That said we'll be covering both Jimmie Foxx and this 1934-36 Diamond Stars card which I picked up for on eBay for $110 with the value estimated to be in the $150-200 range with 3.5 BVG grade.
Jimmie Foxx
Foxx born in 1907 in Sludlersville, Maryland was known as the "beast" or "Double X" to many dropped out of high school early to play minor league ball for Frank "home run" Baker where he hoped to pitch or play third base but the team was short handed behind the plate, he quickly jumped on the opportunity and immediately gained interest from both the Yankees and Philadelpia A's, eventually signing with Philly at the age of 17. Now I bought this card as it's listed as a 1934, however Foxx moved out from behind the plate by then (caught only 37 games total at this point) to play outfield and first base where he had settled in by 1929 as Mickey Cochrane was "taking up space" to this point.
Foxx was one of the most feared hitters of his era hitting 30 home runs in 11 consecutive seasons and driving in 100+ in 12 straight. Jimmie won the Triple Crown in 1933 (thanks anon) and came close to winning it a couple more times and under today's at bat rules he would have won at least won one more in '32. Foxx did win the leagues MVP three times with no player winning more other than Barry Bonds
Jimmie was eventually sold to the Boston Red Sox during the Great Depression that forced many teams to sell high priced players. Foxx played seven seasons in Boston before sinus (or alcohol depending who you ask) problems derailed his career.
The "right handed" Babe Ruth actually finished his career as a pitcher in 1945 with the A's after playing a couple years with the Cubs going 1-0 with a 1.98 ERA.
Foxx was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1951 with a .325 avg, 534 home runs, 1,922 RBI, and a 1.038 OPS
Other Foxx Facts:
- Was the youngest to 500 home runs (32 years, 336 days) until Alex Rodriguez bested him
- Foxx won back-to-back MVP's in '32 & '33 knocking in a combined 332 runs. He bested those years in 1938 where he drove in 175
- On June 16, 1938, Jimmie set an AL record when he walked six times in a game
- Tom Hanks character in A League of Their Own was loosely based on Jimmie Foxx (and Hack Wilson)
- Baseball-Reference compares Foxx best to Ted Williams, Lou Gerhig, and Manny Ramirez
- Foxx made just $282,665 as a professional baseball player according to Baseball-Reference
1934-36 Diamond Stars
The Diamond Stars set was issued over a 3-year period by the National Chicle Company which kept the card fronts over those three years, however changed the backs with updates stats and tips.
The set is unique in it's design using an Art Deco background where the use of ballparks or field scenes had been used in the past. Cards of players were reiussed each year with updates, however the original 240 card set that was planned for ended up being just 108 cards as players retired or were sent to the minors.
Key cards in the set include Lefty Grove ($750), Bill Dickey ($200), Hank Greenberg ($400), Pie Traynor ($150), Mel Ott ($300), and Jimmie Foxx ($400) with "commons" selling in the $50 range.
Next up will be a 1919-21 W514 Tris Speaker
For other players and cards from this list that I've picked up you can check here:
2 comments:
Won triple crown in 1933
Absolutely right, thank you
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