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Programs, Books, Periodicals
9 Lots
 Lot 259. 1915 University of Michigan Baseball Program with George Sisler in the Lineup. Sisler was a phenomenal college pitcher and batter whose hitting and athletic skills enabled him to achieve great success in the majors as well. Branch Rickey discovered Sisler; he was Michigan’s coach when Sisler enrolled at Ann Arbor. Rickey tried to keep Sisler with his freshman classmates, but when given an opportunity, Sisler outperformed the upperclassmen. The 16-page unscored newsprint program lists Sisler as the center fielder or pitcher. By 1915, Rickey was with the Browns. Later in the season, Sisler joined his former coach in St. Louis, hit .285 and then went on to a Hall of Fame career as a first baseman, twice batting above .400 and compiling a .340 lifetime average. The program is for a game against Kalamazoo Normal, now Western Michigan University. Vertical fold, minor edge tear, ex appearance.
Winning Bid $92.
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 Lot 260. Rare 1880 Book - The Fairport Nine, One of the First Baseball Novels. Noah Brooks wrote this 188-page book. He is best known for Washington in Lincoln’s Time, his important biography of the Civil War President. In The Fairport Nine, Brooks draws upon his experiences while growing up in the 1840s in Maine. Besides being one of the first baseball novels, the book is also perhaps the first to have a black player as a central figure. Sam Black, Fairport’s left fielder, is the best friend of Billy Hetherington, the main character. Two chapters of the book provide detailed descriptions of games. Interestingly, one game continues in the ninth inning even through the home team has already won. The book is an 1880 first edition from Charles Scribner’s Sons. Three rubbers stamp impressions inside indicate that the book belonged to a school. The covers are green boards with gold and black impression. On the cover, a gold pitcher in the center of a diamond prepares to throw underhanded. Overhand pitching was still evolving. Underhand and sidearm pitching were common. There is a gold batter on the spine. The book is a collectible vg, rare and desirable.
Winning Bid $300.
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 Lot 261. 1922 First Edition of "The Baseball Cyclopedia" by Ernest J. Flanigan + Updates. Copyrighted by “The Baseball Magazine Company,” this 208-page softbound book provides a “Compact but Comprehensive Review of the History of the National Game.” Along with baseball history, it contains “a carefully arranged alphabetical list of the records of more than 3500 Major League ball players, a feature never before attempted in print.” Very nice ex copy with the owner’s name stamped on the cover and the title page. Accompanying this first edition are five supplements or annual updates - the second, third and fifth through seventh for 1923, 1924 and 1925-28. Excellent historical and reference material.
Winning Bid $125.
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 Lot 262. 1937 Yearbook with the Earliest Known Photo of Jackie Robinson as a Shortstop. Robinson is 18 in this individual photo on page 70 of the yearbook. Subsequently, he played college, semi-pro and Negro League baseball at shortstop. Robinson’s older brother, Mack, is also pictured as co-captain of the track team. Mack had already achieved a degree of fame by capturing the silver medal in the 1936 Olympics in the 200-meter dash. As is often the case with these publications, there are student autographs and notes throughout (none from Jackie or Mack). Spiral-bound and ex.
Minimum Bid $200.
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 Lot 263. Signed Copy of a Scarce Book: The Professional Mascot Handbook. Written by Karen Ahearn and Art Ballant, this paperback provides 224 pages of photos and text on baseball and football mascots such as the Phillie Phanatic, the San Diego Chicken and the defunct Steeler Stinger. Rocky Bleier wrote the foreword. Apparently self-published in 1982, the book is difficult to find. Vg cover, ex contents. Ballant’s personalized signature on the front end-page is a 10. Authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Minimum Bid $50.
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 Lot 265. Sports Illustrated Issue #1 with the 1954 Topps Card Insert. Dated Aug. 16, 1954, the inaugural issue of SI shows Milwaukee slugger Eddie Mathews on the cover. Inside, besides broad coverage of the sports world, the periodical features 27 Topps cards, printed front and back on magazine stock. Accompanying the three-page insert is an article on the battle between Topps and Bowman over the right to package and sell gum and baseball cards. Among the players are Mays, Kluszewski, Mathews, Snider, Jackie Robinson, Ashburn, Hodges, Doby and Ted Williams. The insert has a staple hole in the borders of the Mays and Rosen cards and creases on the Jablonski, Snider, Mathews. It displays nicely. The magazine is vg-ex without a mailing label.
Winning Bid $140.
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 Lot 266. Scarce Sports Illustrated Second Issue with the Yankees "Card" Insert. Dated Aug. 23, 1954, this second issue, with golf as its cover theme, is tougher to find than the first. This issue is ex+ with a desirable cover without a label. A small “R” is written on it, probably as a news stand notation. The inside pages exhibit some foxing along the edges. The very collectible 1954 Topps Yankees insert, which includes Mickey Mantle, has staple holes in the Robinson and Silvera cards and creases on the Coleman, Reynolds, Woodling, Grim and Kuzava cards. The nine cards in the bottom row lack a bottom border. The Mantle “card” has a very light crease visible on the back.
Winning Bid $148.
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