Tucson has a long history with baseball cards dating back to the late 19th century. One of the earliest card producers to feature Tucson players was the American Tobacco Company, which began printing trade cards as promotions for its cigarette brands in the 1880s. While they were not true baseball cards by modern definitions, these early trade cards sometimes featured images of minor league players from Tucson’s amateur and semi-pro baseball teams of the time.
In the early 1900s, as baseball grew into a major professional sport, dedicated baseball card companies emerged to meet collector demand. One of the first was the White Border Set issued by the Boston Globe from 1911-1913. This landmark series included several Tucson players who had made it to the higher minor leagues. Notable examples include outfielder Benny Kauff, who played for the Tucson Waddies club in 1908 before enjoying a successful major league career. Shortstop Everett Scott, who began his pro career with Tucson in 1912, also received a White Border card recognizing his talents.
In the 1920s, the most prominent baseball card manufacturer was the American Caramel Company. Its caramel candy was sold with sports trading cards inserted between 1915-1917. The company returned to issuing baseball cards exclusively between 1929-1933 under the brand name Best Sweet Caps. During this time, Tucson continued to field minor league clubs and some local stars received Best Sweet Caps cards, such as outfielder Win Penn and third baseman Oscar Grimes who played for the 1929 Tucson Missions of the Arizona State League.
The 1930s saw the rise of modern mass-produced baseball cards inserted in chewing gum packs. The two dominant gum companies, Goudey Gum and the National Chicle Company, issued some of the earliest iconic baseball card sets. While fewer Tucson players reached the higher minor leagues during the Great Depression, a few did receive Goudey and National Chicle cards. Shortstop Jackie Hernandez, who played in Tucson from 1933-1936 before joining the San Diego Padres, merits special mention as one of the few Tucsonans featured in the 1933 Goudey set.
After World War 2, a baseball card boom occurred thanks to the entry of new gum manufacturers like Bowman and Topps. With minor league rosters stocked by recent war returnees and new talent, Tucson once again supplied some future card-worthy names. Outfielder Vic Power broke in with the 1949 Tucson Cowboys and had a 12-year MLB career, receiving cards from Bowman, Topps and others. Pitcher Mudcat Grant also started his pro career in Tucson with the 1954 Cowboys before multiple Topps cards recognized his success in the majors.
The 1950s saw the rise of regional sets focused on specific leagues or areas in addition to the nationwide Topps and Bowman issues. One such set was the 1954 Arizona State League Baseball Card Set released by Standard Publishing of Tucson. Highlighting that season’s teams, which included the visiting Tucson Toros, it represented a rare localized baseball card production centered around Tucson’s minor league presence.
In the postwar decades, while fewer Tucson-based players reached MLB, their minor league accomplishments still earned some regional and nationwide card recognition. Outfielders like Ernie Fazio and Larry Elliott who starred for Tucson teams in the 1950s received minor league player cards. Pitchers Mike Paukovich and Tom Norton, who broke in with the 1963 Tucson Toros, later earned Topps cards after reaching the majors.
Through the remainder of the 20th century, mass-produced baseball cards mostly featured major and minor leaguers from a national scope. However, Tucson’s enthusiast community ensured its local baseball history had representation. Hobby shops sold reprints of early trade cards and regional issues to satisfy collector demand. In the 1990s, limited regional sets from companies like Pacific distributed cards highlighting the city’s minor league alumni to a smaller niche audience.
Today, while Tucson no longer hosts a minor league franchise, nostalgia for its baseball past remains strong. Vintage Tucson baseball cards remain popular collectibles on online auction sites. Local card shows provide a marketplace for dealers and hobbyists to trade memorabilia from the region’s early pro teams. With Tucson’s deep baseball roots stretching back over a century, its players who went on to receive early 20th century tobacco cards or 1950s gum cards are an important part of both the city’s sports memories and the larger story of American baseball card history. The unique role Tucson played in the development of our national pastime is commemorated through the icons carried in wallets and binders by collectors worldwide.
