He was known as “Little Napoleon” during his 17 seasons as a player that began way back in 1891 and during his 36 seasons as a manager that ended back in 1932, but the memorabilia cards of Baseball Hall of Famer John McGraw found in 2015 Panini National Treasures are a big deal.
Why? They’re unprecedented in hobby history.
McGraw has never appeared on a memorabilia card with a jersey swatch, and he’s barely appeared on any memorabilia cards at all. His last (and only) appearances came back on a pair of Topps 206 Relics — both bat cards — made in 2002.
The legendary New York Giants manager was elected to the Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee in 1937 — he was among the second class that included Cy Young, Tris Speaker, Nap Lajoie and Connie Mack. His teams won 10 pennants and three World Series and his 2,763 victories still rank second in MLB history. How good were his teams? His Giants failed to post a .500 record just once in 26 seasons.
As a player, he hit .334 during 17 seasons twice leading the National League in runs and walks. His playing days ended in 1907 after nine seasons of player-manager duties with both the Orioles and Giants.
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