Goldin Elite Auction Closing August 22 10PM Est
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 8/23/2020
It’s ironic that Hall of Fame manger Casey Stengel played the first part of his playing career with the Brooklyn Dodgers because as a manager, Stengel’s powerhouse New York Yankees continually thwarted the great 1940’s and 1950’s Dodgers’ teams in the World Series – winning four of the five World Series against his former club. As legendary a manager, Stengel was a solid player, playing 14 seasons with the Dodgers, Pittsburgh Pirates, Philadelphia Phillies, New York Giants and Boston Braves where he finished his career with a respectable .284 average and led the National League in on base percentage (.404) in 1914.
Offered here is a Spalding pre model bat used by Casey Stengel circa 1912-1918. This bat is the only Casey Stengel game used bat from his playing days that has been authenticated by PSA/DNA and it displays outstanding game use and is un-cracked. There are ball marks and surface cracks from the drying of the wood present on the front barrel. “SPALDING” is stamped on the middle barrel, while “STENGEL” is stamped on the upper barrel and “CS” is lightly stamped on the knob. The bat weighs in at a hefty 41.7 ounces and is 35 inches long. Spalding bats were prevalent during this era, with prominent players such as Sam Crawford, Frank Chance, Ty Cobb, Wee Willie Keeler, Larry Doyle, Fred Clark and others using this brand.
According to the experts at PSA/DNA, the general labeling period of his bat is from 1912 to 1925, but was narrowed due to the weight as compared to other known Stengel bats from his playing career. The 41 ounces would be more consistent with a bat Stengel would use during the slap hitting Deadball Era compared to bats used by him post 1920. Only two other bats appear on Stengel’s ordering history with the offered bat here being one of them, while the other was a 35-ounce bat dating to 1925-28. Stengel’s last season in the Majors as a player was in 1925 with the Boston Braves, but continued to play minor league ball up until 1931. This comes with a LOA from PSA/DNA (1B19313) for the game use and has been graded a near-perfect GU 9.