BOB FELLER - AUTOGRAPHED SIGNED BASEBALL CO-SIGNED BY: ALLIE REYNOLDS, ERNIE "MR. CUB" BANKS, LEW BURDETTE, WHITEY FORD, JOHNNY MIZE, ART HOWE, JOE PIGNATANO, ALVIN "AL" DARK, ENOS SLAUGHTER, TOM GRIEVE, BILLY HERMAN, RALPH "HAWK" BRANCA, LEO DUROCHER, SANDY KOUFAX, FERGUSON JENKINS, RAY NARLESKI, TOM STURDIVANT - HFSID 290657

BASEBALL GREATS
American League (Brown) Baseball, signed by 9 Hall of Famers (Bob Feller, Sandy Koufax, Whitey Ford, Billy Herman, Ernie Banks, Leo Durocher, Johnny Mize, Enos Slaughter and Ferguson Jenkins), and by 17 other ballplayers. The other signers include some very fine players and some not so great but memorable ones.
Baseball signed: "Leo Durocher", "Whitey Ford", "Tom Sturdivant", "Allie Reynolds", "Tom Grieve", "Fergie Jenkins", "Ralph Branca", "Billy Herman", "Bob Feller", "Art Howe", "Ray Narleski", "Al Dark", "Enos Slaughter", "Ernie Banks", "Joe Pignatano", "Sandy Koufax", "Lew Burdette", "Johnny Mize" and 8 unidentified signatures. In all 26 signers. Rawlings Official American League Baseball, Bobby Brown, President. BOB FELLER (1918-2010, HOF 1962) has the most wins of any pitcher in Cleveland Indians history, and was the first pitcher since charter member Walter Johnson to be elected to the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. Though regarded as the fastest pitcher of his day, he himself attributed his strikeout records to his curve and slider. Feller set a ML record with 208 walks and led the AL in both strikeouts and wins from 1939 to 1941. He was voted All-Star in 1938-41, 1946-48 and in 1950. SANDY KOUFAX (b. 1935, HOF 1972) holds the major league record for most consecutive years leading the league in Earned Run Average (1962-1966) during which time his record was 111-34 with 100 complete games, 33 of them shutouts. In 1963, the Dodgers' pitcher was the National League's Most Valuable Player and Cy Young Award winner. He also won the Cy Young Award in 1965 and 1966. Traumatic arthritis ended his career after the 1966 season. At age 36, he was the youngest player ever elected to the Hall of Fame. Edward "WHITEY" FORD (1928-2020, HOF 1974) was the "money pitcher" on the great Yankee teams of the 1950s and early 1960s, called "Chairman of the Board". The wily southpaw's lifetime record of 236-106 gives him the best winning percentage (.690) of any 20th century pitcher. He paced the American League in victories three times, and in ERA and shutouts twice. The 1961 Cy Young Award winner still holds many World Series records, including 10 wins and 94 strikeouts, once pitching 33 consecutive scoreless innings in the Fall Classic. Whitey Ford has the most career wins in the history of the New York Yankees with 236. BILLY HERMAN (1909-1992, HOF 1975) spent his National League career primarily with the Chicago Cubs (1931-1941) and Brooklyn Dodgers (1941-1946). A master of the hit and run play and an expert sign stealer, Herman still holds a host of fielding records, including five seasons of 900 or more chances. He also led the loop's second basemen in putouts seven times.  ERNIE BANKS (1931-2015, HOF 1977) will always be "Mr. Cub," the most popular player the Cubs ever had. He played for the Cubs his entire career (1953-1971), retiring with 512 lifetime home runs. The first black player on the Cubs, Banks came up as a shortstop, where he won consecutive MVP awards, but actually played more games at first base. He led the League in home runs in 1958 and 1960 and in RBIs 1958-59. Banks was All-Star eleven times, was MVP in 1958-59 and won a Gold Glove in 1960. He was the first Cub to have his number retired (1971). LEO DUROCHER (1905-1991, HOF 1979) spent his first full major league season with the 1928 World Champion Yankees, and played thereafter for the Reds, Cardinals and Dodgers. He was captain of the "Gashouse Gang" Cardinals, World Champions in 1934. Durocher was player-manager of the Dodgers in 1939-41, 1943, and 1945. He guided the Dodgers to the NL pennant in 1941, and to second-place finishes in 1940, 1942, and 1946. He retired among the all-times leaders in games managed (3740), wins (2010), and losses (1710). JOHNNY MIZE (1913-1993, HOF 1981), a first baseman for the Cardinals and Giants, led the National League in home runs four times and hit three in a single game on six occasions. "The Big Cat" belted 359 lifetime round-trippers and finished with a .312 average, and