Lot # 37: 1921 White’s Bakery/Tip Top Bread Baltimore Orioles 21-Card Near Set - Includes 3 Uncatalogued Subjects (Boley, Marlette & Thomas) - All PSA “Pop 1’s”!

Category: 1921-1939

Starting Bid: $2,500.00

Bids: 42 (Bid History)

Time Left: Auction closed
Lot / Auction Closed




This lot is closed. Bidding is not allowed.

Item was in Auction "Winter Classic 2019",
which ran from 12/19/2019 12:00 PM to
1/11/2020 7:00 PM




(LOT 37)
"Fresh to the Hobby" 1921 White's Bakery/Tip Top Bread Baltimore Orioles 21-Card Near Set (Only Missing the Grove) - Includes 3 Uncatalogued Subjects (Joe Boley, Nigel Marlette & Tommy Thomas) - All PSA "Pop 1's"!

The sheer wonder of this hobby continues to be that defining moment when a group of obscure sports cards is unearthed; providing enthusiasts with a grand opportunity to capture these previously unknown artifacts for their prized collections. Such is the case for this extraordinary group of 21 "fresh to the hobby" 1921 White's Bakery/Tip Top Bread Baltimore Orioles subjects that miraculously include 3 uncatalogued players! One of the most significant and rarest baseball card issues is the ultra-elusive set of 1921 White's Bakery Baltimore Orioles cards that previously included only 19 subjects. Courtesy of our esteemed consignor whose family has owned these cards since their inception, a complete 22-card set has been provided to Memory Lane that just happens to now include 3 uncatalogued and previously unknown subjects (Joe Boley, Nigel Marlette and Tommy Thomas).

Furthermore, all 22 subjects have been encapsulated by PSA as the inaugural PSA "Pop 1" examples, with the formerly known 39 professionally graded specimens all residing in SGC holders. While this amazing find does include all 22 White's Bakery cards, due to its esteemed stature and significant value we have ultimately decided to sell the Lefty Grove subject as a separate lot (previous lot in this auction), leaving this 21-card offering as a "near-complete" set less the Grove. The 21 "regionally issued" cards total to a rather impressive PSA 1.74 G.P.A.; impressive because the subjects were printed on thin stock and carry an immense condition sensitivity. This notion is truly substantiated by the fact that not a single PSA or SGC encapsulated copy carries a technical assessment higher than a VG/3. The grades include 4 PSA VG/3's; 1 PSA Good+ 2.5; 4 PSA Good 2's (of which one has an "MK" qualifier); 6 PSA Fair 1.5's; 5 PSA Poor 1's; and 1 PSA Authentic.

The 1921 White's Bakery lineage can be traced back to Jack Dunn's renowned Baltimore Orioles Minor League squad that dominated the Class AA International League in the late 1910's and 1920's to the tune of an unprecedented seven consecutive league championships (1919-'25). In 1921, the Baltimore team would win the International League title via their imposing 119-47 W/L record (including a staggering 70-18 home record), winning a Minor League record 27 straight games that stood for 66 years. Although the Orioles would lose in the "Little World Series" to the American Association's Louisville Colonels (4 games to 1), their remarkable 1921 season created a Baltimore fan "frenzy" that would lead to various marketing schemes by several manufacturers. One such promotional vehicle involved the prestigious White's Bakery Company who decide to capitalize on the team's immense popularity by placing an oversized 3-1/4" x 5-1/2" baseball card of a Baltimore Orioles player in one of their renowned loaves of Tip Top Bread.

Known copies of the 1921 Baltimore Sun Newspaper ad included a picture of a particular player and specifically stated: "Beginning Today, Gravure Photos of the Entire 1921 ORIOLES TEAM - A Different One Each Day Will be Wrapped with Each Wrapped Loaf of WHITE'S BIG TIP TOP BREAD". Until this miraculous "find", there were only 19 known different subjects including Lefty Grove, with this "fresh to the hobby" discovery now including 3 new subjects (Joe Boley, Nigel Marlette & Tommy Thomas) that are part of this 21-card "Near-Set" gathering (less the Grove). Of utmost significance is the inclusion of a Jack Dunn subject in this 21-card lot (team owner & manager for the 1921 season) that, along with his 1904 Allegheny Card Co. and 1914 Baltimore News issues, resides as one of Dunn's rarest and most significant baseball cards.

Regarding condition, most of the cards reveal splendid sepia-toned central images, with the low grades primarily due to various technical flaws such as stray wrinkles/creases, minor paper loss/surface abrasions (mostly on the blank backs), soiling, modest corner wear, etc. (for a detailed analysis of each card, vivid scans for all 21 subjects are included on the MLI website). Simply stated, the grades do not even remotely rationalize the superb eye appeal emanating from many of these 21 cards, with their seemingly timeless images stubbornly defying "'Father Time" for nearly the past century. A "treasure chest" offering to say the least, its extreme rarity and cardboard stature place it as one of the hobby's most momentous baseball card discoveries.

In an effort to provide you with a comprehensive understanding of the grades and paucity level for each subject, we have provided an extensive chart that lists all 21 cards, their respective "Pop 1" PSA grades, the current SGC population and a "Total Pop" for both PSA and SGC. The total "combined" population reflects only 57 encapsulated subjects (less the 4 known Lefty Grove examples), of which all 21 PSA "Pop 1" subjects are reflected in this unfathomable offering. As an additional note, the Boley, Marlette and Thomas uncatalogued subjects are obviously the only encapsulated specimens by any grading service, with SGC not including any of these three players on their census report. A museum worthy compilation for sure, this exalted 21-card grouping presents a near-impossible opportunity for the elite collector to capture a 1921 White's Bakery Baltimore Orioles near-set via a simple final bid!

MIN BID $2,500
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