Series 2 Packs - Sold Out!!!

Here is the second pack of physical cards from this blog.  I am selling these through this site for $10.00 per pack plus $4.50 shipping. Please use the link:

Sold Out

I was hoping to have these done by opening day.  I just barely made it. This group is split between my "Barrier-Breakers" series and some of the baseball legends we lost this past year.  You can also buy them individually on eBay. My seller's name there is ctnwblog_8.

So, what's in each pack?

12 Cards That Never Were plus a special insert.

The insert card is a 1969 Joe Morgan Deckle.

All cards are professionally printed.

Front and Back.

The backs are formatted in a style consistent with their year.

The front of the cards are glossy.

The backs are not.

These are similar in look and feel to the Topps Archives cards.

This pack is made up of cards from my "Barrier-Breaker" series, featuring the first Black player on each team.

It also includes some legendary players that we lost this past year.

For those that wish to buy the cards individually,

They are currently available on eBay. 

My user name on eBay is ctnwblog_8.

Don't forget to comment on my give-away post for a chance to win a 1968 Gibson, or Seaver or BOTH!

Barrier Breakers: 1954 Nino Escalera - Cincinnati Redlegs

The Reds (or Redlegs as they were called at the time) were the second to last NL team to integrate.  On April 17, 1954 they debuted two black players.  Nino Escalera and Chuck Harmon,  Nino pinch hit to lead off the 7th inning with a single.  The very next batter was Chuck Harmon, also pinch hitting.  He popped out. 

Nino hit a meager .159 in 1954 then returned to the minors until retiring in 1962.  The player that was one at-bat later, and the second black player on the Reds, hit a mildly better .238. Chuck Harmon would play for the Redlegs, Cardinals and Phillies until 1957.  He never rose above a utility player but did have a somewhat better career than Escalera.  He also had Topps cards in 1954, 55, 56, 57 and 58. Nino never had a card.

Allegedly, it was manager Rogers Hornsby that didn't want black players on the team.  The Hall of Famer managed the Reds in 1952 and 53. I understand that Hornsby's views were not far from the norm of that era. But by 1952, he hadn't managed a team above a 6th place finish in 20 years.  I had always felt the front office in Cincinnati was cowardly for believing that keeping Reds moniker would somehow confuse people into thinking they communist sympathizers.  My opinion of that era's management is even lower for allowing their manager's racial bias cloud his decision making.

On a more positive note,  by 1956, Cincinnati had more African American players than any other Major League team with 8.