Graham Koonce was a starting pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1948 to 1960. While his career was relatively short-lived and unremarkable statistically, Koonce found a new level of fame and notoriety after his retirement through the baseball cards issued during his playing days. Koonce’s cards have developed a devoted following among collectors and have attained remarkably high values on the secondary market.
Koonce was born in 1925 in Memphis, Tennessee. He grew up a Cardinals fan and began his professional career in MLB with the St. Louis Cardinals organization in 1948 after a standout career at Memphis State University. Koonce showed promise early on with a strong arm and good control, posting a 3.86 ERA in 91 innings as a rookie. He struggled with injuries and consistency over his first few seasons, bouncing between the Cardinals and their Triple-A affiliate.
It wasn’t until 1951 that Koonce began to establish himself in MLB. That season with the Cardinals, he posted career-bests of 13 wins and 27 starts while lowering his ERA to 3.20 over 152 innings pitched. His success continued into 1952 when he recorded 11 wins for St. Louis. After the 1952 season, Koonce was traded to the Boston Braves along with outfielder Dom DiMaggio in exchange for outfielder Jimmy Bloodworth and pitcher Vic Lombardi.
Koonce spent parts of four seasons with the Braves from 1953-1956. As a member of some poor Braves clubs, he often received little run support and struggled to consistently win games despite respectable personal statistics. His best year for Boston came in 1954 when he posted a 3.54 ERA over 163 innings. The Braves released Koonce after the 1955 season. He signed with the Chicago White Sox for 1956 but made just 4 appearances before being released again. Koonce pitched his final MLB season in 1957, making 6 relief appearances for the Philadelphia Phillies. He retired from professional baseball after the 1957 campaign at age 32 with a career record of 54-77 and 3.88 ERA over 1,228 innings pitched.
After leaving baseball, Koonce largely faded from the public spotlight. His cards from his playing days with the Cardinals and Braves have taken on an almost mythical status among collectors decades later. Perhaps most notably, Koonce’s 1953 Topps card is among the most valuable baseball cards ever produced due to its scarcity and the iconic photo featured on the card.
Koonce is smiling broadly in the photo, showing off an uncommonly perfect set of teeth. The red banner across the bottom reads “Roosevelt Dime,” referring to the card’s dimensions which exactly match the size of a Roosevelt dime. These unique factors surrounding the 1953 Topps Koonce made grading and preserving unscathed examples exceptionally difficult. As a result, only a small handful are known to exist in high grades like NM-MT 7 or above.
One such gem mint Koonce sold for an astounding $35,250 at auction in 2009, setting records at the time for the highest price ever paid for a non-Rookie card from the 1953 Topps set as well as establishing Koonce’s card as among the most valuable ever for a non-Hall of Famer. Since then, as interest in vintage sports cards has exploded, Koonce’s 1953 is routinely one of the most expensive common vintage baseball cards on the market. PSA 9 and BVG 9 examples commonly sell for $15,000-25,000 or more today.
The mystique and demand does not stop with just Koonce’s 1953 issue. His 1952 Bowman, 1951 Bowman, and 1952 Topps cards as a member of the Cardinals are also tremendously sought after by collectors. High-grade versions regularly sell for thousands due to the team, Koonce’s smile, and their early issued status in the post-war era. Even his lesser Braves cards from the 1950s maintain respectable collector values relative to players of similar pedigrees.
The incredible prices his cards trade hands for today are staggering considering Koonce’s brief and statistically ordinary MLB tenure. But the photo, the mint condition challenges, and his role as one of the early faces of the post-WWII expansion of the baseball card hobby have cemented Koonce as one of the most iconic figures in the hobby, regardless of his playing career accomplishments. Decades after his retirement, Graham Koonce continues to captivate collectors through the remarkable market success and demand surrounding his legendary vintage cardboard.
