Written By: Kyra Trumbull
As the leaves were just beginning to change color back in October 2025, a woman named Kelley reached out to us using our
Our card appraisal specialist, Dan, saw Kelley’s submission and knew there was a chance that the cards could be legitimate. He reached out, knowing there was also a possibility that they were just reprints. Kelley soon texted us a few group photos of the cards.
The images proved it almost immediately: they were real.
The cards originated with the Leaf Gum Company in Chicago, and the 1948 set was particularly significant as it marked the first major color release after World War II. Despite having a 1948 copyright date, they were actually circulated the following year.
The set contains just 98 cards, although the checklist spans from 1 to 168. To make things even more difficult for collectors, nearly half the set was short-printed. Approximately one out of every five cards featured a Hall of Famer.
The collection we acquired contains some of the biggest names in the set, including Ted Williams, Honus Wagner, and Lucius Appling.
Starred in the photo below is Ted “The Kid” Williams in the midst of his legendary swing. Backgrounded by a brilliant red that pops against his blue uniform and yellow bat, this gorgeous card is a key post-war issue in “The Splendid Splinter’s” career. This card is notoriously difficult to find despite highlighting one of the greatest hitters of all time, and is arguably the most aesthetically pleasing of all the Ted Williams cards out there.
On the right of this photo appears one of Lucius “Luke” Appling’s most important late-career cards. The Chicago White Sox Hall of Fame shortstop is printed in striking portrait against a vibrant yellow. Nicknamed “Old Aches and Pains” for his constant complaints about minor ailments, Appling was the first shortstop to win a batting title at .388 in the American League and was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1964.
The Honus “John” Wagner card on the left is unlike any other card produced during his playing career. Wagner was 74 years old at the time and had retired from playing more than thirty years earlier. Instead, the card depicts Wagner as a coach for the Pirates, making it the only coach card in the set.
Another memorable detail is the visually distinct image of Wagner appearing to chew a wad of tobacco, despite the longstanding urban legend that he objected to being photographed with tobacco products.
Perhaps the most unusual feature, however, is the name “John” printed on the card instead of “Honus.” This may have been Leaf’s attempt to distinguish the set from other Wagner cards and representations of the legendary Hall of Famer.
Photos of the collection:
Dan gave Kelley and her husband a free evaluation and made an offer over the phone. (If you’re interested in selling your collection, reach out anytime for our free appraisals!) They told Dan they would need a day to think it over. The following day, Kelley contacted him to say they were unsure about selling the cards at that time and wanted to reach out to a few other companies.
Dan completely understood and thanked them for giving us the first opportunity to make an offer.
Fast-forward to July 2026, when Kelley contacted Dan again seemingly out of the blue. She wanted to know if the original offer was still on the table.
Kelley and her husband had been away for the Holidays and spent the intervening months shopping around the collection. We assumed the other companies had not been able to match our offer, but there was one problem. Enough time had passed that Dan needed to reevaluate the cards. The market had fluctuated and he wanted to make sure the offer accurately reflected this current value.
After making adjustments to a few cards, Kelley and her husband accepted the offer.
The collection qualified for our FedEx Express shipping program, so Dan emailed her a prepaid label to ship the cards to us straight from Texas. Once the collection arrived, we finalized the condition of each card. The very next day, we sent Kelley a company check.
She was incredibly grateful that, nearly a year after she first contacted us, we were still interested in acquiring her father’s collection.
Written By: Kyra Trumbull
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