Re: April 2009 Pick-up Thread

[TheBig6]

Nice pickups on the CJ;s & Cubs PC
Todd, Nice T202's, I like that issue as well
One from my Grandfathers Childhood, Dad's Childhood and my Childhood

[Z-NUT]

[hrbaker]

[fisherboy7]

I'm trying to be patient, waiting for my newest pickup to arrive. Easily my biggest/best of the year, very excited! Stay tuned...

Well, the card arrived today, so I can spill the beans. I've wanted a nice N321 for quite a while! This one's a definitely a "lifer" for me.

[sabrjay]

Very nice. Do you know if this player went on to play in the majors? My guess would be no from what I know of the old California leagues.

Jay

[TheBig6]

Great Card Ben,

[Bicem]

gorgeous card Ben!

did you trade for it?

[fisherboy7]

gorgeous card Ben!

did you trade for it?

Thanks Jeff. It was a cash/card deal. Gave up a boatload for it, but I couldn't let the opportunity pass me by.

Jay - I'm not aware of Sweeney having any big league experience. Doubt it.

Thanks Jerry

[TheBig6]

[dstudeba]

Nice Ben, glad you got one so I don't have to compete with you on the next one that comes up.

I have no idea if he played outside of the California League, but then again I always figure no. Why would anyone go East when they are in California?

Oh I guess Weaver and Gandil left.

[sabrjay]

...and Crawford and Averil and O'Doul, etc. Most CA League PCL players stayed put or didn't stay in the majors long because the PCL paid as well or better than major league clubs. This is why O'Doul's career numbers suffer. He was offered more money to play in the PCL.

Jay

[TheBig6]

Not sure if this is the same Sweeney but click on this link and scroll down to page 58 on the book
http://books.google.com/books?id=WpSYVVMDd2cC&pg=PA58&lpg=PA58&dq=sweeney+baseball+stockton&source=bl&ots=BEdrmGjzib&sig=WK5bBbemOA8K1MJN0yPELwjPBI0&hl=en&ei=KsnfSZiNKanlnQf-jsCzCQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=10#PPA57,M1

[fisherboy7]

Nice find Jerry That book looks like a great read.

At first I didn't think it was the same Sweeney because the card shows him listed as a 1B, but the portrait shot (below) shows him with the same Stockton team as the N321, and the resemblance between the two is definitely there. I'm no baseball historian, but unless there were two Sweeneys playing for Stockton in the late 1880's, then it appears to be the same Sweeney as my N321. And if it is, he did have plenty of major league experience as a pitcher for the Providence Grays (even striking out 19 in 1884). Quite a background story too. Maybe one of our historians (Gil? Rhett?) could check in with an opinion.

.......

[sabrjay]

Mark Macrae would be the resident Cal League/PCL expert and probably knows if this is the same Sweeney.

Jay

[v117collector]

Very nice card and worth grading, thanks to Scott Brockelman!

[nolemmings]

Two new faves:

[rhettyeakley]

Ben,
The Sweeney in the N321 & N338-1 sets are both the same Charles J. Sweeney that won a total of 41 games during the 1884 season. Sweeney was originally from California, being born in San Francisco in 1863. He was a good pitcher but an even bigger bastard, apparently!

In 1884 he refused to be removed from a game as pitcher and play in the outfield, instead he left the field leaving his team a man down, this incdent ultimately is what caused him to be released from Providence (and allowing Radbourn the increased workload he needed to post his amazing 1884 stats, seriously 59 wins!!!).

Anyways in 1886 he was involved in a pretty severe fight with teammate Emmett Seery that prompted the Sporting Life to say about Sweeney one of my favorite quotes, they called him a "whiskey guzzling cowardly nincompoop."

After his career in the East ended he went back to California and continued to raise hell, all culminating in 1894 when he shot and killed a man in a bar named Con MacManus, he was convicted of homicide and spent the remainder of his life in prison. He died at a young age in 1902 (while in prison).

While there are some cooler poses in the N321 set, one would be hard pressed to find a more interesting "story" than a 40-game winner turned murderer.

Anyways, great card and I hope you enjoy the background a bit.

[TheBig6]

What a Character, Thanks for the bio, Rhett
Ben, this makes your new pick-up even more special. IMO

[fisherboy7]

Thank you Rhett for that terrific writeup. Always great to hear some background on the players we collect. Boy Sweeney was quite the rough character. I feel proud to add my very first "whiskey guzzling cowardly nincompoop" to my collection!

Now it's time to hunt down Sweeney's N338-1!

[Bicem]

Nice Worch's, easily my favorite 30's set.

[hrbaker]

For some reason those two Worchs are still on ebay in an ebay store. Maybe I can't clear my cache or something. I love them, great pick ups.

[nolemmings]

I won those two Worch's from seller's website, so maybe that has something to do with why they still are up on ebay--Marty hasn't taken them down yet. They are Minneapolis Millers players from a time when they were REALLY good. Below is another Miller I won tonight--this one I do not yet have. Raw and not quite as nice (though the scratch running through his thighs is from the seller's scanner), but plenty good enough for me. Leo hit .310 with 23 HR and 116 RBI in 1934--maybe the worst of the three I've acquired this month--Hargrave was .356-16-108 and Wright was .353-29-131.

[fisherboy7]

I won't go into the history of it, but this is kind of a bitter-sweet pickup for me. Still card that I'm glad to own once again (albeit in much lesser condition that my old one).

One of my all time favorite poses.

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