Cal Ripken bat on eBay

[sportscentury]

I think it's a nice bat. I just couldn't sink $900 into a bat that I wasn't certain of, though. I was about 90% okay with it. Someone will likely get a good deal, but this one is not for me.

Reid

[MSpecht]

Ironmanfan --

Is there any chance you could scan for the forum or send me a file attachment of Ripken photo reference using the tape you mentioned in this thread? Thanks in advance ...

Mike Specht

Jackitout7@aol.com

[worldchamps]

I can't tell for sure, but it kind of looks like tape on this bat???

[MSpecht]

Thanks very much --- Great Photo...

Mike Jackitout7@aol.com

[mr.miracle]

Thanks for a photo on this, the only thing that raises an an additional question for me and perhaps Mike or another forum reader that might have knowledge in general of players taping bats can answer this question.

1. Cal Ripken was not known for taping bats so this would make the ebay
bat or any Ripken taped game bat much more rare if authentic.

2. The photos in the auction clearly show a crisscrossed tape pattern
that is not solid taping up the handle.

3. The photo provided as difficult as it is to make out clearly seems to
show a solid tape pattern up the handle not criss crossed at all.

Players like Ken Griffey Jr. known for taping bats in a criss cross pattern I am assuming would generally not deviate from that pattern. Do players switch from one type of tape job to another as a general rule or are all of their bats consistent which would make one or the other of the Ripken bats even more of an anomoly? Since the photo of him holding what appears to be a solid taped P72 blond bat is proof that he taped some bats, would it be consistent to think that he would have taped others differently in that criss crossed pattern exhibited in the ebay auction? The other possibility is that time and age have worn some of the original tape off but still does not necessarily account for a criss crossed pattern on one bat but apparently not on the other.

Anybody with any opinions I would love to hear them.

Thanks
Brett Herman
brettherman2131@hotmail.com

[cjclong]

The taping question interests me because I have an Alex Rodriguez black Louisville Slugger game used bat while with the Rangers that is taped and its the only ARod taped bat I've seen. Wondered if this was unique to him on this one or if another player used it. I suppose this issue comes up occasionally like with the Ripken bat. Anyone know of ARod taping a bat?

[sportscentury]

Brett and CJ,

It's a fair question. It really depends on the player. Ripken and ARod (since you brought them up) rarely, if ever, taped their handles and have had the same bat characteristics, for the most part, throughout their careers.

Then you have players like Rickey Henderson who have varied so incredibly that it is hard to keep up (he used bats with pine tar and no tape, shaved handle, pine tar with criss cross tape, pine tar with just tape on the knob, just pine tar, nothing at all, etc.). To make matters crazier, Rickey's bat variations can often be seen within the same season. I know this from going through Rickey's bats at the stadium a few times. They were all 100% real Rickey gamers (it literally would have been impossible for them not to have been real), but many of them looked like completely different players' bats, because the characteristics varied so widely.

You also have guys somewhere in the middle like Andruw Jones. While Andruw is known for usually using prepped bats with the black/white combo cushion tape, his bats have varied somewhat (shaved handle with no tape, plain handle with pine tar, etc.).

The reason I had placed my first post was because Ripken was so regular in his bat habits. If Ripken did use a few bats with this criss-cross tape pattern, they would be rarer (as you pointed out, Brett), but I don't think that would translate into added value in this case as I don't think many Ripken collectors are looking for this type of a Ripken gamer to add to their collections. It did intrigue me, though, as someone who has owned just about every example of Ripken's bats, at one point or another, but had never seen a Ripken bat with criss-cross tape before.

If there are more pics of Ripken using bats with tape, I am sure I'm not the only one who would love to see them posted in this thread.

Reid

[mr.miracle]

Reid,

Excellent points, prior to this bats appearance I had only been aware of one Ripken bat with tape on the handle prior to the ebay bats appearance but since Cal has minor league and major league bats dating approximately 25 years, it would certainly not be out of the realm of possibility that such other examples exist.

I think you are right that since this or any taped bat would not exhibit the common characteristics that are known in Ripken bats that this would probably not be a bat that would be highly valued by collectors. I kind of presented that wrong in my first post. I think we are probably seeing the reflection of that in the fact that the bat on ebay did not get a sniff at $900.00 when other Ripken bats if genuine would obviously bring somewhere aroun $2-$3k. John Taube just had a flame treated P72 from I believe 86-88 that he was selling for $3300 and I believe it sold rather fast. Just goes to show you what the market is doing for solid Ripken bats right now.

I emailed the ebay seller after the auction ended and he seemed to be getting frustrated by all the questions. I explained to him that a Ripken taped bat was a very, very rare item and most likely this was what was holding back the price as many potential buyers were questioning the legitimacy of this bat.

I appreciate the feedback Reid, I forgot about Henderson using all kinds of variations of tape and many not with tape. That is a great example of players changing things up. You are right however, Cal was known for doing certain things with bats and taping them up was no one of them.

Thanks
Brett Herman

[worldchamps]

I wanted to chime in one more thought about Ripken, the player. I saw a great interview/piece on him on some old baseball show. It talked about his batting stance and how it changed a lot. He talked about resting the bat on his shoulder, slinding it back and forth like a violin, and then a more upright postion, and on and on. The point being is he said he would switch it up alot when he was in a slump or felt like trying something new. Would taping a bat be the same thing??? not sure, but it is a thought.

As for the Arod bat that has tape, it is my understanding sometimes taped bats are for batting practice only. I have heard of some players doing this, not sure about Arod though

Bill

[MSpecht]

I may be wrong, but under magnification it appears to me that the tape nearest the barrel end of the bat, above the second "s" in the overlay SportsIllustrated, is criss crossed and not solid. It is difficult to tell.

At any rate, my other thought is that since taping was a very uncommon/
unusual/rare Ripken characteristic, it seems likely that the few examples that may surface would be inconsistent in the application. Also, another possible reason for the use of tape besides "something different to get out of a slump" may be due a slight injury at the time. That may cause a player to use tape in some manner to protect a finger or hand, or to secure a better grip if one hand or wrist was not 100% at a certain time. Just a thought as I think about things I do on the golf course from time to time to cover off slight injuries.

If Ironmanfan has a different photo than the one posted by Bill, it would be great to see it in a post.

Best to all.

Mike jackitout7@aol.com