Babe Ruth 100th Anniversary Auction
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 7/12/2014
Handsome, college-educated, devout and talented, pitcher Christopher Mathewson, “Matty,” elicited respect, admiration, and full-stadium “huzzahs when he took the mound for the Giants between 1900 and 1916. Mathewson’s hurling was the tide that rose the Giants’ boat, leading the team to four World Series (1 championship) in an 8-year span.
Mathewson collected 373 victories, the most ever for a NL pitcher. He averaged more than 21 victories a season. His 37 victories in ’07 still stand as the high-water mark for NL pitchers. “Six Pack” led the NL in shutouts and ERA five times, each. Twice he won pitching’s Triple Crown, leading in wins, ERA and Ks. Beyond baseball, Mathewson was a playwright, children’s book author and crack checkers master. His untimely death from Tuberculosis in 1925 cut short the life of a baseball immortal. He was elected in the first class of the Hall of Fame.
At the end of the season in 1918, Mathewson enlisted in the US Army. Traveling to Europe, he served as captain in the Chemical Service, when he was exposed to toxic gases in France. As a result Mathewson became acutely susceptible to contracting tuberculosis. However, Mathewson was not to forego the culture and grandeur of France. He traveled to Metz during his hitch, collected this post card, inscribed and signed it, but never mailed it (perhaps to his wife who was opposed to his enlistment?).
On the reverse of the sepia-tinged photograph of the Karten-Verlag castle, Mathewson inscribed “When I tour Europe I surely want to spend some time in Metz. (Four hours gave me just a glimpse Nov. 24, 1918 Christy.” The signature and inscriptions on the unaddressed/unstamped postcard are bold and clear, written in black fountain pen. The signature is grade 7 - 8.
The item comes authenticated and encapsulated by PSA/DNA Multiple images available at goldinauctions.com.