Cleveland World Series press pins

[Rob D.]

This month I was able to cross off a longtime nemesis from my want list. Adding a Cleveland 1920 World Series press pin completed my collection of Indians Series and All-Star press pins. Although press pins aren't nearly as "hot" these days as they were 15-20 years ago, I've always liked them. Especially intriguing to me are the phantom pins that were not produced in large numbers or distributed, because the Indians failed to make it to the Series. My group, pictured below, includes all of the known phantoms, but there's always a chance a new one could surface.

Though it's easier to put together a set of Cleveland World Series press pins than, say, a Yankees or Cardinals collection, it still took me about 15 years to finish this project. I probably should put an asterisk after that last sentence because there actually are two versions of the 1920 pin. In addition to the one pictured below (top row, far left), there's also a more attractive celluloid example. That is my white whale for now, and I know of three that have been offered at auction. Until I add a celluloid version, my collection technically isn't complete. But it's good for now.

Pins are displayed chronologically left to right, with the Series pins first, followed by the All-Star pins. I've included a few facts you might find interesting.

• The 1920 pin, the one that was toughest for me to get, is by far the most boring.
  
• There are two versions of the 1948 pin. The first example (second from left, top row) is the more common of the two. The one next to it is more crudely done. Many think it was produced locally and at the last minute after the Indians front office discovered it did not have enough of the first version for all of the members of the press. I've heard this explanation from more than one source, but it could just as easily be an urban legend as it could the truth.
  
• The first phantom of the group is from 1951 (fourth from left, top row). Note the similarity to the design Cleveland used for the 1954 All-Star Game pin (fourth from right, bottom row).
  
• The next phantom, from 1952, is similar to the design used for the 1954 Series pin (far right, top row). I didn't know a 1952 existed until a few years ago.
  
• There are two other 1954 pins (second and third from right, top row) that are prototypes rather than phantoms. These came from the estate of a Balfour executive and are incredibly scarce. I've never seen other examples. The dark eyes on the blue prototype kind of freak me out.
  
• The 1955 phantom (far left, bottom row) is seen more often than the other phantoms but is still pretty tough. I think the pin next to it is a prototype. I bought it off eBay years ago simply because I couldn't not buy it. It's strange because it's crude enough to make you think it wasn't professionally done, but it looks good enough that you think it had to be professionally done.

Pins from the 1995 and '97 Series finish the run.

The All-Star pins are fairly ho-hum. I wish there had been a press pin made for the 1935 game, but alas, there wasn't.

One interesting note regarding the 1963 All-Star pin: Look in any of the price guides from 20-30 years ago and you'll see the 1963 pin is listed with a much lower value than its counterparts. Something like this:

1960 -- $125
1961 -- $125
1962 -- $100
1963 -- $50
1964 -- $100
1965 -- $100

In truth, the '63 pin isn't more common than others from the early 1960s. I really believe the reason for the low value listed in guides is because of a Cleveland-area dealer from years ago named Jim Kovacs. Supposedly in the late 1970s he came across a stash of 20 or so 1963 pins. He ran the same ad in SCD for weeks and weeks and weeks, apparently because he didn't sell many. But it left the impression that a ton of '63 pins were out there, when the truth was Kovacs didn't have that many. But once the guides listed those low prices, it was established -- incorrectly -- in the hobby that the 1963 pin is really common.

OK, enough of my babbling. Thanks for hanging in this long.

Rob