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Yankwood
04-30-2006, 02:13 AM
Gentlemen, are there any known shipping records for Luke Easter bats? Thanks, Terry.

MSpecht
04-30-2006, 11:01 AM
Hi Terry--

Yes, H & B factory records are available for Luscious Luke "Big Luke" Easter. Here goes:

His earliest model bats were Model M99, which were first ordered on 3/16/49. That remained his model of choice through his Major League career, from August 11, 1949 to May 4, 1954. Those bats were generally 25 inches in length, with a few orders at 36 inches. Weights generally varied between 33 and 36 ounces. The M99 accounted for well over 90 per cent of Easter's H & B Major League orders. Other Major League models documented for Luke during the 1950-1960 labeling period include G69L, (6 bats), R43 (6), O1 (3), D89 (12), M117 (6), and O16 (21).

Big Luke, standing 6'4 1/2" and weighing around 250 lbs., had a significanr Minor League career for another nine years following his last Major League game. Fans would flock to Minor league stadiums hopeful of seeing one of his tape measure Home Runs, known as "Easter Eggs." Throughout the remainder (Minor League portion) of the 1950-1960 labeling period he ordered M99 bats only a few times, with the majority of his Minor League orders being Models K55, 35 inches / 33 - 36 ounces. Other Models found in the Minor League portion of the period include O16 (6 bats), G69L (4), H117 (1), S44 (9), and D89 (10).

During the 1961-64 labeling period, K55 remained his bat of choice, with very limited numbers of S180 (6 bats) and Mc44 (21) being documented.

As a tragic side note, Luke was murdered on March 29, 1979, when he refused to give up approximately $40,000 in Union funds he was carrying as a Union official to an armed robber. Baseball fans remember Luke Easter as a power-hitting first baseman who hit some of the longest home runs in the game's history. Those who knew him remember him as pleasant man with an easy smile and time for anyone who asked. Communities remember him as a unifier and humanitarian.

If you have a specific bat you are researching, Terry, let me know and we may be able to date the bat more specifically.

Mike Jackitout7@aol.com

Yankwood
04-30-2006, 03:44 PM
Mike, that is great info. Thanks. I watched Luke play for the Rochester Red Wings when I was a young boy in the early sixties. He is still a legend in this area as he also played for the Buffalo Bisons. In 1963 he admitted to being 52 years old although records of his birth date are not as accurate as your records of his bat of choice. If anyone has anything related to Luke Easter at all, please email me at tlucas56@yahoo.com, Thanks again.

MSpecht
05-01-2006, 01:08 PM
After several exchanges of correspondence over a three year period, this was postmarked December 21, 1979.

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