Winter Auction 2015 closing February 7
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 2/8/2015
By the summer of 1965 Daniel Noe had worked his way up from Yankee Stadium ball boy to visiting team batboy, then, after a short stint with the cross-town Mets he reached the pinnacle of all non-playing baseball jobs - Yankees batboy. Knowing he would soon be leaving this coveted post to join the 101st Airborne Division, Noe wanted a souvenir to give to his younger brother, a huge fan of Mickey Mantle. Before the July 27-29 home stand against Detroit, Noe asked the Mick who obligingly told the batboy he would give him the next bat he broke. Though he does not now recall which of the three Tigers games the bat was used in, this is the bat Mantle gave to Noe who in turn gifted to his little brother. This Hillerich & Bradsby model M110 is made to Mantle's specs of 32oz (now 31.1oz with age) and 36" length. During the time period this stamping was used by H&B, Mantle received only one shipment of 9 bats that match these specifications: June 21, 1965. The bat exhibits heavy game use and the deep stitch marks and checking shows that The Mick got some good cuts with this piece of lumber! The handle has been cracked. A light coat of pine tar is found in the middle of the handle, a trait found on game used Mantle bats. There are bat rack paint streaks visible on the barrel, bringing to mind such magical, long gone places as Yankee Stadium, Briggs Stadium, Comiskey Park and Memorial Stadium. "Mickey Mantle" is stamped into the bat's barrel, underscored with a cleat impression. MEARS has thoroughly examined this Cooperstown-worthy bat and graded it A9.5. Letter of Authenticity 1B05374 from PSA/DNA. Letter of Provenance from Daniel Noe.