(LOT 170)
1900 Pittsburgh Team Cabinet with Honus Wagner - Earliest Known Wagner Pittsburgh Pirates Image
EARLIEST WAGNER PIRATES IMAGE!!! "I hardly had time to get settled before it hits me that this guy the Louisville club had at third base was practically doing the impossible. I'm sitting on the bench the first day I reported, and along about the third inning an opposing batter smacks a line drive down the third-base line that looked like at least a sure double. Well, this big Louisville third baseman jumped over after it like he was on steel springs, slapped it down with his bare hand, scrambled after it at least ten feet, and fired a bullet over to first base. The runner was out by two or three steps. I'm sitting on the bench and my eyes are popping out. So, I poked the guy sitting next to me, and asked him who the devil that big fellow was on third base. "Why, that's Wagner," he says. "He's the best third baseman in the league." And it also turned out that while Honus was the best third baseman in the league, he was also the best first baseman, the best second baseman, the best shortstop, and the best outfielder. That was in fielding. And since he led the league in batting eight times between 1900 and 1911, you know that he was the best hitter, too. As well as the best base runner." —?Tommy Leach, as told to Lawrence Ritter, The Glory of Their Times

Few baseball historians would argue with Tommy Leach's resounding quote regarding the unparalleled baseball skill sets of the iconic Honus Wagner. Baseball's greatest all-time shortstop's career would commence with the NL's Louisville Colonels in 1897, and after three outstanding seasons in Kentucky, the Colonels would disband, with owner Barney Dreyfuss bringing the 5'11" barrel-chested Wagner over to his Pittsburgh Pirates club along with a host of other players. The immortal Flying Dutchman would immediately capture his first batting title, with his .381 mark, 22 triples, 45 doubles, and 1.007 OPS all pacing the Senior Circuit. Honus would continue playing various infield and outfield positions, and it wouldn't be until 1903 when he would play a majority of his games at shortstop, ultimately claiming an NL record eight batting championships. As a grand testament for his inaugural Steel City campaign, presented here is an extremely rare 1900 Pittsburgh Pirates team cabinet featuring 17 team members from the Pittsburgh club. Of course, the incomparable Wagner steals the show, seated third from the left along the bottom row, with fellow featured stars being Jack Chesbro (HOF), Deacon Phillippe, Tommy Leach, Jessie Tannehill, and Sam Leever.

The only known image boasting Wagner in his first Pirates 1900 campaign, the 9-3/4" x 7-1/2" silver gelatin photo is affixed to an imposing 14" x 11" mount, with the crystal-clear clarity and fine contrast superseding the general surface wear/toning expected from any 124-year-old artifact. The mount likewise has eluded any obtrusive flaws, revealing even corner wear and some surface abrasions near the upper two corners. The final superlative is the critical "PITTSBURG PHOTOGRAPHIC CO." violet credit stamp on the blank verso, with some scattered abrasions and tape remnants rendered virtually irrelevant vs. the right to own a copy of this miraculous keepsake. The only such example we have ever encountered, its momentous historical significance as the exalted Johannes Peter "Honus" Wagner's inaugural 1900 Pittsburgh Pirates original photo merits it a final resting place in Cooperstown, New York, especially considering Wagner's irrefutable status as one of baseball's five 1936 HOF charter members!

MIN BID $3,000
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