Lot 1. Important 1959 Los Angeles Dodgers Prototype Road Jersey – Gil Hodges Set 2. After the 1958 season, their first in Los Angeles, the Dodgers opted to go with a new design for their road jerseys. The design changes implemented in 1959 remain in place today. “Los Angeles” in Dodger Blue felt replaced “Dodgers” on the jersey front. Furthermore, the player’s number, formerly absent on the front, was added in red felt beneath the “Los Angeles” logo. This jersey is a salesman’s prototype sample, and Gil Hodges is the subject. His number “14” appears on the front and back. “G. Hodges Set 2 1959” is stitched in Dodger blue onto the left front tail. Below the stitching is the “Spalding” manufacturer’s tag. Directly below it is an embroidered tag with washing instructions. These newly designed jerseys were a good omen for the Dodgers; they captured the N.L. pennant and then defeated the White Sox in the World Series. This spectacular jersey, an outstanding piece of baseball history, is virtually pristine. Its authenticity is attested to in a letter of opinion from Richard Russek, president, and T. J. Favilla, vice president, of Grey Flannel.Com Inc. The letter will be sent along with the jersey to the winning bidder.
Winning Bid $1,735.
Lot 2. 1970 Topps High-Grade Near Set - 716 of 720 with Clemente PSA-Graded NM-MT 8. This near set is exceptionally strong, averaging nm to nm-m. Besides #350 Clemente, PSA has graded #712 Nolan Ryan. The card received a grade of NM-MT 8 (oc). Other key cards include: #10 Yastrzemski nm-m, 189 Munson rookie nm, 140 Jackson nm, 150 Killebrew nm-m, 230 B. Robinson nm, 290 Carew nm-m, 300 Seaver nm, 580 Rose nm, 600 Mays nm, 630 Banks nm, 640 Kaline nm+ and 660 Bench nm. The missing cards are #64, 74, 114 and 273. None of these are star cards.
Winning Bid $1,330.
Lot 3. Unusual and Rare Jimmie Foxx Autograph Authenticated by Spence, Keating. In the 1930s, Foxx succeeded Babe Ruth as baseball’s top slugger. During the decade, he hit 415 home runs, leading the A.L. four times, won the RBI title three times and captured three MVP Awards. Besides being a big hitter, Foxx was known as a big drinker. He especially liked Scotch. Under the influence, he was known to sign his name in a variety of ways. In this case, in black fountain pen, he signed “Jimy Foxx” on a 4” x 6” magazine clipping, which has chips around the edges. The signature stands out boldly, as a nm-m 8 to mint 9, against the white area of his Red Sox uniform. The autograph comes with a Letter of Authenticity from James Spence Authentication. Authenticated also by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $1,554.
Lot 4. Superior Autograph of Satchel Paige on an 8” x 10” B&W Photo. Paige wears a St. Louis Browns uniform in this outstanding photo. The signature is bold, grading gem mint 10. Paige was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1971. He passed away in 1982. Authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $446.
Lot 5. Jackie Robinson Signature Outstanding for Matting and Framing. Robinson’s mint 9 to gem mint 10 autograph in black ballpoint is on the back of a Doubleday Field postcard. The Hall of Fame infielder and breaker of baseball’s color barrier wrote “Best wishes” above. The front of the postcard features a color photo of Doubleday Field. In the upper left, it is autographed by Wm. H. Bill Terry, another baseball star enshrined at Cooperstown. Authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $700.
Lot 6. 8” x 10” B&W Photo Signed by Hall of Fame Detroit Outfielder Hank Greenberg. Elected to the Hall of Fame in 1956, Greenberg was one of baseball’s great sluggers. When he retired at the end of the 1947 season, only Lou Gehrig and Sam Crawford matched his lifetime rate of .92 runs batted in per game. He was fifth in career slugging percentage, and his home run total of 331 was the fifth best in major league history. Greenberg spent all but the last year of his 13-season career with Detroit. The photo has several minor, light creases. The signature, personalized to “Gary,” is a gem mint 10 in sharpie. Authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $267.
Lot 8. Willie Mays Autographed 16”x20” B&W Photo of “The Catch.” In Game 1 of the 1954 World Series at the Polo Grounds, Mays made one of the most famous and spectacular defensive plays in baseball history. It became known simply as “the Catch.” With the score tied 2-2 in the eighth inning and two Cleveland players on base, Vic Wertz sent a long fly to deep center field. Sprinting with his back toward home plate, Mays turned at the last second and grabbed the ball over his shoulder more than 440 feet from home. His perfect throw back to the infield allowed only one runner to advance, and neither scored. The photo shows the ball about to land in Mays’ glove. His signature is a large, bold gem mint 10. Authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $204.
Lot 9. Full Ticket for 1948 World Series Game 2 - Cleveland at Boston. Playing at Braves Field, the Indians tied the series with a 4-1 win and then went on to win the World Championship in six games. In this game, Larry Doby became the first African-American playing for the American League to drive in a run in the World Series. The field box ticket appears to be consistent with PSA’s standard for an ex to ex-m grade. It has some wear at the corners and a small, very light surface crease at the right. Full tickets for this World Series are scarce, and this ticket is especially desirable because of the game’s historical significance.
Winning Bid $240.
Lot 10. Rare Full Ticket from 1927’s Tunney vs. Dempsey “Long Count” Title Fight. In the seventh round of their Sept. 22 battle for the heavyweight championship at Soldier Field in Chicago, Jack Dempsey put Gene Tunney onto the canvas. Later, Dempsey contended that Tunney was given 14 to 15 seconds to recover. Recover Tunney did, and he won a decision over Dempsey. The fight was witnessed by 150,000 fans. The holder of the ticket for Section 37, Row 9, Seat 9, however, never showed up. The ticket cost $25, a considerable sum in 1927. Head shots of both Tunney and Dempsey are featured near the center of the back of the ticket, which is a nice vg-ex.
