Monster Card Monday: 1934 Grover Hartley

At age 46, it almost seemed Grover Hartley wasn’t ready to retire.  In his last year with the last year, he went one for three with with a double and a walk with the New York Giants.  As a matter of fact, that was after a three year hiatus when in 1930 he went 3 for 4.

APBA’s 1934 card for Hartley is pretty much what it should be.  It’s full of 6s and 14s.  Hartley received eight 6s and nine 14s with no other hit numbers.  Should any ethically challenged manager decide to pinch hit with Hartley with a runner on third, well, he’d be better than Ruth, Williams and Gehrig combined.

Thanks to reader John Williams for suggesting this card to me.  He points readers to SABR’s bio about Hartley written by Mike Cooney.  This little tidbit came up in Cooney’s piece relevant to Hartley’s 1934 season:

Not only was he the oldest player in the major leagues in 1934, he became the last active Federal League veteran when he appeared in the first of five games he played for the Browns that year. In addition, he became the oldest position player in major-league history to start a game – a record that he held until 2004 when 46 year-old Julio Franco started a game at first base for the Atlanta Braves. Franco eclipsed the record in 2005.

Hartley’s time in the Federal League was significant.  Though he played 14 years in the bigs, his two full seasons in the F.L. accounted for almost half of his actual at bats.

Thanks again, John!