Winter Auction 2016 Closing January 30th
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 1/31/2016
1989 was a magical year for Rickey Henderson and the Oakland A’s. The A’s won 99 games during the regular season en route to winning the American League West pennant. In the ALCS, the A’s dominated the Toronto Blue Jays four games to one and then went on to sweep their interstate rival Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series to become World Champions.
This bat is special for two reasons. First, Rickey Henderson used this Black Rawlings Model 433B bat during that 1989 ALCS series against Toronto. In that series, Henderson “The Man of Steal” was named the ALCS MVP after he doubled, tripled, hit two home runs (both in Game 4), and knocked in five runs in the series. The bat is 34 inches and 31.1 ounces which PSA has confirmed is consistent with what Henderson ordered through Rawlings in 1989.
According to the PSA/DNA LOA, the bat is un-cracked and shows excellent use. Several ball marks and ball stitch impressions are visible on the right and back barrel. Ball marks include blue ink transfers and white leather scuffs. There is a light coat of pine tar on the upper handle and Rickey's number "24" is hand written in silver on the knob. The model number "433B" and Henderson’s initials "RH" are also stamped into the knob.
The other thing that makes this bat special is the fact that Henderson, along with 26 other members of the 1989 World Champion Oakland A’s, have signed the bat in contrasting gold. Along with Henderson, the other signatures include fellow Hall-of-Famer Dennis Eckersley along with Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, Dave Parker, Dave Henderson and 1989 World Series MVP Dave Stewart.
The bat has been authenticated for game use and was awarded a grade of GU 8 by PSA/DNA and the autographs on the bat come with a full JSA LOA.