Out of all the modern-era Hall of Famers, Frank Robinson has proved to be the most elusive for collectors. Even though Robinson was a player in the majors for over 20 years and then a manager and front office executive for 40 more years – everything from autographs to game used pieces from him are hard to come by. When it comes to game used bats, the scarcity only compounds, and those from the early part of his career are almost impossible to come by. In fact, according to PSA/DNA, there are only seven game used bats attributed to Robinson’s use in the 1950’s – and that is why this 1957 bat is so unique. Frank Robinson burst into the major leagues with a rookie season for the ages - 38 home runs, 27 doubles and a league leading 122 runs scored.

Robinson was voted 1956’s Rookie of the Year and expectations were high for 1957. In his sophomore season, the Reds outfielder raised his batting average 32 points to .322 and slugged 29 homers. At mid-point through the year the fans voted Robinson to be the National League All-Star Team’s starting left fielder. In the game, Robinson had one hit in two plate appearances, a single in the bottom of the 5th off Baltimore's Billy Loes. 1957 would be the first of 14 All-Star appearances for Robinson. As a perk of being named to the All-Star team, Robinson was presented with two custom made bats for use in the Midsummer Classic.

This Hillerich & Bradsby K55 model bat used by Robinson in 1957 is un-cracked and shows excellent use. There is slight checking from repeated ball contact on the back barrel and several ball marks are found on the left barrel. Cleat marks are visible on the front barrel and a few green bat rack paint streaks are present. There is some water damage to the finish visible on the barrel end and the model number “K55” is stamped into the knob. It must be noted that this bat is not only one of only two made for Robinson in 1957, it is the only All-Star bat of his from the 1950’s that is in existence today. That uniqueness and scarcity is further augmented by the presence of Frank Robinson’s signature on the barrel. Robinson was a reluctant signer throughout his life and to have his signature on an All-Star gamer of his is quite extraordinary. The bat comes with a LOA from PSA/DNA (1B16918) for the game use and has been graded a solid GU 8.5, plus a LOA from Steve Grad of Beckett Authentication (A56156) for the signature.

Auction Notepad