Card Show: 1949 Bowman

Last weekend there was a small card show (about 15 tables) just a few miles from my house. Since such things are rare around here I had to go. I was disappointed at the small size but I found a lot of stuff I wanted from just 2 of the dealers. I'll have a series of posts on this show.

The one guy had a few boxes of 1950s and 1960s cards. Tucked in there were some 1948-1950 Bowman cards. Here are the three Phillies I got from the 1949 set.

1949 Bowman #14 Curt Simmons

I paid $4.00 for this Curt Simmons. 1948 was his first full year of play, he'd been a late September call-up in 1947. Simmons played the first 13 of his 21-year career with the Phillies, with a 115-110 record. He did not play for the Phillies in the 1950 World Series because he got drafted into the Army in early September for the Korean War.  The card isn't in great shape with a crease across the middle and pretty soft corners. 

1949 Bowman #108 Ken Heintzelman

The Phillies purchased Heintzelman from the Pirates in 1947. He'd been with the Pirates for 7 years. He pitched for the Phillies until he retired in 1952. He did start a game in the 1950 World Series where he pitched well (7.2 IP, ERA 1.17). The Phillies lost but he didn't get the decision. This card was $3.00.

I like the promo on the back. An "official baseball ring" made of "durable metal". Only 15 cents and 3 wrappers.

1949 Bowman #123 Johnny Blatnik

Blatnik (his name is misspelled on the card front) was acquired from the Indians in the 1947 Rule 5 draft. He was a regular player in 1948, hitting .260 with 6 home runs, playing 121 games in left field. But he only appeared in 21 games in the next two seasons. He was traded to the Cardinals in April 1950 and was released at the end of the season.  This card was also $3.00.

I like how re-markedly different each of these cards are. The Simmons card is on white card stock, while the other two are on gray. The Heintzelman is in pretty good shape, the corners are good, no creases and pretty centered. The Blatnik card has his name on the front. Bowman only put names on the later cards in the set. His name is also in script on the back (spelled correctly). According to Beckett, some cards have two versions, the name in block letters or in script. There is no special notation for the Blatnik card so I supposed it was issued only as script. Beckett calls it "script" although I suppose it could be a facsimile signature.