BALL HAS BEEN SOLD 1974 the year of this Cincinnati Reds signed team ball ??

[JollyElm]

I imagine that's Sparky Anderson above Bench.

[JollyElm]

And Jack Billingham in that last panel.

[Bigdaddy]

I see Ray Knight on there (on Alex Gramas panel, two below Pat Darcy), so I thought it would have to be later.

But looking up the roster, Knight was a September call-up in 1974 and then spent the '75 and '76 seasons in the minors (when the Reds won the Series), returning to the reds in 1977.

So not only is it a 1974 ball, but most likely from September of 1974. Looks like a few of the autos might have been added later.

[Bigdaddy]

SS: Sparky Anderson, Johnny Bench

First Panel: Andy Kosco, Phil Gagliano, Cesar Geronimo, Ken Griffey, Pedro Borbon, Dan Driessen

Second Panel: Alex Grammas (coach), ?, Roger Freed, Pat Darcy, Jr. Kennedy, Ray Knight, Hal King

Third Panel: Tom Carroll, Fred Norman, George Foster, Darrell Chaney, Don Gullett, Clay Kirby, Tony Perez

Fourth Panel: ?? under the logo, George Scherger (coach), Bill Plummer, Jack Billingham, Terry Crowley

[JollyElm]

This is (obviously) a guess, but looking at the '74 roster, the only player the signature across the Spalding logo could be is Roger Nelson. It looks to start with an 'R' and perhaps an 'o' and 'g' after it. Near the end, it could very well be a high 'l' (that's an L) with an 'n.' Tough one.

[muggsy]

That might be Rawly Eastwick

[JollyElm]

Originally Posted by muggsy

That might be Rawly Eastwick

I originally thought the last letter was a 'k,' and so I looked into Eastwick, but after googling Rawly's auto, it was quite different and the letter positioning (like that 'L' in the last name) doesn't seem to match the spelling of his name. He's certainly one to look at (and eliminate?), though, especially if his signature changed greatly over time.

[megalimey]

Originally Posted by JollyElm

I imagine that's Sparky Anderson above Bench.

It seamed to have enough letters but i was not sure ,thanks