The spectacular, baseball-shaped premium album entitled "Baseball Champions" was available only by mail, in exchange for coupons packaged with Goodwin Tobacco. The lithographed marvel's round shape and nearly three-dimensional look set this showpiece dramatically ahead of the conventionally designed, rectangular premium albums of the period. The "Round Album," as it has long been known to collectors, is simply one of the most popular of all 19th century baseball items, and it is by far the most desirable of all tobacco albums. To undertake examination of this superlative book is to journey into history, as an incredible, lifelike view of baseball's past is to be found among the volume's distinctive lithographs. Nine player pages, two covers (each in the design of a baseball), and an advertising page (with its captivating assortment of Dogs Head, Old Judge, Gypsy Queen, and other tobacco products) comprise the complete album. Four of the book's player pages feature single, beautiful full-color portraits of Hall of Famers Cap Anson, King Kelly, Charles Comiskey and John Ward, respectively. (Another five pages picture four players apiece, with these subjects shown in full-length poses. Mickey Welch, John Ward, Buck Ewing, Tim Keefe, Jim O'Rourke and Roger Connor are among the figures depicted on the four-subject pages.) The back of each page is printed in blue, and presents player records and team schedules. The outstanding graphics and color on all of these glorious pages have made them individually valuable as antique baseball artworks.

Offered here is a collection of nine pages from the "Round Album," including seven player pages (six different), one cover leaf and an ad page. (Only the single-portrait pages of Anson and Kelly, plus the multi-player page of Welch, Ward, Ewing and Keefe and one cover page are missing elements from a full book's content.) Among the seven player pages is a second copy of the Crane/Hatfield/Murphy/Slattery depiction. The majority of the pages concede heavy ink bleeding, a discrepancy brought about prior to the die-cutting process in production; this effect resembles vintage toning. With the exception of the Comiskey example, all of the pages' small, factory-punched binding holes are solid. Presentation quality of these items is generally EX to EX/MT (a couple slightly lesser). A very pleasing group of these impressive and colorful portrayals!

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