Ok, you guys are going to laugh at this, but here is my latest favorite bat: A Bob Didier H&B Gamer from 73-75. No, you won't find this in the bat records section of the site. Didier was a journeyman catcher who played for the Braves and one year, 5 G - 14 AB - 1 H, for the 74 Red Sox. His significance to me is that he was one of 18 players who's Bat I needed to complete my run of Red Sox position player bats from 1960 to the present.

Name: Didier GUF.jpg Views: 743 Size: 36.3 KB

This was advertized as a "Kiya Didier" bat and I was looking (make that looking for 15 years) for a Robert Didier bat. I checked Baseball Almanac for a nickname . . . none. Middle name? Daniel. I looked for significance of the word Kiya . . . . none. Other Didier major leaguers from that time? . . . none. I looked for minor leaguers with the name Didier, could find none. Totally stumped. Then I looked at the bat more closely and thought the "K" might be an "H" to read "Hiya." Punched that into google and after another hour of digging learned that in grade school Bob Didier's friends knew him by his nickname "Hiya."

I'd like to think that when he signed on with H&B he was paying tribute to his friends with his signature and reminding himself of what it was like to reach a childhood dream. OK that last part is the romantic in me.

I match my $40 Didier against your $15,000 Mantle (just kidding!)

soxbats@aol.com
loking for obscure red sox bats from the 1960s and 70s: Carmen Fanzone, Syd O'Brien, Ray Boone, Ron Jackson, Ray Webster, Luis Alvarado, Roman Mejais, Willie Tasby, George Smith, Ken Poulsen, Felix Mantilla, Marty Keough, Bobby Heise, Chuck Goggin, Marlan Coughtry