As the first Puerto Rican-born superstar, Roberto Clemente opened the door and set the bar for all the Latino players who followed in his footsteps. In his 18 seasons with the Pirates, Clemente won 12 Gold Glove Awards, four batting titles, a NL MVP Award and was selected to appear in 15 All-Star Games. He played the outfield with such effortless skill that those who were fortunate enough to have seen him in person still rank him as the best outfielder of the 1960’s and possibly of all-time. His bat helped lead the Pirates to two World Championships and his selfless volunteer work made him a role model off the field. Due to his tragic death in 1973, any signed Clemente piece is highly sought after, but a single-signed ball from this tragic hero is a true treasure.

“The Great One” has signed the Wilson Pittsburgh Pirates souvenir ball in black ballpoint pen with a “Carinosamente” salutation – meaning “with Affectionate Greetings.”. The ball shows some light spotty toning from age and slight scuffing. The area of the side panel that Clemente signed has some toning but the signature remains very legible on the cream-colored leather. A visually pleasing example of a Clemente single-signed ball on a Pirates-branded ball. The ball comes with a LOA from JSA (Z86342) for the signature.

Auction Notepad