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Ball from last game at Busch, Astros Pennant Clincher
I'm offering a game-used baseball that actually was in play during the last game ever contested at Busch Stadium -- game six of the 2005 NLCS. Of course, that's also a game Astros fans will always remember -- they won their first-ever National League pennant.
This particular ball shows three distinct grass stains and one large black smudge. The MLB Authenticated hologram number is MR697603. If you enter that number into the MLB database, it tells you this ball was thrown by Mark Mulder to Adam Everett. Specifically, it was fouled off on a 2-0 pitch in the top of the third with nobody out. The ball was authenticated on 10/19/05 by a representative of Deloitte & Touche.
On the very next pitch after this ball was removed from play, Everett singled. He later scored the second run of the game on a Biggio RBI single. That run was the eventual game winner in Houston's 5-1 clincher.
I don't know how much this ball was used before it was removed from play, but based on the grass stains, it could have been used for Ausmus' single to start the inning. It may even have been pitched by Oswalt when he set the Cards down in order in the second inning. The MLB database hologram number preceding this one documents a ball from the top of the second, so this ball could have been in play for a while. If you have the game recorded, maybe you could shed some light on this.
Whether you're a Cardinals fan or an Astros fan, this ball represents a little piece of history. And it couldn't have better provenance.
Questions and/or serious offers can be e-mailed to me at birdbats@charter.net. Thanks for your interest.
Jeff
This particular ball shows three distinct grass stains and one large black smudge. The MLB Authenticated hologram number is MR697603. If you enter that number into the MLB database, it tells you this ball was thrown by Mark Mulder to Adam Everett. Specifically, it was fouled off on a 2-0 pitch in the top of the third with nobody out. The ball was authenticated on 10/19/05 by a representative of Deloitte & Touche.
On the very next pitch after this ball was removed from play, Everett singled. He later scored the second run of the game on a Biggio RBI single. That run was the eventual game winner in Houston's 5-1 clincher.
I don't know how much this ball was used before it was removed from play, but based on the grass stains, it could have been used for Ausmus' single to start the inning. It may even have been pitched by Oswalt when he set the Cards down in order in the second inning. The MLB database hologram number preceding this one documents a ball from the top of the second, so this ball could have been in play for a while. If you have the game recorded, maybe you could shed some light on this.
Whether you're a Cardinals fan or an Astros fan, this ball represents a little piece of history. And it couldn't have better provenance.
Questions and/or serious offers can be e-mailed to me at birdbats@charter.net. Thanks for your interest.
Jeff
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