Rare Baseball Photo Sells For Record Price

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed)
Jun 18th 2009 at 11:01AM

The historic photo shown above could soon be displayed at Yankee Stadium. The near-mint condition photograph is signed by 30 members of the legendary "Murderer's Row" 1927 New York Yankees team and was recently purchased for a record $350,000 which is the most ever paid for a vintage sports photograph. Joe Orlando, President of PSA/DNA Authentication Services in Newport Beach, California which certified the authenticity of the autographs says that the price is nearly 70 percent higher than the last time this autographed picture was sold in an auction less than three years ago. The purchase by an anonymous buyer was brokered by

Memory Lane, Inc. of Tustin, California which also sold the autographed photo for $206,000 in a December 2006 auction.

The 1927 Yankees have been described as the greatest baseball team of all time, winning 110 games and losing only 44. The signatures include names which still resonate today including Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig. Orlando says that several other team-signed copies of this photograph exist but some of the autographs on those pictures are so-called 'clubhouse' signatures, signed by other players or other ball club personnel. The autographs on this photo were personally obtained by Yankees pitcher George Pipgras who passed down the photo down to his daughter, LeMorn Pipgras Simpson who later sold it for $80,000.

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Joe DiMaggio's rookie New York Yankees uniform

Tags: baseball, sports memorabilia, SportsMemorabilia, yankees

Filed under: Sports

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Judy Jun 20th 2009 9:13AM

It is obvious that the autographs were signed with pen and ink, not ballpoint...sometimes old is better and can you imagine the players trying to get the ball point to "roll"

rozey62 Jun 20th 2009 9:23AM

they thought it would sell for close to a million. they stupid for selling it in such a shity economy. that piece is worth a lot more than that.

SpeedydD Jun 20th 2009 10:04AM

Maybe the owner of the photo was broke because of this shitty economy you speak of. Ever think about that retard?

vinconco Jun 20th 2009 1:17PM

hey speedydd. Let me guess your political persuasion..... UMMMMM DEM.. correct? I could tell by the instant name calling. Soon everyone alive will understand the true face of the democrat statist. They are angry all the time and never miss an opportunity to disrespect their fellow man.

itsfid70 Jun 20th 2009 1:40PM

VICONCO, why does something like a picture being sold have to turn into something political? I'm so sick of people like you putting this kind of garbage on these boards. You must be a lot of fun to talk to.

david french Jun 20th 2009 12:30PM

Its an amazing photo...also when you realize that people then were lighter and smaller. Look at Gehrig. Seems he could play fullback for the Giants.

Cooperbeplabs Jun 20th 2009 12:31PM

The 1927 Yankees were not the greatest team of all time. That honor belongs to the 1929 Philadelphia Athletics who were not only statistically superior but were also the team that dethroned that Yankee club.
Sports Illustrated named the 1929 Athletics as the greatest team ever assembled and aptly dubbed them as "The Team That Time Forgot."

sssabotage Jun 20th 2009 1:05PM

Thats Philadelphia for ya. Totally forgettable town, with miserable, rude, & crude people living there.

jsimancas Jun 20th 2009 1:18PM

Philadelphia Athletics might have been statistically superior than the yankees in 1929 , but that was only one year , The Yankees are the Yankees since baseball started to the present times how many world series the yankees have won ? That's tell you what a superior team it is ,