JBR 106 is a set produced by an unknown manufacturer to commemorate the 1931 U.S. Major League All Star Tour of Japan, featuring Lou Gehrig and Lefty Grove. Cards from the set are seldom seen. At this time, cards of 20 different players are known to exist, including ten depicting U.S. Tour members and ten picturing members of the Japan All Stars. No more than three or four copies of any card in the set are known to exist.

Regular JBR 106 cards have four white borders. However, this card is identical in design to Lefty Grove's JBR 106 card except that it is borderless! We have never seen a "borderless" JBR 106 until now. This is not simply a JBR 106 card that has had the borders trimmed off. The image on the card itself is a bit larger than for JBR 106, and from the poor cut at the right border of the Bruce Cunningham card from this set which is found in this auction (Lot 22), we can see that there was no border between that card and the next card on the sheet from which it was cut. Cards from this borderless set will be identified as JBR 106a in future editions of Japanese Baseball Cards Checklist & Price Guide.

1931 was Lefty Grove's greatest season in Major League Baseball. The Philadelphia A's lefthander won 31 games, losing only four, with a 2.06 ERA. For this effort, he was named American League MVP. Grove's performance on the Japan Tour was even more outstanding, as he pitched 38 innings, posting a 0.00 ERA! He also fanned 55 Japanese batters.

If you are a Lefty Grove collector, this is your chance to obtain a unique card.

Blank back card

Size: 1 7/16 x 2 11/16"

Condition: Fair to good, due to a horizontal crease across the card. Excess paper is glued to the back as a result of previous mountings in photo albums.