Frank Howard bat?
 

I came across this bat today on Marketplace and picked it up for $10. Any chance at all it is a Frank Howard bat?

It appears to date from 69-75. However, there are 4 MLB Howards in that era, and I'd be sort of surprised if he didn't have signature models towards the end of his career. Any number on the knob?

Ok.. thanks.. the years help.. is there s guide where I can find that kind of info? Unfortunately no. There is no marking on the knob.

Goldin auction sold a bat with HOWARD in block letters rather than a signature model, and they say it is from 1969. If the length and weight match, it might turn out to be the big man's bat.

Howard did use a block letter LVS bat. I don't think he had a signature model until '71 or '72. Does it have R43 imprinted on the knob? If so, it was likely at least made for game use, although he may have used LVS bats made to other specifications as well. Is anything, such as a uniform number, written by hand on the knob? He wore numbers 9 and 33 while playing for the Senators.

There is nothing written on the knob but there is a stamped M159 if that helps.

How long is the bat?

36 inches

1973-75 on the label period unless I'm missing something

Where is the M159?

Best bet is to ask the "experts" on the MLB Game Used FB Groups, but I'll take a crack at it here. Either way you've got a nice bat for $10... I love "rescuing" vintage bats from local sell apps.

Bat Labeling period is definitely 1973-1975 as mentioned above, and the markings would seem to indicate it was made for pros, not retail. As mentioned above there were 4 Howards in the MLB in that span:

Doug Howard (1972-76)
Frank Howard (ret. 1973)
Larry Howard (ret. 1973)
Wilbur Howard (1973-78)

The pictures are hard to tell, but the bat doesn't seem to show markings consistent with strong game use or handling and as mentioned, there is no number marking on the knob. Although the exemplars of Frank Howard bats show that he rarely used any pine tar (resulting in pretty clean handles) and didn't always put a number on the knob, I'm not seeing any connection to him using M159 style bats (made for Stan Musial and used at points by Ernie Banks, Cal Ripken and Kirby Puckett). It looks as though he primarily used R43 bats (made for Babe Ruth starting in 1933) in the 70s. Then again I don't have access to bat ordering records like some do, so I'm not definitive.

Considering he retired after the 1973 season when this bat labeling started, if it did carry an association to Frank, perhaps he ordered M159 bats in anticipation for 1974. When the Tigers shifted Kaline to full-time DH in 1974 and Howard couldn't find an MLB team to take him he went to Japan in 1974 and played 1 game before injuring his back and never playing again. So perhaps it could be a bat from a 1974 stock order that either wasn't used or lightly used.

Otherwise it might be a game used/game issued bat from one of the other players (or a minor leaguer) listed above.

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Awesome information! Thanks so much! I was wondering about the Japan year also and do coaches/ managers have their own bats? Maybe with the 73 to 75 dating he could have used it as a coach?

From the limited research I could do, it does seem to be a little lite for Frank but maybe late in his career he went down in bat size.... this bat weighs exactly 34 ounces.

On the knob.