Playing for nine different teams in a quarter-century of big-league baseball, this was Rickey's fourth and final tour with the team that saw his greatest glories, including his historic breaking of the single-season stolen bases mark in 1982. Henderson was also named the AL's Most Valuable Player while a member of the A's in 1990 (Tour No. 2), and he was the leadoff hitter for the 1989 Oakland A's World Champions.
This is a really nice grouping of Oakland A's game-worn items from that 1998 season, all in truly outstanding condition and sporting similarly captivating Rickey Henderson autographs and game-used inscription. The lightweight polyester Size L warmup jacket boasts Opti Sportswear tagging at the collar and is in superb condition; it has Henderson's name hand-printed in green marker on the green, white and gold knitted collar; Henderson has signed neatly in silver Sharpie above a yellow screen-printed "A's" logo that shows a bit of wear. Virtually all elements of the jacket, yellow game socks, cap and "Buck's Belt" green Size 34 belt are in largely as-issued and problem-free condition while showing game use. The cap is a great addition to the group, showing excellent wear on the inside band along with Diamond, New Era Pro Model and Size 7 1/4 tags. Henderson's No. 24 has been block letter hand printed under the brim and he has applied a striking black Sharpie autograph and "1998 Game" inscription that jumps off the bright yellow brim. Cap has the green, gold and white iconic MLB patch at the back; there is only the tiniest smidgen of fabric loss along the cap's edge, roughly the size of a ladybug. The belt is pristine and sans cracking, revealing only the mildest indentation by one hole if you are curious about determining Rickey's waist size at age 39 (Jack Benny would approve) and after two decades or running the bases.
Each item comes with a COA from Man of Steal Sports, Henderson's memorabilia company run by his longtime personal memorabilia manager, Mike Weiss. The lot is part of Bill Albert's Rickey Henderson collection. Albert worked as a staff photographer for the San Jose Giants minor league baseball club (Giants single A affiliate) and did freelance photography for the San Francisco Giants and Oakland A's developing relationships with many Bay Area professional athletes. He acquired most, if not all, of his Rickey items through Mike Weiss and Man of Steal Sports.
Pre-certified by PSA/DNA.