(LOT 1119)
1916 Zeenut PCL Jimmy Claxton Without Coupon SGC 1.5 FR
HISTORIC CLAXTON RARITY!!! Jackie Robinson may be the MLB's inaugural African American player, but he is NOT the first professional African-American to play professional baseball. That distinction belongs to southpaw hurler Jimmy Claxton, who pitched for the 1916 Oakland Oaks club, leading to his inclusion in the iconic 1916 Zeenut PCL set. Canadian born of African and Indian descent, the 23-year-old Claxton was a member of the Oakland Oaks roster for a short week in 1916, joining the squad on May 28th and officially breaking the professional baseball color barrier some 31 years before Jackie Robinson would join the Brooklyn Dodgers. Unfortunately for Claxton, a relentless slew of complaints and unrest from the fans, opposing players and even his own teammates ultimately resulted in his expedited release a week after joining the Oaks, with Claxton playing in only two games before his sudden departure. Incredible as it may seem, that one week he was with the team just happened to be when the Zeenut photographer was shooting pictures for his company's popular PCL baseball cards, thus resulting in the immortalized 1916 Zeenut PCL Jimmy Claxton subject.

Considered extremely rare and presented here in an SGC 1.5 holder, only nine other examples are listed on the SGC census report. Claxton would go on to pitch for many semi-professional and professional Negro League teams, including the Shasta Limited (where he struck out a Bush League record 19 batters in a single game), Chicago Union Stars, Pollock's Cuban Stars, and Washington Pilots. Most significantly, his representation on this truly classic 1916 Zeenut was a glimpse of things to come for an abundance of ultra-talented African-Americans who were deprived of participating in modern major league baseball until 1947. While the technical grade is due to several stray wrinkles, rounded upper corners, surface soiling/foxing on both sides and a significant horizontal crease situated across the lower region, the critical Claxton pitching image has eluded any glaring flaws. In closing, some three decades before Branch Rickey would rock the baseball world by signing Jackie Robinson, a 23-year-old African-American left-handed twirler named Jimmy Claxton was making history of his own via his momentous stature as an official member of the 1916 Zeenut Oakland Oaks!

MIN BID $2,000
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