This one-of-a-kind collection of five game used ball caps represents the entire professional career arc of Jim Bouton. The first cap represents Bouton’s early years as the ace of the Yankees pitching staff. This cap is circa 1963, the season he won 21 games and started his first World Series game. The dark navy McAuliffe cap has the famed Yankees “NY” embroidered on the front. The cap shows great game use with some loose stitching on the brim and the expected turf and perspiration stains. The button is still attached and there are no rips or tears. The inside has the size “7” stamping on the leather sweatband along with the intact McAuliffe label. The cardboard stiffener in the brim has cracked with age and Bouton’s number “56” has been hand written on the green fabric.
The next cap is the famous 1969 Seattle Pilots cap. This is the most unique cap ever donned by a Major League team. In addition to the traditional block letter gold “S”, the front has the gold bar representing a nautical chinstrap and the brim carries the gold “scrambled eggs” motif. The cap has a cloth sweatband with the New Era label intact. The size on a hang tag has worn away but the cap appears to be in the range of a size 7. Bouton’s number “56” has been hand written on the green fabric in black marker. The brim remains straight and un-cracked. The cap exhibits light game use and the colors remain very bright, making this a choice example of one of the most collectible caps in baseball history.
The navy 1969 Houston Astros cap has the orange star and white “H” on its front. The cardboard of the cap’s visor remains stiff with just a slight crack. The leather sweatband has the New Era label intact with a size “7” hang tag affixed. Bouton’s number “56” is hand written on the green fabric in black marker. The cap exhibits medium wear with some light turf staining and perspiration marks.
Bouton’s Savannah Braves cap was worn during his hard-fought comeback in 1978. The royal blue cap has a white front panel with a red embroidered “S” logo. The fabric sweatband has New era label intact with a worn size “7” hand tag. “BOUTON” is hand lettered on the brim’s underside in black marker. The cap exhibits heavy game use with many turf and perspiration stains through out. The button has rusted where it is affixed inside the crown. Looks every inch like the cap a ballplayer wore making the long climb back to “The Show”.
The last cap in this collection is the one in which Jim Bouton reached his final goal of returning to the majors at age 39 in 1978. The royal blue cap has a white front panel with a red, white and blue embroidered “a”. The cloth sweatband has the New Era label and a size “7” hang tag affixed. Bouton’s number “56” has been hand written in black marker on the grey fabric of the brim’s underside. The brim is straight and the cardboard stiffener un-broken. The cap shows medium wear with some turf and perspiration stains throughout. The white front crown has toning from age and the blue cloth has faded. The underside has some amber staining on the brim, sweatband and interior crown.
LOA from Jim Bouton.