Collection Center piece

[Topnotchsy]

I have a couple of collections, and I've been able to get a centerpiece item for each.

Baseball's Integration

My primary collection is around baseball's integration. While Jackie breaking the color barrier was a singular moment, there was obviously a lot that led up t that, and him playing did not mean the end of discrimination etc. My collection tries to capture the narrative and nuances of that story, beginning with a Signed High School Yearbook that shows Jackie playing on an integrated squad in John Muir Highschool back in 1936 and running through his baseball career.

The centerpiece of my collection revolves around another player who signed in the same offseason as Jackie. Like Jackie, Campanella signed with the Dodger's in the offseason between the 1945 and 1946 season (Campanella was the 4th black player to sign, after Jackie, John Wright and Don Newcombe).

As an illustration of the complexity of the process, Campanella originally signed to play in Danville, but ultimately it was decided that the team (or league... there are different versions of the story) wasn't ready to integrate, so he re-signed with the Dodgers a few weeks later to play in Nashua. I've been lucky enough to acquire both his Danville and Nashua contracts.

WWII Baseball

A second area I collect is WWII baseball items. During WWII, a large percentage of the great players were drafted. To the degree that the Navy held a best-of-7 All-Star series. The series featured Ted Williams, Stan Musial, Johnny Pesky, Bob Lemon and others. The series was won in 6 games, though they played a 7th to entertain the troops.

A number of years back I was able to acquire the final pitch thrown in the clinching game. It came from catcher Bob Scheffing's personal collection. It remains the centerpiece of my WWII baseball collection and I don't imagine anything will likely surpass it.

Game-Used Lineup Cards

The other major area I focus on is lineup cards. Because it's a pretty niche area, I've been able to acquire lineup cards from many WS games (including a number of WS clinching games), vintage lineup cards dating back to the 30's including ones signed by Connie Mack, Walter Johnson, Casey Stengel etc. and ones that feature HR's by Jimmie Foxx, Joe DiMaggio etc.

I've been able to find MLB debuts of Frank Thomas, Pedro Martinez and many other stars. Milestones such as George Brett's 3000th hit and the 1984 Gold Medal Game.

But recently I was able to acquire one lineup card that means more than any other. It was the lineup card from the Orioles game that was never played on 9/11/2001. The blank lineup card is a reminder of the day when sports and the world stopped. I'm from NY and was in High School then and the day changed my life. It's likely not worth near what many of the others are worth, but it's definitely the centerpiece of that collection for me.