Denton True 'Cy' Young was perhaps the first truly great pitcher in baseball, and hence draws a degree of worship from those in and into the sport.
He won 511 games between August 1890 and October 1911, the most in baseball history, and nearly a hundred more than Walter Johnson, who won the next most: 417.
There are few pieces directly relating to Cy such as his autograph, which is rare. As a result they can command high prices (although baseball pieces are mostly of interest in America; less so worldwide). A baseball he signed, with the additional '1953 86 yrs', sold for $15,600 in 2007
Young had a rather humourless appearance, and the baseball cards on which he appeared do him no favours in softening this.
A 1903 E107 Breisch Williams card sold in a 2007 auction for $72,000. Young was with the Boston Red Sox at the time.
E107s are coveted anyway as there were fewer cards available at the time.
A tobacco company card from the year Young retired is also pictured.
An award was created in his name the year after he died: 1956, and collectors who think highly of Cy often collect items relating to these, such as the signatures of winners or even the awards themselves - one of which sold for $84,000 this year.
There is likely to be an auction on the centenary of this master's last game on October 11, 2011 at which items related to him are likely to go for especially high prices.
