C. Mathewson Dark Cap

Christopher "Christy" Mathewson (1880–1925) is captured here in the T206 White Border Dark Cap variation — the companion piece to the more graphically striking White Cap pose, with the two often collected as a set alongside the Mathewson Portrait to complete the trio. Born August 12, 1880 in Factoryville, Pennsylvania, the Bucknell-educated right-hander pitched for the New York Giants from 1900 through July 1916, finishing with a brief player-manager run for the Cincinnati Reds. He won 373 career games — tied for third all-time — led the National League in wins four times, and threw three shutouts in the 1905 World Series, all complete games over a six-day span. His signature pitch was the fadeaway, a precursor to the screwball. He volunteered for the Chemical Warfare Service during World War I and suffered lung damage from accidental gas exposure in training; tuberculosis followed and killed him at 45. He died October 7, 1925 in Saranac Lake, New York. He was elected in the inaugural Hall of Fame class of 1936.