A Hot Ball, from the Talk of the Diamond set (N135) issued by Duke Sons & Co., a branch of the American Tobacco Company 1888

"A Hot Ball" is a humorous lithograph from the "Talk of the Diamond" set of trading cards, issued in 1888 by W. Duke, Sons & Co., a branch of the American Tobacco Company. The card features a baseball player, a large baseball on a post, and a cartoonish man drinking at a bar. This playful, colorful card was likely intended to appeal to a broad audience, associating Duke's tobacco products with the popular sport of baseball. The card, now housed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, is a prime example of the tobacco industry's use of popular culture for marketing purposes.