How Low Will You Go?

Low-grade that is.  While performing my standard T206 searching the other day, I came across this matched pair in a single auction.



Despite their poor condition, they were two of the 50 or so cards remaining on my checklist.  Since the T206 checklist is alphabetical, there is a strong tendency to add the Abbataccios, Benders and Collins in lieu of the Whites, Willetts and Youngs when set collecting.  Given that I am often forced to buy cards one at a time at this juncture, the ability to purchase two cards at once, cut down shipping costs and win them for the opening bid is always a good deal, especially for a pair of American League pitchers.

Doc White has two cards in the set, a portrait and the above pitching card.  As a pitcher, Doc had a very good career, winning 189 games in his career, leading the league in ERA once and being the second starter for the 1906 Hitless Wonders.  As to being called Doc, White's offseason career was as a dentist, as baseball, despite its fame, was not a full-year round profession for most ballplayers, due to the salaries of the time. 

As to Ed Willett, he too, has two cards in the set, one with his correct last name, Willett and one with the last name of Willetts, which is the one above, not that you can tell from that particular card.  Willett was not quite the pitcher that White was, though Willett did win 102 games at the major league level.  His primary team was the Detroit Tigers, where he was no George Mullin, but make a cameo in the 1909 World Series and was an average pitcher for a number of years.  Not the kind of player you would expect to have two baseball cards in the same set, but he is far from the worst player with multiple T206 cards.