spent his final seasons with the New York Yankees. Unlike most sluggers, Mize was very difficult to strike out, and reached base 49% of the time in his career! ENOS SLAUGHTER (1916-2002, HOF 1985) arrived in St. Louis to play for the Cardinals. He was a left-handed batter who hit .300 or better ten times. He led the National League with 52 doubles in 1939 and with 188 hits in 1942, and led in triples in 1942 and 1949. He captured the league RBI title with 130 in 1946. Slaughter was the leader of and top hitter (.318) on the 1942 World Championship Cardinals, and scored from first base on a single to win the seventh game of the 1946 Series. He split the 1955 season between New York and Kansas City, leading the American League with 16 pinch hits. He was with the Yankees for their 1956, '57, and '58 pennants. He had 48 pinch at-bats in each of his last two seasons, leading the League in 1958. In 19 Major League seasons (1965-1983), right-handed starting pitcher FERGUSON JENKINS (b. 1942, HOF 1991) won 284 games, including 6 consecutive seasons with the Chicago Cubs in which he won 20 or more games while striking out 200 or more. National League Cy Young winner in 1971 and a two-time All-Star, he also led the league in wins twice. Although not in the Hall, several other signers here made significant marks in baseball history. RALPH BRANCA (1926-2016), a 3-time All-Star and the winner of 21 games for the Dodgers in 1947, is most remembered as the relief pitcher who gave up the pennant-winning home run to Bobby Thomson ("the shot heard round the world") in the 1951 NL playoff. LEW BURDETTE (1926-2007) was the MVP of the 1957 World Series, shutting out the Yankees twice and becoming the first pitcher since Christy Mathewson in 1905 to pitch three complete games in a World Series. Burdette, whose best seasons came with the Milwaukee Braves, won 18 or more games five times and gave up only one run in seven innings All-Star innnings. AL DARK (1922-2014), the 1948 Major League Rookie of the Year, spent seven of his 14-year career playing shortstop for the New York Giants, the rest split among the Braves, Cards, Cubs and Phillies. He managed the 1962 Giants to the National League pennant and the 1974 A's to the World Championship. Outfielder TOM GRIEVE (b. 1948) spent most of his 10-year Major League career (1970-1979) with the Texas Rangers. An original Ranger who had moved with the team from Washington, Grieve worked in the team's front office in player development and then became a Rangers broadcaster. ART HOWE (b. 1946) played infield for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Houston Astros and St. Louis Cardinals (1984-1985) over his 11-season playing career (1975-1985). Afterwards he managed the Astros (1989-1993), the Oakland Athletics (1996-2002) and New York Mets (2003-2004). RAY NARLESKI (b. 1928) was one of baseball's first outstanding relief pitchers, as a right-hander paired with lefty Don Mossi in the bullpen of the pennant-winning 1954 Cleveland Indians. He played four more seasons with the Tribe and then one with Detroit. Reserve catcher JOE PIGNATANO (b. 1929) played for the Brooklyn and LA Dodgers, including a game of the 1959 World Series, before becoming an original New York Met in 1962. Pignatano planted a tomato garden in the Mets' bullpen, a typically screwball move on that legendary team. Later he was a Mets coach for fourteen years (1968-1981). ALLIE REYNOLDS (1917-1994) was primarily a hard-throwing starter, but Yankee manager Casey Stengel also used him from the bullpen. In six World Series relief appearances, Reynolds recorded either a win or a save each outing, including the final games in 1950, 1952, and 1953. In 1951 Reynolds became the first AL pitcher to hurl two no-hitters in one season. Reynolds won the Hickock Belt in 1951 as the top professional athlete of the year, and in 1952 he was second in the AL MVP voting, recording 20 wins and six saves, and leading the AL in both ERA (2.06) and shutouts (6). Pitcher TOM STURDIVANT (b. 1930) showed great promise early in his career, going 16-6 for the Yankees in 1956 and 16-8 the following year, appearing in the World Series both years. Then he developed arm trouble, and never returned to peak form, although he worked out of the bullpen for several teams through 1964. Multiple signatures lightly smeared but legible. Lightly toned. Otherwise, fine condition.