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MWTom –
My assertion that the Mothers’ Bread Series is from 1916 or later is absolutely correct. Since Rube Marquard was traded to Brooklyn during the last part of the 1915 season, it logically follows that a card produced during the following season (1916) would include either his likeness or statistics from the previous year. This was a common practice in the manufacture of baseball cards and is still done today.
Besides, Tom, do you really believe that a company would produce an issue with the intention of distributing it during the end of the season rather than the beginning? From a marketing standpoint, distribution during September and October of 1915, and possibly into the cold winter months when baseball was not being played, would make no logical sense (Marquard was claimed from waivers by Brooklyn on August 31).
Furthermore, Brooklyn finished 10 games out of first place and had no chance of winning the pennant; however, in 1916, Brooklyn won the pennant and played Boston in the World Series. A 1916 Mothers’ Bread card of Marquard on Brooklyn would make a lot of sense – a 1915 Brooklyn card would not.
Also, you are incorrect when you write that the finish and printing of the two sets (Tango Eggs and Mothers’ Bread) is much different. In fact, they are exactly the same. This is the reason why some collectors have speculated that the two sets comprise the same players.
Finally, the Mothers’ Bread Series is not designated as D303-2. That was simply an arbitrary assignment by me.