No one had ever seen anything quite like Ted Kluszewski when he debuted for the Cincinnati Reds in 1947. In a game filled with big men, “Big Klu” was the biggest. The first thing he did upon being issued a Reds jersey was to cut the sleeves off – they constricted his massive biceps. There’s a great story about Giants manager Leo Durocher, who was asked by a sportswriter to name the five strongest players in the league. Durocher named them, to which the writer inquired why Ted Kluszewski wasn’t on the list. Durocher replied incredulously: "Kluszewski? I'm talking about human beings!"

The sleeveless Kluszewski used this club during the 1949 season, during which he hit .309 with 69 RBIs. Klu’s 1949 Hillerich & Bradsby R43 model bat shows outstanding game use with a crack in the handle that has been repaired with nails. There are ball marks visible on the barrel along with cleat imprints and bat rack paint streaks. There are several indentations on the barrel and the handle has been taped to enhance the grip with a coat of pine tar applied. A real gamer that looks every inch like it was once the war club wielded by the most imposing man in the game. This bat comes with a LOA from PSA/DNA (1B13742) and has been graded a solid GU 8 for the game use.

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