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Just Collect, Inc. is proud to have recently purchased a nearly complete 1895 Mayo’s Cut Plug (N300) set featuring 46 of the 48 “Black Beauties,” including all 40 players and missing only 2 of the 8 variations to be complete. In 1895 (although some contend the set was issued over a span from 1894-1895), the Mayo Tobacco Works of Richmond, Virginia, issued a 48-card set as a premium with their Mayo’s Cut Plug Tobacco products.  The cards measured approximately 1 5/8" by 2 7/8" and feature 40 different players.  The set actually consists of 40 different players with 8 players issued with two variations bringing the complete set total to 48 cards.  28 of the players are featured in their playing uniform and twelve appear donning street clothes.

The obverse features black-and-white (or sepia) images of the players have a solid black, blank reverse and no numbers, so they are typically cataloged in alphabetical order.  Cap Anson, one of many Hall of Famers in included in the set, is generally regarded as the most valuable card in the set followed closely by fellow Hall of Fame member “Big Ed” Delahanty (his name is misspelled “Delehanty” on his entry in this issue). Some of the highlights included Hall of Famers:  Cap Anson, Dan Brouthers, John Clarkson, Ed Delahanty, Hugh Duffy, Buck Ewing, Billy Hamilton, Tommy McCarthy, Kid Nichols, Wilbert Robinson, Amos Russie and John Ward.  Additionally, variations included Dan Brouthers (Louisville), Buck Ewing (Cleveland and Cincinnati), Jack Glasscock (Pittsburgh and Louisville), George Haddock (Blank Shirt and Philadelphia), Tom Kinslow (Pittsburgh), Fref Pfeffer (2^nd Base and Retired), Amos Rusie (Name Spelled Rusie and Name Spelled Russie) and John Ward (2^nd Base and Retired).

Two of the keys of the set, Cap Anson and the Amos Rusie error highlighted players that had incredible careers.

Adrian Anson, nicknamed "Cap" (for "Captain"), was a Major League Baseball first baseman. Including his time in the National Association, he played 27 seasons and was regarded as one of the greatest players of his era and one of the first superstars of the game. Anson spent most of his career with the Chicago Cubs franchise (then known as the "White Stockings" and later the "Colts"), serving as the club's manager, first baseman and, later in his tenure, minority owner. He led the team to five National League pennants in the 1880s. Anson was one of baseball's first great hitters, and the first to tally over 3,000 career hits. Anson passed away in 1922 and was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1939. Amos Rusie, nicknamed "The Hoosier Thunderbolt", was a right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball during the late 19th century. He had a 10-season career in the National League, which consisted of one season with the Indianapolis Hoosiers in 1889, eight with the New York Giants from 1890 to 1898, and one with the Cincinnati Reds in 1901. He is best known for the speed at which he pitched a baseball. The velocity of his fastball was unknown, but it has been estimated that he threw it in the upper 90s. He led the league in strikeouts five times, and won 20 or more games eight times. Though he did throw hard, he did not have good control of his pitches, leading the league in walks five times in that category. In 1890 he walked 289, the all-time single-season record. In 1897 one of his fastballs struck future Hall of Famer Hughie Jennings in the head, rendering him comatose for four days before recovery. Rusie's wildness had been a catalyst for officials to change the distance from the pitching rubber to home plate from 50 feet to the current 60 feet, 6 inches. This ruling was made effective for the 1893 season, at the peak of Amos Rusie’s pitching prowess. The distance change did not reduce Rusie's effectiveness, as he led the league in strikeouts for three straight seasons afterward, while also winning what later would be known as the pitching triple crown in 1894. For his accomplishments, he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1977 by the Veterans Committee. The history of the remaining players in the set are just as colorful and just as amazing and well worth the time spent researching them. Also included in this collection were three companion pieces, consisting of a large Mayo's Cut Plug tin, a smaller Constellation Cut Plug tin, issued by Mayo's, and a Mayo's Cut Plug tobacco pouch.