Two of the Hobby’s Earliest Baseball Cards with the Industry’s Newest Label and Best Holder

The beautiful 1887 The World’s Champions set from Allen & Ginter is frequently cited as one of the greatest collectible card sets of all time. The unique look of the chromolithography prints changed the future of cards forever, and some modern card sets even attempt to recreate the iconic styling.

Certified Sports Guaranty® (CSG®) recently graded two 1887 Allen & Ginter (N28) cards from The World’s Champions set, which features several famous names such as Charles Comiskey, Annie Oakley and William “Buffalo Bill” Cody. The cards came inside a ten-count pack of cigarettes and were meant to help stiffen the soft packaging.

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The first card, graded CSG 2.5, features Hall of Fame pitcher Timothy Keefe. Best known for pitching two complete game victories on the same day and only allowing three hits total, Keefe won at least 32 games per season between 1883 and 1888. He played the majority of his 14-year career with the New York Giants and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1964.

The second card, graded CSG 1.5, features Adrian “Cap” Anson, who led the league in runs batted in (RBIs) eight times between 1880 and 1891. He played over 20 seasons with the Chicago White Stockings, before they were the Cubs, and was the first player to reach 3,000 career hits (a club that recently welcomed a seventh member — Miguel Cabrera). Anson was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1939.

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