The late Don Drysdale was a top-flight pitcher at Van Nuys High School near Los Angeles who was drafted straight out of high school by the then-Brooklyn Dodgers. The 6’ 5” right-hander was selected in 1954 as a 17-year-old graduating senior with the Van Nuys Wolves. After playing in the minors with both the Bakersfield Indians (1954) and the AAA Montreal Royals (1955), Drysdale was brought up to the big league ball club in 1956. After going 19-16 with 153 K’s to his credit in the minors, Drysdale made it to Brooklyn.
This lot features Drysdale’s 1956 Brooklyn Dodgers game-worn home uniform from his rookie season. For the year, “Big D” played in 26 games and started on the mound for “Dem Bums” in 12 of them, going 5-5 and striking out 55 batters. The Dodgers won the National League pennant that season with a 93-61 record but fell to the vaunted New York Yankees in the World Series, four games to three. It was a promising start to a Hall of Fame career.
The classic style flannel jersey is instantly recognizable with "Dodgers" rising across the chest in blue felt script, and the long-since-retired number "53" applied below in red. Those digits reappear on reverse in blue. Lower left front tail is tagged "SPALDING [size] 42" above "Drysdale" embroidered directly into the jersey body in blue script. Inside tail holds a "Set 1 1956" flap tag anchored at right seam of a washing instructions label. The jersey’s seven original white/beige buttons remain intact.
The matching Dodgers flannel pants are tagged "Spalding" at interior waistband with a "Set 1 1956" flap below and a washing instructions label to the left. Just below, applied to a white felt swatch, is a blue embroidered "Drysdale 56" nameplate. To the immediate right of the Spalding manufacturer’s tag is a size “36” tag with an additional “Size 35” tag sewn directly into the waistband. Four original white buttons sewn into the fly area remain intact, as do the single buttons sewn into both back pockets.
Both the jersey and pants exhibit light soiling, with some minor discoloration appearing on the rear of the pants. Without question this among the elite Ebbets Field worn artifacts ever to emerge in the marketplace and an epic commemoration of the rookie season of one of baseball’s most intimidating pitchers ever!
Includes LOA from the Drysdale Family.