Auction Item Details
Lot 773
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Lot Number: 773
Description: Outstanding Babe Ruth professional model baseball bat c.1918-20 - a rare and desirable early career example overlapping his time in both Boston and New York (PSA/DNA GU8.5). Louisville Slugger 125 model bat with dash-dot-dash centerbrand measures 36" long and weighs 36.5oz. The "George Babe Ruth" facsimile signature impressed in the barrel is the earliest version employed on Ruth game bats and was in use from mid 1918 through 1922. Available factory records do not record weights of bats shipped to Ruth prior to 1920 however a detailed comparison by PSA/DNA bat expert John Taube involving (18) separate caliper measurements (calculations that were recorded at the time of manufacture) confirms this to be an original "R2" model (referred to by Louisville Slugger as "His #1" and "His Model"). It is further concluded that it falls well within tolerances, with regard to length, weight, and model, of a pre-1920 bat made for and sent to Ruth. Outstanding usage wear is evident throughout with ball, contact, and cleat marks on the hitting surface and a repaired handle crack. Notably, there are ball/contact marks concentrated on the left barrel which is characteristic Ruth trait as was a "label down grip" hitter. An area of the barrel has been lightly planed to accomodate side writing which is no longer visible but suggests that it is possible that Ruth himself returned the bat to Louisville Slugger to be used a template for others. An appealing example dating to the transitionary period of Ruth's career that included a shift from Boston to New York and the pitchers' mound to the outfield. Includes LOAs from PSA/DNA (graded "GU 8.5"), MEARS (graded "A8.5"), and Hunt Auctions: EXEstimated Price Range: ($100,000-$150,000)
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