Tuesday, September 15, 2020

Two more New York Giants: Ott and Fitzsimmons

I've posted a couple of times now about the movie Big Leaguer.  While it's not that great a movie and I don't want to make too much of it, I did order a handful of cards related to the movie and I've been posting them as they come in.  So today we have two more, Mel Ott and Fred "Fitz" Fitzsimmons.  There's a scene in the movie where they're telling the guy running the Giants spring camp to get more results, and he says that not everyone is going to be an Ott, Hubbell, or Fitzsimmons.  Hubbell was not only mentioned but was in the movie, and I posted some of his cards the other day.

Cramer Baseball Legends Mel Ott.
Mel Ott card back.
For Hubbell and Hans Lobert, I got 1940 Play Ball cards of them to go in the binder. Fitzsimmons, too, as you can see below. I looked at a 1940 Play Ball of Ott but decided I had spent enough money already. I have a few Ott cards already (1985 Topps Circle K, 1986 Sportflics Decade Greats, Pacific Legends, and Swell Baseball Greats), but I wanted one that was closer in its look to the 1940 Play Ball, while also being cheap. So here we have it, this Cramer Baseball Legends card, which is my fifth from that set.
1940 Play Ball "Fitz" Fitzsimmons.
Fitzsimmons card back.
I hadn't heard of Fitzsimmons before and had to look him up. He's actually here in the Play Ball set as a Brooklyn Dodger; he was with the Giants from 1925-1937, and then was with Brooklyn from 1937-1943. He had a solid career, with a 217-146 record with a 3.51 ERA. He actually went on the manage the Phillies for a couple of years, and was a longtime coach after that.

There's just one more card I have coming related to the movie, and that's a 1939 Milky Way card of Edward G. Robinson, which I've mentioned a couple of times.  I'll post that when it arrives with my COMC order, hopefully next month.  Thanks for reading!

2 comments:

  1. For a meh movie, you sure have been talking about it a lot :)

    Fred had a very solid career, it's just too bad that almost no one knows seems to know about it, or even him for that matter.

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    1. I know, I think it's been an excuse to get a few of the 1940 Play Ball cards. I looked over the checklist and they're either very expensive, or of players I haven't heard of. But once I've heard of one of the players, that becomes a reason to get one of the cards. I ordered a 1939 Play Ball the other day for a few bucks, which I'll post when I get it. It's of a guy I hadn't previously heard of that the commentators mentioned during the Pirates game the other day.

      I agree about Fitzsimmons, too; it's too bad I didn't know about him.

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