Really???
 

Is this bat worth anywhere near what it sold for??? Gehrig batrite goes cheaper and there's actual photos of him using them and he said he did. Not sure if I've heard of ruth using them.


http://m.ebay.com/itm/171513767667

I just looked at that myself and couldn't believe what it sold for

I guess I should have kept that Ruth bat I found in the dump when I was a kid. Obviously not a gamer, although it might have been from a college or something. And it was huge. And also very very weathered. Almost like it had been left outside for a long time.

I'm not sure what ever happened to it, I know I dragged it home, but I couldn't use it. I used a 28 at the time, and it was somewhere over a 35. It probably got sold or left behind when we moved.

Steve B

I seriously doubt it. If Ruth ever did use one, this bat would meet the right window of time (early 30's, when LS was having an issue with flaking). However, Ruth has stated in more than one documented interview that he never used anything other than a LS bat.

In addition, the bat is rough shape...and all the green streaks on the bat seem a bit odd to me (like someone "trying" to put rack marks on the bat).

Also interesting that the bidding jumped from $1525 to $9K.

Cool bat and one I wanted for my collection, but thought 1500-2k was being generous.. Doubt ruth ever touched it and those streaks of green do seem out of place.
Matt

Was there a reserve on it? Seems like that would be the only reason the bidding could jump that far. Bidding hits $1500 or so with reserve not met and then a single bidder jumps in with a high max bid that trips the reserve and makes the bid instantly $9k.

That's what happened.

Noticed that this same bat sold in last night's Mears auction...for about half of what it sold for in November (ebay).

It appears that the bat went through some cleaning/restoration, as the very prominent "rack marks" (as shown in the ebay photos) are now gone.

I do have one question regarding Batrite bats and was hoping someone here could shed some light. In reading the Mears description, it states "It is documented that Ruth, Gehrig, & DiMaggio used Batrite bats at various times during their careers."

While I know that Gehrig's use of these bats has been well documented, I'm having a difficult time finding any documentation regarding Ruth's use of these bats. Can someone point me in the right direction?

Thanks.

I believe that there is a photo of ruth with a pile of bats in front of him and hanna bats can be seen, however I don't think you can see the barrel if I remember correctly..
matt

Thanks Matt. I always appreciate the help.
I'm assuming there must be something else that I'm missing, since the Mears verbiage is pretty strong in stating it's "documented" that Ruth "used" a Batrite at some point during his career.

It would be Interesting to see exactly what documentation they have .
Matt

I agree...would love to see it.

I really wanted to purchase this bat, but just couldn't find enough info for me to feel comfortable going any higher.

With Ruth making statements such as," I learned recently that according to the records of Hillerich & Bradsby, who made every bat I ever used, more Louisville Sluggers were made up for my personal use than for any other single player. "

It doesn't seem out of the question that Ruth would have swung a Batrite (or at least given it a shot in bp) in the early 30's (when H&B was having a "flaking issue")....but I can't find anything to support that theory.