1971 Thurman Munson Game Used New York Yankees Home Jersey - Earliest Known-(MEARS Guaranteed)

This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 5/8/2016

It’s fitting that Thurman Munson’s 11-year career with the New York Yankees began when major league teams were still wearing flannel uniforms. A throwback-type player Munson was a fiery competitor and born leader in the long lineage of Yankees legends. One of only 11 officially recognized Yankees team captains and the first since Lou Gehrig in the 1930s, Munson seems more about baseball’s black and white past than the Technicolor 1970s that spanned most of his playing days from 1969-1979. While the tragic end to Munson’s brief career most likely prevented him from being elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame, he is considered nothing less than a god to Yankees fans who hold him in equally high esteem among the pantheon of legends honored in Yankee Stadium’s monument park. Munson wore this flannel pinstriped Yankees jersey in 1971 just two years before the team began wearing modern polyester double-knit uniforms in 1973. It is one of only two flannel Munson jerseys to be offered for auction and the earliest flannel Munson jersey known to exist. Also, 1971 was Munson's first All-Star appearance. A complete 1972 Munson uniform fetched $102,266 in 2012. A period piece exemplary of the simpler times in which the game was played, during its initial usage period the jersey was actually re-assigned to the Yankees minor league affiliate in Oneonta where Munson’s number 15 and the Yankees interlocking NY logo were removed and replaced with number 55 on the back and an “O” for Oneonta on the front. Munson’s name remained chain stitched onto a strip tag on the interior collar and the original Wilson size-42 manufacturer’s label and “1971” chain stitching are still on the left front tail. The jersey has since been restored with Munson’s number 15 being added to the back and a Yankees interlocking NY logo added onto the front left breast. Through it all, the jersey reveals moderate to heavy use with some black smudge stains on the lower front left side and some assorted spots on the back. The jersey is guaranteed to pass a MEARS authentication. This 45-year-old vintage button-down flannel jersey comes with a LOA from Dave Bushing and photos of Munson wearing the jersey in 1971.