1941-42 Joe Gordon Game Worn New York Yankees Jersey, MEARS A8....

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Sold on Feb 21, 2015 for:

$35,850.00 Bid Source: HA.com/Live bidder

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Best Gordon gamer in the hobby dates to his American League MVP season!

1941-42 Joe Gordon Game Worn New York Yankees Jersey, MEARS A8. It's a daunting task, filling the shoes of a legend, but Gordon quickly proved Yankees scout Bill Essick's assessment to be true: "Gordon was at his best when it meant the most and the going was toughest." On Opening Day of 1938, Gordon took his place on the right side of the infield next to the noble Lou Gehrig, assuming the second baseman's role so ably filled by Tony Lazzeri for a dozen seasons. Had Rookie of the Year honors existed at the time, Gordon surely would have claimed the prize, blasting twenty-five home runs and plating ninety-seven runs during that debut campaign.

But instead he would have to wait until the 1942 season to claim one of baseball's top individual plaudits, edging Triple Crown-winner Ted Williams for the American League Most Valuable Player Award. Presented is the sole known garment attributed to use during that historic season by the 2009 Hall of Fame inductee, a road grey flannel that likewise may have participated in the 1941 campaign best remembered for Joe DiMaggio's fifty-six game hitting streak and the Yankees' ninth World Championship.

The format deviates from the club's rather spartan road grey standard only in the appearance of the highly-prized "Health" patch on the left sleeve, a format worn throughout the Second World War but only in 1942 with the eponymous text--the word was traded out for red and white stripes in the subsequent three seasons. Otherwise it's business as usual, with a block-lettered "New York" across the chest and the uniquely fonted number "6" on reverse. Interior collar is tagged "Wilson [size] 44" above an embroidered swatch with "Gordon" in black script.

MEARS comes to its A8 rating through half-point deductions for each of the following four issues: replaced patch (though they confirm the stitching outline indicating removal of the original), light staining, broken stitching at left underarm gusset and slight shrinkage. The solid provenance keeps the grade high otherwise, as the garment was originally sourced from the family of Thomas "Shaky" Kain, who managed in the Yankees farm system from 1939 to 1946.

Gordon's recent Cooperstown enshrinement has left far more gaps in top Hall of Fame jersey collections than available models could fill, but certainly none from that small supply could challenge the supremacy of the offered representation. A special relic from a momentous period in Yankees and American history. LOA from MEARS, A8. LOA from Heritage Auctions.

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