August 7, 2014: Sports & Americana Auction
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 8/7/2014
This H&B block letter model S2 Willie Mays bat displays heavy use including ball and stitch marks, green and black rack marks and cleat marks on the barrel. Further evidence of use arrives in the form of a light, six-inch crack on the handle and light remnants of pine tar. Mays reached the zenith of his offensive powers in 1965, hitting a career-high 52 home runs. Mays was one of only three players to hit 500 home runs and 3,000 hits during the pre-steroid era of baseball. Long considered one of the greatest all-around players in baseball history, Mays led the NL in home runs on four separate occasions and garnered three MVP awards during his 22-year career. He also appeared in 20 consecutive All-Star Games beginning in 1954 and was selected into the Hall of Fame in 1979, his first year of eligibility. This bat weighs 33 ounces and measures 35 inches long. Mays' uniform number is written on the knob, but has faded and at this point isn't legible. Truly a superior Mays gamer during the prime of his career, it arrives graded A8 by MEARS, with a base grade of "5" and a maximum of "3" points added for heavy game use, and also includes a letter from PSA/DNA (Taube and Malta) attesting to the heavy use and excellent characteristics of a game-used Mays bat.
Willie Mays 1965-68 Game-Used Louisville Slugger Bat (MEARS A8, PSA/DNA Taube LOA)
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