Ty Cobb giveaway bat

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Posted By: <b>Keith O'Leary</b><p>I just got back from the flea market where I saw a dealer who knows I collect vintage items. He showed me a bat he recently acquired which was approx 30" long, thin shaft and barrel, had an oval shaped label that inside read Official Ty Cobb Ball Bat Made in USA 1909. He told me it was a ballpark giveaway and he understood there to be only 2000 given out. I did a quick google search and found nothing, any help as to value?

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Posted By: <b>John Harrell</b><p>Keith,<br /><br />The bat was a souvenir which I believe was sold at the ball park. A cache of these bats was found a few years back in a warehouse and they have found their way to the market. The bats typically go for between $50-125, depending on condition. Many of the bats are warped and have worm holes due to storage. They came in two lengths, a 30" and a shorter one about 26". They show up on Ebay commonly and there is one up for sale now. You might want to track it. A somewhat lower condition copy sold about 3 days ago for $77. I have one that I bought on Evilbay about 5-6 years ago for $60. Its in nice condition with a strong label but has a slight warp to it and a few worm holes . Most attention is paid to the stamping of the label.<br /><br />John

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Posted By: <b>brock</b><p>Hello <br />Is this the same type of bat your talking about. At least one comes up each month. I think one just ended the other day. Not sure<br /><br /><a href="http://cgi.ebay.com/Ty-Cobb-Baseball-Bat-1909_W0QQitemZ110249930016QQihZ001QQcategoryZ50125 QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem" target="_new" rel="nofollow">http://cgi.ebay.com/Ty-Cobb-Baseball-Bat-1909_W0QQitemZ110249930016QQihZ001QQcategoryZ50125 QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem</a>

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Posted By: <b>Keith O'Leary</b><p>Thats the one Brock. Thanks to both you and John for a quick, definative answer. I think I'm going to pass on it.<BR><BR>

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Posted By: <b>James Gallo</b><p>Sorry to dig this back up but I want to make sure I know what I have here.<br /><br />Is this the same bat you guys are referring to. What type period is it from?<br /><br /><img src="http://www.thetoyheaven.com/images/items/cobbbat1.jpg"><br /><br /><img src="http://www.thetoyheaven.com/images/items/cobbbat2.jpg"><br /><br /><br />Just want to make sure this is what I have.<br /><br />Thanks<br /><br />James G<br><br>Looking for 1915 Cracker Jacks and 1909-11 American Caramel E90-1.

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Posted By: <b>Mark</b><p>James... That is indeed the same bat in question. <br /><br />Very interestingly, Memory Lane had one in their current Auction (closing Saturday, 9/13). It occupies a full half page in their current catalogue (with a minimum bid of $1,000!) <br /><br />Someone must have told them it was a common piece, worth nowhere near the minimum bid, because they have since pulled it. For anyone that has the Catalogue, it was Lot #1314. Memory Lane obviously thought the bat was incredibly rare and/or unique.<br /><br />Having consigned them Lot #1299- the 1930s Luke Appling Game-used Glove (with a letter of provenance from the Appling family), I could not believe the amount of space they devoted to the Souvenir Cobb Bat. Game-used gloves of hall-of-famers from the 1930s are almost non-existent, but the Appling Glove was given just a tiny photo and write-up. <br /><br />Safe to say that Memory Lane's expertise on Cards far exceeds their knowledge of memorabilia!

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Posted By: <b>James Gallo</b><p>Mark<br /><br />So is this from the turn of the century or was it done much later. I probably picked this up at an auction in the mid 1990s and never really knew mcuh about it.<br /><br />It is a very neat piece IMO and looks great in a pre-war collection.<br /><br />James G<br><br>Looking for 1915 Cracker Jacks and 1909-11 American Caramel E90-1.

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Posted By: <b>Mark</b><p>James... Yes, it is of the time period and was produced during Cobb's playing days. Yours is a very nice example, and appears to be in far better condition than most. As John Harrell stated above, there was a recent "find" in which many of these bats were uncovered (most of which were in deplorable condition). These bats should be rare, but really are not, with even nice examples like yours turning up rather frequently.<br /><br />Still, a very nice piece and a nifty artifact from Cobb's playing days! Sorry to go off on the Memory Lane tangent... I just found the timing to be pertinent to this thread, and also was amazed at how drastically they miscalculated the rarity/value of this piece. Hope this info helps!<br /><br /><br />

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Posted By: <b>Mike H</b><p>I'm not convinced these are from Cobbs era at all. I think they are from long after his career was over. I stopped by a flea market in Cedar Lake Indiana about 8-10 years ago and there were two dealers who each had 15-20 of them for $25 a piece. <br />Every example I've seen is made of poplar, usually have knots, and often warped. Have you ever seen a poorly made piece of memorabilia from the teens? They had plenty of ash etc available then and probably would have put more quality into a piece particularly with Cobbs name on it. Also the font and stamping look more modern.<br />I think they are vintage, but probably from the after his death.