Lot 31. 7 Single-Signed Baseballs – Carlton, Spahn, Roberts, Branca, Fidrych, Garciaparra and McKeon. Each signature but Garciaparra's is on the sweet spot of an Official N.L. or MLB baseball that is mint or better. Steve Carlton, A. Bartlett Giamatti ball, gem mint 10 autograph. Carlton was a four-time Cy Young Award recipient who won 329 games, including at least 20 games in six seasons. Selected for the All-Star Game 10 times, he was elected to the Hall of Fame, the first year he was eligible, by almost 96 percent of the voters. Robin Roberts, OML Bud Selig ball, gem mint 10 signature, added “Hall of Fame 1976.” Roberts was one of the top pitchers of the first half of the 1950s, making the N.L. All-Star team five times and leading both leagues in wins four times and in strikeouts twice. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1976. Roberts died in 2010. Warren Spahn, mint 9 to gem mint 10 on a William White ball. Other than Babe Ruth, Spahn was the highest-rated left-handed pitcher in “Baseball’s Greatest Players” as selected by “The Sporting News” in 1999. Spahn was a 17-time All-Star with the Boston or Milwaukee Braves and the Cy Young Award winner in 1957. He led the N.L. in wins eight times, in ERA three times and in strikeouts four times. Despite losing three seasons to World War II, he won 363 games, the most career wins among left-handers. Only five right-handers won more games. He was enshrined at Cooperstown in 1973, his first year of eligibility. Spahn died in 2003. Ralph Branca, Leonard Coleman ball, gem mint 10. Widely known for delivering the pitch in a 1951 Dodgers-Giants playoff game that New York’s Bobby Thompson turned into the “Shot Heard ‘Round the World,” Branca was a three-time All-Star for Brooklyn. He died in 2016. Mark Fidrych, Selig ball, nm-m 8, added “R.O.Y. 76 ‘The Bird’.” Rookie of the Year in 1976, Fidrych pitched for the Tigers through 1980 and was a two-time All-Star. He died in 2009. Nomar Garciaparra, nm-m 8 to mint 9 autograph on the north panel of an nm-m 8 to mint 9 Selig ball. He was a six-time All-Star and .313 career hitter. Jack McKeon, Selig ball, gem mint 10. McKeon played catcher briefly in the minors, where he launched his managing career. He made it to the Majors in 1973 as manager of the Kansas City Royals, led the Florida Marlins to the World Championship in 2001 and was the N.L. Manager of the Year in 1999 and 2003. Winning Bid $113.
