Somewhere, on Net54, I posted something about Mays being the best ballplayer I ever saw play in person. I had not recognized that until I perused Bill James's Historical Baseball Abstract (I still think its best form is the original edition, hardbound). At that point, I reluctantly let go of the idea that it was Stan Musial (seen in one game in 1963 and thereby becoming a lifelong Cardinals fan), and that instead Willie Mays was better. I saw Mays play in the old Sportsman's Park, then the cookie cutter Busch Stadium, and also in Candlestick once. Willie was entertaining along with his greatness. He'd break late and slow on a ball close to him, he seemed to always catch the ball while moving. He could hit, hustle, run bases, drive in runs, he was a force out there. I have a handful of his cards from his playing days. None are mint nor near mint, they're maybe VG-EX... A couple I collected as a kid, I think the rest were gathered after he was voted into the Hall.
George Davis is a subject in the T206's. In the late 1980's I was looking through the T206 lists, and I realized Davis wasn't in the Hall. But to me it seemed like he should be, and that maybe one day he would be. I think I bought 2 of his cards, and then waited. And he got elected!!! I sold one maybe 2 or 3 years later. And then I sold the other a few years later when I sold almost all of my white border cards.
Point is, I've bought cards anticipating someone getting elected into the Hall. But I've not bought any cards anticipating someone would die. I'd not thought about that before, and I'm sure people will buy cards anticipating that, but I don't think I will be doing that.
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