Opening Day Auction 2014
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 4/26/2014
In the 1920s, Spalding’s Babe Ruth “Home Run Special” baseball was the most desirable ball available. They were manufactured to the exact standards as official major-league balls, complete down to the red-and-blue stitching, indicating this ball is an earlier vintage, as later models were completed only with red stitching. These balls were also special as they included the endorsement the King of them all – Babe Ruth. These balls carried the Babe Ruth printed signature, a huge treat for the average fan that never had the opportunity to obtain the real McCoy. However, the original owner of this ball had that opportunity, and it likely didn’t take much for this kid to get the Babe to pen his name on this sphere. And the Babe handsomely obliged as this “Babe Ruth” signature is perfectly straight across the sweet spot, evenly sized letters and bold where it needed to be. The ball itself has legible stampings which have lighted over time, and contains a few scrapes, none which materially affect the fountain pen signature. The quality of the signature is a solid (“7/10”), represents a quality Ruth signature on his own “Home Run Special” baseball, and was likely attained during the peak of his illustrious career. Full LOA from PSA/DNA, cert number B21946, and at a time when both Steve Grad and James Spence were both authenticating signatures at the company.