No Stadium Required: What's at The Met for Sports Fans like Me?

#MetKids Reporter Jayson interviews Associate Curator Freyda Spira about The Met's collection of sports cards

«Spring is here, and for many kids that means it's the season of triple plays, stealing bases, and cheering for their favorite baseball teams. Did you know that when you're off the field, you can also root for many of baseball's great players right at The Met?»

With over 30,000 baseball cards donated by collector Jefferson R. Burdick, The Met has the most comprehensive collection outside of the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. The collection not only tells us a great deal about the sport, but also helps tell the history of popular printmaking in the United States.

Honus Wagner, Pittsburgh, National League, from the White Border series (T206) for the American Tobacco Company, 1909–11. Issued by American Tobacco Company. Commercial lithograph; Sheet: 2 5/8 x 1 7/16 in. (6.7 x 3.7 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, The Jefferson R. Burdick Collection, Gift of Jefferson R. Burdick (63.350.246.206.378)

What's there to discover? For starters, the collection boasts the rarest baseball card in existence—the 1910 Honus Wagner card from the White Border series. The collection also includes cards that feature baseball greats such as Joe DiMaggio, Willie Mays, and Stan Musial, as well as Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Cy Young, Ty Cobb, and Hank Greenberg, among thousands of other cards. Burdick's albums also contain complete sets such as the famous Bowman Gum series of 1951, which includes Mickey Mantle's rookie card and Topps's 1953 set highlighting New York Yankees Philip Rizzuto, Yogi Berra, Mantle, and Brooklyn Dodgers Jackie Robinson, Duke Snider, Pee Wee Reese, and Roy Campanella.

The offerings don't end with baseball! Burdick's collection includes all types of sports cards ranging from football, boxing, basketball, baseball, and swimming, to equestrian sports and sailing. There's something for just about every sports fan at The Met!

Watch sports fan Jayson, age 10, go behind the scenes to find out more about this special collection in #MetKids—What's at the Met for Sports Fans Like Me?.

A selection of the baseball cards is always on view in the Henry R. Luce Center, a special section of The Met that stores artwork in plain sight. Batter up, and check out The Met this spring!