Helmar This Great Game #39 Walker Cooper St. Louis Cardinals

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About the Player

A short bio from the Helmar “This Great Game” card back: There’s a story that when Walker Cooper stepped to the plate for his first at-bat in the major leagues, he watched the first pitch go by, and had the audacity to complain to the umpire about the strike call. The younger Cooper brother (Mort is a pitcher with the Cardinals) is a strong-jawed competitor who takes charge of the game from his station behind the plate. He also whacks the baseball a lot, especially the fastball, which he is known to have a liking for. Few catchers have batted cleanup in the big leagues, but Cooper holds that job for Billy Southworth and the Redbirds, which is why he is frequently among leaders in runs batted in.

About the Series

This series marks a step in a new direction for Helmar. For the first time we take a serious look at baseball in the 1950's and then, perhaps, the 1960's. The game found itself changing dramatically in this post WWII era, influenced by both the larger society and technological innovation. The color barrier may have been officially broken in 1947 but the acceptance of black players by the big league clubs came slowly, if surely. Reliable and inexpensive air transportation paved the way for geographic expansion. The game, which had been centered in the East and Midwest, found new opportunities along the West Coast.

The very center of the baseball world through the decade was New York City. New York teams competed in every World Series through the decade except for 1959. In many of those years both teams competing were from the city. Interestingly, New York also became the center of the art world at the same time. Migration after WWII brought many creatives to the Big Apple and movements such as abstract, modernism, surrealism and avant-garde.

Studying the era has inspired Helmar to use bold, often surreal colors in this series. We hope that you will join us as we explore this era of change.

Card size: 3' x 4'

Individually Numbered 1-20

Related Cards in the Series

You can click the thumbnail images to see a larger image of that card!
Also, click on card number to see card information or player name to see player information page!

Helmar This Great Game, St. Louis Cardinals
Card #	Thumbnail Pic	Player Name	Position	Top Auction Price
16		Boyer, Ken	Batting stance	$ 53.89
24		SCHOENDIST, Red	Portrait	$ 41.00
25		SLAUGHTER, Enos	Hand on hip	$ 63.00
39		Cooper, Walker	In crouch	$ 52.00
50		MUSIAL, Stan	hand on hip	$ 105.50
69		Garagiola, Joe	Gear; about to throw	$ 112.00
110		Brecheen, Harry	knee up, wind-up	$ 79.50
113		Haddix, Harvey	arms up	$ 86.55
114		Moon, Wally	cocked bat	$ 76.55
128		Rice, Del	Portrait	$ 67.00

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