Bench Jesey circa 1973

[jbsportstuff]

An auction recently ended on Ebay about this Johnny Bench 1973 jersey. I'll post all the pics and the LOA below.


This jersey was being advertised as:

1973 Johnny Bench Cincinnati Reds Game Used Home Jersey

100% authentic........'BENCH' sewn on back......Original Reds logo sewn on front.....Original Rawlings 44 size tag sewn on inside tail along with 'Set 1 #8P-1973' flag tag.....#5 sewn on front and back....The back features 'BENCH' applied lettering and numeral '5', both of which have been restored from removal and a period number change as this jersey was sent down to the Minor Leagues.......Nevertheless, a REAL gamer of this Hall of Fame catcher dating to the golden era of The Big Red Machine!........Nice use

The buy it now was at $2,500 and no one touched it.


I've attached the pics.


Is this a legit Bench jersey? If so, why would they send a 1973 Bench jersey down to the minors? That doesn't make much sense to me. The tagging seems correct, but I am afraid of the lettering/numbering. Is it a legit Bench game used jersey? Any help would be highly appreciated.