"They used to say he didn’t spit on the ball; he blew his breath on it and the ball came up drunk.” -- Rube Marquard on Bugs Raymond
Today's T206 brings a sad backstory to the player featured on this tiny piece of cardboard. Before delving into that, it's yet another former piece of Charles Bray's Collection and was snagged from REA a while back with some other tobacco cards.
Bugs Raymond earned his nickname due to his crazy persona and antics, including a dependency on alcohol. He was once involved in a trade for Hall of Famer Roger Bresnahan and was -- like many in his day -- a spitball pitcher. He worked as a bartender one offseason to make ends meet and feed his addiction, and was once punched by his manager John McGraw.
Shortly after drinking himself out of professional baseball, Raymond ended up in a series of fights that included taking numerous hits to the head from a bat. He died due to complications from a fractured skull within a year of his career ending.
Jeez, I gotta read the backs of my Giants T205s a little more often. Check out my team collection: https://thecollectivemind.blogspot.com/p/t205-new-york-giants.html
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