This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 1/21/2017
Back in 1934 when big league teams still barnstormed their way back north after spring training, the Yankees stopped in Nashville to play their farm team. A young fan traveled 40 miles from his home in Kentucky to see his beloved Yankees play. 1934 was Ruth’s final season with New York and the last time he would appear in Nashville. The young fan slipped the bat boy this Reach Official League ball and a dollar (a fortune in those days!) to get it autographed. When the ball was returned it turned out to be a well-spent buck. Right on the sweet spot was a majestic “Babe Ruth”, joined by fellow Hall of Famers Lou Gehrig and Earle Combs. Two years later the owner traveled north to Detroit to see the Yankees play and took this ball with him. Another dollar to the bat boy brought the signatures of Tigers star Hank Greenberg and Yankees Lefty Gomez, Bill Dickey, Red Ruffing, Tony Lazzeri, Charlie Keller, Joe Gordon and a rookie named Joe DiMaggio. The ball has a light coat of shellac. (The original owner came home from work one night to find his son playing ball in the back yard with his prized ball. He immediately had it shellacked!). The ball maintains a uniformly creamy tone on which the black fountain pen signatures display nicely, averaging around 5/10 in our book, some better than others. A great ball that bridges the gap between two Yankee dynasties.
Full JSA LOA. Full LOA from PSA/DNA.