Recently, I acquired a McGwire bat that was said to be obtained during the '98 season from a St louis club house attendant. It's an issued bat with a few rack marks on the barrel, but no use. The story is the cardinals ordered 4 dozen of these bats for him to use during BP & or be signed and auctioned off for the cardinals charity. My question is the bat measures 33-34" but nothing is stamped or written on the knob. Furthermore, Mark McGwire with Cardinals is stamped on the barrel. Is there a reason why the bat is not stamped? Are there any examples of this on the market/hobby? Thank you in advance!
Mark McGwire Rawlings Bat question...
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Re: Mark McGwire Rawlings Bat question...
I've seen a few of those bats. I seriously doubt they were intended for BP use since they were not made to Mac's specs; they're too short, the knobs aren't right, and the wood looks to be of less-than-professional quality. To my knowledge, they were ordered as replicas to be signed and auctioned. I'm not sure how many actually were because I've seen other blanks, but never a signed one. I also hesitate to call the marks on this bat "rack marks;" they're more consistent with transfer from black bats, not the team's red bat rack. So, in my opinion, "issued" is a misnomer because the bat is not the same kind of bat Mac would have used in a game or BP. It's just a replica. I mention the Cardinals Care replicas in my McGwire bat guide in the section on knobs. Hope that helps.
http://webpages.charter.net/birdbats...rs%20guide.htmJeff Scott
birdbats@charter.net
http://www.birdbats.com
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Re: Mark McGwire Rawlings Bat question...
Jeff is spot on. A Rawlings bat with no engravings on the knob wouldn't be very convincing as a team-issued bat.
Dave MiedemaComment
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Re: Mark McGwire Rawlings Bat question...
Thanks guys! I bought this piece just to get it signed, so it's perfect for the purpose! I appreciate all the information!Comment
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