Lot # 908: 1934-1936 R318 Batter-Up Near-Complete Set (165/192)

This near-complete set of 1934-1936 R318 Batter-Up includes 165 different (of 192) cards in the set, highlighted by 39 Hall of Famers, including Grove, Hornsby, Greenberg, Foxx, Dean, and many others. Missing the following 27 cards for completion: #3 Lopez, 27 Ott, 47, 50, 90, 92, 98, 106, 111 Hayes/Lyons, 112, 115 Andrews/Bottomley, 117 Dickey, 118, 119 Lyons, 122 Lindstrom, 124 Appling, 137, 138 Herman, 155, 156 Durocher, 171, 173 Frisch, 178, 179 Bottomley, 183 Cronin, 185 Klein, and 189. The R318 Batter-Up set is one of the most significant of all prewar baseball-card issues. Their striking colors, unusual standup design, and rarity compared to other 1930s sets make "Batter-Ups" one of the most fascinating, distinctive, and difficult-to-complete of all sets from the 1930s. These cards are designed with die-cut backgrounds that can be punched out and folded back to allow each card to stand up. Because of this design, many R318s are naturally found in damaged condition, and in many cases are found with the die-cut backgrounds entirely lost. While most of the cards in this collection appear to have been punched out and folded back at one time, the backgrounds are all present and complete. More than half of the cards in this set display smooth portions where the cards were pressed to lighten surface wrinkles. Without further reference to this characteristic, the condition of the set is 33% Ex to Ex-Mt (mostly Ex), 55% Vg to Vg-Ex, and 12% lesser (including a couple altered and one with a slight trim). Twelve cards have been professionally graded and encapsulated by PSA. Keys: #5 Hubbell (Vg-Ex+), 6 Terry (Vg-Ex), 8 Bottomley (Vg+), 10 Ferrell (Ex), 14 Traynor (Vg), 16 Hafey (Ex), 17 L. Waner (Ex), 21 Vaughan (Fr due to small tear at top), 23 Gomez (Fr), 24 Averill (Vg-Ex), 25 Cochrane (Vg-Ex), 28 Foxx (Vg-Ex), 30 Dickey (Vg), 31 Grove (Vg-Ex), 32 Cronin (Vg+), 33 Frisch (Gd), 34 Simmons (Gd), 35 Hornsby (Vg+), 36 Lyons (Ex+), 37 Maranville (Vg-Ex), 42 Gehringer (Gd), 45 Lazzeri (Vg-Ex), 57 Greenberg (inked "TIGERS" on reverse, otherwise Ex), 64 Dean (Vg-Ex), 73 Wilson (Vg-Ex), 77 Manush (Vg+), 85 Goslin (Vg-Ex), 86 Gomez (Vg-Ex), 100 Traynor (Vg+), 113 Averill (Ex), 126 Ferrell (Vg-Ex+), 129 Lombardi (Vg+), 130 Gehringer (Fr due to glue residue on reverse), 136 Hartnett (Ex+), 144 Foxx (Vg+), 145 Medwick (Vg-Ex), 153 Grove (Ex), 157 L. Waner (Vg+), and 180 Jackson (Vg-Ex). Twelve PSA-graded cards: #9 (EX 5), 15 (EX-MT 6), 83 (VG-EX+ 4.5), 107 (EX 5), 108 (EX+ 5.5), 110 (EX-MT 6), 128 (EX-MT 6), 132 (EX-MT 6), 146 (EX 5), 147 (EX-MT 6), 154 (EX-MT 6), and 187 (EX-MT 6). This is a very attractive and rarely offered near-complete set of this unusual and very substantial 1930s prewar issue, which is highlighted by 39 Hall of Famers. Total: 165 cards.