Jesse Burkett

Jesse Cail "The Crab" Burkett (1868–1953) was the left-handed-hitting outfielder who batted over .400 in back-to-back seasons — .405 in 1895 and .410 in 1896 with the Cleveland Spiders — a feat only Ty Cobb and Rogers Hornsby would later match. Born December 4, 1868 in Wheeling, West Virginia, Burkett broke in with the New York Giants in 1890 as a pitcher before Cleveland converted him to the outfield, where he won three batting titles across a sixteen-year career through 1905 with stops in St. Louis of both the National and American leagues and a final season in Boston. He finished with 2,850 hits and a .338 average. The T204 Ramly issue, distributed in 1909 in packs of Turkish-blend cigarettes by the Mentor Company of Boston, captures him after his playing days, when he had moved into ownership and management with the New England minor leagues. The Ramly cards are notable for their ornate gold borders and oval portrait windows, and Burkett's appearance there places him among the post-career figures the set also honored. He died May 27, 1953 in Worcester, Massachusetts and is buried at St. John's Cemetery there. The Hall of Fame elected him in 1946.