Lynch, Mets, from the Kalamazoo Bats series (N690) issued by Chas. Gross & Co. to promote Kalamazoo Bats 1887

This albumen silver print of 'Lynch, Mets' comes from a baseball card series issued by Chas. Gross & Co. to promote Kalamazoo Bats. Looking at this card, it is fascinating to think about how baseball and the burgeoning industries around it shaped social life in the late 19th century United States. Baseball cards like these functioned as a kind of early advertising, using the appeal of athletes to promote consumer goods. The institutional history of the sport itself, its leagues, teams, and the companies that marketed to its fans, provides a rich context for interpreting this image. Lynch's portrait, with his fashionable mustache and tie, speaks to the values of the time, but also perhaps to a desire to present baseball players as respectable figures. To gain a fuller understanding of the image, we might delve into the archives of baseball history, examining the records of the teams, players, and the advertising companies involved.