Rennie Stennett bat
 

Hi, all. On the off chance anyone can offer opinions or knowledge, I’m sharing pics of a bat that had been in the collection of a longtime Pirates collector, now passed away.

Will lead off by saying I suspect chances are less than 2% that this bat was used in Rennie’s 7 for 7 game. Mainly curious if it is from 1975 season (or what season it’s from) and if it appears to be authentic vs store model.

Because of the scuffing and the fact the bat is actually broken (and nailed back together!) I am certain the bat was used by someone at least. However it lacks the Sharpie “6” on the knob I’ve seen on at least some Rennie gamers.

Finally, on the off chance anyone knows what the writing of Rennie or team secretary looked like, it would be interesting to know if all the writing on the bat seemed to match either.

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Jason
Twitter: @heavyj28

Jason - the bat is a '71-'79 Adirondack Professional 257B Model Bat.....Most definitely a gamer from that era that Stennett ordered....it would be hard to tell exactly what season it is from, as Stennett was with the Pirates all those years.....and the black upper handle ring label would be consistent for Pirates gamers from that '71 - '79 era.........

The bat could very well be from that game? Guess you will never know unless you could get the bat in Rennie's hands....and unfortunately he has passed away...I will say it would be odd for someone to randomly pen all those stats on a bat like that......just sayin'......

Cool piece for sure....love the tapered handle / no knob for that bat.....That was how the 257B model was made - no knob......

Lastly, even though Rennie may have penned #6 on the bats you have seen, players from time to time did not pen #s on the knob all the time.....There are a few players bats you wouldn't touch without the number on the knob, but not every player....I don't know Stennett's bat characteristics well enough to know if he always penned his number on the knob....

Hope this helps! Killer piece!

Thank you! Super helpful. If Rennie had signed it, I’d have presumed it was someone at signing paying extra for a very involved inscription. Without Rennie’s signature, it’s more intriguing. The fact that it broke and was carefully nailed back into one piece also adds to the mystery.


Jason
Twitter: @heavyj28

Would appear that the Baseball HOF has the bat Stennett used to go 7-7.

https://baseballhall.org/discover/in...even-for-seven

Yes, they definitely have ONE bat he used that day. However, I believe if you watch the video of his 7th hit, you will notice his bat doesn't not appear to match the HOF bat. (At least that's my opinion.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZpELWLeIu8

It’s most definitely a Stennett gamer. It’s just impossible to verify who used it. I saw it on eBay and considered picking it up as I was looking for a reasonably priced blonde Stennett bat. Ironically I passed because of that writing. There is no way to verify that the handwriting is his. The missing number in the knob makes it more difficult to say he actually used it. In my opinion most game used stuff without a photo match requires a leap of faith. There is a Stennett batting helmet on eBay right now that I have been considering. The price and the fact they attribute it to Stennett without provenance has given me pause so far.

Correct. That bat would appear to have significantly more pine tar on the handle much like the image below. It is most likely a Hillerich & Bradsby and not an Adirondack.

https://www.dailyherald.com/storyima...&noborder&Q=80

He very well could have used a couple different bats in that game as well