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George Clyde Kell
Chicago White Sox
Third Base
Bats: Right Throws: Right Height: 5'9" Weight: 175Born: August 23, 1922, Swifton, AR
Signed: Signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers as an amateur free agent before the 1940 season
Major League Teams: Philadelphia Athletics 1943-1946; Detroit Tigers 1946-1952; Boston Red Sox 1952-1954; Chicago White Sox 1954-1956; Baltimore Orioles 1956-1957
Hall of Fame Induction: 1983
Died: March 24, 2009, Swifton, AR (age 86)
After a few false starts within the Dodgers and Athletics organizations, George Kell would become one of the best-hitting and best-fielding third baseman of his era, making ten All-Star squads and winning the American League batting title in 1949 with a .343 mark. He struck out only 13 times that entire season, a record low for a league batting champion. Kell topped the .300 mark in nine different seasons, and in eight consecutive seasons between 1946 and 1953. In 1950, Kell led the American League in hits (218) and doubles (56) and repeated the feat in 1951, again leading the league in both categories with 191 hits and 36 doubles. Kell led all third baseman in fielding percentage in seven different seasons and his .969 career mark is currently 14th all-time.
He retired with a .306 average and 2,054 hits in 1,795 career games. Kell struck out only 287 times throughout his career in 7,529 plate appearances. Following his playing days, Kell enjoyed a 37-year career as a fan-favorite Tigers broadcaster. The Veterans Committee inducted him into the Hall of Fame in 1983.
Building the Set
December 3, 2005 in Ft. Washington, PA - Card #274
This was a relatively late edition to our set and one of eight cards we purchased at the 93rd Philadelphia Sports Card Show held at the convention center in Ft. Washington. It was the most expensive card we purchased for our set that day at around $12 after a dealer discount. With the Ocean City baseball card shows long gone by now, our only options for local baseball card shows were the "Philly Shows" held in Ft. Washington or the occasional mall baseball card show.
My Dad didn't like the drive to Ft. Washington, and this would have been one of only a few shows we attended together in this location. Looking at my records of when and where we purchased our cards, a full year would go by before we'd add any more cards to the set.
The year-long hiatus in collecting the set came at a time my wife and I were expecting our first son and as we moved into our first real house.
The Card / White Sox Team Set
This is Kell's first Topps card since 1953, as he was under exclusive contract with Bowman for 1954 and 1955. The cartoon panels on the back of the card hit all his career highlights - his many seasons batting over .300, his 1949 batting title, and his fine fielding at third base.
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| January 28, 2006 - Celebrating Dad's 62nd birthday |
December 3, 2005 in Ft. Washington, PA - Card #274
This was a relatively late edition to our set and one of eight cards we purchased at the 93rd Philadelphia Sports Card Show held at the convention center in Ft. Washington. It was the most expensive card we purchased for our set that day at around $12 after a dealer discount. With the Ocean City baseball card shows long gone by now, our only options for local baseball card shows were the "Philly Shows" held in Ft. Washington or the occasional mall baseball card show.
My Dad didn't like the drive to Ft. Washington, and this would have been one of only a few shows we attended together in this location. Looking at my records of when and where we purchased our cards, a full year would go by before we'd add any more cards to the set.
The year-long hiatus in collecting the set came at a time my wife and I were expecting our first son and as we moved into our first real house.
The Card / White Sox Team Set
This is Kell's first Topps card since 1953, as he was under exclusive contract with Bowman for 1954 and 1955. The cartoon panels on the back of the card hit all his career highlights - his many seasons batting over .300, his 1949 batting title, and his fine fielding at third base.
1956 Season
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First Mainstream Card: 1949 Bowman #26
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (5): 1952-1953, 1956-1958
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 2021 Panini Mosaic Vintage #V2
396 - Kell non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 3/29/21.
Sources:
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
National Baseball Hall of Fame
SABR
The Trading Card Database
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