This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 10/31/2021
There exists a trio of key cards that are immediately identifiable when baseball card collecting comes to mind: the T206 Honus Wagner, the 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle and this, the 1933 Goudey Napoleon Lajoie. The reasons for each of these three card’s rarities differ – the Wagner was taken out of circulation because of his refusal to appear in the set; the Mantle was part of the late season high-number series that few kids purchased – but the Lajoie has the most intriguing backstory behind its scarcity.
The back of every 1933 Goudey card states, “This is one of a series of 240 Baseball Stars.” However, due to some Goudey company hijinks, only 239 cards were released in 1933. No matter how many packs kids bought, number 106 remained elusive. After receiving angry letters inquiring about the missing card, in 1934, Goudey belatedly produced card 106, but only distributed it to those who wrote letters to the company asking about the card. Those lucky ones received a form letter in the mail with the card attached with a paperclip. Surprisingly, the missing card was not of a current star or rookie phenom, but Napoleon Lajoie, a Deadball era star who had last suited up for a ballgame in 1916!
This example of this iconic card has been graded PSA VG+ 3.5. Borders and back have the slightly off-white coloration found in the last series of Goudey’s 1934 set. Centered about 45/55 side to side and 60/40 bottom to top. The card has excellent eye-appeal that visually pushes it past its given grade.