There isn't a baseball fan alive who wouldn’t love to own one of the cards featured in our eBay listings this week. We have a W514 Joe Jackson card, graded SGC 80, dating from the era when the legend of this great ballplayer was born, partly because of his talent and partly because of the Black Sox scandal of 1919—a story that dominated the sports headlines at the very time that this card was being distributed. Better yet, the one we have available is one of the best you’re likely to encounter. W514 is generally considered the most popular of all strip card sets issued over the first three decades of the 1900s. There are several reasons for this including the fact that it’s bigger than the others, the drawings seem more realistic than on other strip card sets and it’s one of few sets to depict players from the Black Sox during the time the 1919 World Series scandal was a huge news story. In fact, seven of the ‘Eight Men Out’ appear in this important set of 120 cards. The cards measure 1-3/8” x 2-1/2” and were issued between 1919 and 1921. They were originally passed out in strips of ten players to those who bought candy but, of course, most kids cut them up into individual player cards. The numbered cards have white borders with blank backs. The W514 is Shoeless Joe’s only strip card and one of only a handful that were actually issued during the prime of his playing days. Our copy is truly stunning with outstanding color and focus and excellent centering. W514 Jackson cards have proven to attract strong interest when they come up for sale or bid. Action on this one has been very strong and we’re pretty sure whoever buys it will be as excited as we are to sell it.
