1910-1911 M116 Sporting Life Heinie Heitmuller, Philadelphia Athletics, SGC 7 - Rare Grade
On the Player - William Frederick "Heinie" Heitmuller (1883–1912) was a Major League Baseball left fielder who played for the Philadelphia Athletics from 1909 to 1910. He made his MLB debut on April 14, 1909, and over two seasons, he appeared in 128 games, recording a solid .271 batting average with 51 RBIs. Heitmuller was part of the Athletics' 1910 World Series-winning team, though he struggled to secure a long-term role on Connie Mack’s talent-laden roster as the franchise entered its dominant era.
Following his time in the majors, Heitmuller found success in the minor leagues, becoming a standout player for the Los Angeles Angels of the Pacific Coast League (PCL). In 1912, as the Angels vied for the PCL pennant, he led the league in hitting with a .335 batting average, a .471 slugging percentage, and a career-high 15 home runs. However, his promising career was tragically cut short when he contracted typhoid fever late in the season. Heitmuller passed away in October 1912 at just 29 years old.
On the Card - SGC grades of 7 or higher are rare for the 1911 Sporting Life set. For Heinie Heitmuller, SGC has graded only 14 cards in total, with just three receiving a grade of 7—and none graded higher.
On the Set - Early vintage baseball card sets were initially produced as promotional items to boost the sales of products like tobacco, candy, or later, gum. The 1910-1911 Sporting Life Baseball cards were introduced as a marketing strategy to increase the circulation of the Sporting Life newspaper, competing with The Sporting News. Jefferson Burdick, in his classic baseball card guide "The American Card Catalog," classified these as M-Cards, Newspaper Supplements & Cards, specifically M116.
The M116 baseball cards were not included with the Sporting Life newspaper. Instead, collectors had to use a coupon and request the cards by mail. The cost was relatively low, just four cents along with the coupon, for 12 cards. However, this extra step of requesting the cards resulted in fewer cards being acquired compared to those included with tobacco products. The Sporting Life promotion lasted for 24 weeks over 1910-1911, featuring a total of 288 different cards. According to PSA, the total number exceeds 300, considering card variations, with each card measuring around 1-1/2” by 2-5/8”.
The cards are unnumbered and organized alphabetically. Based on Carl Horner's famous portraits, the 1910-11 M116 Sporting Life Baseball card fronts are similar to many sets of the era, featuring a photo of a player surrounded by a white border, with the last name, team city, and league listed in the bottom margin. Most card fronts have pastel-colored backgrounds, while some more rarely feature a blue background. Although they resemble T206 cards and sometimes use the same pictures, the M116 cards have a more subdued color theme, providing a pleasant, realistic player presentation. The cards have three possible advertising back types that appear in different series. Most cards feature major league players, but minor leaguers were added in later series.
Unfortunately, Sporting Life lost its battle with The Sporting News, and the paper shuttered its doors by the time the U.S. entered World War I.