One of the first authentic t206 cards I ever purchased was a Piedmont back portrait post of Hall of Famer Nap Lajoie. This was in 2009, I think. The card was in a PSA case and then I cracked it and had it merely authenticated (my request) by Beckett Grading Services, Vintage. It sat in my display case for years but I always wanted to upgrade it. And so I did.
Presenting a better looking, tougher back, different pose and old-school BVG with subs: a Polar Bear back Lajoie with bat!
I’ve been on a binge lately with 2009 Topps 206. The reason I love these cards so much is because they remind me of the real deal for 100 years ago.
Fortunately, I own two copies of the original cards, two of the biggest stars of the period, Christy Mathewson and Nap LaJoie. I received these cards back from Beckett Grading on Tuesday and they are even nicer than they were two weeks ago when I cracked them from their less-superior PSA and SGC cases. The Mathewson is a Sweet Caporal back while the LaJoie features the more common Piedmont back, a design Topps used for the common backs for its 2009 minis. I do have a question for Topps though: Is the company looking to produce this set again in 2010? The original T-206s were distributed in 1909 AND 1911.
During my seven week hiatus I acquired only two cards, and both of them are almost 100 years old. The first I’ll discuss is this 1909-11 T206 Piedmont Nap Lajoie. Widely considered one of the greatest players of all time, Lajoie played nearly 2,500 career games over 21 years, carried a career average of .338 and collected more than 3,200 hits. He also drove in 1,599 runs while slugging only 84 total homers.
I caught this card on eBay about six weeks ago while reading the first half of “Cobb.” It didn’t cost me much to add this to my collection, a mere $60 (the price of a Billy Butler Bowman Chrome auto rookie) was all it took to add this century-old classic to by display case. And while the condition leaves much to be desired, the mere presence of this card adds a new dimension to my collection, and has made me rethink my focus again. Continue reading
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