Michael J. Slattery, Left Field, New York, from the Old Judge series (N172) for Old Judge Cigarettes 1888

This card from Goodwin & Company's "Old Judge" series captures Michael J. Slattery, a left fielder for New York, poised with his bat. Here, the bat is not merely a tool but a symbolic extension of Slattery’s power and readiness. The stance echoes the classical contrapposto, a weight shift first seen in ancient Greek sculpture. Think of the Doryphoros, also known as the "Canon of Polykleitos", where the body's balance creates a dynamic tension. Slattery's pose similarly conveys a sense of latent energy, a readiness to spring into action. It has an ancient familiarity despite the novelty of the modern sport. Consider the evolution of the hero: from the ancient Greek athlete, immortalized in marble, to the modern baseball player, captured on a tobacco card. Both embody ideals of strength, skill, and cultural pride, connecting us through shared aspirations and the cyclical return of symbolic forms. The emotional power lies in recognizing these echoes, the timeless human pursuit of excellence and the collective memory that binds us to the past.