Addie Joss Portrait

This entry catalogs the T206 White Border portrait of Adrian "Addie" Joss (1880–1911), the Cleveland Naps right-hander whose career was cut short by tubercular meningitis at age 31, just two days after his 31st birthday. Born April 12, 1880 in Woodland, Wisconsin, Joss broke in with Cleveland in 1902 and pitched all nine of his major-league seasons there, throwing a perfect game against the White Sox on October 2, 1908 — only the second perfect game in modern major-league history — and a no-hitter against Chicago two seasons later. He stood 6'3", batted and threw right-handed, and worked from a corkscrew delivery that hid the ball until the last moment. His career ERA of 1.89 remains the second-lowest in major-league history. The T206 portrait is one of two Joss poses in the set, distinguished from his pitching-pose card by the tighter head-and-shoulders framing. Joss died April 14, 1911 in Toledo, Ohio, and the Hall of Fame waived its ten-year service requirement to elect him in 1978, the only time the rule has been formally bypassed.