Packages from the January auction on out and on their way to collectors. Packages have also been heading my way to look over for the February auction. A box of knits came earlier this week and I thought I would share some images and impressions about some of the items I have finished with. Most of you know by now I prefer jerseys to bats and I also prefer flannels to knits. That being said, I truly enjoyed this first batch as they actually represent players I watched as a kid growing up in Cincinnati during the 1970s.
I enjoyed this grouping for any number of reasons. As a collector, I think they all represent high grade offerings of period stars and or fan favorites. As an evaluator/researcher, I enjoyed the work as it helped to validate the time and money I have spent building my reference library. The references used and shown here all came from on hand sources without relying on the internet. While the internet is not a bad source, I could not have done the work I did relying on it.
1975 Don Sutton Dodgers Home Jersey (A9): I can still remember the Reds beating Sutton 2-1 on Opening Day in 1975. Game went 14 innings. Gullet went 9+ innings and Sutton went 7. I hate to admit it, but I have always been partial to Dodger home jerseys. They are clean, classy and have great eye appeal. What I thought was neat about the Sutton, and to the same extent the Garvey, was using period Dodger yearbooks to show manufacturer and tagging, to include sets designated with letters such as “A”. (PLATE I)
1975 Rick Monday Cubs Road Jersey (A9.5): The Cubbies may not have been much to watch when they came to town, but they were always a favorite of mine as far as uniforms. This and the style worn starting in 1978 are ones I would love to find. Would love to have this one, but I can’t bid on it. Anyway, I’ve always have had a soft spot in my heart for Rick Monday, especially after he ran to keep a couple of…spectators from burning an American flag on the field. Looking at this particular jersey allowed me to leverage both on hand exemplars and print references. The neat thing was being able to account for the wide sleeve cuff and the duel tagging for year on Cubs jerseys from this period. (PLATES II-IV)
1975 Steve Garvey Dodgers Home Jersey (A10): I feel sorry for younger fans and collectors. Before the age of free-agency, team lineups were fairly consistent from year to year. Garvey was part of that great Dodger infield that included Cey, Russell, and Lopes. A kid in my neighborhood and I would argue all summer over the merits of these four against Rose, Concepcion, Morgan, and Perez…Kenny if your out there, this jersey is for you. Getting back to jersey and what I liked, once again period yearbooks, in this case the Dodgers 1976 yearbook had a great image of the back of Garvey’s home jersey from 1975. I have always found the yearbooks from the next season are typically great for shots from the previous year. Back shots can be tough to find at times, especially nice ones that allow you to see font styles/cuts in some detail. (PLATE V)
1978 Reggie Smith Dodgers Road Jersey: (A8): I saw Reggie Smith play in Cincinnati with three different teams; the Cardinals, Dodgers, and one year with the Giants. I always liked this style of Dodger’s road jersey that featured the blue over white lettering. What I found interesting and enjoyable about this jersey was the fact, that although Reggie was the only Smith on the Dodgers roster in 1978, he still had his first initial placed on the back of the jersey. In addition, by this time, the year/set tagging had moved to the neck area as opposed to the tail. Things like this are often very tough to document in period images, but I remember looking at a Garvey a while back and knew the photo I was looking for. In this case, you can see the outline of where the tag had been sewn through the rear of the collar. Thinking this jersey should have the round Junior Gilliam memoriam patch? Remember Gilliam did not pass away until October 8th 1978.
The February auction is set to go live on Friday the 19th. As with all MEARS auctions, there are NO Hidden Reserves, NO Shill or In House Bidding, and an Industry low 15% buyers premium. For those interested in bidding, but who have not yet registered, you can do so by going to www.mearsonlineauctions.com or by clicking on the MEARS Auctions icon on the homepage.
As always, collect what you enjoy and enjoy what you collect.
MEARS Auth, LLC
For questions or comments on this article, please feel free to drop me a line at DaveGrob1@aol.com.