Share your research stories. Here's mine...

[PhilNap]

I just picked up this 1925 Wally Pipp payroll check in an auction. The auction house had it described as just that. Something told me to check the dates as I knew Gehrig started his streak sometime in 1925. My suspicion was right as this turns out to be Pipp's last paycheck as starting firstbaseman of the New York Yankees. Payday was May 29 and Gehrig played game 1 of the next 2130 just four days later on June 2. The kicker is that the bank stamps reveal that this check was actually paid on that very day of June 2. I suppose that "headache" wasn't enough to keep Pipp from collecting his dough that day.

[mr2686]

Phil, that is awesome!

[rlevy]

That's a great Wally Pipp story! Hard to find a check like that, then amazing to have it date to the beginning of Gehrig's streak.

here is one of my own research projects to share.
I picked up what was advertised as an early 1960's Tommy Davis game-used bat. His bats would usually have a criss-cross taped handle (a method he picked up from Duke Snider), and if there was a uni number on the knob, it should be a #12. This bat had a #5 written on the knob, and no taped handle, but given the low price and how rare his bats are, I decided to get this anyway.
When I received it, I realized that it was actually a late 1950's bat, and that it had red paint bat rack marks on it. Well, red paint was the team color for the Spokane Indians, the Dodgers top farm team, whom Davis played for in 1959 before his call-up in 1960. And while I could find Spokane's roster for 1959 with him on it, I couldn't find any info on player uniform numbers. Then I found a reference on-line to a book called Rain Check- Baseball in the Pacific Northwest that referenced Tommy Davis. So I found a copy at my local bookstore, and there on page 84 is a large picture of a leaping Tommy Davis with the #5 planted firmly on the front of his jersey. While not real valuable, I was happy to have an authentic TD bat from his minor league days, dating just 3 years before he would win back-to-back batting titles.

TD Spokane picture2.jpg
knob2.JPG