For all intents and purposes, the 1910 season signaled Walter Johnson's arrival on the Major League scene. The 6-foot-1 hurler had debuted for the Washington Senators in 1907 and so far had posted three campaigns of meager-to-hapless records: 5-9, 14-14 and 13-25. But in 1910, something changed and Johnson turned it all around. "The Big Train" notched an impressive 25-17 mark with 370 innings pitched, 313 strikeouts, 38 complete games, 8 shutouts and an infinitesimal 1.36 ERA. What's more, his leadership bounced back the Senators from one of the worst seasons in baseball history (1909's anemic 42-110) to a moderately respectable 66 wins against 85 losses. And Johnson never looked back. That breakout performance kicked off a string of nine more 20-plus-win showings (including a career-high 36 in 1913) as well as two MVP awards and a trio of pitching Triple Crowns.
In this mammoth panoramic photograph, the Senators' budding superstar is literally the last man standing. He is positioned at the extreme right of the 44-man lineup, just within the camera's frame and grinning broadly—no doubt due to his newfound success. There appears to be a hierarchy in place—with Boston standouts Tris Speaker and Harry Hooper occupying central positions—and alas Johnson, the future charter member of the Baseball Hall of Fame, had not yet cracked into that elite upper echelon ... though he was well on his way.
Accompanying him are fellow Senators Germany Schaefer, Gabby Street, Doc Gessler, Red Killefer, Bob Unglaub, Clyde Milan, Jack Lelivelt, George McBride, Jack Hardy, Wid Conroy, Bob Groom, Dixie Walker, Dolly Gray and Frank Oberlin. The Beantowners include Speaker, Hooper, Eddie Cicotte, Smoky Joe Wood, Charlie French, Amby McConnell, Louis Leroy, Bill Carrigan, Pat Donahue, Patsy Donovan, Charlie Smith, Jake Stahl, Heinie Wagner, Ed Karger, Charley Hall and Harry Lord.
This sepia panorama, measuring five-and-a-half feet in width, is easily among the largest of its kind in the entire hobby. In no way do these Dead Ball Era players appear as specks, as may sometimes be the case with panoramic photos. Each crisply focused, fully identifiable figure stands between four and five inches tall. The image is the product of the Boston-based photography studio Falk Photo, whose copyright is imprinted twice along the lower edge. Residing at bottom center is the text, "BOSTON-WASHINGTON / AMERICAN LEAGUE GROUNDS / AT BOSTON." To be precise, the panorama measures 10" x 65-1/2", and it is framed in black to an overall 11" x 69" (as tall as human height when the display piece is tilted on one end). Apparent condition is approximately Excellent, with the usual minor afflictions that are present on paper collectibles of lengthy dimensions, namely unobtrusive vertical creases and professionally repaired edge tears. Such age-commensurate wear hardly impinges upon the spectacular presentation of this historic image—a seminal, monumental depiction of the fireballing Big Train.
ADDITIONAL SHIPPING WILL BE ADDED DUE TO SIZE OF THIS PIECE