PDA

View Full Version : A bat Finds its way home



shoremen44
12-18-2009, 02:02 PM
So another thread just popped up about a player getting a jersey back, and I thought I would share my story.

I bought some old bats back at the begining of the summer... all were old international players that played in Baltimore before there was a major league team... like my 1936 Woodley Abernathy (international league HR champ).

Well... one of the bats I bought was of Lee Riley... who among many other teams played briefly in Baltimore in 1939.

I was going through my collection and decided to sell some bats and decided that I wasnt that attached to the Riley bat and was going to see if I could get the $100 I payed out of this sidewritten old bat.

In preparing to sell the bat I found out that the only Lee Riley at the time ended up being the father of Coach Pat Riley. I sent a note to the only email address I could find for the Miami heat and wanted to know if Coach Riley would like his father's bat. I got a nice response from their marketing guys and he told me that Coach Riley was very excited to get it.

I sent it off... and a week or two later I got a copy of Pat Riley's Hall of Fame book... autographed to me... and a long hand written letter from the Coach thanking me for my gift. He was very excited to have a bat that his dad "had his own hands around".

The letter is over the top nice... I am not an NBA fan... but Pat Riley is a stand up guy... and I kind of cheer for the Heat now.


Bert

larry bourget
12-18-2009, 02:12 PM
Great Story, Thanks for sharing it Bert.

LB

MichaelofSF
12-18-2009, 02:12 PM
great story

spartakid
12-18-2009, 02:36 PM
Very cool, great story Bert

JCC1968
12-18-2009, 02:47 PM
Hi

I have a good story about Al Leiter. I went to his last game he pitched in spring training and caught a foul ball. Little did anyone know (or did they know?) that Al was pitching for the last time in the Major leagues and the last batter he faced was Eduardo Perez. I got Eduardo to sign the baseball and sent it to Al to sign instead he sent me another baseball from that game and wrote some great comments on the baseball about what he was feeling pitching for the last time and signed the baseball and cut me a check for $100 for getting Eduardo Perez signature on the baseball and my troubles. It is the nices and kindest thing that any player I have contacted ever did. To follow your story, Al was excited to get the baseball with Perez signature and my account of his last game written on the baseball. so when you mentioned Pat Riley's excitment it reminded how excited Al was to get that baseball from a fan who cared.

Jason

ironmanfan
12-18-2009, 02:53 PM
very cool story Bert!

tigerdale
12-18-2009, 04:04 PM
great stories!!

STLHAMMER32
12-18-2009, 04:09 PM
Very cool stories! Thanks for sharing

bigtruck260
12-18-2009, 04:21 PM
Good Stuff Bert!

Thanks for sharing.

mariner_gamers
12-18-2009, 10:46 PM
That is a great story!

topekabob
12-19-2009, 12:48 AM
Fun story and cool thread. I sort of have a similar tale. I used to play pickup basketball in Mesa, AZ and one morning who did I find myself guarding but Jumping Joe Caldwell! Wow! Well I was thrilled. So I went to my media guide collection and found a rare Atlanta Hawks media guide that had a great section on Joe and gave it to him the next Saturday. He was very appreciative and a great guy.

vdsporty25
12-19-2009, 11:13 AM
That is awesome....what a great story.

allstarsplus
12-19-2009, 06:03 PM
Bert - You are a good man! Love hearing a great story like that. The fact that you were able to trace that back to his son like that is truly amazing.

I am also impressed by Pat Riley's show of gratitude back to you!

Thanks for sharing that great story!