First HOF Induction Ceremony

Many know that the first class of Hall of Famers was in 1936. But many do not know that the building was not ready for use until 1939. The Hall in Cooperstown, NY has now been open for 70 plus years. The first class of 1936 consisted of 5 inductees, Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Honus Wagner, Christy Mathewson and Walter Johnson. 11 players were inducted at the first ceremony in 1939. A total of 4 classes.

If you have iTunes I recommend doing a search for "MLB Vault". You can listen to the first induction ceremony. It is a valuable piece of baseball history.

Sam Leever Should be in the Hall.

I have always thought Sam didn't get a fair shake. He has by far out performed many pitchers in the hall. Sometimes it just helps to be a Yankee or a Red Sox player. Take a look at this excellent article.

http://www.piratesprospects.com/2011/05/sam-leever.html

Complete 1910 Tip Top Bread Set Found

Going up for auction is a very nice set of Tip Top Bread cards. Check it out.

http://www.artfact.com/auction-lot/1910-d322-tip-top-bread-pittsburgh-pirates-comp-1-c-04f418254b

Easy Ebay Search

eBay had all kinds of great items. Just go to eBay and search for 1909 Pirates and see all the neat things that come up. My favorite right now is the Opening day pin from Forbes Field.

That is not the only place that you might find 1909 Pirates memorabilia. There are many auctions out there. Check out some of these also:

http://www.huntauctions.com/

http://www.hugginsandscott.com/

http://auction.steinersports.com/

http://www.goodwinandco.com/

http://www.baseball-cards.com/

There are literally thousands out there. Old Cardboard Magazine has a great website with many of the prominent auctions listed.

"Dots" Miller

Shown is P2 pin of Dots Miller. Issued from 1910-1912 by the American Tobacco Company. If the pin is completely intact it will have a cardboard back with advertisement.

"Dot's" birth name was John Barney Miller. It has been said the when someone was looking for him they asked Honus Wagner where he was. Honus pointed in his direction and said in his heavy accent "Dots (thats) Miller".  Other have said this name was his from his childhood.  

Honus Wagner's Number Retired

Did you know that Honus didn't have a number when he was a player? He only had one later as a coach. The number "33".

The Winning Season

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0379029/

The Winning Season is a great movie for the family. It takes you back to a simpler day. When baseball was played for the love of playing. It takes you on a journey with a young man that discovers a T206 Honus Wagner baseball card. A must see for fans of this era and of baseball.

The movie is based on the Book "Honus and Me" by Dan Gutman.