Tommie Aaron bat records

[JCC1968]

Hi

I am looking for Tommie Aaron's bat records for 1971 to 1973. Did he have block letter? Was the S2 a bat he ordered?

Thanks
Jason

[MSpecht]

Hi Jason ---

Unfortunately, we do not have Tommie Aaron's H & B shipping records. For the period you request, 1971 through 1973, Tommie played (1971 Braves) and then managed in the minors (1073 thru 1978.) While it is not known whether Tommie had an endorsement contract with H & B during that time ( which would have placed his signature on any ordered bats rather than a block letter last name ,) it is known that the other Aaron -- his brother hank -- did have a valid endorsement contract with H & B fromn 2/11/54 until well after his playing career was over, which would eliminate Hank from consideration on any block letter Aaron bats during that period. ...

Good Luck

Mike Jackitout7@aol.com

[JCC1968]

Hi

Thanks for the response. I purchased the bat from zane and believe it was from Tommie Aaron during his years as a coach. It has a block print of Aaron and the marking put it between 1971 and 1973. It had the number 77 on the knob and top of the bat and it is an S2 model with a super small TM over or under the S2. It is 35 inches and about 32 or 33 oz and has heavy use. It also looks like someone added tape to the handle in the past as well. What i find interesting is that i sent the bat to Steiner to have Hank sign it. I called to see if they had sent it back and the employee said yes they had sent my hank Aaron "gamer" back to me? I told him i didn't think it was a gamer that it belonged to Tommie and not Hank. He stated that Hank had said it was a "game used bat" how could this be? The only theory i have is that he was getting alot of his equipment taken during his run at Babe's homerun record and possibly borrowed it from Tommie? The 77 in faded black marker looks very close to hank's 44 just missing the one line only. Could this be? Is Hank's memory fading? Just curious. I will post pics if anyone wants to see

Thanks
Jason

[MSpecht]

Hi Jason---

Here is additional specific information on Tommie Aaron's H & B shipping records, provided by Dave Grob at MEARS. Thanks for filling in the blanks, Dave.

Tommie's first order of professional bats was shipped to him on 7/16/58 -- model M110. Over the course of his career he used a wide variety of models, including M110, W101, O1, W183, W225, D89,U1, H117, K55, R43, K44, M142, D143, MC44, C232, C236, B225, and, as you asked, S2. His bats varied from 34 to 36 inches in length and most frequently weighed in the 32 - 33 ounce range. His early bats had a regular finish until mid-1961, when he began to regularly order a flame burned finish for the most part through 1967. In 1968 he again ordered regular finished bats, and in mid-1971 ordered unfinished bats for the next several years.

Specifically regarding Model S2, Aaron first ordered that model on 4/29/61. His final order of that model was shipped on 3/20/63. In all, seven orders of S2 bats were shipped to him between those dates, totaling 16 bats. No other shipments of S2 are documented in his personal records through 1981.

It is noted that Tommie signed an endorsement contract with H & B on April 23, 1959. Presumably, bats shipped after that date would have been signature model bats until such time as the contract was no longer in effect. There is no indication in the shipping records of subsequent contract extensions by Tommie Aaron, however a signature model bat from as late as 1968 has been documented. Whether his endorsement contract with H & B was in effect throughout that period is not known.

Please post pics of the bat when you have a chance...it is an interesting piece In particular, is the bat completely unfinished ? If so, that would be consistent with Tommie's bats from the 1971-73 period.

Good Luck

Mike jackitout7@aol.com (jackitout7@aol.com)

[JimCaravello]

Hey Dave - if you are reading - thanks for providing that info to Mike!

[JCC1968]

Mike and Jim and whoever I am missing

Thank you for all your help. You are correct! the bat is unfinished. I will post pics this weekend. On a side note do you think Hank signing his bat hurts the value or helps?

Jason

[MSpecht]

Nice bat, Jason......the unfinished nature of the bat is a solid indicator as well.

Your question regarding Hank's signature is an interesting one. and one that really does fall into athe area of personal preference....
I am not sure that the question of adding / subtracting potential value enters into the equation here -- the signature may well increase the value for some collectors, and lessen it for others.

For instance, Is a Jesus Alou bat signed by Jesus, Felipe, and Manny appealing ? Is the same bat signed by only Jesus and Felipe also appealing, or is it more like an unfinished project?

What about getting your Joe DiMaggio gamer signed by Dom DiMaggio? There's still time. Would it add value, detract value, or have no effect? But having your Dom DiMaggio gamer signed by Joe ? The answers may not be thw same.

Another question to consider is whether the athlete is "OK" with signing the item. While asking an athlete to sign a photo in which he appears with a deceased teammate is a different situation entirely from the one here, I thought the following experience was interesting. A number of years ago when I was able to have Mickey Mantle sign a number of wirephotos I had collected over the years, there were two in which he was pictured with a deceased teammate, notably Roger Maris in one, and Elston Howard in the other. When he came upon the photo with Howard, rather than signing 'Mickey Mantle' as he had signed the others, he looked at the photo a second, then signed 'Our Best Wishes, Mickey Mantle.' Several photos later he did the same with the photo of him with Maris. The more I thought about that later, the more I thought that it was a very nice gesture of respect.

Ultimately, I think your question falls into the category of "Collect what you like, and like what you collect."

Good Luck

Mike jackitout7@aol.com (jackitout7@aol.com)

[JCC1968]

Mike

Thank you for all your help here are the pics of the Tommie Aaron bat.

Thanks
Jason


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