Lot 21. Tommy John 1978 Los Angeles Dodgers Game-Used Jersey, Cap and Other Equipment. From John’s final season in LA, this Goodman & Sons size 44 jersey shows game use, including stains on the front. It is without tags. John’s No. 25 is on the front, and his name and number on the back. The other equipment was used during John’s tenure with the Dodgers, although not necessarily in 1978. John autographed the damaged bill of a game-used cap; the signature is nm-m 8. He also signed a pair of Puma shoes; both autographs are 9s. A lighter-weight size 44 jacket from Goodman & Sons has John’s name on the back; nm. There also are a blue cloth Dodgers belt, three undershirts with Dodger-blue sleeves and a pair of Goodman size 40 pants, which are not game-used. A letter “From the Desk of Tommy John” accompanies this group. John will sign the jersey if requested.
Winning Bid $783.
Lot 22. Tommy John’s 1975 Los Angeles Dodgers Contract. Covering the season following his eponymous surgery, this contract raises the possibility of John’s retirement. As a result of the surgery, John was not able to play in 1975. Instead he devoted himself to an arduous and often painful rehabilitation program that culminated in his return to the mound in Sept. 1975, a year after the surgery. He pitched three hitless innings in the Arizona Instructional League in Mesa. The Dodgers did offer John a contract for the 1975 season. Dated June 16, it makes use of the basic major league contract form. After filling in the blanks using a typewriter, the Dodgers kept the original, and John received a copy with the blanks completed in carbon. The contract has a clause that provides certain payments to John following “his permanent retirement from major league baseball.” THE SIGNATURES ON THE CONTRACT ARE ORIGINAL. It is signed by John using his full name, Thomas Edward John, Jr.; Dodgers vice president Al Campanis, and N.L. president C S (Chub) Feeney. The contract is accompanied by an earlier draft and copy of it without the retirement clause – for a total of three contracts. Only Campanis signed the drafts. Kevin Keating authenticated the signatures, which are mint 9.
Winning Bid $134.
Lot 23. Tommy John’s 1977 Los Angeles Dodgers Contract. Both Al Campanis, the Dodgers’ vice president, and John have signed his copy of the contract twice. In both places, John signed as Thomas E. John, Jr. Dated March 7, 1977, the contract is signed also by N.L. president C S (Chub) Feeney. Kevin Keating authenticated the signatures, which are mint 9.
Winning Bid $134.
Lot 24. Tommy John’s 1977-78 Los Angeles Dodgers Contract. Dated Sept. 7, 1977, this contract is a reminder of how major league baseball salaries have changed. While on his way to a 20-7 season with a 2.78 ERA and a second-place finish in the N.L. Cy Young Award voting, John signed a modified contract paying him $170,000 for the 1977 season, an increase from $100,000 in the original contract signed in March. This contract also pays him $190,000 for 1978. In 2012 dollars, John’s $190,000 for 1978 is equivalent to about $720,000. For a 20-game winner, $720,000?!! This contract includes three Thomas E. John, Jr. and three Al Campanis signatures. Campanis was the Dodgers’ vice president. Two of their autographs are on the contract, and one is on a “special covenant” added to the contract. The contract itself is signed also by N.L. president C S (Chub) Feeney. Kevin Keating authenticated the signatures, which are mint 9. The contract is accompanied by a photocopy of a rider to the contract.
Winning Bid $134.
Lot 25. Tommy John’s 1982-83 New York Yankees Contract Signed by George Steinbrenner. Signatures of Yankees executive vice president Cedric Tallis are also present. John played only part of the 1982 seasons with the Yankees. In August, he was traded to the California Angels. John, as Thomas E. John, Jr., and Steinbrenner signed the contract twice. Lee MacPhail also signed. John and Steinbrenner’s signatures are also at the end of five pages of “special covenants” to the contract. Tallis signed each of two draft contracts twice (four signatures). The signatures are mint 9. Authentication by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $354.
Lot 26. Tommy John’s 1985 Oakland A’s Contract and Two Related Minor League Contracts. John signed a contract with the Athletics on July 5, less than a month after his release by the California Angles. He also signed two minor league contracts, with Modesto on July 12 and Madison on July 21, to support his return to major league pitching form. He had last pitched for the Angels on June 5. He returned to the mound, for Oakland, on July 26. The A’s contract is signed twice by John, as Thomas E. John Jr., and once by R L (Sandy) Alderson, the A’s general manager, and Robert Fishel, A.L. executive vice president, for Bobby Brown. Alderson is now GM of the New York Mets. Fishel died in 1988. John signed the minor league contracts, and so did Walter J. Jocketty, who was in charge of the A’s minor league operations. He now is general manager of the Cincinnati Reds. The signatures are mint 9. Authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $148.
Lot 27. Tommy John’s 1986 New York Yankees Contract. On May 2, John signed a contract with the Yankees as a free agent. His signature, as Thomas E. John Jr., is on the contract twice, along with Woody Woodward’s (twice) and Robert Fishel (once) for A.L. president Bobby Brown. Fishel, who died in 1988, was the league’s executive vice president. Woodward held the same title with the Yankees. Kevin Keating authenticated the signatures, which are mint 9. Woodward, as “Woody,” also signed a May 20 transmittal letter sending John his copy of the contract.
Winning Bid $134.
