Gehrig Cap Brings In $74k

Originally Posted by Sports Collectors Daily on July 13th.

Over 700 pieces of vintage baseball memorabilia were sold over several hours of bidding in the annual Major League Baseball All-Star auction Tuesday at the America's Center in St. Louis.

Top bid was for a Lou Gehrig Yankees cap that dated from the late 1920 or early 30s. The blue cap, adorned with the famous "NY" interlocking logo sold for $74,750, a price that included a 15% buyer's premium added by Hunt Auctions, which again presided over the sale. The cap was purchased by another dealer, California-based SCP Auctions, on behalf of a private collector of Yankees' memorabilia.

One of only few known to exist, the hat has "7 1/8" and "L.Gehrig" stitched in the band. The original A.G. Spalding Brothers manufacturing label is also intact and features the short-lived hard composite bill found in hats of the 20s and early 30s era.

“This is one of the finest Lou Gehrig game-worn pieces in existence,” said David Kohler, president of SCP Auctions. “We are honored to be a part of the collector’s acquisition.”

SCP also purchased a photo signed by Babe Ruth and Gehrig from the Yankee duo's barnstorming days. The rare autographed photo, which sold for $48,300, was of exceptionally strong condition for its age and carried a letter of authenticity from James Spence Authentication.

Another autographed item that proved popular with the live audience and those bidding via telephone was a single-signed Christy Mathewson baseball. Mathewson's death at a relatively young age has made autographed balls bearing his signature very rare. The JSA-authenticated ball in the FanFest sale brought $50,600 against a $20-30,000 pre-sale estimate.

A Ted Williams game-worn jersey given to a young Red Sox fan in 1957 entered the hobby for the first time through this auction and sold for $60,950. Other vintage game-used jerseys included a 1949 Pee Wee Reese Brooklyn Dodgers home shirt that sold for $44,850, a 1954 Warren Spahn Braves road flannel that brought $34,500, a 1956 Stan Musial road jersey that sold for $33,350 and even a 1982 Cal Ripken rookie model that ended with a final realized price of $14,850.

Several old game-used bats drew bidding wars including a 1923-25 Ruth model ($46,000), a 1921-31 era Ty Cobb ($43,999) and a 1965-68 Mickey Mantle ($22,959).

Baseball card collectors watched a rare 1954 Wilson Franks Ted Williams (graded SGC 88 NM/MT) soar to $40,250 while a 1933 Goudey Ruth #144 (PSA 8 NM/MT) will cost the winner $18,400.