Vintage Cards For My Boys- Men of Integrity
 

Hey guys!

T206 / T218 collector here and dad of 2 young boys…

I had this grand idea of researching baseball players from the pre war or vintage era, (call it 70’s or earlier) of players that have my sons names (James & Will) who were also men of character and integrity in the game of baseball. The earlier the card, the better.

The thought is to take time and find a nice card for each of them to pass down to them when they are old enough to appreciate cards- would be fun for them to be inspired by a great baseball player of integrity with their name. At this point I am just researching and don’t have a budget in mind but open to ideas! I have a few years before they come of age… they are 3 and 1 1/2 :)

Any ideas on names or how to research properly? Looks like SABR is a good starting place…

I do want to pass on all my cards to them eventually, but this would be an intentional card given to each son well before that. Has anyone done something similar? Thanks!

Matt

https://photos.imageevent.com/exhibi...20Clemente.jpg
https://photos.imageevent.com/exhibi...inson%201.jpeg

Can't do better than these two gentlemen, IMO.

unfortunately they don't have the same names as his sons.

Use baseball references search bar and type in the first name so James. And just add each letter of the alphabet for the last name to find everyone you can. James A, James B, etc. And you can research and pick from there.

I did test will and that will definitely be a challenge. It apparently wasn't a really popular name like Willie and William back in the day.

Good Luck!

Names
 

Willie, or William is in the realm of possibility, as well as Jim for James! At least that’s how I view it!

Thanks!

You may want to look at players in the late 40s and early 50s. Lots of WWII veterans among that group, and it would seem like a good place to start.

James (Deacon) White and Will White seem like a good match. And they were themselves brothers! Deacon’s nickname reflected his reputation for integrity. And Will was for years the only player to wear eyeglasses on the field, which I imagine meant he had a degree of self-confidence.

Unfortunately, while Deacon had a small number of cards, I don’t think Will had any. Maybe a photo in a baseball guide or something like that.

Could stretch it to a middle name...and Robert William Feller would be a great one. Who wouldn't love Feller? Tremendous heat, WWII vet, and very kind man for the rest of his life.

James Emory Foxx....so he tossed back a few drinks :). Your son may find Foxx's on the field exploits very appealing, massive home runs...and has two good nicknames he could take from him, "beast' or 'Double X". Plus if Foxx had the luxury of all the short RF porches around the league back then(compared to the longer left field porches), he would have had the single season home run record.

The definition of integrity, in the early years, was embodied in William Joseph Klem.

SABR biography: https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/Bill-Klem/

"Elected to the Hall of Fame in 1953, Klem is credited with helping upgrade dignity and respect for umpiring during a major-league career that spanned 37 years (1905-1941)."

I'm sure vintage collectors could recommend a card of Klem, and my guess would be that it would be a great bargain, considering he's a HOFer and very under-rated in the overall history of the game.

Klem is interesting. He has a nice 1922 Exhibit.

For James, my first thought was Jim “Orator” O’Rourke.

Check out his bio here:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_O'Rourke_(baseball)

Apparently he hired the first black ball player in minor league history in 1895 when managing a team in CT. He was smart (Yale law), got the first base hit in NL history, his brother and son also played in majors, and he loved his family and family name. Won’t get much earlier.

I do like the earlier suggestion of Deacon White and Will White though. That’s pretty cool!

I agree on Deacon White. He had high moral standards during a time when that was rare.

Great idea and happy researching to you!

I imagine one point of discernment will be your metrics for character. Excuse my presumption, but I encourage looking for particular expressions of virtue worth emulating, rather than insisting on a life of perfection.

What this allows is celebrating particulars, like James "Pud" Galvin's gentleness as noted in his nickname Gentle Jeem. Insisting on perfection might rule him out, especially if you read up on his performance-enhancing elixir story. Haha. Check it out. HOFer, early card, and the games first 300 game winner to boot.

Or James "Deacon" White. Early card. HOFer. Known for his religious commitments amidst the hard-scrabble world of 19th century baseball. But, he also thought the earth was flat. Haha.

Or Miller James Huggins remembered fondly by the young Lou Gehrig for his patient character, “He’s the most patient manager I ever knew. He stuck with me and encouraged me and helped me,” said Gehrig a few years later. “He is the best teacher I ever had the privilege of being with.”

Gentleness, Faith. Patience. Looking for virtues rather than perfection might open up the list of players.

Dang, hope that's not preachy. Again, good luck.

Thoughts
 

I love the idea of the white brothers!

I’ll look into Klem and a few others as well

Considering my last name is Galvin… now I gotta get a Pud regardless… haha

Great ideas everyone, really getting excited about this now!

Why not just nickname your kids Jackie and Roberto and go with the suggestions of a previous poster? :)

Billy Sunday

Sunny Jim Bottomley

Cool project and great suggestions so far. Good luck in the quest.
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as you can see from my signature comments, I feel the same way...wish I could have met them both.

There is a great M101-2 Sporting News Supplement of Bill Klem alongside three other umpires that would display extremely well.

Here's one possibility: William Henry James

https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/bill-james/

Ace of the Miracle Braves of 1914; WWI Vet; married to the same woman for over 50 years.

My grandson's first name is Nolan after Nolan Ryan

Brooks Robinson: Hall of Fame player - even better human being. Where I live in Baltimore/Central Maryland there are kids named Brooks everywhere!

I've thought about something similar. 2 players I came up with is Christy Mathewson and Billy Sunday. I enjoy their era, cards and character. Both set themselves apart from the others of their time and were Christians. Not the same names as your kids but solid players to collect.

Matty cultivated that image, of the good looking college man of high standards, and his teammates did love him, but he was quite a gambler. While nobody's perfect, I've always felt Walter was a better overall role model than Matty.