First HOF Induction Class - Which Glove Do You Choose?

[vintagebrett]

We all know the first Hall of Fame class included Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Christy Mathewson, Honus Wagner and Walter Johnson. All are fantastic players with different characteristics that make their legend appealing. Some of these players gloves are easy to come by and some are much more difficult. My question to you, if you were given the choice of picking one glove for any of these 5 players, which one would you pick and why?

Here's my decision (counting down from the one I pick last to the one I would pick first, with rationale for each)

5) Walter Johnson - His gloves are pretty common, and although there are some unique styles, I'm not really drawn to any of them. Plus, his name doesn't have the mystique that the others do.

4) Babe Ruth - Of course there is the Ruth mystique and I would like to have one of his gloves in my collection but my reasoning for not picking this one is similar to my Walter Johnson rationale - pretty common and not all that unique. If I was going to own one, I would like it to be the G41.

3) Christy Mathewson - He ranks up here simply because of the scarcity of his gloves. Once again, I like the early Goldsmith models and he was an endorser for them. I would opt for the full web version if I could choose.

3) Honus Wagner - I really like the Goldsmith models that he endorsed and it would be tough to pass up. In all that I've read about Wagner, he seems like a very interesting character who loved to talk baseball. The mystique of the T206 adds a little intrigue to owning one of his model gloves as well. I also really like his script signature.

1) Ty Cobb - I love the Stall and Dean model gloves that he endorsed - the color, the tag placement, the tag itself, the shape of the glove, the large endorsement signature - this is the one I would choose hands down if I had my choice.

[vintagebrett]

And for those of you who already have all of them you can pick which one you'd keep and why.

[Rickybulldog]

Nice topic Brett.

I'd go:

1. Ty Cobb : Love the Stall & Dean full web and the patch. The small button is a nice touch as well.

2. Ruth: As you said it's gotta be the G41 one though. Love the white glove and long D & M patch.

3. Matthewson: I have a soft spot for pitcher's and a hofer endorsed full web is a plus.

4. Johnson: like I said before about pitchers. The D&m has a nice long patch as well.

5. Wagner: Although on my list you could flip flop 4 and 5. Wagner gloves are nice, but I just prefer the top 3 rather than him.


Just my 2 cents.

[vintagebrett]

Your rationale made me think about positions - having played infield positions most of my career, maybe subconciously that i why I put Wagner and Cobb at the top of the list.

Come on the rest of you vintage guys - we want to hear from you!

[ebbets55]

That's too tough of a question Brett. For me, it all depends on which way you look at it - in a glove collecting sense or a personal preference for the glove model sense.

Raritywise:

Cobb/Matty
Wagner
Johnson
Ruth

Personal Preference of the Model Itself:

Ruth D&M G41 is the nicest model. The leather is so nice and so is the quality. It has the best look with the white leather. I have to say that no other endorsed glove gives you that feeling of mystique as does a Ruth glove. Ruth is the king of kings for me in glove collecting in any brand. A mile in front of Cobb.

The Goldsmith or Higgins Wagner is the second best in terms of the model or quality. They are absolutely huge and super high quality. The Higgins 1" web is as big as they come.

Matty Goldsmith full web. They just look old. I like the look and the fact that it was one of the earlier endorsements.

Cobb Stall & Dean. Same as the Matty but I prefer the Matty in terms of the model. I'm not as huge a Stall & Dean guy as most people.

Johnson. There are a lot of different brands and different levels of quality. The high end Goldsmith and D&M models are very nice.

As for my favorite players of the group in order: Ruth, Matty, Johnson, Wagner, Cobb. That's my two cents worth.

JD

[fuzzydogg22]

im with J.D. as well. you just cannot beat the feeling of a beautiful G41 ruth.... I would take a minty one over any of the other orig. HOF endorsers

[Centerfield]

Fantastic question! I’ve owned multiple examples of each of the players in question and the only one I have left is Ruth. That should answer it! Ruth is Ruth and there’s no other player that comes close as far as mystique. Also, being a Yankee fan, he has to top my list. Agreed that there’s nothing more classy than a white D&M G41! The Wilson 605 is the toughest model to find of the five players, that’s saying something as far as rarity is concerned. Ruth aside, I have a soft spot for a big old Goldsmith Wagner. Super long fingers and that wonderful blue and gold patch, simply awesome! I’ve always been a huge Stall & Dean fan, but the Cobb models left something to be desired. S&D made some classic patterns that should be considered the most unique and desirable gloves to find and own for collectors, but unfortunately, the Cobbs are sort of plain in my opinion. Surprisingly, Johnson gloves were the toughest for me to find, even more so than Ty (had three Cobbs but only two Johnsons). A nice D&M G40 is a spectacular glove to slip on! Matty, eh, not a fan, sorry.

[softball66]

Well how about my trusty Spalding Nap Lojoie? (just kidding). And, hey guys, what would that one be worth?

[vintagebrett]

Lots for support for the Ruth glove - maybe my disdain for the Yankees has something to do with it being low on my list.

So, if I come across a nice G41 will someone trade me a Cobb and Wagner for it?

[MTGLOVEGUY]

No Wagner or Cobb, but I'd trade you two Johnson's

[Centerfield]

Price for a one-of-a-kind Nap? Good question, Joe. I'd say a beater would bring Cobb money, 3k to 4k. Nice condition would command a Ken Wel Gehrig price tag of 10k to 12k. It's a tough one to gauge, though. All of the top glove collectors (especially those building a pre-war HoF collection) would want it and be bidding against each other for it, but despite the caliber of player he was, he just doesn't have the same panache as Ruth, Gehrig or Cobb. That said, I say it would sell for $6,273!

[softball66]

This thread started me thinking about the early dominant pre-1930s players, like the first five HOF. So I went to the Hall of Fame site to see how the voting went.
Lajoie, who really few remember today compared to the top players of first half century, was the No. 6 guy and voted in along with Young (but with more votes than Young) in the next year of election and beating out Tris Speaker. Lajoie must have made a strong impression on the HOF voters of that day.
I'm not sure what kind of overall collecting value Lajoie items have, again compared to the first five. Indeed his image and allure have faded.
And who and who's names do we think if we were to list a top 10 of collectibles from 1880 to 1940? I would add Young and Speaker, but just maybe Lajoie. Eddie Collins is another name that doesn't produce much magic. Certainly you would put Gehrig on the list.
Not in the Hall but collectible is Shoeless Joe Jackson.

[BigD-Moonlight]

Interesting discussion about the great old gloves.
I'm in agreement about the Babe G-41 with the white model really being special. I love the Cobb S&D's and of course the Gehrig zipper back. But then there is the Matty and Walter Jonson gloves that I could't part with either.
For me those are probably the top five with Honus Wagner and Tris Speaker following close behind but my passion for these old gloves makes it really difficult to rank and nearly impossibe to trade.
Lots of fun to talk about though.

[vintagebrett]

I think a Lajoie glove would bring a hefty sum - I agree with Centerfield's assessment. Besides gloves collectors looking to complete their HOF collection, there are a bunch of Cleveland collectors that would be competing as well. Throw in the high end vintage collectors looking to add a real rarity, I think a Lajoie glove would bring a boatload of cash.