Rarest...most photomatched Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie bat!?!

[DTM5]

Re: Rarest...most photomatched Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie bat!?!

Here is a different photo with Griffey Jr. dressed for what looks like cooler weather. The bat is a Cooper and appears to be without JR. after the name from what I can tell. It even has a similar woodgrain pattern above the 3 color ring and up to the Cooper brand...lol.

Thank you to bgakladd along with Barry Colla for helping me connect the dots with this bat. I was able to connect via email with Mr. Colla and he informed me that the photo shoot for the mothers rookie card took place in July of 1989 at the Kingdome however he did not have record of the exact date.

Expanding my search thanks to bgakladd photo lead I discovered the following picture that matches his exactly. Sorry, once again unable to attach another pic??? If some else is able to please do.

http://www.gettyimages.com/license/72542737

The Mariners played Baltimore and the date would coincide with the photo shoot being in July. Seattle played at Baltimore 7/17/89 - 7/19/89. Look at the two pictures they match up exactly from orange coat with a stripe fan in background...to dugout, along with police officer next to dugout, and Griffey Jr.'s uniform and accessories. You can see in the second pic I provided that the bat is clearly taped. Looking at records of the three game series, Junior had at least one hit in all three games.

[bgakladd]

Re: Rarest...most photomatched Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie bat!?!

DTM5 contact me at BGAKLADD@AOL.COM if you want. I want to talk to you about the last photo of Griffey Jr. I posted with the Cooper bat.

[DTM5]

Re: Rarest...most photomatched Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie bat!?!

Funny you mention that because I have emailed their two head marketing personnel with no reply. I may just have to pick up the phone and/or send more emails. Again, all the thanks to members helping to brainstorm, search etc to help a fellow member out. This is how a forum like this should be!

[DTM5]

Re: Rarest...most photomatched Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie bat!?!

Funny you mention that because I have emailed their two head marketing personnel with no reply. I may just have to pick up the phone and/or send more emails. Again, all the thanks to members helping to brainstorm, search etc to help a fellow member out. This is how a forum like this should be!

[sctizzle]

Re: Rarest...most photomatched Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie bat!?!

Thank you for the information.... I should have mentioned I tried calling this number before and it is disconnected.

Looks like Barry is the photographer for the San Jose Giants--maybe someone tbrrr could help you with contact info or ask questions for you.

[bgakladd]

Re: Rarest...most photomatched Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie bat!?!

Wow....that is an interesting pic. The wood grain does appear to join the oval portion of the bat same as my bat and appears no "Jr" No tape looks to be present but maybe he taped it sometime after??? Great find of him using this style cooper in game play regardless. Any additional information with the pic? I'm assuming no, or you would have shared. Thanks again for looking and sharing!!!

Tough to tell on the tape. Zooming in under the 3 color ring I can see a dark triangular shape on the left side, about an inch under the rings. Is that a tape pattern showing? Yours has a similar shape on the tape.

[DTM5]

Re: Rarest...most photomatched Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie bat!?!

Wow....that is an interesting pic. The wood grain does appear to join the oval portion of the bat same as my bat and appears no "Jr" No tape looks to be present but maybe he taped it sometime after??? Great find of him using this style cooper in game play regardless. Any additional information with the pic? I'm assuming no, or you would have shared. Thanks again for looking and sharing!!!

[bgakladd]

Re: Rarest...most photomatched Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie bat!?!

Here is a different photo with Griffey Jr. dressed for what looks like cooler weather. The bat is a Cooper and appears to be without JR. after the name from what I can tell. It even has a similar woodgrain pattern above the 3 color ring and up to the Cooper brand...lol.

[DTM5]

Re: Rarest...most photomatched Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie bat!?!

Worth trying this as it came up on a google search:

Barry Colla Photography & Design
STREET
95101 San Jose
CA
(408) 248-5260

Thank you for the information.... I should have mentioned I tried calling this number before and it is disconnected.

[sctizzle]

Re: Rarest...most photomatched Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie bat!?!

Worth trying this as it came up on a google search:

Barry Colla Photography & Design
STREET
95101 San Jose
CA
(408) 248-5260

[DTM5]

Re: Rarest...most photomatched Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie bat!?!

Nick, thank you for your input. Researching the mother's cookies 1989 Griffey Jr. cards I found that they were first released as a promotional giveaway at a baseball card show at the Kingdome on August 20, 1989. So deductive reasoning would make one believe these photos were taken early in the season to allow time for production of the cards etc. Also, one would wonder since they were taken in the Kingdome that the chance may be higher for being during the season vs. spring training? I would appreciate all the help I can get tracking down Barry Colla's contact information and/or the date of the photo shoot. Thanks in advance to members!

https://www.psacard.com/cardfacts/baseball-cards/1989-mothers-cookies-ken-griffey-jr/3155

[Nnunnari]

Re: Rarest...most photomatched Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie bat!?!

Awesome bat and congrats on the find. Ken Griffey Sr. probably ordered bats for junior through his Cooper rep in junior's model and specs of choice. Having a vintage #24 written on the end and being a C271 would make me feel confident this bat was used by Jr and was ordered for junior. Tony Gwynn used to order bats for his son through his LS rep, senior's name on the barrel as LS thought the bats were being made for senior but they were really ordered for junior. Killer bat. Junior did use the large spiral tape pattern as a rookie as well as the criss cross. Now someone needs to track down what time of year these photos were taken so we can try to pinpoint if this bat was actually used during the season, Spring Training or offseason training.

[Juan Gris]

Re: Rarest...most photomatched Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie bat!?!

I read this thread an hour after it was first posted and was awestruck with how cool of a bat the OP found. I don't collect Griffey Jr. bats but I sure did with his cards growing up and am very familiar with the Mother's Cookies cards. Now, days later, I see some members telling him he should be happy if he is comfortable with this bat?! I understand where everybody is coming from but what is a PSA 10 GU Bat Grade worth if you can't photo match the bat to being used by the player?

Without photographic evidence, bat grades come with an amount of imagination, no matter how much you paid or think you know about a specific bat or known player characteristics. I would rather own this bat over any PSA 10 Rookie Griffey Bat that didn't include photo matches because I can actually put this one in Junior's hands on an important card, as a rookie and it exhibits use. I don't think anyone overstepped their boundary, just wanted to get that out there.

[3arod13]

Re: Rarest...most photomatched Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie bat!?!

It's a great bat and you should be proud to own it! The end!

[DTM5]

Re: Rarest...most photomatched Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie bat!?!

I have to apologize for those of you that may have taken the title of this thread the wrong way and I understand why one might. My intentions were good, I really just wanted a title that would get members attention because I was excited for collectors to see it. My excitement may have got the best of me. If you noticed I put (!?!) at the end of the title....not for people to validate that it is the rarest, but to even suggest I don't even know? Like you stated, do we or would we, ever know and does it really matter. Thank you for everyone's feedback!