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Al Simmons' playing career spanned over three decades of Major League Baseball. He had an unusual batting stance, with his left foot pointed straight down the third base line; as the pitch was delivered he strode toward third. Consequently, his nickname was "Bucketfoot Al." Early in Simmons' career, manager Connie Mack said, "Let that boy alone. If he can hit like that, I don't care if he stands on his head at the plate." A deadly clutch-hitter and a favorite of Mack, Simmons joined the Philadelphia Athletics in 1924. He was dominant at the plate, and finished in the Top Five in Most Valuable Player Award voting in 1925, 1926, 1927, and 1931. Simmons was a member of Connie Mack's World Champion Athletics in 1929 and 1930, and won batting titles in 1930 and 1931. He recorded 11 consecutive seasons as a .300 hitter and 100-RBI man. He was selected to the first three American League All Star teams in 1933, 1934, and 1935. Al Simmons' best year as a player was in 1930 when he hit .381 and drove in 165 runs and scored 152 in only 138 games Simmons was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1953 after playing for twenty years from 1924 to 1943 and accumulating a lifetime batting average of .334. In addition to his 12 years with the Athletics, Simmons played for the White Sox, Tigers, Senators, Red Sox, Redlegs, and Braves.
This vintage bat was originally sourced from the Hillerich & Bradsby factory tool room where it was made in 1928 at the request of Hall of Fame outfielder Al Simmons. This bat was made on 10/17/28 to serve as a model, or pattern, for the manufacture of subsequent orders of bats from Simmons. This bat has the notation "Al Simmons 10-17-28 " written in vintage grease pencil. This marking is known as "side-writing" and was most commonly used by Hillerich & Bradsby employees to identify bats that were either returned to the factory by a player requesting that additional bats be made to the same specifications, or to identify the date that a new model (or modification to an existing model) was made for a player at the player's request. When the bat was delivered to the company after mailing, or manufactured from the player's request, it was so identified by writing, in artists' grease pencil, on the bat.
A review of Al Simmons' personal Hillerich & Bradsby factory records confirms that a new model was made at Simmons' request dated 10/17/28. The model was to be manufactured "Off His & Dykes, Model Made / 37 oz." This bat is the specific bat made off of that request. It is 37 inches in length and weighs approximately 40 ounces at this time. The bat shows lathe marks on both the knob and barrel end, with nubs present. It has retained a dark, rich patina commonly seen on bats from that period. The side-writing is easily viewed and completely legible, making this bat a great opportunity to obtain a historical Al Simmons lathe bat that is perfect for display and is specifically documented in his personal H & B records.
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