Citing Roy Campanella’s three NL MVP awards (1951, 1953 & 1955), some may argue that the backstop from Philadelphia was a more natural baseballer than his color-barrier-breaking teammate, Jackie Robinson. The argument is moot. Campanella was his own force to be reckoned with. A lifetime .273 hitter, who plated more than 100 RBI in each of his MVP seasons, and averaged more than 24 HR per season, Campanella groomed the young pitchers that made the Dodgers perennial winners: Don Newcombe, Carl Erskine, Johnny Podres, Roger Craig, Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale.

Permanently disabled in a car accident in January 1958, Campanella lost an extended career, but his decade behind the plate earned him Hall of Fame honors in 1969. Campanella signed and inscribed this postcard in bold blue ink, “Best Wishes Sincerely Roy Campanella”. On the reverse, a round postal stamp “Jamaica, N.Y. JUN 10, 1949 7 –PM” is written over by the recipient’s name and address “Edward Peeler 2904 Lincoln Ave. N. Little Rock, Ark” in blue ink. The upper right corner has a blue “U.S. POSTAL CARD ONE CENT” stamp with an image of Thomas Jefferson. Also in the center of this side is a printed “THIS SIDE OF CARD IS FOR ADDRESS” line. The 3 ¼ x 5 ½ inch postcard is toned with age, but has been encapsulated by PSA/DNA (83941650) and Campanella’s signature has been graded NM-MT 8.

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