Washington T206 Mini-Set Comparison to High-Grade Competitor

[GeoPoto]

Card 17: George F. "Pinch" McBride. Shortstop for the Washington Senators in 1908-1920. 1,203 hits, 7 home runs, and 133 stolen bases in 16 MLB seasons. Debuted with the Milwaukee Brewers in 1901. Has the lowest batting average of any player with 5,000 MLB at-bats. Managed the Washington Senators in 1921 but was struck in the face by a line drive during batting practice and forced to retire.

George McBride Piedmont 350: McBride T206 cards are reasonably common (PSA-550). PSA has graded fourteen McBride T206 cards PSA 7 and another three PSA 8. The McBride T206 card is in Print Group 2.

Heritage/Rounders Entry: The H/R card is graded PSA 7. While the edges and corners look good, the surface shows minor wear and toning, particularly the left border and the upper corners. The card is centered a little high. With the exception of the bottom, the borders are tight. The back is centered with moderate fading.

My Entry: With a grade of PSA 4, my card has strong edges and borders. The surface is clean, and the card presents very well. The card centering is near perfect, and the borders are excellent. The back is well centered well with good color and minor fading.

Comparison: My card presents well in competition with the H/R card. The H/R card has better edges and corners, but not by all that much. My card wins on centering and borders. My card also has the better back

My conclusion: I like my card better. The overall condition of the H/R card does not appear to be significantly better than mine. And my card has equal or better centering and has far and away more reliable borders.

The bottom line: If we ignore resale value, I would not trade my card for the H/R card. I'll gladly take the card with the bigger borders.

Additional George McBride Fun Fact: His nickname "Pinch" is derived from his reputation as a clutch hitter, despite his all-time record poor batting average (see above).