Honus Wagner rides again . . . and it’s a priceless Endorsement!
May 12th, 2010 Comments Off
Ok, quick test: what is the most valuable baseball card ever made? It’s the Honus Wagner card because it’s so rare. Wagner a Hall of Fame shortstop with the Pittsburgh Pirates a century ago was a non-smoker at a time when baseball cards were distributed with cigarettes by the tobacco companies. He demanded that his image not be used on cigarette cards. The result is the rarest of baseball cards that have been priced at over $2million. With all that being said – what is a painting of Robby Albarado on Endorsement running the 2010 Kentucky Derby worth? It’s worth noting that the painting was painted live at Robby’s cocktail party as party of his foundation’s event to benefit the Boys and Girls Clubs of Louisville . . . and then Endorsement scratched a couple days later forcing Robby to change mounts . . . but the painting still exists.
Along those same lines, I also painted in Millionaire’s Row at Churchill Downs for the Race Track Chaplaincy event the Monday before the derby – the subject: the four derby qualifiers for WinStar. Yes, it included Rule and Endorsement that both scratched out of the derby, but it also has American Lion and the eventual derby winner Super Saver. That painting went to WinStar co-owner Kenny Troutt’s home just days before the Derby trophy went to WinStar. WOW! it’s like having two Honus Wagner cards!
