1954 Topps, Bobby Shantz

#21 Bobby Shantz

I got this card signed in November through the mail. It just took me a little while to actually get the scan of it. I wrote to Bobby a few months before when I sent him a modern card. He sent it back real quick, so I decided to pick up a older card of him on ebay. This is the card that I ended up with, for about $4. I was trying to get a 1950 Bowman, but I didn't want to pay what they were going for. I found one that was in great shape on the front, but most of the back was missing because it was glued to a book. I thought that that might have been the way to go, since I only wanted it for the front anyway. But I quit watching after it got to around $7. I am more than happy with this card.

In Bobby's fourth season in the Major Leagues, he won 24 games, posted an 2.48 ERA, and had 152 strikeouts. Since the Cy Young Award hadn't been invented yet, he was named the 1952 AL MVP. He would never win more than 11 games in a season after that or strike out over 100. He must have had some arm problems because in '53, he only had 16 starts. In '54, he only had 2 appearances. After that, he was mostly used as a reliever. He went on to pitch through the 1964 season.

The original card that I sent him did not have the "1952 AL MVP" inscription on it. I asked him to put it on here and he obliged. I now have the signature of the '52 and '53 AL MVP on a card. I also have a card signed by an Athletic from Philadelphia, Kansas City, and Oakland.