A McCreachery Card Theory

[cyseymour]

Joe,

Do you even have a high grade Delahanty to trade? They're pretty hard to find, you know.

You make some interesting points, but it doesn't disprove the source of the riddle. Your criticism doesn't touch the side of the double-entendre originally observed by "Pariah" that says "Sweet Son of God", i.e. McCrea/Chery. That's just a reference to his religiosity.

It does paint some question on the theory that Dan N. raises with "creach" being a downfall/"fall from grace". Perhaps it was not the downfall of the Wolverines, exactly, but the joke on the card via Mgr. Indianapolis being that he was too old to play, it still suggests a downfall.

So the double-entendre still fits... unless you no longer believe the card was intended as a joke?

One more thing:

Deacon White career OPS .740
Ed Delahanty career OPS .916

To each his own, my friend.

[cyseymour]

So people think it's an error card with both the wrong name AND the wrong photo? Even though the riddle McCrea/Chery perfectly explains the personality of the gentleman in the photo?

Here's another question: did anyone think this before the McCreachery card was exposed as a riddle? Because I didn't hear anyone suggest it then. Does that mean that the riddle theory makes it more likely to be an error card?

[Matthew H]

Maybe they were poking fun at his age, maybe they thought he looked More like a manager then a player in that pose... Has anyone thought of that yet?

[cyseymour]

Originally Posted by Matthew H

Maybe they were poking fun at his age, maybe they thought he looked More like a manager then a player in that pose... Has anyone thought of that yet?

Matt, the trouble is that the wrong dude cracked the code of the McCreachery name... it was supposed to be one of the OJ book authors. God must've forgotten his footnotes.

I wasn't supposed to be making landmark discoveries in the hobby until my postcount cracked a hundred at least.

[RCMcKenzie]

Cy,

This thread is starting to remind me of the scene in "Back to School" where Rodney Dangerfield hires Kurt Vonnegut to write his paper for him on a book by Vonnegut. Vonnegut writes the paper and Dangerfield gets a C and the teacher tells Dangerfield that he doesn't know anything about Vonnegut.

I studied English Lit at Tulane in the 80's and have rarely used what I learned there, until this thread. However, I do not think the makers of the tobacco inserts were trying to write "Ode on a Grecian Urn". I think they just messed up. I will say that I have never seen anyone reference Jane Austin on here before, but I have been away for awhile and Runscott may have done it.

[cyseymour]

RCMcKenzie,

If you choose to think that it's an error card, you're more than welcome to. You didn't think that when the thread started and were proposing the name was a reference to his drinking, but clearly you've changed your mind.

Is it impossible to believe that someone who has a passion for etymology and 19th Century literature might be able to realize certain meanings of a card that had previously been unrealized? Or that perhaps I was able to use my unique lens to integrate the ideas of different board members?

Per the Grecian Urn comment, perhaps you underestimate the intelligence of people from that time period. Unless you feel that they are truly lacking the wisdom you gained from watching Rodney Dangerfield.

[Matthew H]

I'm not saying I think "The McCreachery Code" is impossible, it's just IMO reaching a bit. It's incredible that in the 1880s they were able to create such a comprehensive set that covered major and minor baseball from coast to coast in such a short period of time. They misspelled some names, used the wrong photo sometimes, poked fun at a few players, and you're suggesting they inserted a riddle card. I personally need more evidence than what's presented. Everything else above is fact.