December Card & Memorabilia Auction Dec 9 - 18/19
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 12/18/2022
No one revolutionized the way the position of catcher was played more than Johnny Bench. His deft handling of pitchers helped lead the Cincinnati Reds to back-to-back World Championships and numerous National League West titles. This stunning Hillerich & Bradsby B278C bat dates to the very start of the Big Red Machines dominance of the NL, 1973-1974. This bat displays excellent game use with a crack in the back barrel that has been repaired, along with a small chip. There are ball marks, stitch impressions and black ink transfers present on the barrel, along with red and green bat rack streaks. There is a moderate coating of pine tar on the handle and the bat’s model number “B278C” is stamped on the knob. Bench’s number “5” is handwritten on the knob and top barrel in black marker and a piece of tape (from the Reds Gift Shop” has been applied to the barrel with the inscription “Cracked by John Bench in Montreal 8-25-74”. Please note that PSA/DNA has determined “The tape on the barrel identifies the date the bat was originally acquired and includes brief details as to when the bat was used. The tape was applied by the original owner and not the Cincinnati Reds Gift Shop, which also applied tape to the barrels of bats that were used by the players.” This bat comes with a LOA from PSA/DNA (1B25251) for the game use and has been given a high grade of GU 8.5.