t206 players, has anyone ever met a player?

[Bridwell]

When I was in elementary school, my older brother and I borrowed a Jack Spelling list of home addresses of ex-major leaguers. We wrote away to hundreds of players in 1971-1973. We got a Baseball Encyclopedia as a Christmas gift and studied the statistics. We wrote to the old-timers, mostly, thinking we could try and get the younger players later on. Stamps were 8 cents each and we never paid for an autograph. At least 1/3 of the players wrote back. As far as T206 players, I got autographs back from George McBride, Donie Bush, Larry Doyle, Davy Jones, Fred Snodgrass, Paddy Livingston and Rube Marquard. Sometimes the guys sent us a short note or a photo. It started me on the road to collecting other T206 players on 3x5 cards, government postcards or cuts. After auctions and trades, I have 100 different T206 players now.

[Sean]

That is a great story.

[Runscott]

Great stories. It's amazing how many people think Joe Wood was on a T206


So, no one has actually met a T206 player? I know plenty of board members are old enough (actually, I am) - there has got to be someone out there who's met a 'monster member'.

[Hankphenom]

Originally Posted by Runscott

Great stories. It's amazing how many people think Joe Wood was on a T206


So, no one has actually met a T206 player? I know plenty of board members are old enough (actually, I am) - there has got to be someone out there who's met a 'monster member'.

I met Clark Griffith, as posted, but I can't be the only one here.

[Runscott]

Originally Posted by Hankphenom

I met Clark Griffith, as posted, but I can't be the only one here.

My memory isn't even good for one day.

[benderbroeth]

I am glad I started this thread, awesome stories

[frankbmd]

....in person autograph from 1957......

Not quite T206, but close.

[Michael B]

Originally Posted by Runscott

Great stories. It's amazing how many people think Joe Wood was on a T206


So, no one has actually met a T206 player? I know plenty of board members are old enough (actually, I am) - there has got to be someone out there who's met a 'monster member'.

Sorry Scott, as stated I don't collect cards and was just responding to the thread. I could try and guess which players are in that set and would probably still get half of them wrong. I am still pleased I met a ball player almost 70 years after he retired. Almost as cool as meeting a 1920 Olympian in 1984 or a 1936 Olympic gold medalist at the National in 2011. Almost, but not quite....

Cheers,

Michael

[z28jd]

Originally Posted by Michael B

Sorry Scott, as stated I don't collect cards and was just responding to the thread. I could try and guess which players are in that set and would probably still get half of them wrong. I am still pleased I met a ball player almost 70 years after he retired. Almost as cool as meeting a 1920 Olympian in 1984 or a 1936 Olympic gold medalist at the National in 2011. Almost, but not quite....

Cheers,

Michael

It's okay, Scott missed the fact Clark Griffith is in the set and someone said they met him just a few posts higher

[Runscott]

This is for John - probably the only person on the planet with a complete set that wasn't born until the last player died. I put it together, not even realizing that Clark Griffith was in the set:

[Tom Hufford]

I attended the 1971 Hall of Fame induction ceremony in Cooperstown, and had the privilege of meeting Rube Marquard and Zach Wheat, from the T205 and T206 sets, as well as Larry Gardner, and Harry Hooper, in addition to Marquard and Wheat, from the T207 set. (I think Max Carey was there, too - I'll have to get out my autographed balls from that trip, to make sure). Casey Stengel was there, also, so I met someone from the T210 set, too!

Larry Gardner and Ernie Shore (not in any T set) came to see their Red Sox teammate Harry Hooper inducted. Wickey McAvoy (1913-19), Al Schacht, and Zach Wheat's brother Mack (1915-21) were there, too, but they came along after the T cards, also.

The highlight of my visit, which I've detailed before in this forum, was when I met Rube Marquard in the hotel lobby, and after a while he said, "How long will you be here? If you're going to be here a while, I'll get something from my room and show you." So, of course I waited while he went upstairs. He returned with a scrapbook from his career, and we sat in the hotel lobby for several hours while he went through the scrapbook page-by-page, telling me stories about each game, and many of the players. How I wish I had had a tape recorder! We then exchanged Christmas cards for a number of years, until his death (even though he was Jewish!). Can you imagine a current HOFer doing that?

[T206Collector]

Originally Posted by Bridwell

When I was in elementary school, my older brother and I borrowed a Jack Spelling list of home addresses of ex-major leaguers. We wrote away to hundreds of players in 1971-1973. We got a Baseball Encyclopedia as a Christmas gift and studied the statistics. We wrote to the old-timers, mostly, thinking we could try and get the younger players later on. Stamps were 8 cents each and we never paid for an autograph. At least 1/3 of the players wrote back. As far as T206 players, I got autographs back from George McBride, Donie Bush, Larry Doyle, Davy Jones, Fred Snodgrass, Paddy Livingston and Rube Marquard. Sometimes the guys sent us a short note or a photo. It started me on the road to collecting other T206 players on 3x5 cards, government postcards or cuts. After auctions and trades, I have 100 different T206 players now.

I've seen dozens of every one of those players on a signed T206 card -- but not Donie Bush, who is much much rarer on a T206. I have often wondered why that might be.

[flavius]

I met Al Bridwell in 1968 when I visited the Baseball HOF for the first time. He was there and while I had no idea who he was at the time, my father did and I believe got an autograph that is long gone now . That is about all I know regarding the situation.

[ynnek4]

Awesome!

Originally Posted by Bridwell

When I was in elementary school, my older brother and I borrowed a Jack Spelling list of home addresses of ex-major leaguers. We wrote away to hundreds of players in 1971-1973. We got a Baseball Encyclopedia as a Christmas gift and studied the statistics. We wrote to the old-timers, mostly, thinking we could try and get the younger players later on. Stamps were 8 cents each and we never paid for an autograph. At least 1/3 of the players wrote back. As far as T206 players, I got autographs back from George McBride, Donie Bush, Larry Doyle, Davy Jones, Fred Snodgrass, Paddy Livingston and Rube Marquard. Sometimes the guys sent us a short note or a photo. It started me on the road to collecting other T206 players on 3x5 cards, government postcards or cuts. After auctions and trades, I have 100 different T206 players now.