I guess in many ways I’m like the plumber with a clogged toilet in his home. I spend so much time on other people’s things that it leaves me very little time for my own items or issues. Today I would like to cover a couple of topics with one article and one jersey I just picked up for my exemplar library. Those topics being the value of a correct auction description as well as how I would like to see restorations documented and conveyed.
The jersey in question is a 1939 Tom Padden New York Giants Home Jersey. It was offered to the hobby in as Lot # 45 in the November 2009 Gotta Have It Auction with this description:
“This rare uniform is an original 1939 New York Giants flannel home jersey. The uniform is tagged by the manufacturer, Spalding, on the inside collar with the size tag “44” where it also chain stitched with the name “Tom Radden” in red. The back shirt tail is chain stitched in red with the year “39.” Blue felt lettering that spells “GIANTS” is sewn on front with the uniform number “8” sewn on the back. The uniform is missing the 100th Anniversary of Major League baseball Centennial patch originally sewn onto the left sleeve worn by every major league baseball player on their uniform during the 1939 season. This rare style jersey is the same style worn during the 1939 season by such legendary players as Mel Ott and playing in his last major league season as a Giant, Tony Lazzeri. This is a rare chance to own a vintage New York Giants uniform from this historic baseball season.”
If you were looking for information on Tom Radden, you would have found no such player listed as having played major league baseball. In checking the 1939 New York Giants roster, you have found that # 8 was issued to Harry Danning in 1939, a 6’, 1”, 190lbs catcher for the from 1933-1942. Danning wore # 9 in 1938 as #8 was issued to Gus Mancuso for that season.
However, if you read the collar tagging like I did, you would have read it to be Tom Padden, a journeyman catcher whose major league playing career included time with the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1933-1937 and partial seasons with both the Giants and Senators in 1943. Period newspaper accounts, such as an article in the Sandusky Register from March 26th 1939, show that Padden was with the Giants in spring training in 1939 as was expected to make the big league club. (PLATE I) So finding a jersey with his name sewn into the collar is not all that out of question. In fact, given when uniforms would have likely been ordered to meet the April 18th season opener with the Brooklyn Dodgers, it becomes very likely. Would correctly identifying the player have made much of a difference in the bidding? I don’t know but it highlights that I look at things for MEARS the same way I do when looking to add items to my own collection. I felt the jersey was a good buy, despite having been charged an additional bid when I went to go in an up my MAX bid while still the high bidder.
I was comfortable with the tagging because it compared very favorably with a Spalding 1939 Cincinnati Reds road jersey of Lonny Frey I once owned. (PLATE II) I also knew that Spalding was known supplier of jerseys to the Giants during this time frame by way of these examples in my data base:
1936, Spalding, Home: Sam Leslie
1939, Spalding, Home: Carl Hubbell
1942, Spalding, Home: Mel Ott
1942, Spalding, Home: Dick Bartell
When I saw the images on line in the auction description, it appeared to me that the outline I was seeing in place of the removed Centennial Patch may have been a patch to cover cut or torn fabric. Such patching is not uncommon if the shoulder patch was removed or cut off without much care. I liked both the outline and location when compared to images of New York Giants home jerseys from 1939. (PLATE III) It turns out what I was seeing was actually the felt boarder remnants of the original patch. This left no doubt that Centennial patch had actually once been on the jersey. I had an original patch on hand to complete the restoration so this was not going to be a problem.
It was at this point that I started to think about what would I like to see if I was buying this jersey after the restoration was made. Those things included:
1. Images of what the jersey looked like before the restoration.
2. Images of what a period un-restored should look like.
3. Images of the work in progress.
4. Images of the final product.
This same issue was a hot topic of debate recently involving a 1911-1912 Frank Chance Cubs home jersey offered by Legendary Auctions. Not only was the restoration not documented, the only mention of the restoration was that “the Bear logo was replaced after initial season usage”. While not an untrue statement, the exact date and circumstances of the restoration were well known but never mentioned. Since the jersey had been previously offered without this restoration, I was surprised that someone thought no one would notice. It’s not like there are dozens of these jerseys out there that this Frank Chance offering could be confused with. I think there would have been value in documenting the restoration upfront in a manner similar to what I have laid out here.
Value to both the jersey and the reputation of the offering party, but that is a decision they made for whatever reasons they had.
For me, I got a jersey I wanted and actually got to devote some time to one of my own for a change. Along the way I have decided and demonstrated for myself what I think an acceptable and ethical standard is for documenting restorations. That being to provide the collector with:
1. Images of what the jersey looked like before the restoration.
2. Images of what a period un-restored should look like.
3. Images of the work in progress.
4. Images of the final product.
As always, collect what you enjoy and enjoy what you collect.
MEARS Auth, LLC
For questions and comments on this article, please feel free to drop me a line at DaveGrob1@aol.com.