#133 Fred Lindstrom

This #133 Fred Lindstrom is one of several recent pickups for my set. As will be shown in future posts, it is an example of the lower grade cards that I have been adding to the set in an attempt to be more budget conscious. This particular card came from an eBay auction, which I won for about $15, which I think is a bargain for a Hall of Famer. It was ungraded and I recently submitted it to SGC, which graded it as a 30 (Good).

Lindstrom was a third basemen and outfielder who played from 1924-1936, primarily for the New York Giants, but also for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago Cubs, and Brooklyn Dodgers. He made a name for himself in 1924 when, at age 18, he got into 52 games for the Giants and batted .333 in a losing effort to the Washington Senators in the World Series. His two best seasons were 1928 and 1930, when he batted .358/.383/.511 (132 OPS+) and .379/.425/.575 (141 OPS+), respectively. He finished second in the MVP voting in 1928.

Lindstrom is a very dubious Hall of Fame selection, gaining election in 1977 from the Veteran's Committee. He only had three excellent seasons (1928, 1930, and 1933). Of his thirteen seasons in the majors, he only played in 130 games or more in seven of those seasons and he was out of baseball at age 30. Lindstrom appears to be among the small subset of players that were elected based on a career batting average over .300. Lindstrom posted a very solid .311 career batting average, but didn't have plus power or plate discipline, resulting in a pedestrian (by Hall of Fame standards) career 110 OPS+. In all, Lindstrom was a solid player, a consistent hitter, but something short of a Hall of Famer. It's hard to justify Lindstrom's inclusion in the Hall of Fame when far more deserving contemporaries such as Babe Herman (who will be featured in a future post) are not enshrined.

#193 Lynford Lary

This card was also in the batch of PSA crossovers that I recently received back from SGC. The card was originally a PSA 6 and crossed over at the same grade to SGC 80. It's a nice example, with great centering and good corners. On the design side, it's not one of the better efforts in the set, with a yellow background that is a little blah for a guy with such a great name.

Lynford Lary, nicknamed "Broadway," played parts of 12 seasons as a shortstop with the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Washington Senators, St. Louis Browns (twice), Cleveland Indians, Brooklyn Dodgers, and St. Louis Cardinals. He is featured on this card as a member of the Yankees. As a hitter, he didn't have much pop (.372 career SLG), but he had a keen eye, posting a very solid career .369 OBP, thanks to 705 career walks against 470 strikeouts.

His best season came as a 25-year old in 1931, when he posted a .280/.376/.416 line (113 OPS+) with 10 home runs and 107 RBI as the Yankees' starting shortstop. Apparently, the Yankees weren't impressed and Lary lost his job the next season to 21-year old Frankie Crosetti, who would hold down the shortstop position full-time for the Yankees through the 1940 season. Oddly, it appears that Lary was the superior offensive player (91 career OPS+ to Crosetti's 84). Crosetti never had an offensive season as productive as Lary's 1931 campaign. Lary led the American League in stolen bases in 1936 with 37, during his first stint with the St. Louis Browns.

Lary was married to Mary Lawlor, an actor who starred on Broadway and in two feature films.

#99 Tony Cuccinello

I picked this card up from SGC today. It was part of the batch of PSA crossovers that I mentioned in a previous post. I bought it as a PSA 6 and it crossed over nicely to an SGC 80. This has to be one of the best-looking cards in the set. Most of the '33 Goudeys feature either a ballpark or solid color background. The Cuccinello card is striking because of its multi-hued background, as well as the enigmatic expression on Cuccinello's face. This card is one of my favorites.

Cuccinello, nicknamed "Cooch" (yikes) and "Chick," had a long major league career as a second and third baseman for the Cincinnati Reds, Brooklyn Dodgers, Boston Bees, New York Giants, Boston Braves, and Chicago White Sox. In 1933, he was a 25-year-old starting second basemen for the Dodgers. He made the first-ever All-Star team that year, and again in 1938, and he finished in the top 25 in the MVP voting four times. For his career, he got into 1704 games and finished with a .280/.343/.394 hitting line, posting a 104 OPS+, which is pretty decent for a middle infielder of that era. His best season came in 1932, when he hit .315/.374/.431 for the Reds.

His performance that year certainly made an impression on the Dodgers. Following the 1932 season, Brooklyn sent slugger Babe Herman, future Hall of Famer Ernie Lombardi, and Wally Gilbert to the Reds for Cuccinello, Joe Stripp, and Clyde Sukeforth. His brother Al Cuccinello played for the New York Giants in 1935.