[GeoPoto]

Card 15: Walter P. "Barney" Johnson. "The Big Train". Pitcher for the Washington Senators in 1907-1927. 417 wins and 34 saves in 21 MLB seasons. 1924 World Series champion. 1913 and 1924 AL Most Valuable Player. 3-time triple crown. 6-time AL wins leader. 5-time AL ERA leader. 12-time AL strikeout leader. He had a career ERA of 2.17 in 5,914.1 innings pitched. He pitched a no-hitter in 1920. He holds the MLB record with 110 career shutouts. MLB All-Time Team. Inducted to the MLB Hall of Fame in 1936. One of his best seasons was 1913 as he posted a record of 36-7 with a 1.14 ERA in 346 innings pitched.

Walter Johnson Hands-at-Chest Piedmont 350: Johnson Hands-at-Chest T206 cards are plentiful (PSA-1141). His status among the game's greatest pitchers is reflected in the high number of cards graded. PSA has graded seventeen Johnson Hands-at-Chest T206 cards at PSA 7, fourteen at PSA 8, and three at PSA 9. The Johnson Hands-at-Chest T206 card is in Print Group 3.

Heritage/Rounders Entry: The H/R Johnson Hands-at-Chest is graded PSA 7. The image is clear with no surface blemishes and strong edges and corners. The centering is a little left. Which brings us to the borders. The card is slant cut. The borders are tight. The back is well centered and moderately faded.

My Entry: My card is a PSA 4. It shows moderate wear to the edges and corners and visible surface wear includes several surface blemishes. It is about perfectly centered, and the borders are good. The back is centered left and presents poorly, with moderate fading, toning, and surface wear.

Comparison: The H/R card presents cleaner surfaces and much stronger edges and corners. My card has better centering, stronger borders, and doesn't suffer from a slant cut. The borders on the H/R card do not inspire confidence. The H/R back is clearly superior to my back.

My conclusion: I like my card better. The borders on my card are larger. I do not like the slant cut. My card doesn't toe nearly the technical line that the H/R card does, but I'll live with that to get the better centering and the enhanced confidence provided by the better borders.

The bottom line: If we ignore resale value, I would not trade my card for the H/R card. The H/R card presents very well except for the slant cut, the centering, and the borders. Nuff said.

Additional Walter Johnson Fun Fact: He pitched 531 complete games in 666 career starts.