Benny Bengough - 1933 Goudey #1
1933 Goudey #1 Benny Bengough
Low number: this card was printed on press sheets 1-2 (#1-40 plus #45-52), which saw shorter distribution than the rest of the 1933 run — low numbers are noticeably scarcer.
About Benny Bengough
Bernard Oliver "Benny" Bengough (1898-1968) was a right-handed-hitting catcher who broke in with his hometown Buffalo Bisons in 1917-1918 after showing up at their camp with his own gear, then hit .275-.276 there before the Yankees purchased him in 1922 for four players and $10,000. He served as New York's backup catcher from 1923 (the Yankees' first championship year) before winning the starting job in June 1925 - the same day Lou Gehrig replaced Wally Pipp - and rooming with, and befriending, Gehrig. On September 18, 1926, a George Uhle pitch shattered his throwing arm, and though he battled back to catch for the 1927 "Murderers' Row" Yankees and the 1928 champions (setting a mark of 33 putouts in a four-game World Series), he was never quite the same afterward. Babe Ruth, unable to recall his name, dubbed him "Googles" after the comic-strip character Barney Google, and the nickname stuck for life. Displaced by Bill Dickey, he was dealt to the St. Louis Browns in mid-1931, catching for them into 1933 before beginning a long career as a minor-league manager and big-league coach, including helping develop the Phillies' 1950 pennant winners. Career line: .255, 287 hits, 108 RBI over 10 seasons; two-time World Series champion (1927, 1928).
Sources: Wikipedia · Baseball-Reference · SABR
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 528 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 16 | 12 | 19 | 451 | 23 |
| SGC | 321 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 10 | 275 | 31 |
Graded population — a scarcity guide, not a price. Snapshot 2026-07-03. Half-grades fold down (8.5→8). PSA counts are straight-graded.
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Related cards
More St. Louis Browns cards:
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- #18 Muddy Ruel
- #101 Dick Coffman
- #120 Carl Reynolds
- #140 Bump Hadley
- #166 Sam West
- #188 Rogers Hornsby
- #198 Jack Burns
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1933 Goudey Benny Bengough card?
It is card #1 of the 1933 Goudey (R319) Baseball set - the 240-card, 2-3/8 by 2-7/8 inch color-art set issued in 1933 with Big League Chewing Gum. It pictures Benny Bengough with the St. Louis Browns.
Is the 1933 Goudey Benny Bengough #1 a rookie card?
By modern catalog convention, yes. 1933 Goudey is treated as the hobby's first major nationally distributed gum set, so nearly every card in it carries the rookie-card (RC) designation - a modern label applied retroactively, since many of these players had earlier tobacco, caramel, or strip cards.
How many cards are in the 1933 Goudey set?
240 numbered cards, though collectors usually count 241 collectible cards because #6 Jimmy Dykes exists in an error and a corrected version. Only 239 numbers were in 1933 packs - #106 (Nap Lajoie) was printed in 1934 and issued by mail.
Sources: Trading Card Database, Baseball-Reference, PSA & SGC population reports, and hobby press-sheet research. Card data compiled and maintained by T206Cards.com. Page last updated 2026-07-04.