Lot 44. Honus Wagner 1940s Matchbook Promoting His Pittsburgh Sporting Goods Store. All of the matches remain in this 3 3/8” x 4 ¼” book of matches with Wagner’s image on the cover and a drawing of Forbes Field in the background. The inside of the cover presents information on Wagner’s Hall of Fame career. With fellow-Pirate Pie Traynor, Wagner opened the Pittsburgh store in 1919. Beginning in 1928, other owners operated the store, although Wagner’s name remained until the store closed in 2011. The front of the matchbook is ex. Two indentations and a crease are visible on the back.
Winning Bid $83.
Lot 45. Circa 1950 Ashtray Featuring Honus Wagner and Chewing Tobacco. A sepia image of Wagner holding a chew of loose leaf tobacco fills the center of the ashtray, which is 4.5” in diameter. A gold rim outlines the ashtray, and a decorative embossed design surrounds Wagner’s image. Nm and interesting given the famous story of the T206 card and Wagner’s view of being associated with tobacco!
Winning Bid $279.
Lot 52. Bill McKechnie Rare Program for a Pittsburgh Testimonial Dinner. Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1962, McKechnie was the first manager to lead two different teams to world championships. He is one of only two managers to win league championships with three different teams. In 1925, his Pirates defeated Washington in the World Series. A season later, the Pirates dumped him when the team finished third. In part, some historians attribute the team’s decline to the presence of Fred Clarke, hired by the Pirates as an “adviser” to McKechnie. Apparently some of Clarke’s blunt comments led to a short-lived revolt among the players. McKechnie joined the St. Louis Cardinals’ coaching staff in 1927 and became the manager a year later. The testimonial dinner for McKechnie was held when the Cardinals were in Pittsburgh for a three-game series. McKechnie’s photo is on the cover of the black and gold program, which is bound by a ribbon at the top. Pirates’ broadcaster Rosey Rowswell presided over the event. Speakers were Pennsylvania Governor John Tener, a former major league player; Branch Rickey, who was vice president of the Cardinals, and Samuel Watters, an executive with Pittsburgh. Containing three songs that honor McKechnie, the 6.25” x 9” program was folded vertically and has several other creases. It is very rarely seen.
Minimum Bid $100.
Lot 53. Pie Traynor Rare 1928 Testimonial Program. Traynor’s .342 average made him one of the National League’s top five batters in 1927 as the Pittsburgh Pirates captured the league pennant. A .320 career batter, the third baseman entered the Hall of Fame in 1948. The program has several heavy creases along with Traynor’s image on the cover. A ribbon binds the program’s 10 leafs. Pirates’ broadcaster Rosey Rowswell was in charge of the program, which included a toast by Honus Wagner and remarks by Barney Dreyfuss, the Pirates’ owner, and John A. Heydler, the N.L. president. The program includes two songs about Traynor and one each about Dreyfuss and Heydler.
Winning Bid $102.
Lot 54. Pittsburgh Pirates Collection of 10 Pins from the Early 1900s-2000. The earliest pin is from the mid-1920s, a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Benchwarmer Club pin. The paper insert is still in place in this ex-m 1.25” pin. Another 1.25” ex-m pin, black on yellow, is from the “Pittsburgh Press”: “The Press Booster Club; Com On, Bucs!; Win That Flag!” Pittsburgh baseball in the 1930s was the inspiration for a 1.25” black and gold pin that simply says “Pirates.” Nm. The collection includes a 1.25” crossed-bats pin that has red bats and stitches; “Pittsburgh Pirates” is in blue. The other pins are: A 1950s 0.75” red and blue on white pin with the Pirates mascot, nm-m. A 1.75” red, blue and white pin from Gustine’s Restaurant; Gustine played for the Pirates, and his restaurant was near Forbes Field. Nm-m. And a set of four commemorative pins in their original case represents the Pirates of 1970-2000. Mint, and sponsored by Giant Eagle and Coca-Cola.
Winning Bid $90.
Lot 55. Circa 1940s Pittsburgh Pirates Mascot Pin, Knife and Scabbard. This is a Pirates collectible we have not seen before. On a 1.75” pin a Pirates mascot in red and black holds a knife between his teeth. “Pittsburgh Pirates” is on the pin in red. The pin has some rust on the back and otherwise is mint. A ribbon attaches the pin to a 4.5” leather scabbard that houses a 4” knife, which has a 2” blade and a plastic handle. The scabbard and blade are ex to ex-m.
Winning Bid $100.
Lot 59. 3 Circa 1950 Pittsburgh Pirates Ashtrays and a Late 1940 Plate – Kiner, Rowswell, Etc. Measuring 4.75” in diameter, the ash trays are attractively designed, with scalloped edges, three gold depressions for resting a cigarette and two gold and one black rings surrounding the sepia image of a Pirates figure. Two players are at the center of ashtrays – Ralph Kiner and Danny Murtaugh. A second baseman, Murtaugh played for the Pirates from 1948-51 before becoming the team’s manager for the first time in 1957. Beloved Pirates broadcaster Rosey Rowswell is pictured in the third ashtray. He broadcast Pirates games from 1936-55. The ashtrays, by Babe Devon of Chester, WV, are nm-m. A large sepia portrait of Rip Sewell is at the heart of a 9.25” aqua plate with two gold rings. Lu-Ray Pastels manufactured the plate. Ex+. Famous for his blooper pitch, Sewell played for Pittsburgh from 1938-49.
Winning Bid $172.
