Baseball’s Iron Man Cal Ripken, Jr. played his final MLB season in 2001, ending a career that saw him collected over 3,000 hits and 431 home runs. Ripken, baseball’s all-time leader in consecutive games started, played in his 19th All-Star Game in 2001, hitting a home run off Chan Ho Park and earning All-Star Game MVP honors. In 2007, Ripken was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame on his first ballot, collecting 98.5% of the vote. Presented here is a Louisville Slugger P72 model bat that comes directly from the personal collection of Cal Ripken, Jr. and was used for the final time during the August 29th, 2001 game against the Oakland A’s at Camden Yards in Baltimore. Ripken, in the bottom of the 2nd inning, grounded into a double play off of Oakland pitcher Tim Hudson. Ripken’s bat displays outstanding game use with a slight crack on the handle that occurred during his groundout. There are ball marks and stitch impressions present on the barrel. The handle has a coating of pine tar and Ripken has applied a piece of athletic tape that wraps around the near end of the barrel that has handwritten in black marker “Broken 1st AB 8-29-01 vs Hudson”. This bat comes with a signed LOA from Cal Ripken, Jr., along with a LOA from PSA/DNA (1B24152) for the game use and has been given the highest possible grade of GU 10.

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