The great Cy Young is depicted on this postcard "delivering the goods" near the end of his incredible career. Young would pitch in parts of three more seasons in Cleveland and Boston before retiring, but his 1908 season was still legendary. On August 13 of that year, the American League honored Young by not scheduling any games, instead sending a group of "all-star" players to Boston to play an exhibition game against the Red Sox. More than 20 000 fans attended to see Young pitch a few innings and receive accolades from players and fans alike. This postcard was somehow made available to attendees of that game on August 13 1908.

While most teams sent representatives to play in the game, the St. Louis Browns, at the time in the midst of a pennant race, do not appear to have contributed any players.  This postcard, however, was mailed to one of them - infielder Hobe Ferris.  The card inscription reads as follows:

Friend Hobe

We had a great day.  Sorry you was not with us.  

Yours Billy Mc

The card was mailed August 14 to Ferris, care of the St. Louis Baseball club in Philadelphia (where the Browns were arriving to play the Athletics).  It was consigned from the estate of Browns pitcher Barney Pelty, who clearly obtained the card from Ferris at some point.

While we cannot seem to identify "Billy Mc" (though we're confident some astute collector will chime in after the auction is launched), it seems clear that it was someone either associated with the Browns or the Red Sox, the team for which Ferris was employed from 1901-1907.

The card is well-worn, in POOR condition as graded by PSA.  However, in this case, condition is not particularly relevant.  The card is relatively scarce, and with excellent provenance, was sent directly to a member of the St. Louis Browns and former teammate of Cy Young.