgers 1945

Died:  November 27, 1987, Glendale, CA (84)

Babe Herman was one of the game's earliest pure power hitters, and his finest years came with Brooklyn, then known as the Robins, between 1926 and 1931.  Herman hit at least 11 home runs in each of those seven seasons with the Robins, and his career year came in 1930 when he batted .393 with a then franchise record 35 home runs and 130 RBIs.  That batting average, along with his .678 slugging percentage, 241 hits and 416 total bases are still single-season Dodgers' franchise records.  Dealt to the Reds before the start of the 1932 season, Herman led the league in his first season in Cincinnati with 19 triples.  Known as a colorful character, Herman endeared himself to baseball fans in spite of his occasional lapses on the base paths or while playing defense.

Herman retired for the first time in 1937, then made a surprise comeback with the Dodgers in 1945, playing in 37 games as baseball dealt with a shortage of players due to World War II.  In 1,552 big league games, he batted .324 with 399 doubles, 181 home runs and 997 RBIs.  After retiring for a second time as a player, Herman went on to serve as a long-time scout with the Pirates, Phillies, Mets, Yankees and Giants organizations.

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.

Variations Available

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

The Card / Reds Team Set

The back of the card covers Herman's departure from the Reds.  His SABR biography, written by Greg Erion, notes, "Herman's elevated salary, advancing age, and inability to play every day led the Reds to place him on waivers in the spring of 1937.  Initially there were no takers but eventually the Detroit Tigers purchased his contract.  The 11-year National League veteran had come full circle, back to the American League and the team with which he had signed his first professional contract."

1936 Season

In his final full season in the majors, Herman played in 119 games the Reds, batting .279 with 13 home runs and 71 RBIs.  He made 88 starts in left field and one start each at first base and right field, with his playing time limited by injuries throughout the season.

1928 W513

1933 Goudey #5

1933 Tattoo Orbit

1961 Fleer Baseball Greats #114

2005 Upper Deck Classics #4

Other Notable Baseball Cards

First Mainstream Card:  1928 W513

Topps Flagship Set Appearances (0):  N/A

Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2023 Panini Select #107

58 - Herman non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 1/1/26.

Sources:

Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
SABR
The Trading Card Database

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #134 "Gabby" Hartnett - Chicago Cubs

Next Card: #136 Billy Herman - Chicago Cubs