Honus Wagner
Honus Wagner is one of the all-time greats of the game. He retired in 1917 and his records still endure almost a century later. He is seventh in career hits with 3,420 and had a lifetime batting average of .3276
Cracker Jack candy is over a century old. First introduced in 1896, it started featuring a prize in every box in 1912. In 1914 and 1915 the prize in the box was a baseball card. Today those Cracker Jack cards are wildly popular with collectors and not easy to find in top condition. Card #68 of the 1915 set, pictures an older, contemplative Wagner who is nearing the end of his career. The above example is graded 8.5 (near mint/mint +) by PSA and sold a few years ago for $24,000. That’s a far cry from the twenty-five cents that, along with one Cracker Jack coupon, would get you the entire set!
This particular card plays an important role in my novel, Chin Music. It leads to a connection between the General Manager of the NY Yankees, a retired memorabilia collector and a wondrous secret that will affect baseball fans across America.
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