1966 Willie Mays Game Used Bat, PSA/DNA GU 9....

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Sold on Jul 31, 2014 for:

$8,962.50 Bid Source: Live: Floor bidder

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A top-tier representation from the Say Hey Kid!

1966 Willie Mays Game Used Bat, PSA/DNA GU 9. It was deep in the heart of the Civil Rights Movement, two years before Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. would lose his life on a Memphis hotel balcony, that Willie Mays was cast in a cameo on the television show, "Bewitched," an indication both of Mays' considerable fame and slow but inexorable shifting of public sentiment toward justice. On an episode entitled, "Twitch or Treat," husband Darren Stephens asks if Mays is a warlock. His magical bride Samantha calmly replies, "The way he hits? What else?"

Though Mays made his Big League debut four years after Jackie Robinson's dangerous first appearance, we must remember that his athletic legacy extends far beyond his status as arguably the greatest five-tool player the game has ever seen. During the 1966 calendar year that saw Mays' famous sit-com appearance, he completed his eight-season streak of 100+ RBI campaigns, a factor that played a large role in his selection by the venerable periodical "The Sporting News" as "The Player of the Decade."

The provided Hillerich & Bradsby S2 exhibits outstanding use with ball marks, stitch impressions, rack streaks and a moderate coating of pine tar on the cracked handle. Length of thirty-five inches and weight of thirty-three and a half ounces are perfect for Mays' ordering records. A faded number "24" is barely discernible on the knob. It's a splendid representation of one of the most important post-war bats in the hobby. LOA from PSA/DNA, GU 9.

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