My favorite piece of memorabilia
My favorite piece of Yankee history, and well my only piece so I guess it makes sense that it’s my favorite. My parents usually get me one big gift for Christmas and a couple of small things, and 10 or 11 years ago they picked probably one of their best items. They got me this:
A Louisville Slugger Genuine P72 Derek Jeter signed bat
The flash kind of blurred the signature in that pic, so I tried another one but it’s a little farther away.
I never got around to getting a nice glass case for it which is sad because it would make a great conversation piece. The COA from Steiner is still wrapped around the handle and I have only held it twice, once when I opened it Christmas morning and then when I took it out of the box to put it in the Ultra Pro bat tube. It most definitely deserves a nicer display than that, but those cases are about $100 bucks, and as you all know that could get me a sweet hobby box.
Clearly this was much cheaper to purchase years ago, and I will probably never own another Jeter signed piece because the price is just outrageous. If I met him by some miracle and got him to sign something, then that would be different. I’m more than happy with owning just this one thing because it is awesome and makes me happy, even if it just sits in a bat tube in a bat box.
I wish I had a better understanding back then of just what I opened that morning. Don’t get me wrong, I knew he was going to be here for a long time to come and be a special player, but who could have predicted what he would do in his career so far. If you don’t watch this guy on a daily basis you can’t truly appreciate everything he brings to the team. Even as he is getting older, he still does what is best for the team even when that means sitting out the last inning or two of a close game to put a ‘defensive replacement’ in.
Call me crazy, but I think this would be a fun topic for everyone to share. I like reading about cool pieces of memorabilia and how people got them. Drop a comment on something cool you got or your favorite item, or blog about it and share with everyone.
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I blogged about one of my favourite memorabilia pickups a while back: http://thehamiltonian.wordpress.com/2008/10/14/huge-pc-addition/
My mom got me an autographed Chipper Jones bat last Christmas. I accidently saw before hand as she had gotten if off E-bay and I’m the one that set up the account for her and I had used my e-mail address, so it was sent to me when she bought it.
on a semi ralted note, I also have one of those Build a Bear animals (leopard) that had a little Brave outfit on and I’ve gotten various Braves to sign the shirt and pant.
nice hunk o' wood… that would keep you warm for over an hour during a Canadian winter… 😉
Tricia- I remember that, I loved reading about that. Auto'd things from players that are on actual stuff is just awesome.
McCann- that is too funny, my mom did that once with QVC. I have a card and she used mine by accident and the e-mail went to me. It was for an mp3 player, but just the same. I made a Yankees bear like the one you have for an ex a few years ago, they are cute.
Canuck- bite me.
tsk tsk… be nice. A camaro doesn't get me much, does it?
i love autograph pieces but you really have a gem there…. and the fact that it has the COA makes it even better…. But whats really fun is the hunt to get a player to sign something for you…. but overall great piece!!
I would have to say the best piece of memorabilia is one I don't even have in my possession but one that my fiancee bought for our future home. It is a Joe DiMaggio signed picture honoring his hit streak. I can't wait to put that one up.
There are a few guys I have gotten to sign baseballs and two team signed jerseies at Scranton Yankee games that I like, such as Phil Hughes, Austin Jackson, Ian Kennedy. I love collecting.
I'll have to blog about this one, but my best piece is a game used signed Gretzky stick, that I got after a practice in Los Angeles. It evenhas the Gretzky stamp on it.This was around his first season in LA.
Can I "quote" a Yankee and say that my favorite piece of Red Sox memorabilia is my next one?
BTW, I get my display cases at Michael's craft store. They're fake wood, but are priced pretty well and look nice. Before you display your bat, though, you may want to clean it first. It looks like someone wrote all over it. Maybe a little rubbing alcohol?
I'm not a huge memorabilia kind of guy, but I do have a few autographed balls and a few autographed cards. My favorite would have to be the only bat I have in my collection.
For my birthday or possibly Christmas of 2005, my Cubs friend (also named Steve) purchased a black bat autographed by Aaron Rowand. My jaw dropped that I owned something signed by someone that I had just seen play in the World Series and helped win it for my team. That bat will always hold a special place in my collection.
Thanks for the tip on Michaels for the case. The Gretzky stick sounds awesome, would love to see pics of it if you decide to write about it. Same with the Rowand, Steve. BTW, I have had a card on my desk for you for months and I keep forgetting to mail it. I suck.