Extremely scarce signed 1940 Play Ball card of Mort Cooper, who pitched between 1938 and 1949 with the Cardinals, Braves, Giants and Cubs.  A four-time All-Star and two-time World Series champion, Cooper earned the 1942 MVP award with 22 wins and a 1.78 ERA.  His career ended early due to warm trouble, and in the 1950s he developed cirrhosis and a staph infection, dying in 1958 at the young age of 45.  His signature applied to this card is dark and clear, some ink skipping in his last name. The card originates from the Shibe Park collection of autographed cards, an original owner collection carefully collected by a teenage boy who, in 1939 and 1940, obtained many autographs from players arriving at the train station near Shibe Park, and continued for many years to obtain signatures in person and through the mail.