1909 T204 Ramly Walter Johnson PSA VG-EX 4.5 (The Only One)

Considered in the ranks of Cobb, Wagner, and Jackson is the Washington Senators' mound master Walter Johnson. So accomplished was his career that he was one of the first five players to be inducted into Baseball's Hall of Fame in 1936. A Connecticut arms laboratory recorded Walter Johnson's fastball at 134 feet per second. That is equal to ninety-nine miles per hour, a speed the lanky farmboy was somehow able to generate with a smooth side armed motion that baffled and certainly terrified opposing batters. In the blink of an eye... it was over. This card is Widely considered to be Johnson's rookie, as no other cards dedicated to him conclusively predate this issue, this card is likewise the most valuable entry in the T204 set. The Ramly series is far more scarce in general than any of the other major tobacco sets issued during the period, and Johnson remains one of its most elusive residents. this is the only 4.5 VG-EX, graded by PSA and when looking at this example it seems to be a very conservative grade and one finds only light corner blunting and is a beautiful clean well centered example. With no shortage of aesthetic appeal, this solid example of this classic card deserves high ranking in any vintage collection and has the look of a much higher graded card.

 The story behind this Walter Johnson card. I received a call from one of my local consignors who was a collecter of  autographs rare books and early newspapers. He said he found an old card in a set of books about NY Governors, that he originally thought looked like a civil war soldier. When he looked at the name he realized that it was a baseball player and wanted me to come take a look. When I went to his house, there sitting on his desk was the card. I was amazed of the condition of the card after all of these years. The set of books the card was found in happens to be the Governors of New York a set printed in 1909! Both the consignor and I believe that the card was put in one of the books in 1909 and was used as a place holder. Imagine, that the person reading one of the books was using some tobacco and took the card right out of the pack and put into the book that day where it sat 105 years until just a little more than a month ago!

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