Lot 80. 1953 View-Master Baseball Set, 2 Player Booklets and a View-Master Stereoscope. Before 3-D televisions, View-Master offered three-dimensional images through circular reels and a viewer. In 1953, View-Master issued a set of three baseball reels, which we are pleased to offer. Each reel was accompanied by a booklet with brief player profiles and recent and career statistics. Two of the booklets are present, for Reel No. 725 and 726. Reel 725 has color images of Al Rosen, Phil Rizzuto, Jackie Jenson, Preacher Roe, Whitey Lockman, Minnie Minoso and Yogi Berra. Players on Reel 726 are Johnny Mize, Bob Lemon, Al Schoendienst, Ferris Fain, Monte Irvin, Bobby Shantz and Sid Gordon. Stars of Reel 727 are Bobby Thomson, Grady Hatton, Vic Wertz, Mel Parnell, Gene Woodling, Sal Maglie and Roy Campanella. Of the 21 players, seven are in the Hall of Fame. The reels average ex with 3-D images free or problems. The stereoscope is in its original box.
Winning Bid $75.
Lot 108. Circa 1939 Broadside – Lima-Ohio Colored All Stars vs. White All Stars. The 17” x 26” red on beige broadside is for an 8:30 p.m. game on Tuesday, Aug. 22 “Under Lights” at “Ohio State League Halloran Park” between the “Best Colored Players from Toledo, Ft. Wayne, Detroit and Other Leading Cities” and the “Pick of Best Players from Northwestern Ohio Semi-Pro Teams.” The year is not provided. Given that major league baseball introduced night games in 1935, 1939 seems reasonable. Based on Aug. 22 being a Tuesday, 1933 and 1944 are also reasonable possibilities. Exhibition games between black and white teams were relatively common during this period. The broadside, which has creases along the edges, displays well. Two devices for hanging it are stuck to the back. Another copy of this poster was included in the Hall of Fame’s “Baseball as America” tour.
Winning Bid $472.
Lot 170. 4 Mickey Mantle Cards – 1954 Bowman, 1957 Topps, Etc. – All Graded by PSA. Lower grade collection with 1954 Bowman #65 and 1957 #95 both graded PR 1; 1958 Topps #487 All Star PSA-graded GOOD 2 (MK); 1961 Topps #44 A.L. Home Run Leaders graded PR 1; and 1968 Topps #490 Super Stars with Mantle, Mays and Killebrew PSA-graded FR 1.5. Significant variations exist among the cards graded poor. It’s not difficult to imagine the 1957 Topps card being graded higher. We’ve seen cards similar to the 1954 Bowman graded fair. The 1961 Topps card has a vg appearance and a pin hole.
Winning Bid $138.
Lot 171. Original Oil on Canvas 8” x 10” Portrait of Joe DeMaestri by Andy Jurinko. Jurinko was as highly regarded as he was prolific. In the 1990s, he undertook the “Jurinko Project” to paint the portraits of more than 600 1950s-60s baseball players. Completed in 1997, this original portrait of DeMaestri is one of them. In 1957, DeMaestri was an All-Star at shortstop for the Kansas City A’s. His portrait is nm-m and framed. Jurinko’s portraits were published in 2012 in “Golden Boys: Baseball Portraits, 1946-1960.” The artist passed away in 2011.
Winning Bid $61.
Lot 172. Eddie Joost Original 1997 Oil on Canvas 8” x 10” Portrait by Andy Jurinko. An infielder for the Philadelphia A’s from 1947-54, Joost was a two-time All-Star who garnered MVP votes in four seasons. In 17 seasons, he played also for the Reds, Boston Braves and Red Sox. Jurinko painted Joost’s image as part of his “Jurinko Project,” involving the creation of more than 600 baseball portraits. Jurinko died in 2011. His portraits were published in 2012 in “Golden Boys: Baseball Portraits, 1946-1960.” The portrait is nm-m and framed. Jurinko prints sell for hundreds of dollars. This is an original!
Winning Bid $138.
Lot 173. 1997 Original Oil Painting of Suitcase Simpson by Andy Jurinko. In the 1990s, Jurinko embarked upon a project to paint the images of more than 600 baseball players from an era that he loved, the 1950s and 1960s. What he called the “Jurinko Project” culminated in the posthumous publication of the portraits last year in the coffee table book “Golden Boys: Baseball Portraits, 1946-1960.” Jurinko died in 2011. The 8” x 10” portrait of Simpson is nm-m and framed. Harry “Suitcase” Simpson was a well traveled outfielder and first baseman. In eight seasons, he played for five teams and found himself in a Kansas City Athletics uniform from 1955-59, with a break in 1957-58 to play for the Yankees.
Winning Bid $92.
Lot 174. Andy Jurinko’s Original 1997 Oil on Canvas Portrait of Carl Scheib. Playing for Philadelphia from 1943-45 and again from 1947-54, Scheib was one of the best-hitting pitchers in baseball. In 1951, he batted .396. He won 14 games in 1948 and 11 in 1952. Jurinko, who died in 2011, painted Scheib’s portrait as part of a project to create portraits of more than 600 baseball players from the 1950s and 1960s. The 8” x 10” Scheib portrait is nm-m and framed. The portraits were published last year in “Golden Boys: Baseball Portraits, 1946-1960.”
Winning Bid $50.
Lot 175. Pete Suder 1997 Original Oil on Canvas Painting by Andy Jurinko. More than a decade ago, premier sports artist Andy Jurinko launched a project to paint the portraits of stars and journeyman from what he considered to be baseball’s Golden Era, 1946-60. Jurinko passed away in 2011. A coffee table book presenting his portraits was published last year. It’s titled “Golden Boys: Baseball Portraits, 1946-1960.” This 8” x 10” portrait of Suder is one of more than 600 he painted. Suder played the infield for the Philadelphia A’s from 1941-54. Nm-m and ready for display.
Winning Bid $83.