Lot 28. Tommy John’s 1987 New York Yankees Contract. John inked a contract for the 1987 season for $300,000. That’s the equivalent of about $615,000 in 2012 dollars, or about 30 percent more than the current major league MINIMUM salary. John, as Thomas E. John Jr., and Woody Woodward, the Yankees’ general manager, each signed the contract twice. They and Robert E. Quinn also put their signatures to a list of “special covenants.” Quinn signed as a witness; he succeeded Woodard as GM. Robert Fishel, the A.L. executive vice president, signed for Bobby Brown, the league president. The signatures are mint 9. Authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $148.
Lot 29. Tommy John’s 1988 New York Yankees Contract. The contract and addendum have a total of three autographs by John, as Thomas E. John Jr., and Yankees vice president Robert E. Quinn. Robert Fishel, the A.L. executive vice president, signed the contract for Bobby Brown, the league president. As a witness, Lou Piniella also signed the addendum, as well as a letter transmitting to John “Billy Martin’s 1988 New York Yankees’ Rules & Regulations for both Spring Training and the Regular Season.” A copy of the rules is included. As “Bob,” Quinn signed a letter transmitting the contract to John. Mint 9 signatures, with authentication by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $163.
Lot 30. Tommy John’s Final Major League Contract and 1989 Release Form and Notices. In a game against the Kansas City Royals, John recorded his 288th and final major league victory on April 27. One month and three days later, the Yankees notified him of his unconditional release. John signed his contract for the season, as Thomas E. John Jr., on March 29. The contract is signed also by Robert E. Quinn, the Yankees’ general manager, and Robert W. Brown, the A.L. president. Quinn also signed the “Notice to Player of Release or Transfer” and two copies of a letter notifying John that he had been placed on irrevocable waivers. The autographs are mint 9. There also is a June 2 Western Union Mailgram notifying John that he contract had not been claimed by another club. Autographs authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $163.
Lot 111. Tommy John and Frank Jobe Signatures on a Team-Signed 1977 World Series Cap. Jobe invented “Tommy John Surgery,” which is known among surgeons as ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction. It involves replacing a ligament in the elbow with a tendon from another part of the body. In 1974, John became the first professional athlete to undergo the surgery successfully. When Dr. Jobe operated on John, he estimated the chance of success at 1 in 100. Today, the complete recovery rate is at least 85 percent. After the surgery, John required 18 months of rehabilitation. He returned to the majors in 1976 and pitched for another 13 seasons. He was 46 when he retired in 1989 as one of the most successful left-handed pitchers in major league baseball history. Dr. Jobe joined John and more than 25 other Dodgers in signing an adult-sized “1977 World Series” plastic cap that has an outline of the Western Hemisphere on the front. The other signers include Jim Gilliam, M (Manny) Mota, Bill Russell, Burt Hooton, Mark Cresse, Dave Lopes, Steve Garvey, Rick Monday, Jerry Grote, Steve Yeager, Vic Davalillo, Rafael Landestoy, Tom Lasorda, Doug Rau, Ed Goodson, Lee Lacy, Al Campanis, Charlie Hough, Preston Gomez, Red Adams, Monty Basgall, Ron Cey, Dusty Baker, Don Sutton, Elias Sosa and several others. The strength of these autographs varies. Jobe’s signature is one of the strongest, nm-m 8 to mint 9, and John’s is large and nm-m 8. The others range from vg-ex 4 to nm-m 8 and average ex-m 6. The second “t” in Sutton’s autograph cannot be seen. John’s collection contained only one other item signed by him and Jobe.
Winning Bid $100.
Lot 112. Tommy John Signed 1953 Little League Ball – His Earliest from Organized Baseball. The nine-year-old wrote “Tommy” on the west panel of the nm+ Official Little League ball, which has the facsimile signature of Little League founder Carl E. Stoltz. John shares the panel with his father, T. E. John, the team’s coach, and three others. A total of 15 signatures are on the ball, which is dated 8/26/53. The signatures are generally nm-m 8. Kevin Keating authenticated Tommy’s signature, and Tommy has provided a letter of authenticity. A utility company lineman, Mr. John was very influential in Tommy’s life and baseball career. Tommy dedicated his book, “T.J.: My 26 Years in Baseball,” to “my dad, who provided me with the motivation to succeed in baseball.” A unique collectible from an important MLB figure.
Winning Bid $75.
Lot 113. Tommy John Signed Photo with Thurman Munson and a Signed Yankees Cap. The 1979 photo, which is 6.75” x 7.25” on a 9.75” x 10” plaque, captures the two stars shaking hands after the Yankees defeated an A.L. opponent. John placed a large, bold gem mint 10 autograph on the photo. He also signed a new Yankees cap. The signature on the bill is nm-m 8. Authenticated by Kevin Keating.
Winning Bid $68.
Lot 114. 45 Copies – 35 Signed – of Tommy John’s Autobiography – “T.J.: My 26 Years in Baseball.” Ten autographed copies of the hardback edition, 25 signed copies of the paperback and 10 unsigned hardbacks. All are first editions, with the 1991 hardbacks nm-m and the 1992 softcover books ex-m to nm with occasional shelf wear. The autographed hardbacks are from a limited signing of 59 books, and the paperbacks, from a limited signing of 87. The autographs, authenticated by Kevin Keating, are mint 9 and gem mint 10.
Winning Bid $110.
Lot 115. One Dozen Tommy John Bobble Doubles 7.25” Bobbing Heads. These ceramic bobble heads by Alexander Global Promotions have John wearing a Yankees uniform. Sponsored by Perry and Barron, an orthopedics and sports medicine group, they are complete with a scar on John’s left arm! All 12 are mint in their original boxes. They come with 12 “Property of” labels signed by John.
Winning Bid $102.