Winning Bid $429.
Lot 11. Jack Nicklaus Signature on a Royal Bank of Scotland Five Pound Sterling Note. The U.S. has Washington, Lincoln, Hamilton, Jackson, Grant and others on currency. The Scots, who invented golf, have Jack Nicklaus, the greatest golfer pre-Tiger Woods, featured on the back of a 5 Pound Sterling Note from the Royal Bank of Scotland. Nicklaus signed atop his image, which shows him smiling and holding a trophy. His bold signature in black sharpie is a 10. AT CURRENT EXCHANGE RATES, THE FACE VALUE OF THIS NOTE IS $10. Autograph authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $100.
Lot 12. Uncommon Pro Football HoF Class of 1992 Envelope Signed by All 4 Inductees. Fifteen years after their Hall of Fame induction, you’d think that more of these envelopes would have surfaced signed by Lem Barney, John Mackey, Al Davis and John Riggins. This is the only one we have seen, however. Maybe the scarcity has to do with the fact that Davis and Riggins are both comparatively reluctant signers. The envelope carries a Jan. 25, 1992 postmark from the Hall of Fame in Canton. Davis’ signature is a 9. The others are 10s. Barney intercepted 56 passes as a cornerback for Detroit 1967-77. Riggins gained more than 11,000 yards at running back for the Jets 1971-75 and Redskins 1976-79 and 1981-85, while Mackey was the prototypical tight end for Baltimore 1963-71, and finishing with the Chargers in 1972. Davis was instrumental in the success of both the Raiders and the AFL. A very special memento of the 1992 Hall of Fame induction authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $368.
Lot 13. Superb Fountain Pen Autograph of 1941 Heisman Trophy Winner Bruce Smith. . Among Heisman winners, Smith’s signature is one of the more elusive. This example is an outstanding return address on a 3” x 1” section of lined paper. In blue fountain pen, Smith neatly wrote “Bruce Smith, Cox., Bldg. 1111, Camp Perry, Great Lakes, Ill.” The signature is bold, and excellent for matting and display. When it was written, Smith was a coxswain, a junior officer, at the U.S. Navy’s Great Lakes, Ill., Station. He had received the Heisman Trophy in New York on Dec, 9, 1941, two days after the attack on Pearl Harbor. In 1942, he enlisted in the Navy as a pilot. He spent three years in the Navy, some of it playing football, primarily at Great Lakes and at the St. Mary’s Flight School in California. He won Armed Forces Player of the Year Honors. After the war, he played professionally for three years with the Packers and Rams. Smith was awarded the Heisman for leading the Minnesota Gophers to consecutive 8-0 seasons and national championships in 1940 and 1941. A halfback, he was a master at breaking free for long-runs. In 1942, Columbia Pictures announced that his football career would be featured in a 1942 film entitled “Smith of Minnesota.” He played himself in the film. Smith apparently is the only Heisman winner ever nominated for sainthood, a result of his work with cancer patients after he was diagnosed with the disease himself. He succumbed in 1967. Great example of his World War II signature authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $783.
Lot 14. CORRECTED DESCRIPTION: Football Signed by 41 Members of the 1974 Champion Steelers Including All 10 Hall of Fame Players - Bradshaw, Etc. The signatures of 49 Pittsburgh Steelers are on an Official Wilson NFL football. They are actual signatures, not facsimiles. The ball is NOT signed by Art Rooney, as the original description stated. It is signed by five members of the 1973 team who did not make the 1974 roster, 41 members of the 1974 Championship team and three members of the 1975 Championship team. The 1974 team started the Steelers’ dominance of pro football in the 1970s. They brought owner Art Rooney and the Steel City their first NFL title by defeating Minnesota, 16-6, in Super Bowl IX. Members of the 1973 team who signed are John Dockery, Craig Hanneman, Glen Ray Hines, Dennis Meyer and Barry Pearson. The 41 signers from 1974 are Jim Allen, Rocky Bleier, Ed Bradley, TERRY BRADSHAW, MEL BLOUNT, Larry Brown, Jim Clack (deceased), Glen Edwards, Frenchy Fuqua, Steve Furness (deceased), Reggie Garrett, Roy Gerela, Joe Gilliam (deceased), Gordon Gravelle, JOE GREENE, L. C. Greenwood, Randy Grossman, JACK HAM, Terry Hanratty, FRANCO HARRIS, Reggie Harrison, Ernie Holmes, Marv Kellum, Jon Kolb, JACK LAMBERT, Frank Lewis, RAY MANSFIELD (deceased), Gerry Mullins, Preston Pearson, Dave Reavis, Andy Russell, Donnie Shell, Ron Shanklin, JOHN STALLWORTH, LYNN SWANN, J. T. Thomas, Loren Toews, Mike Wagner, Bobby Walden, Dwight White and MIKE WEBSTER (deceased). The members of the 1975 Championship team who signed are John Banaszak, Dave Brown (deceased) and Mike Collier. The ball is nm with “1973-74” written on it. All of the signatures are in black sharpie on the ball’s brown dimpled background. They grade Nm 7 to Gem Mint 10 and average Nm-m 8. Outstanding memento of the Steelers’ glory years! Authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $1,242.
Lot 15. Nike Michigan Football Signed by President Gerald R. Ford. The 40th President of the United States was also the starting center and a linebacker for the 1934 University of Michigan football team. His teammates named him the squad’s most valuable player, and he was offered a pro contract by the Green Bay Packers. Ford has signed the ball boldly in silver sharpie above the Michigan logo. The signature is a 10. Authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $225.
