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“Like all dogs, they probably worshipped their human companion and didn’t know or care whether he was an all-star or a bench warmer,” wrote the late baseball card historian Bob Lemke about the many pooch-owning baseball players. “The dogs waited at home each night for the big guy to come home, sensing whether he’d gone 4-for-4 and would be up for a game of fetch.”
Images of dogs have been collectors’ and investors’ best friends since the beginning of baseball cards. And they fit any budget.
Let’s start out with one of the most popular baseball cards in history. In 1887 Old Judge cigarettes issued a tobacco card of a small dog named Midget putting his precious paw on the knee of iourneyman infielder Art Whitney.
This delightful card is believed to have been a commentary on Midget’s loyalty to his master versus Whitney’s to his teams. During the course of his career, from 1880 to 1891, Whitney bounced between ten clubs in six cities, though he may have simply been released due to his good-field, no-hit reputation.
Whatever the case, Midget and his master are pure cardboard gold. In 2016, an extremely rare oversized cabinet card version sold for a tail-wagging $18,000 in an Robert Edward auction. Last, September, a standard, smaller copy sold in a Mile High auction for $1,372, almost five times its historic average in an “Authentic” grade.
Whitney and Midget bring prices that dwarf all but the biggest stars among the Hall of Famers in the set. Although there are probably fewer than 100 copies in existence, as with other common poses from the set, you’re not too late to jump into the market. Heritage has one of the best copies, in excellent condition, up for auction starting March 28th. The pre-sale estimate is more than $4,000.
A more affordable alternative, about $1200 in good condition, is in a Love of the Game auction ending on March 24. The first owner of this very handsome example was so happy that he wrote the date of his acquisition—12/21/87— on the back. “Speculating about what the writing might be, and from where it may have originated, only adds to its appeal!” declares the auction house.
As is almost always the case, Mickey Mantle leads the pack for post-war cards associated with dogs. In January, a Mantle card that was a premium for the defunct “Mascot” dog food sold for $23,600. Found at a Pennsylvania flea market, it is the only one known.
A more mainstream issue is the 1954 Red Heart dog food. Mantle is the most valuable of the 33-card set chock full of Hall of Famers. Copies in excellent condition sell for $300. In the same auction as Midget and Whitney, Heritage is offering a mint example. The pre-sale estimate is more than $4,000.
From what I can determine, it took baseball card makers 106 years to put another live dog on a card after Midget. In 1993 Milk Bones issued a 20-card set featuring Cal Ripken, Paul Molitor, and other Hall of Famers. These cost a few dollars apiece on eBay.
Lemke created his own montage of the most recent four-legged friends, so he deserves the last word to explain the image below.
“Clockwise from upper-left we have Larry Walker relaxing with what looks to be a loveable mongrel on his 1998 Upper Deck card. On the Gold Medallion parallel in 2000 Ultra, David Justice is posed with a big, lean doberman. On a 1996 Score card, Benito Santiago is making nice to the Reds’ team mascot, Marge Schott’s St. Bernard ‘Schottzie.’’ And Jason Giambi poses with what looks like an Australian shepherd on a 2002 Ultra.”
